Thanks! Bill Canavan
ADVANCED CLASSES
STARSHIP OFFICER
The fastest path into this advanced class is from the Charismatic hero basic class, though other paths are possible.
Requirements
To qualify to become a Starship Officer, a character must fulfill the following criteria.
Base Attack Bonus: +2.
Skills: Diplomacy 6 ranks, Knowledge (tactics) 6 ranks.
Feat: Personal Firearms Proficiency.
Class Information
The following information pertains to the Starship Officer advanced class.
Hit Die
The Starship Officer gains 1d8 hit points per level. The character’s Constitution modifier applies.
Action Points
The Starship Officer gains a number of action points equal to 6 + one-half his character level, rounded down, every time he attains a new level in this class.
Class Skills
The Starship Officer’s class skills are as follows.
Bluff (Cha), Computer Use (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Gather Information (Cha), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (behavioral sciences, civics, history, physical sciences, tactics, theology and philosophy), Pilot, Read/Write Language (none), Sense Motive (Wis), Speak Language (none).
Skill Points at Each Level: 5 + Int modifier (4 + Int modifier for nonhumans).
Table: The Starship Officer
Class Level Base Attack Bonus Fort Save Ref Save Will Save Special Defense Bonus Reputation Bonus
1st +1 +0 +0 +2 Leadership +1 +1
2nd +2 +0 +0 +3 Uncanny survival +1 +1
3rd +3 +1 +1 +3 Bonus feat +2 +1
4th +4 +1 +1 +4 Tactical expertise +2 +2
5th +5 +1 +1 +4 August leadership +3 +2
6th +6 +2 +2 +5 Bonus feat +3 +2
7th +7 +2 +2 +5 Tactical mastery +4 +3
8th +8 +2 +2 +6 Commanding presence +4 +3
9th +9 +3 +3 +6 Bonus feat +5 +3
10th +10 +3 +3 +7 Action trust +5 +4
Class Features
The following class features pertain to the Starship Officer advanced class.
Leadership
By providing supervision and guidance, a Starship Officer can improve an ally’s chances of succeeding at a skill check. Instead of making a skill check to aid another, the Starship Officer makes a Diplomacy check (DC 10). He cannot take 10 or take 20 on the check. Success grants a competence bonus on the ally’s skill check equal to the Starship Officer’s Charisma bonus or Reputation bonus, whichever is greater. The ally must be within sight and hearing distance of the Starship Officer and must be able to understand him.
A Starship Officer cannot use this ability on himself.
Uncanny Survival
Beginning at 2nd level, a Starship Officer can add one-half his class level to his Defense for 1 round, once per day. (The bonus applies to the Starship Officer’s touch and flat-footed Defense, as well.) He must declare he is doing this at the beginning of his turn, and the Defense bonus lasts until his next round of actions.
Bonus Feats
At 3rd, 6th, and 9th level, the Starship Officer gets a bonus feat. The bonus feat must be selected from the following list, and the Starship Officer must meet all the prerequisites of the feat to select it.
Combat Expertise, Improved Initiative, Iron Will, Precise Shot, Renown, Spacer, Starship Battle Run, Starship Dodge, Starship Feint, Starship Gunnery, Starship Mobility, Starship Operation, Starship Strafe, Zero-G Training.
Tactical Expertise
Starting at 4th level, as a full-round action, a Starship Officer can use his tactical knowledge to coordinate allies. Allies to be affected must be within sight and hearing distance of the Starship Officer and must be able to understand him.
The Starship Officer must make a Knowledge (tactics) check with a DC equal to 15 + the number of allies affected. He cannot take 10 or take 20 on the check. If the check succeeds, all affected allies gain a competence bonus on attack rolls or a dodge bonus to Defense equal to the Starship Officer’s Reputation bonus. The Starship Officer chooses which of the two benefits to impart and must impart the same benefit to all affected allies. The benefits last for 1 round.
If the check fails, the Starship Officer’s allies gain no benefit, but the action is still spent.
A Starship Officer cannot apply the benefits of this ability to himself.
August Leadership
The Starship Officer gains this ability at 5th level. It works like the leadership ability (see above), except the Starship Officer adds his Charisma bonus and his Reputation bonus to the ally’s skill check.
Tactical Mastery
At 7th level, the Starship Officer requires less time to direct his allies. This ability is similar to tactical expertise (see Tactical Expertise, above) but requires an attack action instead of a full-round action.
Commanding Presence
At 8th level and beyond, a Starship Officer can use an attack action and his commanding presence to enable an ally or weaken a single foe’s resolve.
Enabling an ally requires an attack action and a successful Diplomacy check (DC 20). If the check succeeds, the Starship Officer can negate any one of the following harmful conditions affecting a single ally: cowering, dazed, fatigued, nauseated, panicked, shaken, or stunned. The ally to be affected must be within sight and hearing distance of the Starship Officer and must be able to understand him.
The Starship Officer cannot use this ability on himself.
Weakening a foe’s resolve requires an attack action and a successful Intimidate check (DC = target’s level check) . If the check succeeds, the target is shaken for a number of rounds equal to 1d6 + one-half the Starship Officer’s class level + the Starship Officer’s Charisma modifier. The target must be within sight and hearing distance of the Starship Officer and must be able to understand him. A target that resists the Starship Officer’s attempt to weaken its resolve is immune to the Starship Officer’s use of this ability for 24 hours.
Action Trust
At 10th level, the Starship Officer’s mere presence inspires, safeguards, and motivates his allies.
As a free action, a Starship Officer may spend one of his action points to modify an ally’s attack roll, skill check, ability check, level check, or saving throw result by +2d6 (applying a bonus of +2 to +12).
The ally to be affected must be within sight and hearing distance of the Starship Officer to gain the benefits of the Starship Officer’s spent action point. A Starship Officer may use this ability once per round, and not on himself (he gains the normal benefits for spending an action point on himself).
Any character may transfer some or all of her action points to the Starship Officer as a free action. The Starship Officer must consent to the transfer, and these action points become the Starship Officer’s to spend as he sees fit.
VIPER PILOT
Select this advanced class if you want your character to be an expert fighter pilot. The fastest path into this advanced class is from the Fast hero basic class, though other paths are possible.
REQUIREMENTS
To qualify to become a Viper Pilot, a character must fulfill all the following criteria.
Skills: Pilot 6 ranks.
Feats: Starship Operation.
CLASS INFORMATION
The following information pertains to the Viper Pilot advanced class.
Hit Die
The Viper Pilot gains 1d10 hit points per level. The character’s Constitution modifier applies.
Action Points
The Viper Pilot gains a number of action points equal to 6 + one-half his character level, rounded down, each time he attains a new level in this class.
Class Skills
The Viper Pilot’s class skills are as follows. Bluff (Cha), Computer Use (Int), Drive (Dex), Knowledge (current events, popular culture, streetwise, technology) (Int), Navigate (Int), Pilot (Dex), Profession (Wis), Read/Write Language (none), Repair (Int), Sleight of Hand (Dex), Speak Language (none), Spot (Wis),
Tumble (Dex).
Skill Points at Each Level: 5 + Int modifier.
Table: The Viper Pilot
Class Level Base Attack Bonus Fort Save Ref Save Will Save Special Defense Bonus Reputation Bonus
1st +0 +0 +2 +1 Starship Weapon Proficiency +1 +0
2nd +1 +0 +3 +2 Viper Familiarity (+1) +1 +0
3rd +2 +1 +3 +2 Bonus feat +2 +1
4th +3 +1 +4 +2 Starship feint +2 +1
5th +3 +1 +4 +3 Viper Familiarity (+2) +3 +2
6th +4 +2 +5 +3 Bonus feat +3 +2
7th +5 +2 +5 +4 Evasive action +4 +3
8th +6 +2 +6 +4 Viper Familiarity (+3) +4 +3
9th +6 +3 +6 +4 Bonus feat +5 +4
10th +7 +3 +7 +5 Improved evasive action +5 +4
Class Features
The following features pertain to the Viper Pilot advanced class.
Starship Weapon Proficiency
At 1st level, the Viper Pilot gains the bonus feat Starship Weapon Proficiency.
Viper Familiarity
Starting at 2nd level, a Viper Pilot gains a bonus on Pilot, and Repair checks when applied to a Colonial Viper. The same bonus is applied to the Viper Pilot’s attack rolls with the Viper’s ranged weapons. This bonus is +1 at 2nd level and increases by 1 every three levels thereafter (+2 at 5th level, +3 at 8th level).
Minor changes and upgrades to the Viper don’t affect familiarity, but if the Viper Pilot switches to a starship with a different size, different superstructure, different flight system, or more than one new weapon, he must operate it for at least one month before he is familiar with it. A Viper Pilot can be familiar with only one starship at a time.
Bonus Feat
At 3rd, 6th, and 9th level, the Viper Pilot gains a bonus feat. The bonus feat must be selected from the following list, and the Viper Pilot must meet all the prerequisites of the feat to select it. Blind-Fight, Brawl, Gearhead, Improved Brawl, Improved Feint, Spacer, Starship Battle Run, Starship Dodge, Starship Feint, Starship Gunnery, Starship Mobility, Starship Operation, Starship Strafe, Zero-G Training.
Starship Feint
At 4th level, a Viper Pilot operating a starship can make a Bluff check in combat as a move action (instead of an attack action). He receives a +2 bonus on the Bluff check made to feint in melee combat.
If the Viper Pilot has the Improved Feint feat, his bonus on Bluff checks made to feint increases to +4 while operating a starship.
Evasive Action
At 7th level, the Viper Pilot can make a Pilot check to lessen the damage dealt by a successful attack against his starship. If the check result exceeds the attack roll, the damage is reduced by half (round fractions down, minimum of 1 point of damage). The Viper Pilot can make an evasive action check once per round.
Improved Evasive Action
At 10th level, the Viper Pilot’s evasive action ability improves. A successful Pilot check negates all damage dealt by the attack.
COLONIAL EQUIPMENT
Colonial Sidearm (written by Talos)
Type: Double-Action Autoloader Pistol with attached Explosive Round Launcher
Damage: 2d6/3d6 (Br 5 ft)
Critical: 20
Damage Type: Ballistic/Slashing
Range Increment: 40 ft/30 ft
ROF: S/Single
Magazine: 20 box/1
Purchase DC: 18
Size: Med
Weight: 2 lb.
Restriction: Mil
Saylya Pepperbox (written by Talos)
Type: Double-Action Four-barreled Pistol
Damage: 2d4
Critical: 20
Damage Type: Ballistic
Range Increment: 20 ft
ROF: S
Magazine: 4 int
Purchase DC: 15
Size: Med
Weight: 1 lb.
Restriction: Lic (+1)
Colonial Marine submachinegun (written by Talos)
Type: 5.7mm Personal Defense Weapon
Damage: 2d6+1
Critical: 20
Damage Type: Ballistic
Range Increment: 50 ft
ROF: S,A
Magazine: 50 box
Purchase DC: 21
Size: Large
Weight: 8 lb.
Restriction: Mil (+3)
Colonial Assault Rifle (written by Talos)
Type: 5.56mm Assault Rifle
Damage: 2d8
Critical: 20
Damage Type: Ballistic
Range Increment: 90 ft
ROF: S,A
Magazine: 30 box
Purchase DC: 20
Size: Large
Weight: 12 lb.
Restriction: Res (+2)
COLONIAL VEHICLES
Colonial "Land Ram" Tracked Armored Personnel Carrier (PL 5)
Size: Huge
Crew: 3
Pass: 7
Cargo: 250 lb.
Init: -2
Maneuver: -2
Top Speed: 70(7)
Defense: 8
Hardness: 10
Hit Points: 52
Purchase DC: 40
Restriction: Mil (+3)
Colonial "Land Ram"
A Cylon War-era armored personnel carrier, the Land Ram was used by the Colonial Marines. It is crewed by a driver, a gunner, and a commander. It has one top hatch and two side hatches, one for each crew position, and a large door in back for infantry soldiers to load or disembark. It takes a full-round action to enter the vehicle through a hatch and another full-round action to start it moving. The Land Ram is three squares wide and four squares long. It provides full cover to its occupants.
This vehicle comes equipped with a pair of fire linked M-9 Barrage Chain Guns mounted in a full turret (8d6/20; ballistic; 60 ft.; S, A).
COLONIAL STARSHIPS
Colonial "Viper Mk I" space superiority fighter (PL 6)
Designed for action against other small craft, fighters lack the punch to be effective against large targets unless they’ve been modified to carry warheads.
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Fighter
Size: Gargantuan (–4 size)
Length: 25 feet
Weight: 39,000 lb.
Crew: 1 (ace +12)
Passenger Capacity: 0
Cargo Capacity: 1,700 lb.
Tactical Speed: 3,000 ft. (6 sq.)
Defense: 19
Flat-footed Defense: 13
Autopilot Defense: 6
Hardness: 20
Hit Dice: 6d20 (120 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +6
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +7
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +6
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +8/+3
Targeting System Bonus:+2
Grapple Modifier: +8
Base Purchase DC: 38
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 2 fire-linked modified rail cannons +10/+5 ranged (9d12/20)
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: Fusion torch engine, thrusters
Armor: Alloy Plating
Defense Systems: Chaff launcher with 8 chaff bundles, sensor jammer
Sensors: Class I sensor array, targeting system
Communications: Radio transceiver
Weapons: 2 fire-linked modified rail cannons (range incr. 3,000 ft.)
Grappling Systems: None
Colonial "Viper Mk II" space superiority fighter (PL 6)
Designed for action against other small craft, fighters lack the punch to be effective against large targets unless they’ve been modified to carry warheads.
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Fighter
Size: Gargantuan (–4 size)
Length: 25 feet
Weight: 39,000 lb.
Crew: 1 (ace +12)
Passenger Capacity: 0
Cargo Capacity: 1,700 lb.
Tactical Speed: 3,500 ft. (7 sq.)
Defense: 19
Flat-footed Defense: 13
Autopilot Defense: 6
Hardness: 20
Hit Dice: 8d20 (160 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +6
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +7
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +6
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +8/+3
Targeting System Bonus:+2
Grapple Modifier: +8
Base Purchase DC: 46
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 2 fire-linked modified rail cannons +10/+5 ranged (9d12/20)
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: Fusion torch engine, thrusters
Armor: Polymeric
Defense Systems: Chaff launcher with 8 chaff bundles, sensor jammer
Sensors: Class II sensor array, targeting system
Communications: Laser transceiver, radio transceiver
Weapons: 2 fire-linked modified rail cannons (range incr. 3,000 ft.)
Grappling Systems: None
Colonial "Viper Mk VII" space superiority fighter (PL 6)
Designed for action against other small craft, fighters lack the punch to be effective against large targets unless they’ve been modified to carry warheads.
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Fighter
Size: Gargantuan (–4 size)
Length: 32.5 feet
Weight: 39,000 lb.
Crew: 1 (ace +12)
Passenger Capacity: 0
Cargo Capacity: 1,700 lb.
Tactical Speed: 3,500 ft. (7 sq.)
Defense: 19
Flat-footed Defense: 13
Autopilot Defense: 6
Hardness: 20
Hit Dice: 9d20 (180 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +8
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +7
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +6
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +8/+3
Targeting System Bonus:+2
Grapple Modifier: +8
Base Purchase DC: 46
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 3 fire-linked needlers +10/+5 ranged (12d12/20)
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: Fusion torch engine, thrusters
Armor: Polymeric
Defense Systems: Chaff launcher with 8 chaff bundles, sensor jammer
Sensors: Class III sensor array, targeting system
Communications: Laser transceiver, radio transceiver
Weapons: 2 fire-linked needlers (range incr. 4,000 ft.)
Grappling Systems: None
Colonial "Raptor" dropship (PL 6)
A Raptor is capable of extended operation away from its base (frequently a larger ship).
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Courier
Size: Gargantuan (–4 size)
Length: 28 feet
Weight: 90,000 lb.
Crew: 2 (trained +4)
Passenger Capacity: 12
Cargo Capacity: 9,500 lb.
Tactical Speed: 3,000 ft. (5 sq.)
Defense: 11
Flat-footed Defense: 9
Autopilot Defense: 8
Hardness: 20
Hit Dice: 10d20 (200 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +2
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +3
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +2
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +2
Targeting System Bonus: +2
Grapple Modifier: +12
Base Purchase DC: 48
Restriction: Licensed (+1)
Attack: 1 CHE missile launcher with 8 missiles +2 ranged (6d12/19-20);
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: Jump engine, thrusters
Armor: Polymeric
Defense Systems: Autopilot system, 1 chaff launcher (8 chaff bundles), 1 decoy drone launcher (4 decoy drones)
Sensors: Class II sensor array, targeting system
Communications: Laser transceiver, radio transceiver
Weapons: 1 CHE missile launcher with 8 missiles
Grappling Systems: none
Colonial “Battlestar” (PL 6)
The Colonial Battlestar is the backbone of the fleet. It has the ability to launch devastating attacks from millions of miles away, in the form of large numbers of fighters. Battlestars are heavily armed with anti-ship missiles, multiple point defense systems, and their payload of fighters to defend them against attack.
In addition to its normal cargo capacity, a battlestar can hold 72 Viper space superiority fighters and 6 Raptor dropships. Its listed crew complement does not include the ace pilots who fly these fighter craft. (Pilots count against the passenger capacity.) A battlestar can deploy up to 4 ultralight craft as a move action.
Type: Heavy
Subtype: Fleet carrier
Size: Colossal (–8 size)
Length: 4,640 feet
Weight: 140,000 tons
Crew: 320 (expert +8)
Passenger Capacity: 2,630
Cargo Capacity: 38,250 tons
Tactical Speed: 3,000 ft. (6 sq.)
Defense: 11
Flat-footed Defense: 7
Autopilot Defense: 7
Hardness: 30
Hit Dice: 500d20 (10,000 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +6
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +5
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +4
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +4
Targeting System Bonus:+3
Grapple Modifier: +16
Base Purchase DC: 72
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 2 fire linked batteries of 4 50 kt nuclear missile launchers with 128 missiles +6 ranged (24d8/18-20)
Attack of Opportunity: Point-defense system +3 ranged (4d12
One question I had... What was your thought process for not including the various Starship feats (Operation, Gunnery, etc.) in the Starship Officer bonus feats? To me it seems like those might belong there, so I was just curious why you were excluding them (might be some obvious and/or good reason I'm not seeing).
Thanks for posting a lot of really good info for cut and paste thievery.
FT
Well I could say that my thought process was that the starship officer didn't need those feats himself if he was going to be commanding a crew... but the real reason is that I messed up... :embarrass
I'll fix it as soon as I get a chance...
Thanks for pointing that out! if there's anything else that doesn't add up please let me know! :D
OK
I fixed the list of bonus feats for the Starship Officer... got rid of the armor proficiencies and few feats that really only apply to personal combat and replaced them with more appropriate feats that relate to starship operation and the space environment in general.
Batts
ah yes, but do we still get the nnaked army of boomers?
Batts
Yes, yes we do.
Incidentally, I wrote up stats for the Colonial "Land Ram" from the original series using a combination of the mecha and robot construction rules, but since I haven't seen it in the new series I didn't post the stats for it. I admit I missed the last quarter of season 1 and a couple of episodes from season 2, so it might have been in there. I also didn't stat out the civilian ships of the Colonial Fleet due to sheer laziness... Hmmm maybe I'll do that when I get home tonight.
FT
Viper Mk. II-Length ~25 feet, seen carrying missile and bombs before (Hand of God, Home pt. 1)
Viper Mk. VII-Length 32.5 feet (Sci-Fi.com as are all lengths after this), carries three Kinetic Energy Weapons(visible on model), FBW controls removed after Cylon Invasion (Sci-fi.com)
Raptor-Length 28 feet, never seen to carry a cannon of any type (none visible on any model of it either), can carry a few missiles though, probably no more than 6
Battlestar-Length 4,640 feet, carries hundreds of small Point defense weapons, 20 two barreled heavy cannons (Large cannons firing bursting shots in Mini-Series) 8 turrets on top, 8 on bottom, and 4 under "lip" on command section (Seen firing in 33), seems to be under-crewed in Mini-Series (Pilots doing repair work, only one deck crew, members of said deck crew forming most of an "away mission" (Kobol's Last Gleaming, etc)) and still carries 2,000+ people aboard (Tyrol, Mini-Series)
Colonial One-Length 277 feet, it was a civilian liner, absolutely no modifications such as defensive systems at all (Sci-fi.com), only modification were offices on the upper deck and converting the cargo deck to living quarters for 500 people
Nothing on next two ships, they're generics.
Astral Queen (Prison Barge)-carries 500 prisoners in Mini-Series but later said to carry 1,500 (Bastille Day)
I've got nothing on the Rising Star
I've got nothing on the Refinary ship but it is probably comparable in size to the Mining Ship (2,600 feet)
Nothing yet on the Tanker either
Raider-Length 29.34 feet, carries at least ten missiles in two launchers (2 Raiders destroy a twenty ship squadron of Mk. VIIs in the Mini-Series also a Raider later launched four nukes out of just one of its launchers at the Galactica), there is no crew on the Raiders (Mini-Series), they are Biomechanical and seem to be as intelligent as Cylon Centurions (You Can't Go Home Again), I would assume there is no cargo capacity either, also they seem to need to re-arm and re-fuel frequently (Hand of God)
Basestar-Length 5,100 feet, carries at least 250 Raiders in the "spines" alone (Sci-fi.com), carries many missile launchers, these don't seem to be nuclear (Final battle in Mini-Series) but they probably can fire them, I think there is about 24, four per spine
I think that's it for the ships. Overall they seem to be pretty good though, I'm just a stickler for accuracy. For FolcoTook, Starbuck drove a Hummer (in black) and US Army 5-Ton trucks are visible in flashbacks about Zak Adama in Act of Contrition. We've also seen several modern firearms in BSG so far, P-90s carried by Galactica Marines and Security in season 1, L85s, UMPs (I think), Skorpions (duel-wielded by Starbuck), and a member of the Uzi family in Resistance, and finally a pair of HK VP70s carried by Zarek's compatriate in Home pt. II. There are many I forgot (must find screen shots of Resistance) but I think I got a lot of the major ones. I wrote up stats for the sidearm carried by Colonial forces. It seems to do about the same damage as a medium caliber pistol but mounts a second barrel to fire explosive rounds, imagine it like the Le May pistol of the Civil War. I made the damage about the same as the 20mm grenade fired by the OICW. Here's the pistol
Colonial Sidearm
Type: Double-Action Autoloader Pistol with attached Explosive Round Launcher
Damage: 2d6/3d6 (Br 5 ft)
Critical: 20
Damage Type: Ballistic/Slashing
Range Increment: 40 ft/30 ft
ROF: S/Single
Magazine: 20 box/1
Purchase DC: 18
Size: Med
Weight: 2 lb.
Restriction: Mil
Keep up the good work!
EDIT: The civilian pistols in Home pt. II are silver 4-barreled Pepperboxes, another guy there draws a M1911 .45. The VP70 is what Boomer shot herself in Kobol's Last Gleaming pt. I
I will update the stats to reflect these details when I get a chance... probably Thursday night or Friday during the day.
I really appreciate the feedback and constructive criticism!
Keep it up.
Lt. Kara "Starbuck" Thrace: female Fast Hero 4/Dogfighter 8;
CR 12; medium human; HD 12d8+12; hp 108; Mas 12;
Init +4 (+4 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 25, touch 23, flat-footed 21; BAB
+9; Grp +12; Atk +14/+8 melee (1d8+3, unarmed) or +13/+6 ranged (2d6,
Sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 12; Rep +7; SV Fort +7, Ref +12, Will +4; Str 16, Dex 18, Con 12, Int 13, Wis 12, Cha 14.
Starting Occupation: Adventurer (Pilot and Intimidate are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Bluff +12, Drive +12, Escape Artist +9, Gamble +15, Intimidate +10, Knowledge (streetwise) +11, Navigate +11, Pilot +20, Sense Motive +6, Sleight of Hand +8 Survival +6;
Action Boost, Brawl, Confident, Improved Brawl, Light Armor Proficiency, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Point Blank Shot, Spacer, Starship Battle Run, Starship Dodge, Starship Gunnery, Starship Mobility, Starship Operation (Ultralight).
Special Abilities: Defender of the Universe, Evasion, Keep it together, To the Max!, Shake, rattle, and roll, Uncanny Dodge 1.
Possessions: Flight Suit and Helmet, Colonial Sidearm, spare magazine (loaded), Survival Kit, various personal belongings.
Lt. JG. Karl C. "Helo" Agathon: male Smart Hero 2/Dedicated Hero 3;
CR 5; medium human; HD 5d6+10; hp 40; Mas 14;
Init +0 (+0 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 15, touch 13, flat-footed 15; BAB
+3; Grp +5; Atk +5 melee (1d4+2, unarmed) or +3 ranged (2d6,
Sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 12; Rep +7; SV Fort +4, Ref +1, Will +6; Str 15, Dex 10, Con 14,
Int 16, Wis 14, Cha 11.
Starting Occupation: Military (Navigate and Survival are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Computer Use +16, Demolitions +9, Disable Device +9, Gamble +7, Investigate +8, Knowledge
(Caprica) +6, Listen +9, Navigate +11, Repair +8, Research +5, Search +6, Sense Motive +7, Spot +9, Survival
+10, Treat Injury +10;
Brawl, Light Armor Proficiency, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Combat Expertise, Weapon Focus (Col. Sidearm),
Simple Weapon Proficiency
Special Abilities: Savant (Computer Use), Skill Emphasis (Computer Use), Aware.
Possessions: Flight Suit and Helmet, Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), Survival Kit, various
personal belongings.
Colonial Sidearm
Type: Double-Action Autoloader Pistol with attached Explosive Round Launcher
Damage: 2d6/3d6 (Br 5 ft)
Critical: 20
Damage Type: Ballistic/Slashing
Range Increment: 40 ft/30 ft
ROF: S/Single
Magazine: 20 box/1
Purchase DC: 18
Size: Med
Weight: 2 lb.
Restriction: Mil
Keep up the good work!
I'm pretty sure that Apollo mentions that the colonial sidearm is a 9mm pistol, since this is what Boomer shot Commander Adama with during the seasonal finale. Also, has anybody seen episode 7 of season 2? Starbuck mentions a disturbing line: The 13th tribe could see their 12 brothers from earth after leaving Kobol. I have this strange feeling that when the series finally ends, the refugee fleet is going to find a fully populated home world, and the cylons are going to be really grumpy.
I'm posting these two characters here, if you want me to continue posting them here I will, if not I'll just post them on the Sci-Fi board. I'll probably use the Viper Pilot (and a modified version for Raptors) and Officer after I get a chance to really look at them. If I adopt the Viper Pilot, I'll update Starbuck's stats.
By all means please continue to post characters here. I'll copy them into the main body of the first post once you are satisfied with them. And I haven't forgotten about updating that starships, I will do it as time permits.
Here are the basics you need to run a Battlestar Galactica campaign setting:
2 advanced classes (Starship Officer and Viper Pilot), 5 models of Cylons (Infiltrator, Warrior, Raider, Heavy Raider and Basestar) and 4 Colonial starships (Viper Mk II, Viper Mk VII, Raptor and Battlestar). The setting is PL 6 except for the Jump Engine which is PL 9 and the personal scale weapons which are PL 5. This post contains only the game mechanics needed to run a BSG campaign. For more background information and general "fluff" go to wikipedia.com and do a search for Battlestar Galactica. I would post it here myself, but I don't want to accidentally (or intentionally) violate any copyright laws.
I think that, since info on BSG is pretty much "out there" by the lots, it wouldn't be a copyright infringement to add some fluff. Especially if you keep it down to what is already out there (like in Wiki). Now, I wouldn't be able to tell you if you went and grabbed it from the SciFi Channel site, but anywhere else I think it's right.
just a post to let you know that I updated the starship stats to add the Details the Talos provided. I also added the Colonial sidearm that Talos Statted up. Thanks Talos!
Marcoasalazarm, You might be right, but I don't want to chance it. Besides, that's an AWFUL lot of information to cram into a post... I think I'm pushing the limit of what people will read with just the crunchy stuff.
Chief Petty Officer Galen Tyrol: male Smart Hero 3/Engineer 3;
CR 6; medium human; HD 6d6+12; hp 51; Mas 14;
Init +0 (+0 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 12, touch 12, flat-footed 12; BAB
+3; Grp +7; Atk +7 melee (1d4+2, unarmed) or 5 ranged (2d6,
Sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 9; Rep +.; SV Fort +5, Ref +3, Will +3; Str 15, Dex 10, Con 14,
Int 16, Wis 11, Cha 11.
Starting Occupation: Technician (Craft (Mechanical), Craft (Electronic) and Repair are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Computer Use +11, Craft (Mechanical) +15, Craft (Electronic) +15, Demolitions +14,
Disable Device +11, Drive +3, Intimidate +4, Investigate +7, Knowledge (Technology) +12, Knowledge (Starships)
+7, Navigate +5, Repair +15, Search +10, Spot +2, Survival +3, Treat Injury +4;
Builder, Gearhead, Salvage, Toughness, Cautious, Simple Weapon Proficiency, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Mastercrafter.
Special Abilities: Savant(Repair), Improve Kit +1, Quick Craft, Superior Repair
Possessions: Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), various personal belongings.
Just for the hell of it (really, man) could you stat Tom Zarek one of these days? I'm always one for nasty sly convicts.
I think the Traveller 2300 game has some good rules for star system generation, as planets with life on them seem to rarely occur in this series, and that system rarely produces planets with life on them. The important thing is to roll the system first and if a planet of the right size happens to fall within the lifezone of the star, and has the right rate of spin, the right tilt, and hasn't become an ice ball or a runaway greenhouse planet, then that planet has a chance for life. Of the planets that have life on them, 9 out of 10 will be the simple single celled variety in an atmosphere which may not have sufficient oxygen to support human respiration. The 10th chance out of 10 will have a Garden World with a complex ecosystem of its own, there is perhaps a 65% chance that the ecosystem will be alien, and a 35% chance that it will be a Kobol/Terran type of eco system. Basically the the plants and animals will be of familiar varieties, such as dogs, birds deer and so forth, basically that planet may be considered an incomplete colony or a failed colony that was established on the way to developing the 13 colonial worlds of which Earth was lost in the midst of time. There may be some humans on the Kobol-type worlds, but their progress level is typically to low to be of any assistance to the Battlestar fleet or their numbers are too few, or sometimes a plague has decimated the population and their may be ruins that explorers can sift through.
Tom does Traveller T20 have an SRD or anything? Specifically are the star system generation rules you mentioned OGC?
Talos, thank you so much for statting the NPCs, they are not really my strong suit.
Tom does Traveller T20 have an SRD or anything? Specifically are the star system generation rules you mentioned OGC?
Actually system generation rules are completely independent of any gaming system as planets don't have hit points or armor class or anything else, they just have physical descriptions.
To give you an idea, here is the checklist:
STAR SYSTEM CHECK LIST
1. Select Star from Near Star Map. (there is a map showing stars within 50 light years of the Sun, For a Battlestar Galactica Campaign, you wouldn't use it until you get close to Earth.)
A. Determine data from Near Star List. (You can roll this up randomly keeping in mind that 80% of all stars are red dwarfs that aren't suitable for life bearing worlds. The Galactica Fleet would probably pass these over unless they needed to refuel or something.)
1) Spectral Type and Size (Stars which may have suitable worlds for human colonization are types K, G, and F and always size V which are main sequence stars. If you don't get a result such as that don't waste your time filling out the rest of the system unless the Galactica fleet has some other reason to linger there.)
2) Magnitude. (determines luminosity of the star and the lifezone of the star. If no planets are in the lifezone you can stop there.)
3) XYZ Coordinates. (You can do coordinates relative to Kobol or Caprica or even the Battlestar Galactica, just roll them up randomly, typically you can count on their being 3d6 star systems within 10 light years of the Fleet at any given moment. Roll a d10 for each coordinate and a d2 to determine whether that coordinate is + or - )
B. Determine data from charts.
1) Radius (Stellar Radius Chart).
2) Mass (Stellar Mass Chart).
3) Luminocity (Stellar Luminocity Chart)
a. Alternative: Convert Magnitude to Luminocity.
4) Effective Temperature (Stellar Effective Temperature Chart).
2. Orbital Information
A. Locate Companion Star Orbits. (Stellar Companion Radii Table). (Unless the companion star is greater than 3 times the outer limit of the primary's life zone, you can forget about the rest and go on to the next star system. Om the other hand you might want to eliminate all binary systems from consideration, unless the companion is 1/10th of a light year out.
B. Orbit restrictions (such as companion stars)
1) Companion restrictions (companion restrictions Note.)
2) Untenable orbits (Usually due to companion stars, or giant stellar radii which should't be considered in any case. If its not a size V star forget it.)
3) Orbital Zones (Orbital Zone table)
C. Existing Orbits.
1) allowed Orbits (Allowed Orbits Table)
2) Innermost Orbit (Initial Orbit Table).
3)Subsequent Orbits (Subsequent orbits table). Bode's Law
(Now if none of the existing orbits are in the Star's life zone stop right there,)
3. World Data.
A. Basic Data
1) World Core Type (All Inner and Life zone planets have rocly cores and world diameters range from 1,000 to 30,000 km, or 1,000 miles to 20,000 miles if you prefer.)
2) World Size (See above)
3) World Density (world Density Table)
B. Computed Data.
1) Mass (World Mass Table)
2) Surface Gravity (World Gravity Table)
3) Eacape Velocity (Gravity to escape Velocity Conversion Table).
C. Atmosphere Data.
1) Minimum Retained Molecular Weight. (Retained Molecular Weight Table)
2) Atmospheric Pressure (Atmospheric Pressure Table and Atmospheric Pressure Condensed Table.)
D. World Type Data.
1)World Type (World Type and Garden World Table) [i]If its not a Garden World don't bother. Garden Worlds come in 4 types: Pre-Garden, Glacier, Garden, and Post Garden. Only Garden Worlds and possibly Post-Garden, and glacier worlds may have life complex enough to support humans.
2) Water Presence (At least 10% water coverage)
3)Average temperature [i]must be temperate-cold, temperate, or temperate-hot.
4) Atmospheric Oxygen Levels (Atmospheric Oxygen Table). must be within 0.40 atm and 0.05 atm to be breathable by humans.
If you get this far, you have a habitable planet which may have humans on it. Life beraing planets are very rare in the BSG universe, so you have to go through the above hurdles, no exceptions, in order to have one.
Also, has anybody seen episode 7 of season 2? Starbuck mentions a disturbing line: The 13th tribe could see their 12 brothers from earth after leaving Kobol. I have this strange feeling that when the series finally ends, the refugee fleet is going to find a fully populated home world, and the cylons are going to be really grumpy.
I saw that episode, and caught that too. So, hopefully, no more repeat of that stupid Galatica 1980 ish series... gods that sucked.
I'm expecting one of two things...
1) The 13th tribe are the Cylons... it's where they got the idea for the hybrids...
2) Earth is really well off... and the final conflict will be swift. (Assuming the series writers decide to take it out on a high note and go out with a bang and a happy ending... )
I saw that episode, and caught that too. So, hopefully, no more repeat of that stupid Galatica 1980 ish series... gods that sucked.
I'm expecting one of two things...
1) The 13th tribe are the Cylons... it's where they got the idea for the hybrids...
2) Earth is really well off... and the final conflict will be swift. (Assuming the series writers decide to take it out on a high note and go out with a bang and a happy ending... )
1) The Cylons clearly are not the 13th tribe as they were built by humans.
2) The main problem with Galactica 1980 is the sudden adoption of UFOish technology for the sole purpose of deceiving Earthlings, such technology was inconsistant with technology they previously had when dealing with the Cylons. I'm totally against turning the Galactica fleet into "UFO aliens" I don't want to see them building "flying saucers", I don't want to see them developing "cloaking devices", and I don't want any "Men In Black" Gear for wiping minds and so forth. No X-Files Stuff either.
If the Galactica fleet is going to finally encounter Earth, then it should be out in the open, such as in the V series. In other words when the Fleet encounters Earth, Earth also encounters the Fleet and perhaps the Cylons as well. Naturally when the two societies encounter each other there is going to be changes in society going in both direction. Introducing the "sneaky UFO alien" gambit is just a way of avoiding the issue. The thing is, the Earthlings may have some time, if the Galacticans manage to pull far enough away from the cylons.
The Galaxy
I’m assuming the Galaxy is our own Milky Way, a spiral of stars that is 100,000 light years wide. Within that spiral is a region of space that forms a cube 19 light years on a side. This region has an unusually high frequency of G-class stars, 12 of them, they are Caprica G0V(0,-3,-2), Aquaria F9 V(8,6,4), Pisces F9 V(0, -7, -1), Aries G1 V(8, -4, -3), Taura G5 V(0, -7, -4), Geminon G5 V(0,0,-4), Cancia G0 V(8, 6, -6), Leus G1 V(9, 8, -2), Virganon G0 V(6, 4, 3), Libria F9 V(-8, -5, -3), Scorpia G2 V(0, -9, -9), and Sagitaria G6 V(0, 7, -5).
The Galactica Fleet makes its first jump of 19 light years and enters a new region with 3d6 (13) stars, they are numbered for identification.
We determine their types with the following table and plot their coordinates with 3 d10s and 3 d4s with results of 1 and 2 on the d4s counting as negative and the d10s being the distance from the center along the axis either positive or negative as determined by the d4 results.
1d100
1-79 M(d10) V
80 O(d10) V
81 B(d10) V
82 A(d10) V
83-86 F(d10) V
87-90 G(d10) V
91-94 K(d10) V
95-00 non-main sequence star
Non-main sequence stars
1d20
1 Black hole
2 Neutron Star
3-13 White dwarf
14-15 Black dwarf
16-17 Giant type IV
18 Giant type III
19 Supergiant Type II
20 Supergiant Type I
Giant or supergiant types
1d20
1 O(d10)
2 B(d10)
3 A(d10)
4-7 F(d10)
8-11 G(d10)
12-15 K(d10)
16-20 M(d10)
1 G1 IV(6, 5, -4), 2 G1 V(8, 3, -1), 3 M1 V(-8. -5, -2), 4 G7 V(9, 6, -3), 5 F1 V(9, -5, -3), 6 M3 V(0, -5, -1), 7 M5 V(8, -4, -2), 8 M2 V(7, 5, -4), 9 M2 V(9, 7, -1), 10 M5 V(0, -9, -8), 11 M7 V(8, 4, -2), 12 M7 V(4, 2, -1), 13 M8 V(7, 6, -1).
The candidates for further system development are: 2 G1 V(8, 3, -1), 4 G7 V(9, 6, -3), and 5 F1 V(9, -5, -3).
Region 2 (2nd Episode): 9 Stars
1 M8 V(5, 3, -1), 2 M4 V(8, 5, -1), 3 M9 V(0, 7, -2), 4 M3 V(-8, -7, -6), 5 G4 V(8, -5, -4), 6 M4 V(9, 2, 2), 7 M6 V(8, -8, -1), 8 M3 V(8, -5, -2), 9 M4 V(5, -4, -4)
The candidates for further system development are: 5 G4 V(8, -5, -4).
Region 3 (3rd Episode): 12 Stars
1 M7 V(9, 7, -1), 2 black dwarf (7, -5, -3), 3 G8 V(0, 4, -1), 4 M7 V(3, 2, -2), 5 M1 V(6, -5, -1), 6 M0 V(9, 6, -6), 7 M2 V(4, 2, 1), 8 M9 V(9, -7, -5), 9 M4 V(6, -5, -1), 10 M0 V(8, 7, -6), 11 M8 V(9, -9, -8), 12 A1 III(5, -4, -3).
That's quite a system. Based on some of your other posts, I am guessing that its scientifically accurate. (I know you are a stickler for that). :D
However, If you saw Season 2 Episode 7 you might have heard them say that each ofh the colonies is located in the constellation for which it is named (as seen from Earth). This statement has several implications... first that Kobol had contact with the colonies for some time before it was destroyed and or before earth was "lost". Second, Since the constellations form a ring centered around our own solar system, so must the 12 colonies. Third, the 12 colonies must be hundreds if not thousands of light years apart.
Last, the "Earth" that BSG referes to might not be the same planet that WE refer to... infact, if the 12 colonies spread out from a single central location (ie Kobol), there is a strong possibility that Kobol is actually our very own Earth, and that the 13th colony is a completely different planet somewhere else... In fact there is actually a 13th sign of the zodiac called Ophiuchus, and If Kobol is actually Earth, then the Earth that the Colonial survivors are looking for is probably located in that constellation....
Unfortunately that is all speculation so we'll never really know.
Anyway, on a completely unrelated note, here are some NPCs. They are the terrorist turned politician Tom Zarek and his fan (until Bastille Day at least), President Roslin's assistant, Billy Keikeya. Roslin will follow after I write a paper for college tomorrow.
Tom Zarek: male Charismatic Hero 7/Dedicated Hero 5;
CR 12; medium human; HD 12d6+24; hp 96; Mas 14;
Init +0 (+0 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 19, touch 19, flat-footed 19; BAB
+8; Grp +10; Atk +12/+7 melee (1d6+2, unarmed) or +10/+5 ranged (2d6,
Pistol); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 8; Rep +7; SV Fort +7, Ref +12, Will +6; Str 14, Dex 11, Con 14,
Int 17, Wis 15, Cha 18.
Starting Occupation: Academic (Knowledge (Civics), Knowledge (Tactics), and Craft (Writing) are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Bluff +20, Craft (Writing) +18, Diplomacy +23, Gamble +11,
Gather Information +13, Intimidate +12, Investigate +10, Knowledge (Tactics) +18, Knowledge (Civics) +18, Listen +9, Sense Motive +16, Spot +10, Survival +7, Treat Injury +9;
Alertness, Brawl, Combat Expertise, Confident, Deceptive, Iron Will, Personal Weapon Proficiency, Point Blank Shot, Renown, Simple Weapon Proficiency, Trustworthy, Weapon Focus (Pistol).
Special Abilities: Charm, Captivate, Fast-Talk, Dazzle, Skill Emphasis (Diplomacy), Aware, Cool Under Pressure.
Possessions: Various Personal Possessions, 9mm Pistol, 50 rounds of 9mm ammo.
Billy Keikeya: male Dedicated Hero 3;
CR 3; medium human; HD 3d6; hp 18; Mas 10;
Init +1 (+1 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 13, touch 13, flat-footed 12; BAB
+2; Grp +2; Atk +2 melee (1d4, unarmed) or -1 ranged (2d6,
Pistol); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 6; Rep +1; SV Fort +2, Ref +2, Will +5; Str 11, Dex 12, Con 10,
In6 17, Wis 16, Cha 12.
Starting Occupation: Student (Knowledge (Civics), Knowledge (History), and Research are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Bluff +4, Computer Use +6, Diplomacy +6, Gather Information +6, Investigate +8, Knowledge (Civics) +15, Knowledge (Current Events) +11, Knowledge (History) +10, Listen +6, Research +11, Sense Motive +11;
Attentive, Educated (Civics, Current Events), Studious, Trustworthy.
Special Abilities: Empathy, Skill Emphasis (Knowledge (Civics).
Possessions: various personal belongings.
I have added them to the first post. Good luck on your paper! :D
There should be some sort of internal conflict. The last episode I saw number six told him that she was an angle coming to guide him.
"to what end" he asked.
To the destruction of humanity, she replied or there abouts. That is a paraphrase. But I don't really expect anything special from the guy except trying to survive.
Now Tom zarek that guy is just power crazy.
Battlestar Galactica
1d100
1-40 M(d10) VI
41-79 M(d10) V
80-84 K(d10) V
85-87 G(d10) V
88-90 F(d10) V
91-92 A(d10) V
93 B(d10) V
94 O(d10) V
95-100 non-main sequence star
Non-main sequence stars
1d20
1 Black hole
2 Neutron Star
3-13 White dwarf
14 Black dwarf
15-16 Giant type IV
17 Giant type III
18 Supergiant Type II
19 Supergiant Type Ia
20 Supergiant Type 1b
Giant or supergiant types
1d20
1 O(d10)
2 B(d10)
3 A(d10)
4-7 F(d10)
8-11 G(d10)
12-15 K(d10)
16-20 M(d10)
Region 0
Caprica G0V(0,-3,-2), Aquaria F9 V(8,6,4), Pisces F9 V(0, -7, -1), Aries G1 V(8, -4, -3), Taura G5 V(0, -7, -4), Geminon G5 V(0,0,-4), Cancia G0 V(8, 6, -6), Leus G1 V(9, 8, -2), Virganon G0 V(6, 4, 3), Libria F9 V(-8, -5, -3), Scorpia G2 V(0, -9, -9), and Sagitaria G6 V(0, 7, -5).
The Galactica Fleet makes its first jump of 20 light years and enters a new region with 3d6 (13) stars, they are numbered for identification.
We determine their types with the following table and plot their coordinates with 3 d10s and 3 d4s with results of 1 and 2 on the d4s counting as negative and the d10s being the distance from the center along the axis either positive or negative as determined by the d4 results.
1 G1 IV(6, 5, -4), 2 G1 V(8, 3, -1), 3 M1 V(-8. -5, -2), 4 G7 V(9, 6, -3), 5 F1 V(9, -5, -3), 6 M3 V(0, -5, -1), 7 M5 V(8, -4, -2), 8 M2 V(7, 5, -4), 9 M2 V(9, 7, -1), 10 M5 V(0, -9, -8), 11 M7 V(8, 4, -2), 12 M7 V(4, 2, -1), 13 M8 V(7, 6, -1).
The candidates for further system development are: 2 G1 V(8, 3, -1), 4 G7 V(9, 6, -3), and 5 F1 V(9, -5, -3).
Region 2 (2nd Episode): 9 Stars
1 M8 V(5, 3, -1), 2 M4 V(8, 5, -1), 3 M9 V(0, 7, -2), 4 M3 V(-8, -7, -6), 5 G4 V(8, -5, -4), 6 M4 V(9, 2, 2), 7 M6 V(8, -8, -1), 8 M3 V(8, -5, -2), 9 M4 V(5, -4, -4)
The candidates for further system development are: 5 G4 V(8, -5, -4).
Region 3 (3rd Episode): 12 Stars
1 M7 V(9, 7, -1), 2 black dwarf (7, -5, -3), 3 G8 V(0, 4, -1), 4 M7 V(3, 2, -2), 5 M1 V(6, -5, -1), 6 M0 V(9, 6, -6), 7 M2 V(4, 2, 1), 8 M9 V(9, -7, -5), 9 M4 V(6, -5, -1), 10 M0 V(8, 7, -6), 11 M8 V(9, -9, -8), 12 A1 III(5, -4, -3).
[b]The candidates for further system development are: 3 G8 V(0, 4, -1)
Region 4 (4th Episode): 14 Stars
1 M7 VI (6, -5, -5), 2 M4 V (3, 3, -1), 3 M0 VI (-4, -2, -1), 4 Black dwarf (7, 6, 3), 5 M0 V (7, -3, -2), 6 M7 Vi (-7, -4, -2), 7 K0 V (8, 7, -1), 8 M9 VI (5, -5, -2), 9 M9 V (6, 6, -4), 10 M8 V (7, -6, -1), 11 M8 VI (7, 5, -5), 12 O4 Ib (3, 3, -1), 13 M9 V (5, -4, -4), 14 M0 V (-9, -5, -3).
[b]The candidates for further system development are: 7 K0 V (8, 7, -1).
Region 5 (5th Episode): 10 Stars
1 M9 V (6, -6, -3), 2 M0 V (9, 5, -1), 3 M8 VI (4, 2, -2), 4 M0 VI (6, -5, -3), 5 M0 V (7, -3, -1), 6 M9 V (3, -2, -1), 7 M0 VI (5, 5, 2), 8 M0 VI (4, -3, -1), 9 M9 V (6, -4, -4), 10 M7 VI (6, -2, -1).
The candidates for further system development are: None.
Region 6 (6th Episode): 8 Stars
1 M9 V (4, 3, -2), 2 M7 VI (-7, -4, -3), 3 M0 VI (-5, -5, -4), 4 B0 V (7, 3, -1), 5 M8 V (7, 5, 1), 6 M7 V (3, -3, -1), 7 M7 V (7, -5, -3), 8 M0 V (6, -5, -1).
The candidates for further system development are: None.
Region 7 (7th Episode): 10 Stars
1 M7 V (7, 3, -2), 2 M0 V (8, -3, -2), 3 M7 V (6, -5, -4), 4 M9 VI (8, -5, -4), 5 M9 V (7, -6, -1), 6 M8 V (3, -2, -1), 7 M0 VI (9, -4, -3), 8 K8 V (8, 5, -1), 9 M0 VI (9, 5, -2), 10 M0 VI (8, -3, -2).
The candidates for further system development are: 8 K8 V (8, 5, -1).
Region 8 (8th Episode): 5 Stars
1 M8 VI (8, 5, -4), 2 M0 V (4, 4, 2), 3 M9 V (5, 3, 3), 4 M0 VI (7, 6, -3), 5 M0 V (2, -1, -1),
The candidates for further system development are: None.
Region 9 (9th Episode): 8 Stars
1 M0 V (8, 1, -1), 2 M9 V (4, -1, -1), 3 M0 VI (9, 5, -1), 4 M9 VI (6, 4, -4), 5 M7 VI (5, -3, -3), 6 M0 VI (8, 7, -3), 7 M9 VI (-7, -6, -5), 8 M0 V (9, 8, 1),
The candidates for further system development are: None.
Region 10 (10th Episode): 8 Stars
1 G0 V (9, 5, -1), 2 M0 V (8, 2, -1), 3 M9 VI (6,3,3), 4 M0 V (8, -8, -5), 5 F9 V (7, 2, -1), 6 M8 V (6, 6, 3), 7 M8 V (7, 2, -2), 8 K9 IV (6, -3, -1).
The candidates for further system development are: 1 G0 V (9, 5, -1), and 5 F9 V (7, 2, -1).
Total candidates for further system development in the last 10 regions are: Region 1 2 G1 V(8, 3, -1), 4 G7 V(9, 6, -3), and 5 F1 V(9, -5, -3), Region 2 5 G4 V(8, -5, -4), Region 3 3 G8 V(0, 4, -1), Region 4 7 K0 V (8, 7, -1), Region 7 8 K8 V (8, 5, -1), Region 10 1 G0 V (9, 5, -1), and 5 F9 V (7, 2, -1).
The next step is to determine which ones are multiple star systems
D100
1-50 Single
51-75 Binary
76-87 Trinary
89-94 four stars
95-97 five stars
98-99 six stars
0 seven stars.
Find the number below that corresponds to the primary star and role d100 and subtract that number from the maximum number of the range corresponsing to the primary
1d100
-18 and less Brown dwarf
-17 to -16 black hole
-15 to -10 neutron star
-9 to 0 White Dwarf
1-40 M(d10) VI
41-79 M(d10) V
80-84 K(d10) V
85-87 G(d10) V
88-90 F(d10) V
91-92 A(d10) V
93 B(d10) V
94 O(d10) V
95-100 non-main sequence star
Region 1
2 G1 V(8, 3, -1)-Trinary- M3 V, M7 VI
4 G7 V(9, 6, -3)-Binary- M2 V
5 F1 V(9, -5, -3)-Single
Region 2
5 G4 V(8, -5, -4)-Binary- M9 V
Region 3
3 G8 V(0, 4, -1)-Trinary- M7 VI, M4 VI
Region 4
7 K0 V (8, 7, -1)-Single
Region 7
8 K8 V (8, 5, -1)-Single
Region 10
1 G0 V (9, 5, -1)-Single
5 F9 V (7, 2, -1)-Binary- M4 VI
The total candidates for further system development are :
Region 1 5 F1 V(9, -5, -3), Luminosity 8.1, Life zone (au) 2.07, 2.86, 4.15
Initial orbit 0.5 au, 2nd orbit 0.8, 3rd orbit 1.28, 4th orbit 2.04, 5th orbit 3.27, 6th orbit 5.24
Region 4 7 K0 V (8, 7, -1), Luminosity 0.42, Life zone (au) 0.46, 0.63, 0.92
Initial orbit 0.9 au, 2nd 2.3 au
Region 10 1 G0 V (9, 5, -1), Luminosity 1.21, Life zone (au) 0.79, 1.10, 1.59
Initial orbit 0.8 au, 2nd 1.2 au, 3rd 1.8 au
The orbits bolded are the ones within the life zone.
Now we’ll do the planets within each orbit.
Planet diameter
1d20
1,000 miles
2,000 miles
3,000 miles
4,000 miles
5,000 miles
6,000 miles
7,000 miles
8,000 miles
9,000 miles
10,000 miles
11,000 miles (10% chance gas giant if outside lifezone)
12,000 miles (20% chance gas giant if outside lifezone)
13,000 miles (30% chance gas giant if outside lifezone)
14,000 miles (40% chance gas giant if outside lifezone)
15,000 miles (50% chance gas giant if outside lifezone)
16,000 miles (60% chance gas giant if outside lifezone; 10% if inside lifezone)
17,000 miles (70% chance gas giant if outside lifezone; 20% if inside lifezone)
18,000 miles (80% chance gas giant if outside lifezone, 30% if inside lifezone)
19,000 miles (90% chance gas giant if outside lifezone; 40% if inside lifezone)
20,000 miles (100% chance gas giant if outside lifezone; 50% if inside lifezone)
Gas giant diameter
1d20
10,000 miles + 10,000 miles
20,000 miles
30,000 miles
40,000 miles
50,000 miles
60,000 miles
70,000 miles
80,000 miles
90,000 miles
100,000 miles
110,000 miles
120,000 miles
130,000 miles
140,000 miles
150,000 miles
160,000 miles
170,000 miles
180,000 miles
190,000 miles
200,000 miles
Region 1 5 F1 V(9, -5, -3), Luminosity 8.1, Life zone (au) 2.07, 2.86, 4.15
Initial orbit 0.5 au (2,000 miles), 2nd orbit 0.8 au (14,000 miles), 3rd orbit 1.28 au (15,000 miles), 4th orbit 2.04 (13,000 miles), 5th orbit 3.27 (9,000 miles), 6th orbit 5.24 (9,000 miles)
Region 4 7 K0 V (8, 7, -1), Luminosity 0.42, Life zone (au) 0.46, 0.63, 0.92
Initial orbit 0.9 au (20,000 miles gas giant), 2nd 2.3 au (7,000 miles)
Region 10 1 G0 V (9, 5, -1), Luminosity 1.21, Life zone (au) 0.79, 1.10, 1.59
Initial orbit 0.8 au (13,000 miles), 2nd 1.2 au (17,000 miles), 3rd 1.8 au (20,000 miles gas giant)
Caprica
Tauron
Picon
Virgon
Libron
Aquarion
Canceron
Sagittarion
Gemenon
Leonis
Aerelon
Scorpion
One might introduce some of the d20 Future aliens here such as Aleerins, Dralasites, Fraal, Sesheyans, T'sa, Vrusk, Weren, and Yazirian. not all on one planet of course, it is interesting to think about how one of these alien civilizations might affect a Battlestar Galactica campaign. Seems likely that the humans of the fleet have never encountered intelligent aliens before and entilligent aliens haven't encountered humans or Cylons either. I think the Cylons might regard the Aleerins as human, and who knows, they might be descended from humans from Kobol, they certainly look somewhat human. Humans might regard the Aleerins as possibly Cylon, but their circuitry is too obvious, Cylons have a tendency to make Cylons either as completely machine like or almost exactly like humans. The Aleerins instead of building machines to be their slaves intergrated themselves with their machines instead. Dralasites the Cylons would probably ignore unless they harbored too many humans, Fraal are somewhat human shaped, most Cylons would probably call their Basestar before deciding what to do. Sesheyans are a primitive species that probably couldn't help the human fleet when encountered. Vrusk, who knows. Weren are at PL 3 when first encountered, humans might hire some of them as mercenaries and so might the Cylons, but they are quite capable of producing war machines. Yazarians and Sesheyans probably live on the satellites of a gas giant whose distance from their primary is partially compensated by the tidal heating of the moon caused by the Gas Giant, in any event the lighting conditions of that satellite are rather dim.
But I don't think the new series is going to have any sentient aliens in it at all... although alien animal and plant life might be seen, it would be in the background, and not central to the story.
I guess well have to wait and see... of course the great thing about a BSG campaign setting is that if the GM WANTS to he can introduce all sorts of elements from other sci-fi genres... :D
It is reasonable to assume that many planets with complex life forms will be encountered before an intelligent alien civilization will actually be encountered. What's more likely is that an intelligent human civilization will be encountered as BSG assumes that humans have been all over space, the only problem is that planets where they can live are rare. Having 12 planets that can support human life within a short distance of each other is extremely rare, which is why the civilization of Kobol spent the majority of its resources colonizing those 12 planets. A few planets may have been discovered along the way and colonized by Kobol. My guess is, Kobol spend a considerable amount of time sending probes all over looking for planets that could sustain human life, when they discovered the 12 future colonies, they redirected their resources away from the planets they were previously trying to colonize and toward those 12, but one planet's colonization was already underway by the time the 12 were discovered.
There were other planets which were partially colonized, but not enough infrastructure was established, most of the colonists moved toward the 12 colonies and those left behind could not maintain the technology they were left with and those lone colonies were uneconomic to support, so they regressed towards lower progress levels and toward savagery. Some of those planets recovered somewhat and their populations expanded in isolation. Earth is probably the most advanced of those lone colonies, and Earth civilization is around 6,000 years old. The others were probably grubbing around in the stone ages for longer, wile some get as high as PL 3, since they don't transmit radio frequencies, they Cylons have a hard time detecting them.
The Earth is surrounded by a sphere of radio broadcasts that is 100 light years in radius, until either the fleet or the Cylons come within 100 light years of Earth, neigther can detect it as a civilization. Using the 20 light years per jump rule, when the Galactica first detects broadcasts from Earth, they'll be 5 jumps away! the only way Earth could help the fleet is if they first lose their Cylon pursuers, then they can make contact without leading the Cylons to Earth, and hopefully transfer some technology that the Terrans can reproduce so as to keep back the Cylons. Cylons are at PL 7, the Earth is at PL 5, once the fleet arrives in the vicintity of Earth, there will be a race against time to produce enough weapons and train enough troops to give the terrans a fighting chance against the Cylons when they do come. The expanding radio frequencies of Earth will eventually be intercepted by the Cylons in anycase, and the Cylons will attack. Terrans will have to offset superior technology of the Cylons using superior numbers and taking advantage of the Cylons vulnerable long supply lines.
So there are basically two parts to this campaign, first finding Earthm second getting Earth ready to meet the Cylons. Sneaking around as in Galactica 1980 is not going to do it, the Galacticans can make technologie transfers without being noticed by the Earth public, and "men in black" can't sweep things under the rug either.
The Earth is surrounded by a sphere of radio broadcasts that is 100 light years in radius, until either the fleet or the Cylons come within 100 light years of Earth, neigther can detect it as a civilization. Using the 20 light years per jump rule, when the Galactica first detects broadcasts from Earth, they'll be 5 jumps away! the only way Earth could help the fleet is if they first lose their Cylon pursuers, then they can make contact without leading the Cylons to Earth, and hopefully transfer some technology that the Terrans can reproduce so as to keep back the Cylons. Cylons are at PL 7, the Earth is at PL 5, once the fleet arrives in the vicintity of Earth, there will be a race against time to produce enough weapons and train enough troops to give the terrans a fighting chance against the Cylons when they do come. The expanding radio frequencies of Earth will eventually be intercepted by the Cylons in anycase, and the Cylons will attack. Terrans will have to offset superior technology of the Cylons using superior numbers and taking advantage of the Cylons vulnerable long supply lines.
Something to keep in mind for this, according to Starbuck Earth was a "colony" of Kobol. In many ways it is similar to the 13th Tribe in Hebrew history. It developed independantly of the 12 Colonies. From what we can tell the colonists have lived on their respective worlds long enough that Kobol was a myth, presumably thousands of years with a space faring civilization.
As viewers, we know more that Commander Adama and crew, we know that Earth is the cradle of humanity, and that it isn't a colony as the 12 Tribes of Kobol presume. We know (presuming that history isn't changed for dramatic purposes) that Kobol has to be a colony, and if the 13th Tribe can see their brothers from Earth it would be safe to assuem that the 13th Tribe went home during that Kobol conflict.
Now, what does this mean for Earth? It could mean one of several things. First is that Earth maintained its space faring civilization through Kobol's colonization, and thus through the colonization of the 12 colonies. If this is true, it must have a powerfully advanced technological base. Another possibility is that Kobol was colonized because Earth couldn't support life, so the 13th Tribe did go home, but to an empty world. Thus they advanced separately from the 12, but perhaps not any farther. Either way, we're talking a no attacks, no destruction, and an arse load of humans. The final logical possibility is that Kobol really is the home of humanity and we're currently what Battlestar Galactica is searching for. This of all the possibilities is the cheesiest, and least likely from what seems to have been implied so far.
For starters, the constellations of the 12 colonies can only be seen from our solar system, so how could they have chosen those patterns for their flags if they couldn't see them?
and speaking of Earth, Kobol and the 12 colonies... does anyone feel like doing a write up for them in a Star Wars "Planet Hoppers" style? I am not going to have much time to work on this for the next month or so as I will be busy with last minute preparations for my wedding.
Something to keep in mind for this, according to Starbuck Earth was a "colony" of Kobol. In many ways it is similar to the 13th Tribe in Hebrew history. It developed independantly of the 12 Colonies. From what we can tell the colonists have lived on their respective worlds long enough that Kobol was a myth, presumably thousands of years with a space faring civilization.
As viewers, we know more that Commander Adama and crew, we know that Earth is the cradle of humanity, and that it isn't a colony as the 12 Tribes of Kobol presume. We know (presuming that history isn't changed for dramatic purposes) that Kobol has to be a colony, and if the 13th Tribe can see their brothers from Earth it would be safe to assuem that the 13th Tribe went home during that Kobol conflict.
Now, what does this mean for Earth? It could mean one of several things. First is that Earth maintained its space faring civilization through Kobol's colonization, and thus through the colonization of the 12 colonies. If this is true, it must have a powerfully advanced technological base. Another possibility is that Kobol was colonized because Earth couldn't support life, so the 13th Tribe did go home, but to an empty world. Thus they advanced separately from the 12, but perhaps not any farther. Either way, we're talking a no attacks, no destruction, and an arse load of humans. The final logical possibility is that Kobol really is the home of humanity and we're currently what Battlestar Galactica is searching for. This of all the possibilities is the cheesiest, and least likely from what seems to have been implied so far.
Yes, we know that Earth is not a colony, or at least it doesn't appear to be. Humanity evolved on Earth, but also Earth is incapable of colonizing other stars as it does not possess the technology to build starships. There are a few ways out of this paradox.
1) The Earth talked about is the Earth of the Future. Earth colonized Kobol, then something happened to Earth and Kobol colonized the other 12 colonies. That means that when the Fleet finally arrives at Earth, they find a dead or ruined Earth, otherwise presumable Earth would not have lost contact. A dead Earth is no help to the fleet.
2) The other possibility also invokes Earth of the future, but this Earth has wormhole time machines which it decided to use to terraform other planets including Kobol, with time machines terraforming takes no time at all, instead of thousands of years. When terraforming was complete the colonists simply stepped through the wormhole and established the colony of Kobol which was established prior to Earth's Civilization, then something happened and the wormhole connecting Kobol to future Earth collapsed leaving Kobol as the Elder civilization.
The inhabitants of Kobol attempted to reestablish contact with Earth, but couldn't reestablish the wormhole, so they sent out spaceships and finally rediscovered Earth. The problem was that Earth was in its Bronze Age, and explorers named Apollo, Aphrodite, Ares, and Zeus and company set up a base for a time, but then decided to leave for fear of creating a time paradox or something, they returned to Kobol and became the Lords of Kobol. Records of the location of Earth were eliminated except for a few and Earth receded into myth and later became known as the 13th colony. Kobol later on established the other 12 colonies using spaceships as they were through with wormholes. A few thousand years passed and Kobol itself receded into legend, only to be rediscovered by the fleet while fleeing the Cylons. Earth is still out there waiting to be found, this time its in the 21st century, the Fleet doesn't know anything about the time travel stories and so assumes that it is a lost colony.
This makes it interesting in that they find a planet with 6 billion inhabitants at progress level 5 to be bright up to PL 6 so they can have a fighting chance against the Cylons. That is better than the fleet meeting up with a PL 9 civilization that can blast the Cylons to smithereens and for some reason was keeping to itself for all this time.
Yes, we know that Earth is not a colony, or at least it doesn't appear to be. Humanity evolved on Earth, but also Earth is incapable of colonizing other stars as it does not possess the technology to build starships. There are a few ways out of this paradox.
1) The Earth talked about is the Earth of the Future. Earth colonized Kobol, then something happened to Earth and Kobol colonized the other 12 colonies. That means that when the Fleet finally arrives at Earth, they find a dead or ruined Earth, otherwise presumable Earth would not have lost contact. A dead Earth is no help to the fleet.
This is what I'm going with the final solution. Kobol was paradise, because Earth became hell. I also like the concept that Earth is so far advanced, that they really don't care about the Cylons, or anything else. The fleet finds Earth, but discover that the Earthlings don't care about their plight.
The sequence of events are future Earth colonizes Kobol with a wormhole as they don't initially possess a jump drive.
The Earth of the future gets cut off from Kobol as the Wormhole collapses, once that connection is severed, that future no longer exists and is only one of many possibilities.
Kobol then develops the Jump Drive, having lost all faith in wormholes, they then colonize the 12 colonies, although legends of Earth Persist.
Either that future Earth from whence they came is an alternate Earth where the ancient Greeks developed a technological civilization and colonized Kobol through that; or some later Kobolians visited Earth temporarily in its Bronze age and some of the crew members had names like Apollo, Zeusm, Athena, and were mistaked for Gods by the locals. Upon further thinking, I believe that the Kobolians coming from a future alternate Earth fits better for what I want.
Naturally, Kobol lost the ability to make wormholes and travel in time, and certainly the 12 colonies didn't have this technology. What the fleet will find is apparently humanity developed on two planets at the same time, apparently naturally through evolution in each case, as both planets have fossil records that include such things as dinosaurs and the like. Well in anycase the fleet will have to prepare a PL 5 Earth that we know today for its encounter with the Cylons. Naturally some Earthlings will resent the fact that the Fleet led the Cylons there, but they were bound to discover Earth in anycase due to its expanding sphere of radio transmissions.
Now for generating random planets continued.
The next step is to generate the gravity for each world.
WORLD GRAVITY Earth = 1.0000
1 MILE = 1.609 km
Diameter Density (Earths)
1,000s of miles *** 0.4 ** 0.5 ** 0.6 *** 0.7 ** 0.8 ** 0.9 ** 1.0 ** 1.1 ** 1.2 ** 1.3
1 ***** 1,609 km *0.0505 0.0631 0.0757 0.0883 0.1009 0.1135 0.1261 0.1387 0.1514 0.1640
2 ***** 3,218 km *0.1009 0.1261 0.1514 0.1766 0.2018 0.2270 0.2523 0.2775 0.3027 0.3279
3 ***** 4,827 km *0.1514 0.1892 0.2270 0.2649 0.3027 0.3405 0.3784 0.4162 0.4541 0.4919
4 ***** 6,436 km *0.2018 0.2523 0.3027 0.3532 0.4036 0.4541 0.5045 0.5550 0.6054 0.6559
5 ***** 8,045 km *0.2523 0.3153 0.3784 0.4414 0.5045 0.5676 0.6306 0.6937 0.7568 0.8198
6 ***** 9,654 km *0.3027 0.3784 0.4541 0.5297 0.6054 0.6811 0.7568 0.8324 0.9081 0.9838
7 ***** 11,263 km 0.3532 0.4414 0.5297 0.6180 0.7063 0.7946 0.8829 0.9712 1.0595 1.1477
8 ***** 12,872 km 0.4036 0.5045 0.6054 0.7063 0.8072 0.9081 1.0090 1.1099 1.2108 1.3117
9 ***** 14,481 km 0.4541 0.5676 0.6811 0.7946 0.9081 1.0216 1.1351 1.2486 1.3622 1.4757
10 **** 16,090 km 0.5045 0.6306 0.7568 0.8829 1.0090 1.1351 1.2613 1.3874 1.5135 1.6396
11 **** 17,699 km 0.5550 0.6937 0.8324 0.9712 1.1099 1.2486 1.3874 1.5261 1.6649 1.8036
12 **** 19,308 km 0.6054 0.7568 0.9081 1.0595 1.2108 1.3622 1.5135 1.6649 1.8162 1.9676
13 **** 20,917 km 0.6559 0.8198 0.9838 1.1477 1.3117 1.4757 1.6396 1.8036 1.9676 2.1351
14 **** 22,526 km 0.7063 0.8829 1.0595 1.2360 1.4126 1.5892 1.7658 1.9423 2.1189 2.2955
15 **** 24,135 km 0.7568 0.9459 1.1351 1.3243 1.5135 1.7027 1.8919 2.0811 2.2703 2.4594
16 **** 25,744 km 0.8072 1.0090 1.2108 1.4126 1.6144 1.8162 2.0180 2.2198 2.4216 2.6234
17 **** 27,353 km 0.8577 1.0721 1.2865 1.5009 1.7153 1.9297 2.1441 2.3585 2.5730 2.7874
18 **** 28,962 km 0.9081 1.1351 1.3622 1.5891 1.8162 2.0432 2.2703 2.4973 2.7243 2.9513
19 **** 30,571 km 0.9586 1.1982 1.4378 1.6775 1.9171 2.1567 2.3964 2.6360 2.8757 3.1153
20 **** 32,180 km 1.0090 1.2613 1.5135 1.7658 2.0180 2.2703 2.5225 2.7748 3.0270 3.2793
Generating World Density
Sizes 1 to 3
Roll 1d10
Result: 1 = 0.4; 2 = 0.5; 3 = 0.6; 4 = 0.7; 5 = 0.8; 6 = 0.9; 7 = 1.0; 8 = 1.1; 9 = 1.2; 10 = 1.3
Sizes 4 to 6
Roll 3d4+1
Result: 4 = 0.4; 5 = 0.5; 6 = 0.6; 7 = 0.7; 8 = 0.8; 9 = 0.9; 10 = 1.0; 11 = 1.1; 12 = 1.2; 13 = 1.3
Sizes 7 to 10
Roll 3d6
Result: 3 = 0.6; 4 & 5 = 0.7; 6 & 7 = 0.8; 8 & 9 = 0.9; 10 & 11 = 1.0; 12 & 13 = 1.1; 14 & 15 = 1.2; 16+ = 1.3
Sizes 11 to 20
Roll 4d6 and add best 3
Result: 3 = 0.6; 4 & 5 = 0.7; 6 & 7 = 0.8; 8 & 9 = 0.9; 10 & 11 = 1.0; 12 & 13 = 1.1; 14 & 15 = 1.2; 16+ = 1.3
Region 1 5 F1 V(9, -5, -3), 5th orbit 3.27 (9,000 miles) density = 0.5, gravity = 0.5676.
Region 10 1 G0 V (9, 5, -1) Initial orbit 0.8 au (13,000 miles) density = 1.0, gravity = 1.6396; 2nd 1.2 au (17,000 miles), density = 1.3, gravity = 2.7874.
The Galactica and her fleet could jump into the Alternity campaign setting, Star Frontiers, Babylon 5, Aliens, Star Trek, Star Wars... etc... Or you could leave it as is or even concentrate on the era 100-50 years before the show during the Cylon War...
¼ gravity - (0.1251 g to 0.3750 g) 150 lb. human
Strength **** Light Load ** Medium Load Heavy Load
1 g Speed *** 30 feet ***** 20 feet ***** 15 feet
¼ g Speed ** 40 feet ***** 30 feet ***** 25 feet
1 g Speed *** 20 feet ***** 15 feet ***** 10 feet
¼ g Speed ** 30 feet ***** 25 feet ***** 20 feet
Strength **** Light Load ** Medium Load Heavy Load
1 **** ***** up to 463 lb. * 464 to 475 lb. 476 to 490 lb.
2 **** ***** up to 475 lb. * 476 to 502 lb. 503 to 530 lb.
3 **** ***** up to 490 lb. * 491 to 530 lb. 531 to 570 lb.
4 **** ***** up to 502 lb. * 503 to 554 lb. 555 to 610 lb.
5 **** ***** up to 514 lb. * 515 to 582 lb. 583 to 650 lb.
6 **** ***** up to 530 lb. * 531 to 610 lb. 611 to 690 lb.
7 **** ***** up to 542 lb. * 543 to 634 lb 635 to 730 lb.
8 **** ***** up to 554 lb. * 555 to 662 lb. 663 to 770 lb.
9 **** ***** up to 570 lb. * 571 to 690 lb. 691 to 810 lb.
10 *** ***** up to 582 lb. * 583 to 714 lb. 715 to 850 lb.
11 *** ***** up to 602 lb. * 603 to 754 lb. 755 to 910 lb.
12 *** ***** up to 622 lb. * 623 to 794 lb. 795 to 970 lb.
13 *** ***** up to 650 lb. * 651 to 850 lb. 851 to 1050 lb.
14 *** ***** up to 682 lb. * 683 to 914 lb. 915 to 1150 lb.
15 *** ***** up to 714 lb. * 715 to 982 lb. 983 to 1250 lb.
16 *** ***** up to 754 lb. * 755 to 1062 lb.1063 to 1370 lb.
17 *** ***** up to 794 lb. * 795 to 1142 lb.1143 to 1490 lb
18 *** ***** up to 850 lb. * 851 to 1250 lb.1251 to 1650 lb.
19 *** ***** up to 914 lb. * 915 to 1382 lb 1383 to 1850 lb.
20 *** ***** up to 982 lb. * 983 to 1514 lb 1515 to 2050 lb.
21 *** ***** up to 1062 lb.1063 to 1562 lb 1563 to 2250 lb.
22 *** ***** up to 1142 lb.1143 to 1722 lb 1723 to 2530 lb.
23 *** ***** up to 1250 lb.1251 to 2050 lb 2051 to 2850 lb.
24 *** ***** up to 1382 lb 1383 to 2314 lb 2315 to 3250 lb.
25 *** ***** up to 1514 lb 1515 to 2582 lb 2583 to 3650 lb.
26 *** ***** up to 1562 lb 1563 to 2790 lb 2791 to 4130 lb
27 *** ***** up to 1834 lb.1835 to 3222 lb.3223 to 4610 lb.
28 *** ***** up to 2050 lb.2051 to 3650 lb.3651 to 4800 lb.
29 *** ***** up to 2314 lb.2315 to 3732 lb.3733 to 5600 lb.
Skill Check Bonuses: Creatures in a ¼ gravity environment gain a +15 bonus on Strength-based skill checks (including Climb, Jump, and Swim checks).
Attack Roll Penalty: Creatures take a -3 penalty on attack rolls in a ¼ gravity environment unless they are native to that environment or have Zero-G Training feat (described in Chapter 1: Characters – d20 Future).
Damage from Falling: Creatures do not fall as quickly in a ¼ gravity environment. Falling damage is reduced from 1d6 points per 10 feet fallen to 1d4 feet per 15 feet fallen.
Long-Term Effects: Long-term exposer to ¼ gravity conditions can cause serious problems when returning to normal gravity. A creature that spends 120 hours or more in a ¼ gravity environment takes 1d8 points of temporary Strength damage upon returning to normal gravity.
½ gravity - (0.3751 g to 0.6250 g) 150 lb. human
Strength **** Light Load ** Medium Load Heavy Load
1 g Speed *** 30 feet ***** 20 feet ***** 15 feet
½ g Speed ** 35 feet ***** 25 feet ***** 20 feet
1 g Speed *** 20 feet ***** 15 feet ***** 10 feet
½ g Speed ** 25 feet ***** 20 feet ***** 15 feet
Strength **** Light Load ** Medium Load Heavy Load
1 **** ***** up to 156 lb. * 157 to 162 lb. 163 to 170 lb.
2 **** ***** up to 162 lb. * 163 to 176 lb. 177 to 190 lb.
3 **** ***** up to 170 lb. * 171 to 190 lb. 191 to 210 lb.
4 **** ***** up to 176 lb. * 177 to 202 lb. 203 to 230 lb.
5 **** ***** up to 182 lb. * 183 to 216 lb. 217 to 250 lb.
6 **** ***** up to 190 lb. * 191 to 230 lb. 231 to 270 lb.
7 **** ***** up to 196 lb. * 197 to 242 lb. 243 to 290 lb.
8 **** ***** up to 202 lb. * 203 to 256 lb. 257 to 310 lb.
9 **** ***** up to 210 lb. * 211 to 270 lb. 271 to 330 lb.
10 *** ***** up to 216 lb. * 217 to 282 lb. 283 to 350 lb.
11 *** ***** up to 226 lb. * 227 to 302 lb. 303 to 380 lb.
12 *** ***** up to 236 lb. * 237 to 322 lb. 323 to 410 lb.
13 *** ***** up to 250 lb. * 251 to 350 lb. 351 to 450 lb.
14 *** ***** up to 266 lb. * 267 to 382 lb. 383 to 500 lb.
15 *** ***** up to 282 lb. * 283 to 416 lb. 417 to 550 lb.
16 *** ***** up to 302 lb. * 303 to 456 lb. 457 to 610 lb.
17 *** ***** up to 322 lb. * 323 to 496 lb. 497 to 670 lb.
18 *** ***** up to 350 lb. * 351 to 550 lb. 551 to 750 lb.
19 *** ***** up to 382 lb. * 383 to 616 lb. 617 to 850 lb.
20 *** ***** up to 416 lb. * 417 to 682 lb. 683 to 950 lb.
21 *** ***** up to 456 lb. * 457 to 762 lb. 763 to 1070 lb.
22 *** ***** up to 496 lb. * 497 to 842 lb. 843 to 1190 lb.
23 *** ***** up to 550 lb. * 551 to 950 lb. 951 to 1350 lb.
24 *** ***** up to 616 lb. 617 to 1082 lb. 1083 to 1550 lb.
25 *** ***** up to 682 lb. 683 to 1216 lb. 1217 to 1750 lb.
26 *** ***** up to 762 lb. 763 to 1376 lb. 1377 to 1990 lb.
27 *** ***** up to 842 lb. 843 to 1536 lb. 1537 to 2230 lb.
28 *** ***** up to 950 lb. 951 to 1750 lb. 1751 to 2400 lb.
29 *** ***** up to 1082 lb 1083 to 2016 lb 2017 to 2800 lb.
Skill Check Bonuses: Creatures in a ½ gravity environment gain a +10 bonus on Strength-based skill checks (including Climb, Jump, and Swim checks).
Attack Roll Penalty: Creatures take a -2 penalty on attack rolls in a ½ gravity environment unless they are native to that environment or have Zero-G Training feat (described in Chapter 1: Characters – d20 Future).
Damage from Falling: Creatures do not fall as quickly in a ½ gravity environment. Falling damage is reduced from 1d6 points per 10 feet fallen to 1d4 feet per 10 feet fallen.
Long-Term Effects: Long-term exposer to ½ gravity conditions can cause serious problems when returning to normal gravity. A creature that spends 120 hours or more in a ½ gravity environment takes 1d6 points of temporary Strength damage upon returning to normal gravity.
¾ gravity - (0.6251 g to 0.8750 g) 150 lb. human
Strength **** Light Load ** Medium Load Heavy Load
1 g Speed *** 30 feet ***** 20 feet ***** 15 feet
¾ g Speed ** 30 feet ***** 20 feet ***** 15 feet
1 g Speed *** 20 feet ***** 15 feet ***** 10 feet
¾ g Speed ** 20 feet ***** 15 feet ***** 10 feet
Strength **** Light Load ** Medium Load Heavy Load
1 **** ***** up to 54 lb. ** 55 to 58 lb. ** 59 to 63 lb.
2 **** ***** up to 58 lb. ** 59 to 67 lb. ** 68 to 76 lb.
3 **** ***** up to 63 lb. ** 64 to 76 lb. ** 77 to 90 lb.
4 **** ***** up to 67 lb. ** 68 to 84 lb. ** 85 to 103 lb.
5 **** ***** up to 71 lb. ** 72 to 94 lb. ** 95 to 116 lb.
6 **** ***** up to 76 lb. ** 77 to 103 lb. * 104 to 130 lb.
7 **** ***** up to 80 lb. ** 81 to 111 lb. * 112 to 143 lb.
8 **** ***** up to 84 lb. ** 85 to 120 lb. * 121 to 156 lb.
9 **** ***** up to 90 lb. ** 91 to 130 lb. * 131 to 170 lb.
10 *** ***** up to 94 lb. ** 95 to 138 lb. * 139 to 183 lb.
11 *** ***** up to 100 lb. * 101 to 151 lb. 152 to 203 lb.
12 *** ***** up to 107 lb. * 108 to 164 lb. 165 to 223 lb.
13 *** ***** up to 116 lb. * 117 to 183 lb. 184 to 250 lb.
14 *** ***** up to 127 lb. * 128 to 204 lb. 205 to 283 lb.
15 *** ***** up to 138 lb. * 139 to 227 lb. 228 to 316 lb.
16 *** ***** up to 151 lb. * 152 to 254 lb. 255 to 356 lb.
17 *** ***** up to 164 lb. * 165 to 280 lb. 281 to 396 lb.
18 *** ***** up to 183 lb .* 184 to 316 lb. 317 to 450 lb.
19 *** ***** up to 204 lb. * 205 to 360 lb. 361 to 516 lb.
20 *** ***** up to 227 lb. * 228 to 404 lb. 405 to 583 lb.
Skill Check Bonuses: Creatures in a ¾ gravity environment gain a +5 bonus on Strength-based skill checks (including Climb, Jump, and Swim checks).
Attack Roll Penalty: Creatures take a -1 penalty on attack rolls in a ¾ gravity environment unless they are native to that environment or have Zero-G Training feat (described in Chapter 1: Characters – d20 Future).
Damage from Falling: Creatures do not fall as quickly in a ¾ gravity environment. Falling damage is reduced from 1d6 points per 10 feet fallen to 1d6-1 feet per 10 feet fallen. (a result of 0 counts as 1 point of damage.)
Long-Term Effects: Long-term exposer to ¾ gravity conditions can cause serious problems when returning to normal gravity. A creature that spends 120 hours or more in a 3/4 gravity environment takes 1d4 points of temporary Strength damage upon returning to normal gravity.
The other gravity environments are:
0 gravity – (0.0000 g to 0.1250 g)
¼ gravity - (0.1251 g to 0.3750 g)
½ gravity - (0.3751 g to 0.6250 g)
¾ gravity - (0.6251 g to 0.8750 g)
1 gravity - (0.8751 g to 1.1250 g)
1¼ gravities - (1.1251 g to 1.3750 g)
1½ gravities - (1.3751 g to 1.6250 g)
1 ¾ gravities - (1.6251 g to 1.8750 g)
2 gravities - (1.8751 g to 2.1250 g)
2¼ gravities - (2.1251 g to 2.3750 g)
2½ gravities - (2.3751 g to 2.6250 g)
2¾ gravities - (2.6251 g to 2.8750 g)
3 gravities - (2.8751 g to 3.1250 g)
3¼ gravities - (3.1251 g to 3.3750 g)
WORLD GRAVITY Environments Earth = 1
1 MILE = 1.609 km
Diameter Density (Earths)
1,000s of miles **** 0.4 ** 0.5 ** 0.6 ** 0.7 ** 0.8 ** 0.9 ** 1.0 ** 1.1 ** 1.2 ** 1.3
1 **** 1,609 km *** 0 *** 0 *** 0 *** 0 *** 0 *** 0 *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ¼
2 **** 3,218 km *** 0 *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ¼
3 **** 4,827 km *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ½ *** ½ *** ½ *** ½
4 **** 6,436 km *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ½ *** ½ *** ½ *** ½ *** ½ *** ¾
5 **** 8,045 km *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ½ *** ½ *** ½ *** ½ *** ¾ *** ¾ *** ¾ *** ¾
6 **** 9,654 km *** ¼ *** ½ *** ½ *** ½ *** ½ *** ¾ *** ¾ *** ¾ *** 1 *** 1
7 **** 11,263 km ** ¼ *** ½ *** ½ *** ½ *** ¾ *** ¾ *** 1 *** 1 *** 1 *** 1¼
8 **** 12,872 km ** ½ *** ½ *** ½ *** ¾ *** ¾ *** 1 *** 1 *** 1 *** 1¼ ** 1¼
9 **** 14,481 km ** ½ *** ½ *** ¾ *** ¾ *** 1 *** 1 *** 1¼ ** 1¼ ** 1¼ ** 1½
10 *** 16,090 km ** ½ *** ¾ *** ¾ *** 1 *** 1 *** 1¼ ** 1¼ ** 1½ ** 1½ ** 1¾
11 *** 17,699 km ** ½ *** ¾ *** ¾ *** 1 *** 1 *** 1¼ ** 1½ ** 1½ ** 1¾ ** 1¾
12 *** 19,308 km ** ½ *** ¾ *** 1 *** 1 *** 1¼ ** 1¼ ** 1½ ** 1¾ ** 1¾ ** 2
13 *** 20,917 km ** ¾ *** ¾ *** 1 *** 1¼ ** 1¼ ** 1½ ** 1¾ ** 1¾ ** 2 *** 2¼
14 *** 22,526 km ** ¾ *** 1 *** 1 *** 1¼ ** 1½ ** 1½ ** 1¾ ** 2 *** 2 *** 2¼
15 *** 24,135 km ** ¾ *** 1 *** 1¼ ** 1¼ ** 1½ ** 1¾ ** 2 *** 2 *** 2¼ ** 2½
16 *** 25,744 km ** ¾ *** 1 *** 1¼ ** 1½ ** 1½ ** 1¾ ** 2 *** 2¼ ** 2½ **2½
17 *** 27,353 km ** ¾ *** 1 *** 1¼ ** 1½ ** 1¾ ** 2 *** 2¼ ** 2¼ ** 2½ ** 2¾
18 *** 28,962 km ** 1 *** 1¼ ** 1¼ ** 1½ ** 1¾ ** 2 *** 2¼ ** 2½ ** 2¾ ** 3
19 *** 30,571 km ** 1 *** 1¼ ** 1½ ** 1¾ ** 2 *** 2¼ ** 2½ ** 2¾ ** 3 *** 3
20 *** 32,180 km ** 1 *** 1¼ ** 1½ ** 1¾ ** 2 *** 2¼ ** 2½ ** 2¾ ** 3 *** 3¼
Hell, I'm using THESE things for my next Future campaign.
By the way, I saw the last Episode of Battlestar Galactica, but I didn't see the Season Opener. I noticed that the Boomer who was stranded on Caprica and got pregnant by Helo was in jail for being a Cylon. So What happened to the other Boomer, you know, the one who shot Commander Adama. And what did happed to Adama's Coup where he deposed the President? As I noticed that the President is back in office, they must have resolved it somehow. So was the Boomer sho shot Adama executed while the other one who was with Helo jailed?
By the way, I saw the last Episode of Battlestar Galactica, but I didn't see the Season Opener. I noticed that the Boomer who was stranded on Caprica and got pregnant by Helo was in jail for being a Cylon. So What happened to the other Boomer, you know, the one who shot Commander Adama. And what did happed to Adama's Coup where he deposed the President? As I noticed that the President is back in office, they must have resolved it somehow. So was the Boomer sho shot Adama executed while the other one who was with Helo jailed?
Boomer 1 (Adama shooter) was killed by shipman something or other, the one that was with the chief on Kobol during the crash. Adama came to his sense and realized that neither fleet could go anywhere without the missing ships, so he kissed and made up.
Basically there are 4 ways to play a BSG campaign...
1) adventures prior to the series, probably during the Cylon War
2) adventures as part of the Galactica Fleet
3) adventures as survivors of the destruction of the colonies that are either left on the colonies or on FTL ships that didn't join Galactica.
4) adventures after reaching Earth
Type 1 and 4 would use the standard wealth system, but type 2 and 3 are definitely PA societies.
That is exactly how I would handle it.
Basically there are 4 ways to play a BSG campaign...
1) adventures prior to the series, probably during the Cylon War
2) adventures as part of the Galactica Fleet
3) adventures as survivors of the destruction of the colonies that are either left on the colonies or on FTL ships that didn't join Galactica.
4) adventures after reaching Earth
Type 1 and 4 would use the standard wealth system, but type 2 and 3 are definitely PA societies.
There are other possibilities as well.
1) There are wrecks from the Cylon War which might be scavanged.
1a.) Sleeper ships with frozen crews.
1b.) Generation ships.
The trouble with the last two is they don't have jump drives, their populations might be more than the fleet can accomodate, and so present a moral dilemma. Probably the Generation ship is the bigger problem, frozen crews can be stored in some cargo hold, they don't require life support and they can be revived as needed to replace losses to the fleet.
Boomer 1 (Adama shooter) was killed by shipman something or other, the one that was with the chief on Kobol during the crash. Adama came to his sense and realized that neither fleet could go anywhere without the missing ships, so he kissed and made up.
Specialist Cally killed G-Boomer in Resistance. Boomer ended up just like Lee Harvey Oswald.
Anyway, I'm working on Baltar and Roslyn at the moment, they'll be done soon. I did convert Starbuck to the Viper Pilot class. Here you go,
Lt. Kara "Starbuck" Thrace: female Fast Hero 4/Viper Pilot 8;
CR 12; medium human; HD 4d8+4 plus 8d10+8; hp 126; Mas 12;
Init +4 (+4 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 26, touch 24, flat-footed 22; BAB
+9; Grp +12; Atk +14/+8 melee (1d8+3, unarmed) or +13/+6 ranged (2d6,
Sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 12; Rep +7; SV Fort +4, Ref +12, Will +6; Str 16, Dex 18, Con 12,
Int 13, Wis 12, Cha 14.
Starting Occupation: Adventurer (Pilot and Intimidate are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Bluff +12, Drive +12, Escape Artist +9, Gamble +15, Intimidate +10, Knowledge (streetwise) +11, Navigate +11, Pilot +20, Sense Motive +6, Sleight of Hand +8 Survival +6;
Action Boost, Brawl, Confident, Improved Brawl, Light Armor Proficiency, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Point Blank Shot, Spacer, Starship Battle Run, Starship Dodge, Starship Gunnery, Starship Mobility, Starship Operation (Ultralight), Simple Weapon Proficiency.
Special Abilities: Evasion, Evasive Action, Starship Feint, Uncanny Dodge 1, Viper Familiarity (+3).
Possessions: Flight Suit and Helmet, Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), Survival Kit, various personal belongings.
Also, Waylan, you can use the Landram. I found this picture at another BBS and added the callouts. The Mk. I is most interesting to me, I hadn't noticed it before.
Galactica Museum
I will update Starbuck and add the LandRam as soon as I get the chance.
Hmmm seeing the picture of the Galactica museum, I wonder if I should include stats for the Viper Mk I, the Cylon Centurion and the Raider Mk I since those are on display as well. Hmmm... Oh what the heck, I'll write up the stats and worry about posting them or not later. :D
Thanks again!
There is one other character, that doesn't appear in the new series, that would be Cassiopeia. I'm thinking of making her a "Paris Hilton" type of character with a big yaht, she's sort of a spoiled brat 18 year old. Cassiopeia was travelling between the colonies when the Cylon attack occured and she joined the fleet and took on a number of refugees after her father got killed and her home was destroyed, her yaht is well armed as her father was very rich and there was some concern about her being kidnapped for ransom. Well that's not a concern anymore, all her possessions are onboard the yaht, and there are a number of refugees living onboard her ship including possibly the PCs, she doesn't have too much to do with the Galactica, but lately she has been eyeing Apollo, although Apollo doesn't know about this yet. Cassiopeia's ship is just one ship among many of the fleet.
The other idea I have for Cassiopeia is to make her a Pirate leader, with a number of well armed ships and pirates, since the Cylon attack, their has been very little plunder as of late, civilization has been wiped out, so she and her piratical followers decided to join the fleet as there was nothing else going on. Naturally Adama is not very happy about the pirate presence, but they haven't caused any trouble so far, and he needs every able body he can get his hands on.
So which version of Cassiopeia do you like? or perhaps you can make up your own.
BUT
Thats the great thing about RPGs... you can start with a basic premise and take it anywhere you want.
1¼ gravity - (1.1251 g to 1.3750 g) 150 lb. human
Strength **** Light Load ** Medium Load Heavy Load
1 g Speed *** 30 feet ***** 20 feet ***** 15 feet
1¼ g Speed * 25 feet ***** 15 feet ***** 10 feet
1 g Speed *** 20 feet ***** 15 feet ***** 10 feet
1¼ g Speed * 15 feet ***** 10 feet ***** 5 feet
Strength **** Light Load ** Medium Load Heavy Load
1 **** ***** up to -28 lb.** -27 to -26 lb.* -25 to -22 lb.
2 **** ***** up to -26 lb.** -25 to -20 lb.* -19 to -14 lb.
3 **** ***** up to -22 lb.** -21 to -14 lb.* -13 to -6 lb.
4 **** ***** up to -20 lb.** -19 to -10 lb.* -9 to 2 lb.
5 **** ***** up to -18 lb.** -17 to -4 lb. ** -3 to 10 lb.
6 **** ***** up to -14 lb.** -13 to 2 lb. ** 3 to 18 lb.
7 **** ***** up to -12 lb.** -11 to 6 lb. ** 7 to 26 lb.
8 **** ***** up to -10 lb.** -9 to 12 lb. ** 13 to 34 lb.
9 **** ***** up to -6 lb. ** -5 to 18 lb. ** 19 to 42 lb.
10 *** ***** up to -4 lb.*** -3 to 22 lb. ** 23 to 50 lb.
11 *** ***** up to 0 lb. *** 1 to 30 lb. ** 31 to 62 lb.
12 *** ***** up to 4 lb. *** 5 to 38 lb. ** 39 to 74 lb.
13 *** ***** up to 10 lb. ** 11 to 50 lb. ** 51 to 90 lb.
14 *** ***** up to 16 lb. ** 17 to 62 lb. ** 63 to 110 lb.
15 *** ***** up to 22 lb. ** 23 to 76 lb. ** 77 to 130 lb.
16 *** ***** up to 30 lb. ** 31 to 92 lb. ** 93 to 154 lb.
17 *** ***** up to 41 lb. ** 42 to 108 lb. * 109 to 178 lb
18 *** ***** up to 50 lb. ** 51 to 130 lb. * 131 to 210 lb.
19 *** ***** up to 62 lb. ** 63 to 156 lb. * 157 to 250 lb.
20 *** ***** up to 76 lb. ** 77 to 182 lb. * 183 to 290 lb.
21 *** ***** up to 92 lb. ** 93 to 214 lb. * 215 to 338 lb.
22 *** ***** up to 108 lb. * 109 to 246 lb. 247 to 386 lb.
23 *** ***** up to 130 lb. * 131 to 290 lb. 291 to 450 lb.
Skill Check Bonuses: Creatures in a 1¼ gravity environment are subject to a -5 penalty on Strength-based skill checks (including Climb, Jump, and Swim checks).
Attack Roll Penalty: Creatures take a -1 penalty on attack rolls in a 1¼ gravity environment unless they are native to that environment .
Damage from Falling: Creatures fall more quickly in a 1¼ gravity environment. Falling damage is increased from 1d6 points per 10 feet fallen to 1d8-1 per 10 feet fallen. (A zero result per modified die counts as a one.)
Long-Term Effects: Creatures born in a 1¼ gravity environment add 5 points to their strength ability, that means humans born in a 1¼ gravity environment have adapted and have strength scores ranging from 8 to 23 and roll 3d6+5 when determining their strength score, this attribute carries over to lower gravity environments. Although they do suffer 1d4 points of temporary strength damage when returning to their own environment from spending 120 hours in a 1 gravity environment and increase by one step for each lower gravity interval less than that with 1d6 points strength damage from returning from a ¾ gravity environment and so on. 1¼ gravity humans tend to be short and stocky.
I will wait until you are finished, and then take all of your posts, combine them and add them to the top post...
Although I have said it before, I think there might already be too much information in the top post as it is.
So...
I am going to see about writing a full blown campaign setting using all of this information, and posting it as a free PDF download... Of course that will probably have to wait until after my wedding since I will have alot more time then.
1½ gravity - - (1.3751 g to 1.6250 g) 150 lb. human
Strength **** Light Load ** Medium Load Heavy Load
1 g Speed *** 30 feet ***** 20 feet ***** 15 feet
1½ g Speed * 20 feet ***** 10 feet ***** 5 feet
1 g Speed *** 20 feet ***** 15 feet ***** 10 feet
1½ g Speed * 10 feet ***** 5 feet ***** 5 feet
Strength **** Light Load ** Medium Load Heavy Load
1 **** ***** up to -48 *** -47 to -46 ** -45 to -44
2 **** ***** up to -46 *** -45 to -42 ** -41 to -37
3 **** ***** up to -44 *** -43 to -37 ** -36 to -30
4 **** ***** up to -42 *** -41 to -33 ** -32 to -24
5 **** ***** up to -40 *** -39 to -28 ** -27 to -17
6 **** ***** up to -37 *** -36 to -24 ** -23 to -10
7 **** ***** up to -35 *** -34 to -20 ** -19 to -4
8 **** ***** up to -32 *** -31 to -15 ** -14 to 3
9 **** ***** up to -30 *** -29 to -10 ** -9 to 10
10 *** ***** up to -28 *** -28 to -6 *** -4 to 16
11 *** ***** up to -25 *** -24 to 0 **** 1 to 26
12 *** ***** up to -22 *** -21 to 7 **** 8 to 36
13 *** ***** up to -17 *** -16 to 16 *** 17 to 50
14 *** ***** up to -12 *** -11 to 27 *** 28 to 66
15 *** ***** up to -6 **** -5 to 38 **** 39 to 83
16 *** ***** up to 0 ***** 1 to 52 ***** 53 to 103
17 *** ***** up to 7 ***** 8 to 65 ***** 66 to 123
18 *** ***** up to 16 **** 17 to 83 **** 84 to 150
19 *** ***** up to 27 **** 28 to 105 *** 106 to 183
20 *** ***** up to 38 **** 39 to 127 *** 128 to 216
21 *** ***** up to 52 **** 53 to 154 *** 155 to 256
22 *** ***** up to 65 **** 66 to 180 *** 181 to 296
23 *** ***** up to 83 **** 84 to 216 *** 217 to 350
24 *** ***** up to 105 *** 106 to 260 ** 261 to 416
25 *** ***** up to 127 *** 128 to 305 ** 306 to 483
26 *** ***** up to 154 *** 155 to 358 ** 359 to 563
27 *** ***** up to 180 *** 181 to 412 ** 413 to 643
28 *** ***** up to 216 *** 217 to 483 ** 484 to 750
29 *** ***** up to 260 *** 261 to 572 ** 573 to 883
Skill Check Bonuses: Creatures in a 1½ gravity environment are subject to a -10 penalty on Strength-based skill checks (including Climb, Jump, and Swim checks).
Attack Roll Penalty: Creatures take a -2 penalty on attack rolls in a 1½ gravity environment unless they are native to that environment .
Damage from Falling: Creatures fall more quickly in a 1½ gravity environment. Falling damage is increased from 1d6 points per 10 feet fallen to 1d8 points feet per 10 feet fallen.
Long-Term Effects: Creatures native in a 1½ gravity environment add 10 points to their strength ability, that means humans genetically engineered to a 1½ gravity environment have been adapted and have strength scores ranging from 13 to 28 and roll 3d6+10 when determining their strength scores, this attribute carries over to lower gravity environments. Although they do suffer 1d4 points of temporary strength damage when returning to their own environment from spending 120 hours in a 1¼ gravity environment and increase by one step for each lower gravity interval less than that with 1d6 points strength damage from returning from a 1 gravity environment and so on. 1½ gravity humans tend to be short and stocky, barely reaching 4 feet in height at the tallest and with massive muscles that seem way to big to support their relatively small bodies. Such humans have the appearance of fat dwarves, but their wide girth is all muscle, and is needed to support them under this extreme gravity.
The other gravity environments are:
0 gravity – (0.0000 g to 0.1250 g)
¼ gravity - (0.1251 g to 0.3750 g)
½ gravity - (0.3751 g to 0.6250 g)
¾ gravity - (0.6251 g to 0.8750 g)
1 gravity - (0.8751 g to 1.1250 g)
1¼ gravities - (1.1251 g to 1.3750 g)
1½ gravities - (1.3751 g to 1.6250 g)
1 ¾ gravities - (1.6251 g to 1.8750 g)
2 gravities - (1.8751 g to 2.1250 g)
2¼ gravities - (2.1251 g to 2.3750 g)
2½ gravities - (2.3751 g to 2.6250 g)
2¾ gravities - (2.6251 g to 2.8750 g)
3 gravities - (2.8751 g to 3.1250 g)
3¼ gravities - (3.1251 g to 3.3750 g)
OK
There are 14 human worlds; Kobol, the 12 colonies and Earth.
Supposedly all human life originated on Kobol.
Approximately 2,000 years before the Cylon war Humanity left Kobol and colonized 13 other planets in 13 separate star systems.
According to "scripture" Earth was one of these colonies.
However...
Human civilization on Earth is approximately 12,000 years old.
Each Colony is named for a constellation only visible from Earth.
Each Colony's flag depicts a constellation only visible from Earth.
According to "scripture" Earth is the place where you can look up at the sky and see all 12 colonies.
So there are 5 possibilities…
1 Earth really is just a myth and everything else is just coincidence.
2 The BSG series takes place in approximately 8,000 B.C.
3 The estimated age of the ruins on Kobol, as well as the date of the Exodus from Kobol must be wrong.
4 Kobol and Earth are actually the same planet.
5 Kobol is actually a colony of Earth, and during the Exodus, one of the 13 tribes decided to go "home".
I believe that Earth is the Birthplace of Humanity.
I believe that Kobol is located around Beta Ophiuchi, Cheleb(17h 43m +04°34') a yellow giant class K2 star in the constellation Ophiuchus (sometimes refered to as the lost 13th sign of the Zodiac. It has a magntiude of 2.8 and lies 100 light years distant.
I believe that Kobol is a colony of Earth, colonized by "The Gods" and their followers over 12,000 years ago.
I believe that the other 12 colonies were discovered and settled not long afterwards.
I believe that each of the 12 colonies is located "in" the constellation for which it is named.
I believe that the humans that went to Kobol established their tribes based on the Zodiac very early in their history.
I believe that Some cataclysm befell the Earth 10,000 years ago (symbolized by the Great Flood) and communication and trade between it and the colonies ended.
I believe that Kobol was the oldest and largest colony of Man and that it became the primary human world in place of Earth.
I believe that by the time the Exodus happened 2,000 years ago, 12 tribes went to the 12 other colonies, but the tribe of Kobol decided to try to find Earth again and return "home".
I believe that the tribe of Kobol DID find Earth and when they did "The Gods" went back to Kobol and created the Map room.
I believe that the tribe of Kobol assimilated into Earth's culture and lost all memory of Kobol and the 12 Colonies.
The 12 colonies were already well developed, but Earth was in its Bronze age, only a few colonizers made it there, and instead of colonizing it, they took advantage of their superior technology to set themselves up as Gods, and since their technology was meant to be view as miracles, they would not part with its secrets to the locals as that would threaten their power, they held some back just in case their were some challengers and when challengers appeared they struck them down. Unfortunately for them, they underestimated the locals and an underwater volcano exploded, the colonizers were wiped out by the resulting tsunami and the locals were finally free of their oppressors and that story became that of the sinking of Atlantis. Very little of the colonizers technology survived, and that which remained soon broke down and the locals were unable to repair it, as they were not educated in its underlying principles. All that faded in to prehistory along with the legend of Kobol, although they did impart their religion on the local Greek culture.
Captain Lee "Apollo" Adama: male Fast Hero 4/Viper Pilot 7/Starship Officer 1;
CR 12; medium human; HD 5d8+5 plus 7d10+7; hp 122; Mas 12;
Init +4 (+4 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 25, touch 23, flat-footed 21; BAB
+11; Grp +12; Atk +14/+9/+4 melee (1d6+2, unarmed) or +15/+10/+5 ranged (2d6,
Sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 12; Rep +7; SV Fort +4, Ref +11, Will +8; Str 15, Dex 18, Con 12,
Int 14, Wis 13, Cha 13.
Starting Occupation: Military (Pilot and Knowledge (Tactics) are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Bluff +6, Computer Use +9, Diplomacy +6, Intimidate +6, Knowledge (Tactics) +18, Navigate +14, Pilot
+20, Repair +17, Sense Motive +11, Spot +11, Survival +7, Tumble +8;
Athletic, Brawl, Heroic Surge, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Simple Weapon Proficiency, Spacer, Starship Dodge, Starship Gunnery, Starship Mobility, Starship Operation (Ultralight), Starship Strafe.
Special Abilities: Evasion, Evasive Action, Leadership, Starship Feint, Uncanny Dodge 1, Viper Familiarity (+2).
Possessions: Flight Suit and Helmet, Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), Survival Kit, various personal belongings.
Saylya Pepperbox
Type: Double-Action Four-barreled Pistol
Damage: 2d4
Critical: 20
Damage Type: Ballistic
Range Increment: 20 ft
ROF: S
Magazine: 4 int
Purchase DC: 15
Size: Med
Weight: 1 lb.
Restriction: Lic (+1)
Colonial Marine submachinegun
Type: 5.7mm Personal Defense Weapon
Damage: 2d6+1
Critical: 20
Damage Type: Ballistic
Range Increment: 50 ft
ROF: S,A
Magazine: 50 box
Purchase DC: 21
Size: Large
Weight: 8 lb.
Restriction: Mil (+3)
Colonial Assault Rifle
Type: 5.56mm Assault Rifle
Damage: 2d8
Critical: 20
Damage Type: Ballistic
Range Increment: 90 ft
ROF: S,A
Magazine: 30 box
Purchase DC: 20
Size: Large
Weight: 12 lb.
Restriction: Res (+2)
The 12 colonies were already well developed, but Earth was in its Bronze age, only a few colonizers made it there, and instead of colonizing it, they took advantage of their superior technology to set themselves up as Gods, and since their technology was meant to be view as miracles, they would not part with its secrets to the locals as that would threaten their power, they held some back just in case their were some challengers and when challengers appeared they struck them down. Unfortunately for them, they underestimated the locals and an underwater volcano exploded, the colonizers were wiped out by the resulting tsunami and the locals were finally free of their oppressors and that story became that of the sinking of Atlantis. Very little of the colonizers technology survived, and that which remained soon broke down and the locals were unable to repair it, as they were not educated in its underlying principles. All that faded in to prehistory along with the legend of Kobol, although they did impart their religion on the local Greek culture.
While at some level this makes sense, the current incarnation of the greek thing with colonists is to differentiate them from the Cylons an their concept of God. Its a plot device/ theme designed into the program to add structure. As for the time bridge its kind of goofy, the whole concept smacks of Sliders and Quantum Leap. While this makes some degree of sense as BSG is a sci-fi series in style I don't think it works as the show really is a character drama in sci-fi clothing.
I intentionally left HOW "The Gods" colonized Kobol vague. We don't know who "The Gods" were, where they originated or what they were capable of. Personally I think they are best represented by the "Beings of Light" from the original series, but I am not going to put that into the Campaign Setting.
The Setting should focus on the events of the series, possibly including the actual Cylon War and the eventuality of finding Earth. How Kobol was colonized is lost to the ages. I just want to get an idea of where everything is in relation to everything else. Which reminds me, Does anyone know where they Cylons went during the 40 year armistice?
PS Talos, Great Work! I added your latest post to the top. Tom, Thanks for all of the work on star system and planet generation. I am going to compile it all and put it into the PDF.
Hmm well I know that Traveller T20 has a specific set of starsystem generation rules and I was wondering if those were available... The star system generation rules from D20 Future aren't the greatest for this sort of campaign. They just don't provide enough detail.
No SRD for Traveller T20. Mark Miller is being selfish with that info. :P
For the system generation stuff they took it whole cloth from the LBB's.
Most , if not all of the Astrophysic stuff in it is based on Late 60's and early to late 70's theory. Plus it is also 43 steps long.
I have a work up of a system and planetary generator that is not from copy written material and will be glad to share. :D
PM me and I will e-mail it you so you can work with it.
It's also in excell and I can't get it to post correctly here my self
I agree that it makes sense, but I think we should avoid the time travel or alternate reality angle as people will get hung up on that one minor detail about the technology of "The Gods" and it will color their view of the rest of the setting.
I intentionally left HOW "The Gods" colonized Kobol vague. We don't know who "The Gods" were, where they originated or what they were capable of. Personally I think they are best represented by the "Beings of Light" from the original series, but I am not going to put that into the Campaign Setting.
The Setting should focus on the events of the series, possibly including the actual Cylon War and the eventuality of finding Earth. How Kobol was colonized is lost to the ages. I just want to get an idea of where everything is in relation to everything else. Which reminds me, Does anyone know where they Cylons went during the 40 year armistice?
PS Talos, Great Work! I added your latest post to the top. Tom, Thanks for all of the work on star system and planet generation. I am going to compile it all and put it into the PDF.
Well, there's the part about Earth being the 13th colony, yet humanity gives every appearance of having evolved there. The other way to do it involves forward only time travel. Basically, humanity evolved on Kobol about 500 million years ago. Kobol then sent a series of sleeper ships to Earth, each timed to arrive at different times and each one introducing more advanced species than the prior one and creating a more complex ecology on Earth with the final introduction of advanced humans after previously introducing more primitive ones. The crews on the sleeper ships then returned home to Kobol, which was very much changed during the past 500 million years. Humans have become extinct on Kobol, so the human crews of the sleeper ships reestablished themselves on their home planet and started a second civilization, later on they discovered the 12 other colony planets which were the abortive attempts at terraforming which was sent after the initial mission to terraform Earth was. Kobol then colonized those other 12 colonies in a more standard fashion, since most of the work was already done, all they had to do was add people. The above version does not involve alternate realities, but it does require the civilization on Kobol to be older than the dinosaurs, and it also gives the appearance than humans evolved on Earth.
No SRD for Traveller T20. Mark Miller is being selfish with that info. :P
For the system generation stuff they took it whole cloth from the LBB's.
Most , if not all of the Astrophysic stuff in it is based on Late 60's and early to late 70's theory. Plus it is also 43 steps long.
I have a work up of a system and planetary generator that is not from copy written material and will be glad to share. :D
PM me and I will e-mail it you so you can work with it.
It's also in excell and I can't get it to post correctly here my self
LBB's? I am not familiar with that acronym.
Thanks for offering to let us use your system, I'd be happy to look it over... I'll send you a PM right after I finish this post. :D
No SRD for Traveller T20. Mark Miller is being selfish with that info. :P
For the system generation stuff they took it whole cloth from the LBB's.
Most , if not all of the Astrophysic stuff in it is based on Late 60's and early to late 70's theory. Plus it is also 43 steps long.
I have a work up of a system and planetary generator that is not from copy written material and will be glad to share. :D
PM me and I will e-mail it you so you can work with it.
It's also in excell and I can't get it to post correctly here my self
The one I'm working on is not a copy either. I took some ideas from the 2300 game, but I use Imperial units instead of metric ones, there are 20 sizes for planets instead of 30, and I had to rework the gravity tables to reflect intervals of 1,000 miles instead of 1,000 kilometers. The D20 Future system uses Imperial Units so that it will be compatible with other versions of D20 Modern and D&D. The next item on my agenda is an atmosphere table. Basically first I determine the atmospheric pressure, then I determine the hydrographic percentage in intervals of 5% using a d20 roll, and from that I determine the percentage of free oxygen in the atmosphere. By multiplying the percentage of free oxygen with the atmospheric pressure, I can determine whether the atmosphere is breathable.
Next is determining Day length, axial tilt, and the length of the year, and there we have our planet.
LBB's? I am not familiar with that acronym.
Thanks for offering to let us use your system, I'd be happy to look it over... I'll send you a PM right after I finish this post. :D
LBB's - Little Black Books -
Sorry that was Traveller speak.
Traveller has gone through 5 editions with Traveller T20 being the latest.
The LBB's were the very first edition. The rules were put out in a serial / SPLAT book fashion. The first 5 or 6 covered the basic rules, classes, combat
and interstellar travel. the rest were add ons and advanced rules.
All the books were small, slightly larger in height than a paperback.
Blackbird-Class Stealth Viper "Laura"
Type: Ultralight
Size: Gargantuan (-4 Size)
Length: 32 ft
Weight: 13 Tons
Subtype: Blackbird
Base Purchase DC:
Restriction: Military (+3)
Crew: 1 (Ace +12)
Passenger Capacity : 0
Cargo Capacity: 100 lbs.
Tactical Speed: 5,000 ft. (10 Sq.)
Initiative Modifier : +6
Defense: 19
Flat-Footed Defense : 13
Autopilot Defense : 8
Hit Dice: 12D20 (240 HP)
Hardness: 20
Targeting Systems Bonus : +4
Pilot's Class Bonus : +7
Pilot's Dex. Modifier : +6
Gunner's Attack bonus : +8/+3
Attack:
2 Kinetic Energy Weapons (firelinked) +10/+5 Ranged (9D8/20)
Attacks of Opportunity :
None
Design Specifications :
Engines: Thrusters
Armor: Carbon Composite (Hardness 10, operates as permanent stealth screen)
Defense Systems: Damage Control System (1D10).
Sensors: Class II Sensor System
Communications: Radio Tranceiver
Weapons: 2 Kinetic Energy Weapons
LBB's - Little Black Books -
Sorry that was Traveller speak.
Traveller has gone through 5 editions with Traveller T20 being the latest.
The LBB's were the very first edition. The rules were put out in a serial / SPLAT book fashion. The first 5 or 6 covered the basic rules, classes, combat
and interstellar travel. the rest were add ons and advanced rules.
All the books were small, slightly larger in height than a paperback.
Yeah, I have those. For Battlestar Galactica though, I think it creates too many habitable and inhabited planets. The Traveller System also automatically generates social data such as population, government type, law level, and Tech Level. I believe my system creates so few inhabitable planets that you don't need a random generating method for social data as GMs imagination should be more than adequate for that. Also I imagine that its very difficult to tell a planet's population just by looking at it. Perhaps you could get an approximate idea if the population is in the tens of millions to tens of billions, but telling a planet with 100 people on from one with 1000 or 10, I don't think so. From what I gather, Galactica's sensors are no better than those of our spy satellites, they can't tell what sort of government they have, what their law level is, or what they had for breakfast. The best a GM can do is present them with a planet, give them it's physical characteristics, and when they land, tell them if they encounter something. If there are large modern cities, they should be visible from space, its just hard to predict what sort of reception they'll get if they land near one of them.
Also I believe in generating system details as you need them, If for some reason the Galactica Crew needs a gas giant, then you see if there is one within the system, otherwise you go far enough to see if their are any Earthlike worlds, if any of your results preclude them you stop, unless the fleet is interested in that system for some other reason.
Also I think the Galactica's progress level is a mixed bag, most of its personal tech seems to be around PL 5, space travel is PL6 or 7, and it has a Jump Drive. I suggest a good range for the jump drive to be around 20 light years, that way its skips over most of the useless red dwarf stars and can go right to the interesting stars which may harbor Earthlike planets. Perhaps there is some variation among different starship's jump drives. I say let 20 light years be their bottom of capacity, one step up would be a 30 light year jump drive, and beyond that a 35 light year jump drive, then there is 40 light years, 45 light years and 50 light years at the very top of the range. Lets say the Battlestar Galactica itself is capable of jumping 50 light years in a single jump as it represents military technology, most civilian ships can only manage half of that. Also remember in 3 dimensional space, even small increases in range adds alot of stars that are within reach. Since the Galactica doesn't want to leave the fleet behind, it normally makes only 20 light year jumps.
In the previews for the season finale an interesting thing comes up, The Colonial Fleet is still in existence. There is obviously still more ships out there, military, exploratory, civilian, etc. I won't bother focusing on them but I will point out that this is possibly one of the easiest ways to do a BSG campaign. While it is cool to have the PCs pilot along Apollo or Starbuck and see the Blackbird in action, it starts to muck about with the plot and such, and as the series continues one might run into problems. But using that same BSG feel, of a post apocalyptic group of space travellers, fighting to the breaking point, scavenging as best they can, etc. and putting it in a non-Galactica Fleet well that sounds easier and more fun. It would allow your players to effectively be the Apollos of their fleet. Surely as this new episode will most likely show, there can be many fleets out there, most of which probably believe that there is no one else, not all of them are searching for Earth, some might not even be searching for survivors. You could easily take a campaign from the destroyed worlds, where the PCs might have to fight Cylons to grab a hold of Raptors and Vipers to bring back to their fleet so as to provide protection, and then continue on searching for others, until eventually they might run into Galactica or perhaps another fleet.
Any number of such situations can arise from that idea, perhaps instead of going for Earth, they decide to go after the Cylons. Imagine that, plunging deeper and deeper into enemy territory, barely surviving, until eventually they might unravel the Cylons, and what they've been doing for the past 40 years or so. After all, all that is known is that they were thrown from known space, and haven't returned for a few decades.
This of course raises the question of what is known space. The idea that the colonies are each within their own constellations kind of hits me as odd, since then as someone I think pointed out, they wouldn't have a society where FTL is rarely used and using it is considered dangerous and insane. I point to the miniseries where on Colonial One, Apollo asks, "Do you have an FTL Drive?" the pilot answers, "Yeah I think so, haven't ever used it, why?" but Apollo's already running down to it, and as he's fiddling with it, someone asks what the hell he's doing and he responds something that he learned at the academy. Obviously no one in this society really uses FTL until the Cylon Attack. Thus they can't be that far apart, I always figured that they were within the same solar system, if they aren't then they must be in neighboring star systems. Also exploration isn't their thing, the fact that Kobol could just disappear from their map shows that besides the 12 colonies, they don't really go anywhere till they were forced to, which suggests that as far as they're aware, there isn't much to be explored. As said many times, while they have some things that are PL 6, 7, or 9, as a society they're more PL 5, and also exploration wise they might be even lower, they might know that other places exist but they have no interest in going to them. We really have no knowledge of whether or not they had something like a Hubble Telescope, or whatever the new one supposedly going up in 2012 (to search out for Earth-like planets) is called, it seems that they most likely don't, after all Kobol was not too far from the colonies themselves, but yet they had no clue it was there, they thought it was a myth.
So when thinking of the BSG Campaign Setting, this must be taken into account. They have no idea what is out there, they barely know how to get to Earth. Their idea of exploration is blind jumps into an area, as we've seen many times they use Raptors as scouts that just jump in do some scans, then jump out, not very effective since they never know what they're jumping into. This is something that we haven't seen on Earth since the days of Columbus when people just sailed off with a general idea and ended up somewhere. Remember when they found Kobol they thought they had found Earth. As a society, they really are very low on the progress level scale for somethings, yet very high on others. This makes for possibly a unique and interesting setting.
Just my few cents on the subject.
1d20 +
size
mod 0* ¼* ½* ¾* 1* 1¼* 1½* 1¾* 2* 2¼* grav.
-4* v v 0 ¼ ½ ¾ 1 1½ 3 10
-3* v v 0 ¼ ½ ¾ 1 1½ 3 10
-2* v v 0 ¼ ½ ¾ 1 1½ 3 10
-1* v v 0 ¼ ½ ¾ 1 1½ 3 10
0* v v 0 ¼ ½ ¾ 1 1½ 3 10
1* v v ¼ ½ ¾ 1 1½ 3 10 30
2* v v ¼ ½ ¾ 1 1½ 3 10 30
3* v v ¼ ½ ¾ 1 1½ 3 10 30
4* v v ¼ ½ ¾ 1 1½ 3 10 30
5* v v ¼ ½ ¾ 1 1½ 3 10 30
6* v 0 ½ ¾ 1 1½ 3 10 30 100
7* v 0 ½ ¾ 1 1½ 3 10 30 100
8* v 0 ½ ¾ 1 1½ 3 10 30 100
9* v 0 ½ ¾ 1 1½ 3 10 30 100
10* v 0 ½ ¾ 1 1½ 3 10 30 100
11* v 0 ¾ 1 1½ 3 10 30 100 150
12* v 0 ¾ 1 1½ 3 10 30 100 150
13* v 0 ¾ 1 1½ 3 10 30 100 150
14* v 0 ¾ 1 1½ 3 10 30 100 150
15* v 0 ¾ 1 1½ 3 10 30 100 150
16* v ¼ 1 1½ 3 10 30 100 150 200
17* v ¼ 1 1½ 3 10 30 100 150 200
18* v ¼ 1 1½ 3 10 30 100 150 200
19* v ¼ 1 1½ 3 10 30 100 150 200
20* v ¼ 1 1½ 3 10 30 100 150 200
21* v ½ 1½ 3 10 30 100 150 200 250
22* v ½ 1½ 3 10 30 100 150 200 250
23* v ½ 1½ 3 10 30 100 150 200 250
24* v ½ 1½ 3 10 30 100 150 200 250
25* v ½ 1½ 3 10 30 100 150 200 250
Atmospheric Pressure ranges
v Vacuum
0 (0.001 to 0.125)
¼ (0.126 to 0.375)
½ (0.376 to 0.625)
¾ (0.626 to 0.845)
1 (0.845 to 1.375)
1½ (1.375 to 2.125)
3 (2.125 to 5.000)
10 (5.001 to 15.000)
30 (15.001 to 50.000)
100 (50.001 to 125.000)
150 (125.001 to 175.000)
200 (175.001 to 225.000)
250 (225.001 to 275.000)
Hydrographic Percentage
1d20+
Size
mod. **** Range
-4 0.5% (0.0% to 0.5%)
-3 1% (0.6% to 1.5%)
-2 2% (1.6% to 2.5%)
-1 3% (2.6% to 3.5%)
0 4% (3.6% to 4.5%)
1 5% (4.6% to 7.5%)
2 10% (7.6% to 12.5%)
3 15% (12.6% to 17.5%)
4 20% (17.6% to 22.5%)
5 25% (22.6% to 27.5%)
6 30% (27.6% to 32.5%)
7 35% (32.6% to 37.5%)
8 40% (37.6% to 42.5%)
9 45% (42.6% to 47.5%)
10 50% (47.6% to 52.5%)
11 55% (52.6% to 57.5%)
12 60% (57.6% to 62.5%)
13 65% (62.6% to 67.5%)
14 70% (67.6% to 72.5%)
15 75% (72.6% to 77.5%)
16 80% (77.6% to 82.5%)
17 85% (82.6% to 87.5%)
18 90% (87.6% to 92.5%)
19 95% (92.6% to 97.5%)
20 100% (97.6% to 100.0%)
21 100% (97.6% to 100.0%)
22 100% (97.6% to 100.0%)
23 100% (97.6% to 100.0%)
24 100% (97.6% to 100.0%)
25 100% (97.6% to 100.0%)
I am not sure if I posted this somwhere in the thread, but I agree about there being other options for adventures in the BSG universe than the quest for Earth. In fact, I intend to include a few other campaign models in the final PDF campaign setting.
1 The Cylon War (the events prior to the armistice)
2 The Resistance (The surviors on occupied worlds and the ships that didn't join Galactica)
3 Earth at Last (The Galactica Fleet finds Earth)
As for the location of the Earth, Kobol, and the 12 colonies... only Ronald D. Moore knows for sure. All we are doing is speculating. I have to say though that if the colonies are all in the same star system, then why have FTL drives at all? Also, as wild as some of the theories in this thread may seem, its also a bit far fetched to believe that there could be 12 habitable planets in the life zone of a single star system. On the other hand, if they have FTL drives why do they seem so ignorant of the universe around them? Unfortunately, the dialogue is very vague at best and contradictory at worst.
Maybe I'll just have to write a letter to Mr. Moore.
As for the locations, once more none of it makes sense it seems since:
A) They obviously never use their FTL drives till the Cylon Attack
B) 12 planets in one system is extremely far fetched to the point of impossibility
C) Yet then if they're that far apart why is it that they don't use the FTL drive
D) If they never use them why do they have them
% Oxygen of Terrestrial World Type within lifezone
1d20 +
(Hydrographic % / 5) ability modifier
-4 1%
-3 2%
-2 3%
-1 4%
0 5%
1 6%
2 7%
3 8%
4 9%
5 10%
6 11%
7 12%
8 13%
9 14%
10 15%
11 16%
12 17%
13 18%
14 19%
15 20%
16 21%
17 22%
18 23%
19 24%
20 25%
21 26%
22 27%
23 28%
24 29%
25 30%
Multiply the percentage oxygen by the atmospheric pressure at sea level and you get the partial oxygen pressure on the planet’s surface. If the oxygen pressure is between 0.04 and 0.41 atmospheres, then the atmosphere is breathable for humans.
Jongluer,
I am not sure if I posted this somwhere in the thread, but I agree about there being other options for adventures in the BSG universe than the quest for Earth. In fact, I intend to include a few other campaign models in the final PDF campaign setting.
1 The Cylon War (the events prior to the armistice)
2 The Resistance (The surviors on occupied worlds and the ships that didn't join Galactica)
3 Earth at Last (The Galactica Fleet finds Earth)
As for the location of the Earth, Kobol, and the 12 colonies... only Ronald D. Moore knows for sure. All we are doing is speculating. I have to say though that if the colonies are all in the same star system, then why have FTL drives at all? Also, as wild as some of the theories in this thread may seem, its also a bit far fetched to believe that there could be 12 habitable planets in the life zone of a single star system. On the other hand, if they have FTL drives why do they seem so ignorant of the universe around them? Unfortunately, the dialogue is very vague at best and contradictory at worst.
Maybe I'll just have to write a letter to Mr. Moore.
I think it would be better to have them all within the same region of space, say in a cubic box 20 light years on a side. You need an FTL drive to travel from one to the other, but as such a clustering of systems and planets habitable for humans is quite rare, most of the colonials have very little incentive to explore outside the "box", as they'll find mostly red dwarfs and planets requiring a space suit to walk on their surfaces. Most of the colonials were quite happy to stay within their box until the Cylons came along and forced them to explore. As to where Kobol is in relation to the 12 colonies. My guess is that since there is half a season of episodes between the Cylon attack and the discovery of Kobol the planet must be about 500 light years away from the 12 colonies, assuming 20 light year jumps, this means that it is 25 jumps away representing 6 months worth of travel. All the 12 colonies know is that they were established by Kobol, since Kobol is quite remote from them, that means contact between Kobol and the 12 colonies was fairly sparse even in the best of times, this does not preclud the possibility that Kobol might have established other colonies besides the 12 and Earth.
I think mapping is fairly unimportant, all the GM needs to worry about is generating random stars around the fleet no matter which direction the fleet travels it. If there is something the GM wants the fleet to encounter, he places it in its path. The Fleet will discover Earth when the GM is good and ready. There is no need to map known space as a BSG campaign is not fixed in one location, there are no planets that they repeatedly visit, with the possible exception of Caprica. Since their are no known locales and all of them are unknown, it really doesn't matter in which direction the fleet travels in.
By the way, in that cliffhanger episode when they encountered Kobol, did "Apollo's arrow" reveal the location of Earth? I didn't see the episode when the season resumed. Does the fleet have a specific idea of where to look to find Earth, all the episodes I've seen since don't yield a clue as most of the action is onboard the fleet or in space.
By the way, in that cliffhanger episode when they encountered Kobol, did "Apollo's arrow" reveal the location of Earth? I didn't see the episode when the season resumed. Does the fleet have a specific idea of where to look to find Earth, all the episodes I've seen since don't yield a clue as most of the action is onboard the fleet or in space.
When they placed the arrow into the bow on a statue of Sagittarius they appeared in a stonehenge-looking structure under a night sky. On each of the twelve stones where the familiar zodiac constellations. These where also visible in the sky. The realized that this was the map but couldn't figure it out until Apollo recognized the Lagoon Nebula near one of the constellations. With this they now have a map and a direction. There was also the revelation that the colonies were originally named Capricorn, Aires, Gemini, etc.
Right, this is also where I get the impression that each colony was located "within" the constellation it was named for. I am definitely going to try to get an answer from Mr. Moore, but if I can't then I am just going to make my best guess based on the information I have compiled and create the map from that. By the way, A map of colonial space is definitely needed if you are going to run a campaign model other than the Quest for Earth, especially The Cylon War or the Resistance.
That leads to another question: Where do the Cylons live? They must have someplace that they live and call home, where the basestars are constructed, and where they've been hiding out for all those years between the Cylon wars and their latest attack. For lack of a better term, lets call this world Cylon Prime. You think there is any chance the Fleet might run into Cylon Prime before encountering earth?
That leads to another question: Where do the Cylons live? They must have someplace that they live and call home, where the basestars are constructed, and where they've been hiding out for all those years between the Cylon wars and their latest attack. For lack of a better term, lets call this world Cylon Prime. You think there is any chance the Fleet might run into Cylon Prime before encountering earth?
Well it is certainly a possibility... in the series and in a BSG campaign... I could see finding and destroying the Cylon homeworld as the ultimate goal of a Resistance campaign.
But that is a good question... I'll try to find the answer to that as well.
Cylon Prime might not even have to exist, the Cylons, who obviously have a better grasp of FTL technology could've easily dispersed through the multiple red dwarf systems, and asteroids that lie outside the human box. So the Cylons could just be a number of affiliated bases, rather than some sort of actual homeworld being established. If they do have a central base of operations I'd expect something along the lines of a large moon about a gas giant or perhaps something like Pluto? From what we've seen of the interior of the Cylon stuff, they really have no care for aestectics, so it wouldn't even have to be good looking. Cylons can exist anywhere at anytime, this should be taken into account when dealing with them.
In addition, their FTL tech. being better means that they don't even have to be that close to the Human Box, they could've just kept going out, leaving multiple bases lying along their path (or not), until they found something large enough that could easily be at least Kobol's distance away. Time obviously means nothing to the Cylons, so even if their technology was on par with the humans, that 6 month travel time for revenge would really mean nothing to them. Being that it isn't, they can be even farther away.
I hope you get an answer from Mr. Moore, since it's bothering me as well now.
One aspect I haven't read on here is the prescient Cyclon "God". The possibility of a perverse machine mystical equivilent or superior probability supercomputer *cough* SkyNet?
and as for being able to see the other 12 colonies from earth that just confuses me. The distance between stars is vast. I think what they meant was being able to see the colonies name sake constilations.
I may very well be wrong though.
Well the Cylons don't need to actually be on a planet that humans can inhabit right?
Cylon Prime might not even have to exist, the Cylons, who obviously have a better grasp of FTL technology could've easily dispersed through the multiple red dwarf systems, and asteroids that lie outside the human box. So the Cylons could just be a number of affiliated bases, rather than some sort of actual homeworld being established. If they do have a central base of operations I'd expect something along the lines of a large moon about a gas giant or perhaps something like Pluto? From what we've seen of the interior of the Cylon stuff, they really have no care for aestectics, so it wouldn't even have to be good looking. Cylons can exist anywhere at anytime, this should be taken into account when dealing with them.
In addition, their FTL tech. being better means that they don't even have to be that close to the Human Box, they could've just kept going out, leaving multiple bases lying along their path (or not), until they found something large enough that could easily be at least Kobol's distance away. Time obviously means nothing to the Cylons, so even if their technology was on par with the humans, that 6 month travel time for revenge would really mean nothing to them. Being that it isn't, they can be even farther away.
I hope you get an answer from Mr. Moore, since it's bothering me as well now.
I hope Mr. moore is cooparative too. In the mean time the cylno base ships (the scary looking pointy things) are a viable pad for the well to do cylon comnunity :-)
I believe thats the general meaning.
And also the term they use on scifi.com is "hyperlight Jumps".
Well it is certainly a possibility... in the series and in a BSG campaign... I could see finding and destroying the Cylon homeworld as the ultimate goal of a Resistance campaign.
But that is a good question... I'll try to find the answer to that as well.
Its not a realistic goal to destroy a planet. For one, the fleet doesn't have any Death Stars, and also it has only a few nuclear warheads left, possibly enough to destroy one or two Base Stars, but certainly not enough to destroy a planet based Cylon civilization.
Its interesting that they built this stealth ship in the last episode, if you recall Galactica 1980 also had stealth ships. I'm surprised the Galactica didn't have this technology before. What was the chief mechanics name, I forget, did he invent this cloaking technology, or did it already exist on some more modern Battlestars that the Cylon Virus took over? As I recall, Battlestar Galactica was all set to become a museum when the Cylons attacked, perhaps it didn't include any cloaked vipers, but they may have existed on some more modern Battlestars made useless by the Cylon virus. The chief mechanic must have had the technical specs for one and decided to build one out of spare parts.
Now this all leads me to another question. If you were commander Adama, and the fleet discovered Earth, how would you go about making First Contact?
It occurs to me that Boomer might make an excellent spy, since she has excellent pattern recognition capabilities, it seems that she would be the one who could quickly learn the Earth Languages, she could take the cloaked ship down to Earth's surface and learn as much as she can about the situation down there, and that way the Galactica can decide upon the best way to make first contact. The Caveat is whether they'll ever trust her enough to let her out of the Brig and into a viper. Sneaking about is all well and good for scouting missions, learning the political situation on Earth, but sooner or later the Fleet will have to contact the governments on Earth. They might consider landing some ships at New York City, since that is the seat of the United Nations, they might land in Washington DC as that is the capital of the most powerful Nation on Earth. Probably New York City would be least controversial and simply letting the world know. The idea is to prepare the Earth for conflict with the Cylons.
One idea might be to check out the Planet Mars, since people from Kobol have been to Earth in the distant past, they might have left something on Mars, a planet named after the God of War, perhaps there might be something there, hidden under the red sands, which might be of use against the Cylons. Since Kobol had a religion in common with the ancient Greeks, their might have been a good reason to name the planet after the god of war besides its color.
Also, I believe there are two nuclear warheads left. If I remember correctly there were four, minus one for Baltar's experiment, and minus one to destroy the basestar in Kobol's Last Gleaming.
By the way I can't wait to get the stats on THAT ship!
By the way Talos great work on the blackbird! I haven't seen the episode yet (I taped it) but some folks were saying its unarmed.
I think you are right about the number of nukes left on Galactica.
I belive I read somwhere that the 12 colonies shared one star. Some of the colonies had to be terraformed I think. You may want to check the battle star galactica site featured from Scifi.com. I think that is where i read it,.
and as for being able to see the other 12 colonies from earth that just confuses me. The distance between stars is vast. I think what they meant was being able to see the colonies name sake constilations.
I may very well be wrong though.
I have researched all of my information at either wikipedia.com or sci-fi.com... I believe wiki pedia states that all of the colonies are in a single star system, but I can't find a confirmation of that anywhere else...
Actually, I'll try to pitch in something if I can but I'm pretty new to the system myself On constellations and canon: it's unfortunate but a lot of older SF shows tend to be a bit 'off' on their fact checking and that may have affected the original BSG (and consequently) the new show.
I saw one older show recently (sorry, the exact one eludes me at the moment) and they were using 'star system' and 'galaxy' interchangeably. I realize a galaxy is in fact a 'system of stars' but... The range to this other 'star system' was 'tens of light years'.
Since the constellations are found spaced around our night sky along the planetary ecliptic I think that would put us somewhere in the middle of the colonies -- which doesn't make a lot of sense. Probably some of the other explanations above get it closer to right: humans originate on earth, emigrate to Kobol, something happens on Earth, something happens on Kobol, new colonies and Earth colonies established.
Probably just stating the merely obvious ;) BTW, seems to me in the original that the colonists had been fighting the cylons for 1,000 years or something like that - it was just a few tens of years in the new show, nay?
M
D100
01-10 1d4 + 6 + 1d4 x ¼ (7¼ to 11 hours)
11-20 1d6 + 10 + 1d4 x ¼ (11¼ to17 hours)
21-30 1d8 + 16 + 1d4 x ¼ (17¼ to 25 hours ~ 1 day)
31-40 1d10 + 25 + 1d4 x ¼ (26¼ to 36 hours ~ 1½ days)
41-50 1d12 + 35 + 1d4 x ¼ (36¼ to 48 hours ~ 2 days)
51-60 1d20 + 47 + 1d4 x ¼ (48¼ to 68 hours ~ 2¾ days)
61-65 1d4 x 10 + 1d10 + 57 +1d4 x ¼ (68¼ to 108 hours ~ 4½ days)
66-70 1d6 x 10 + 1d10 + 97 + 1d4 x ¼ (108¼ to 168 hours ~ 7 days)
71-75 1d8 x 10 + 1d10 + 157 + 1d4 x ¼ (168¼ to 248 hours ~ 10¼ days)
76-80 1d10 x 10 + 1d10 + 237 + 1d4 x ¼ (248¼ to 348 hours ~ 14½ days)
81-85 1d12 x 10 + 1d10 + 337 + 1d4 x ¼ (348¼ to 468 hours ~ 19½ days)
86-90 1d20 x 10 + 1d10 + 457 + 1d4 x ¼ (468¼ to 668 hours ~ 27¾ days)
91-92 1d4 x 100 + 1d10 x 10 + 1d10 + 557 + 1d4 x ¼ (668¼ to 1068 hours ~ 44½ days)
93-94 1d6 x 100 + 1d10 x 10 + 1d10 + 957 + 1d4 x ¼ (1068¼ to 1668 hours ~ 69½ days)
95-96 1d8 x 100 + 1d10 x 10 + 1d10 + 1557 + 1d4 x ¼ (1668¼ to 2468 hours ~ 102¾ days)
97-98 1d10 x 100 + 1d10 x 10 + 1d10 + 2357 + 1d4 x ¼ (2468¼ to 3468 hours ~ 144½ days)
99-00 1d12 x 100 + 1d10 x 10 + 1d10 + 3357 + 1d4 x ¼ (3468¼ to 4668 hours ~ 194 ½ days)
Axial Tilt
Roll 3d6 x 10 + 3d10
Result
33 to 105: 120 - Result = degrees tilt
106 to 177: 286 – Result = degrees tilt
A tilt greater than 90 degrees is the same as 180 minus that number with a clockwise rotation, otherwise assume the planet rotates counter clockwise when looking down on a counter-clockwise orbit of the planet. Ordinarily, most planets rotate in the same direction as they orbit around the sun, to account for this, roll a 1d6; on a 1 or a 2 keep the reverse (clockwise) rotation, otherwise change the direction of the planets rotation so that its (counterclockwise) and the axial tilt is less than 90 degrees.
I think it is more plausible to say that only one or two planets are actually "earth-like" and that the other colonies are on planets like Venus or Mars or the moons of gas giants like Europa or Titan (which could be colonized by a space-faring society with the right equipment)
If I had to guess (and I do) I'd say that Caprica is the only truly "earth-like" planet in the star system.
Now, according to information from the Original series (actually I think it is the novelization of the pilot) the 12 colonies are are located in a trinary star system called Cyrannus... I guess if RDM is going to keep the colonies all in the same system as an homage to the original series, then I might as well use the original star system for our Campaign setting.
Man... I hate being wrong! ;) :P :D
Great thread you guys. Nice work indeed - and I plan to steal it for my own uses just as soon as you're done!
On constellations and canon: it's unfortunate but a lot of older SF shows tend to be a bit 'off' on their fact checking and that may have affected the original BSG (and consequently) the new show.
I saw one older show recently (sorry, the exact one eludes me at the moment) and they were using 'star system' and 'galaxy' interchangeably. I realize a galaxy is in fact a 'system of stars' but... The range to this other 'star system' was 'tens of light years'.
For an RPG campaign, I'd rather keep it in one Galaxy. Perhaps the writers of the old show didn't realize what a Galaxy was and confused the term with Star System If the BSG were capable of jumping from Galaxy to Galaxy, it would be impossible to find Earth as each galaxy has hundreds of billions of stars and their is no way the BSG could search every one of the stars in every galaxy that it passes through without super-duper Star Trek like FTL sensors that could spot human life forms from 100,000 light years away. Chalk it up to scientific illiteracy among the old show's writers.
Original Raider
Original Base Star
Original Centurion
Sharon Valerii
Cylon Warrior
Number 6
Cylon Raider
Cylon Base star
Leoben Connoy
Doral
Heavy Raider
Dr. Simon
Thoughts?
If there are only 12 models of Cylon then here is what I think they are:
Original Raider
Original Base Star
Original Centurion
Sharon Valerii
Cylon Warrior
Number 6
Cylon Raider
Cylon Base star
Leoben Connoy
Doral
Heavy Raider
Dr. Simon
Thoughts?
I think the 12 models are the humanoid Cylons. The list would then be:
Sharon Valerii
Six
Aaron Doral
Leobon Conoy
Simon
D'anna Briers
This gives the writers room to introduce more in the future. After all, if those are all the models, the colonials won't have to worry about any more about unknown Cylon inflitrators (except for Biers whom they don't know about yet).
Waylan-I know we didn't see any armament on the Blackbird in FotP but I believe it has to have an armament of some kind before it goes into combat. So, I guess we'll find out eventually. Also, you might find some good information at the Battlestar Galactica Wiki (I contribute there, same screenname).
I didn't know that D'anna Biers was a Cylon! I haven't seen that episode yet either... taped it, but haven't had time to watch it...
(did I mention that I am getting married in less than three weeks? planning a wedding is time consuming!) ;) I think you are right about referring to the number of cylon infiltrator types... hmmm that will make it difficult to stat them out... I guess we'll just have to update the PDF every time a new cylon is revealed... Also I wasnt criticising about the blackbird... I haven't even seen the episode yet, just stating what I have read... by the way, I think "Laura/blackbird" is supposed to be a nod to C.O.R.A. from TOS.
On another note, how does everyone feel about my thoughts on the 12 colonies?
When or if Galactica ever reaches Earth, and if that Earth is a modern version; I think the only way that Earthers could help the Galactica is the prodigious use of the planets global nuclear stockpiles.
Well, I found a thread on the BSG BBoard, with all sorts of questions for Mr. Moore, and a bunch of them are in regards to the nature of the 12 colonies. Apparently, He has already stated somewhere (I couldn't find the quote myself) that as an homage to the Original series, all of the 12 colonies are in the same star system. So it looks like my interpretation is wrong, so I need to accept that and work on a way to create a single star system with 12 habitable "colonies". I think the way to do this is to lose the assumption that each colonie is an earth like planet.
Don't forget that star system and solar system don't necessarily mean the same thing. Technically Sol and Alpha Centauri could be in the same star system since they are so close to each other.
Random Thought Dump:
When or if Galactica ever reaches Earth, and if that Earth is a modern version; I think the only way that Earthers could help the Galactica is the prodigious use of the planets global nuclear stockpiles.
I plan to cover the possibilities in the "Earth at last" Campaign Model.
ACK!
I didn't know that D'anna Biers was a Cylon! I haven't seen that episode yet either... taped it, but haven't had time to watch it...
I think you are right about referring to the number of cylon infiltrator types... hmmm that will make it difficult to stat them out... I guess we'll just have to update the PDF every time a new cylon is revealed... Also I wasnt criticising about the blackbird... I haven't even seen the episode yet, just stating what I have read... by the way, I think "Laura/blackbird" is supposed to be a nod to C.O.R.A. from TOS.
On another note, how does everyone feel about my thoughts on the 12 colonies?
Sorry about spoiling it for you, I didn't think about it. I know you weren't criticising the BB, you just can't transmit feelings and the way people say things on bulletin boards. I also agree about the C.O.R.A reference.
Don't forget that star system and solar system don't necessarily mean the same thing. Technically Sol and Alpha Centauri could be in the same star system since they are so close to each other.
True, but in general use, star system refers to a solar system other than our own, and I think that is what the writers intended... much to my chagrin. :embarrass
Sorry about spoiling it for you, I didn't think about it. I know you weren't criticising the BB, you just can't transmit feelings and the way people say things on bulletin boards. I also agree about the C.O.R.A reference.
No biggie... :D
by the way thanks for the link to the Battlestar Galactica Wiki it is VERY helpful... I think with 3 sources (wikipedia, BSwiki and Sci-fi.com) we'll be able to make our Campaign Setting as close to canon as possible.
Credits and Aknowledgements
. Bill Canavan aka Waylan Wolf (me)
. Talos
. Tom Kalbfus1
. Futuredevguy
. Jongluer
. Intensity
. Others?Open Gaming License
Table of Contents
Introduction
. What is the Battlestar Galactica Campaign Guide?
. What do I need to play?
Chapter One: Colonial Space
.The History of the Twelve Colonies
.. Kobol
.. Earth
.. The Cylon War
. The Colonial Military
.. The Colonial Fleet
... Rank Structure
.. The Colonial Marines
… Rank Structure
. Colonial Government
.. The Articles of Colonization
... President of the Colonies
... The Quorum of Twelve
... Colonial Law
. Colonial Religion
.. The Lords of Kobol
.. The Scrolls of Pythia
.The Twelve Colonies of Man
.. Caprica
… Caprica City
… The Meuseum of Delphi
… Colonial Government Offices
.. Picon
… Colonial Fleet Headquarters
.. Libris
.. Saggitaron
.. Virgon
.. Tauron
.. Geminon
.. Leonis
.. Scorpion
.. Canceron
.. Aerilon
… Troy Mining Colony
.. Aquarion
.. Ragnar Station
Chapter Two: The Cylons
. Cylon Centurion Model 0005
. Cylon Centurion
. Cylon Infiltrator (Generic)
Chapter Three: NPCs
. President Laura Roslin
. Commander William Adama
. Colonel Saul Tigh
. Captain Lee "Apollo" Adama
. Lt. Kara "Starbuck" Thrace
. Lt. "Helo" Karl C. Agathon
. Cheif Petty Officer Galen Tyrol
. Tom Zarek
. Billy Keikeya
. Dr. Gaius Baltar
. Others...
Chapter Four: Advanced Classes
. Colonial Marine (Strong)
. Viper Pilot (Fast)
. Survivor (Tough)
. Politician (Smart)
. Theologian (Dedicated)
. Starship Officer (Charismatic)
Chapter Five: Equipment
. Armor
. Weapons
. Vehicles
.. Colonial Land Ram
Chapter Six: Starships
. Colonial Ships
.. Viper Mk I "Starhound"
.. Viper Mk II
.. Viper Mk VII
.. Viper Mk VIII "Blackbird"
.. Raptor
.. Battlestar Galactica
.. Battlestar Pegasus
. Cylon Ships
.. Piloted Raider
.. Autonomous Raider
.. Heavy Raider
.. Basestar Mk I
.. Basestar Mk II
. Civilian Ships
.. Civilian Shuttlecraft
.. Colonial One
.. Astral Queen
.. Celestra
.. Rising Star
.. Cloud Nine
.. Olympic Carrier
.. Geminon Traveller
.. Mining Vessel
.. Salvage Ship
.. Colonial Movers
.. Tanker Ship
Chapter Seven: Space Travel
. Interplanetary Space
. Hyper-light Jumps
. Random Star System Generation
Chapter Eight: Advanced Space Combat
. Newtonian Physics
. Moving in a 3-D space
. Advanced Stunts
. Nuclear Weapons
Chapter Nine: Campaign Models
. The Cylon War
. The Resistance
. The Quest For Earth
. Earth At Last
Index
EDIT: Later, I will work on generic characters such as Colonial Officer, Colonial Marine, Viper Pilot, "Nugget", ECO, Civilian, etc.
I guess I better get cracking on the Politician and Colonial Marine advanced classes! :D
POLITICIAN
Requirements
To qualify to become a Politician, a character must fulfill the following criteria.
Skills: Diplomacy 6 ranks, Bluff 6 ranks, Knowledge (civics) 6 ranks.
Feat: Renown.
Class Information
The following information pertains to the Politician advanced class.
Hit Die: 1d6
Action Points: 6 + one-half character level, rounded down, every time the Politician attains a new level in this class.
Class Skills
Bluff (Cha), Computer Use (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Gather Information (Cha), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (behavioral sciences, civics, current events, history, theology and philosophy) (Int), Profession (Wis), Read/Write Language (none), Research (Int), Sense Motive (Wis), and Speak Language (none).
Skill Points at Each Level: 5 + Int modifier.
Table: The Politician
Class Level Base Attack Bonus Fort Save Ref Save Will Save Special Defense Bonus Reputation Bonus
1st +0 +1 +1 +0 Unlimited access +0 +2
2nd +1 +2 +2 +0 Conceal motive +1 +2
3rd +1 +2 +2 +1 Information access +1 +2
4th +2 +2 +2 +1 Royalty +1 +3
5th +2 +3 +3 +1 Winning smile +2 +3
6th +3 +3 +3 +2 Sow distrust +2 +3
7th +3 +4 +4 +2 Restricted access +2 +4
8th +4 +4 +4 +2 Royalty +3 +4
9th +4 +4 +4 +3 Select consuls +3 +4
10th +5 +5 +5 +3 Compelling performance +3 +5
Class Features
The following features pertain to the Politician advanced class.
Unlimited Access
When others would normally make a Diplomacy check or Bluff check to smooth-talk or trick their way into a private party or invitation-only event, the Politician adds a bonus equal to his or her Politician level.
When a Politician buys a ticket to a show or for transportation, he or she can make a Diplomacy check to get that ticket upgraded. DCs are given below.
Upgrade Diplomacy DC
Seat at sporting event to field pass 10
Hotel room to suite 15
Concert or theater ticket to backstage pass 20
Economy transportation to first-class 25
Conceal Motive
A Politician gets to add a bonus equal to his or her Politician level whenever he or she opposes a Sense Motive check.
Information Access
Starting at 3rd level, the Politician can make Gather Information checks without spending money or making Wealth checks, provided she is dealing with individuals or organizations that are helpful, friendly, indifferent, or unfriendly toward her or those she represents. Dealing with individuals or organizations that are hostile requires the Politician to make Wealth checks as usual when using the Gather Information skill.
Royalty
At 4th and 8th level, a Politician’s activities in the public eye generate extra income. This income provides a Wealth bonus increase of +4.
Winning Smile
At 5th level, a Politician develops such a force of personal magnetism that he or she can convince a single target to regard him or her as a trusted friend. (If the target is currently being threatened or attacked by the Politician or his or her allies, this ability won’t work.)
The target makes a Will saving throw to avoid being persuaded by the Politician’s words and actions. The DC is 10 + Politician’s class level + Politician’s Charisma bonus.
This ability doesn’t enable the Politician to control the target, but the target perceives the Politician’s words and actions in the most favorable way. The Politician can try to give the target orders, but he or she must win an opposed Charisma check to convince the target to perform any actions the target wouldn’t normally undertake. The target never obeys suicidal or obviously harmful orders, and any act by the Politician or his or her allies that threatens the target breaks the mood and clears the target’s head. Otherwise, a target remains won over for 1 minute per Politician level.
After the duration expires, the GM determines the reaction and attitude of the target based on what the Politician compelled the target to do.
This is a Mind-Affecting ability.
Sow Distrust
A Politician of 6th level or higher can turn one character against another. The Politician must spend a full-round action and know the name of the character he or she is attempting to persuade as well as the name of the character toward whom the target’s distrust will be directed. The target must be able to hear and understand the Politician.
The target makes a Will save. The DC is equal to 10 + Politician’s class level + Politician’s Charisma bonus. If the target fails the save, his or her attitude toward the other designated character worsens by one step: helpful turns to friendly, friendly to indifferent, indifferent to unfriendly, unfriendly to hostile (see the Diplomacy skill). The target makes a Will save whenever the Politician uses this talent against him or her. As long as the target continues to fail the Will save, the Politician can continue taking full-round actions to worsen the target’s attitude toward a designated character. When the target’s attitude drops to hostile, he or she attacks the designated character.
A successful Will save doesn’t restore previous attitude shifts, but it does render the target immune for 24 hours to further attempts by the Politician to sow distrust.
The Politician can’t use this talent on his or her allies.
This is a Mind-Affecting ability.
Restricted Access
At 7th level, the Politician gains clearance to access restricted files or classified information from any source that recognizes her faction, organization, nation, world, or stellar empire. She gains a +5 bonus on Computer Use checks made to defeat computer security and a +5 bonus on Research checks.
Select Consuls
At 10th level, the Politician may appoint a number of individuals equal to her Reputation bonus as “consuls” or “attachés.” These appointed individuals gain all the benefits of the diplomatic immunity, information access, and restricted access class features (described above). The Politician may revoke these privileges at any time and appoint replacement consuls as she sees fit. It takes 1d4 hours for an Politician to invoke or revoke a consul’s or attaché’s privileges.
Compelling Performance
At 10th level, a Politician’s force of personal magnetism increases to the point that he or she can arouse a single emotion of his or her choice—despair, hope, or rage—in a target. To use this ability, the Politician must spend 1 action point. The emotion he or she arouses affects one target (a GM character) within 15 feet of the Politician (or within 15 feet of a television, radio, or telephone that broadcasts the Politician’s performance). The performance requires a full-round action, and its effects on the target last for 1d4+1 rounds.
The target makes a Will saving throw. The DC is 10 + Politician’s class level + Politician’s Charisma bonus. If the target succeeds at the saving throw, he or she is immune to the compulsion of this performance. If the target fails, he or she reacts to the emotion as described below.
Despair: The target takes a –2 morale penalty on saving throws, attack rolls, ability checks, skill checks, and weapon damage rolls.
Hope: The target gains a +2 morale bonus on saving throws, attack rolls, ability checks, skill checks, and weapon damage rolls.
Rage: The target gains a +2 morale bonus to Strength and Constitution, a +1 morale bonus on Will saves, and a –1 penalty to Defense. In a dramatic situation, the target is compelled to fight, regardless of the danger.
The fastest path into this advanced class is from the Strong hero basic class, though other paths are possible.
Requirements
To qualify to become a Colonial Marine, a character must fulfill the following criteria.
Occupation: Military
Base Attack Bonus: +3.
Skill: Knowledge (tactics) 3 ranks.
Feat: Personal Firearms Proficiency, Endurance.
Class Information
The following information pertains to the Colonial Marine advanced class.
Hit Die
The Colonial Marine gains 1d10 hit points per level. The character’s Constitution modifier applies.
Action Points
The Colonial Marine gains a number of action points equal to 6 + one-half her character level, rounded down, every time she attains a new level in this class.
Class Skills
The Colonial Marine’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are: Demolitions (Int), Drive (Dex), Intimidate (Cha), Jump (Str), Knowledge (current events, history, popular culture, tactics) (Int), Listen (Wis), Navigate (Int), Profession (Wis), Read/Write Language (none), Speak Language (none), Spot (Wis), Survival (Wis), Swim (Str).
Skill Points at Each Level: 3 + Int modifier (2 + Int modifier for nonhumans).
Table: The Colonial Marine
Class Level Base Attack Bonus Fort Save Ref Save Will Save Special Defense Bonus Reputation Bonus
1st +1 +1 +0 +1 Weapon Focus +1 +0
2nd +2 +2 +0 +2 Weapon specialization +1 +0
3rd +3 +2 +1 +2 Marines unite +2 +1
4th +4 +2 +1 +2 Tactical aid +2 +1
5th +5 +3 +1 +3 Improved critical, superior conditioning +3 +1
6th +6 +3 +2 +3 Bonus feat +3 +2
7th +7 +4 +2 +4 Improved reaction +4 +2
8th +8 +4 +2 +4 Greater weapon specialization +4 +2
9th +9 +4 +3 +4 Bonus feat +5 +3
10th +10 +5 +3 +5 Critical strike +5 +3
Class Features
The following class features pertain to the Colonial Marine advanced class.
Weapon Focus
At 1st level, a Colonial Marine gains the Weapon Focus class feature, providing the benefit of the feat with the same name. The Colonial Marine chooses a specific weapon. The Colonial Marine can choose unarmed strike or grapple as the weapon. The Colonial Marine must be proficient with the chosen weapon.
The Colonial Marine adds +1 to all attack rolls made using the selected weapon.
Weapon Specialization
At 2nd level, a Colonial Marine gains weapon specialization with a specific melee or ranged weapon that he or she also has applied the Weapon Focus feat or class feature to. The Colonial Marine gets a +2 bonus on damage rolls with the chosen weapon.
Marines Unite
Colonial Marines fight better together. Starting at 4th level, a Colonial Marine gains a +1 morale bonus on attack rolls when fighting adjacent to another Colonial Marine.
Furthermore, a Colonial Marine gains a +1 morale bonus on attack rolls against an opponent flanked by another Colonial Marine; this bonus is in addition to the usual +2 bonus for flanking.
Tactical Aid
As a full-round action, the Colonial Marine provides tactical aid to all of his allies (including himself) within sight and voice
range of his position. This use of tactical aid requires an action point.
This aid provides a +1 competence bonus on attack rolls. The bonus lasts for a number of rounds equal to one-half
of the Colonial Marine’s level in the advanced class, rounded down.
Improved Critical
For the weapon the Colonial Marine has applied weapon specialization to the Colonial Marine’s threat range increases by one.
Superior Conditioning
Beginning at 5th level, a Colonial Marine learns how to shake off adverse conditions. When a Colonial Marine is subjected to one of the following conditions, the duration of the condition’s effect is halved: cowering, dazed, exhausted, fatigued, nauseated, panicked, paralyzed, shaken, and stunned. If the condition’s duration is only 1 round, the Colonial Marine is not affected at all.
Bonus Feats
At 6th and 9th level, the Colonial Marine gets a bonus feat. The bonus feat must be selected from the following list, and the Colonial Marine must meet all the prerequisites of the feat to select it.
Advanced Combat Martial Arts, Advanced Firearms Proficiency, Armor Proficiency (light), Armor Proficiency (medium), Armor Proficiency (heavy), Armor Proficiency (powered), Athletic, Blind-Fight, Combat Expertise, Combat Reflexes, Combat Throw, Dead Aim, Defensive Martial Arts, Elusive Target, Exotic Firearms Proficiency, Far Shot, Great Fortitude, Improved Combat Martial Arts, Improved Combat Throw, Improved Disarm, Improved Trip, Iron Will, Lightning Reflexes, Nerve Pinch, Surface Vehicle Operation, Ultra Immune System, Weapon Focus, Whirlwind Attack, Zero-G Training.
Improved Reaction
At 7th level, a Colonial Marine gains a +2 competence bonus on initiative checks.
Greater Weapon Specialization
At 8th level, a Colonial Marine gains greater weapon specialization with the weapon he or she selected at 2nd level. This ability increases the bonus on damage rolls to +4 when using the selected weapon.
Critical Strike
At 10th level, a Colonial Marine gains the ability to automatically confirm a threat as a critical hit when attacking with the weapon he or she has applied weapon specialization to, eliminating the need to make a roll to confirm the critical hit.
Colonial Government
Articles of Colonization
These are possibly the most important documents in the 12 Colonies, the Articles of Colonization not only state the powers of the government but also the rights of its Colonists. From these documents also come the laws of the Twelve Colonies made to protect the people's rights and ensure their safety.
The Articles of Colonization layed the frames of Colonial government. They created the Qurom of Twelve to serve as a law making body and to ensure the Articles were always protected. The president's office was also created from the Articles, though the office's powers were far more limited originally than they are now, the President's cabinet was not derived from the Articles but more a part of necessity.
More important to the average colonist than the President or Qurom, are the rights stated by the Articles of Colonization. The freedoms and rights offered by the Articles are:
-Freedom of Press
-Freedom of Speech
-Freedom of Religion
-Freedom to Privacy
-Right to Property
-Right to a Trial by a Jury of a Colonist's Peers
-No Colonist shall be enslaved
President of the 12 Colonies
The President of the Twelve Colonies is the excecutive branch of the Colonial Government. The president's job is fairly simple in theory, he must lead the people and make informed decisions when there is no time for a deliberation of the Qurom. The office itself has always been highly prized, being elected by the people, the President is possibly the most well known figure throughout the Colonies, as well as one of the most powerful.
The President assembles a number of people to serve as experts and administrators of the major offices and departments of the Twelve Colonies, i.e. Defense, Education, Transportation, etc. With his cabinet the President makes a number of decisions that effect Colonial policy and in some case law (though such a right is only in emergency situations). Though many presidents have not done anything, a number have of course set standards for policies as well as served their nations in times of crisis. For example, during the Cylon War, the President worked alongside with the military to make quick decisions about how to protect and best defend the colonies, thus nearly superceding the power of the Qurom of Twelve. With the recent Cylon invasion, politics has nearly disappeared, though in the Fleet, Laura Roslyn, former Secretary of Education, has become the President of the Colonies. She much like her counter part during the first Cylon War, has worked alongside the military in ensuring peace for the Colonists, once more nearly making the Qurom of Twelve obsolete, President Roslyn also has yet to form a cabinet, though she does use Captain Apollo (Lee Adama) as a Military Advisor.
The Qurom of Twelve:
The Qurom of Twelve is the legislative assembly of the 12 Colonies. This elected body votes upon the laws of the twelve colonies, along with deciding upon interpretations of the Articles of Colonization. The people of each planet vote an elected official to serve on the Qurom of Twelve for a number of years differing from planet to planet. Along with the difference in term, each planet has different stipulations for being a member of the Qurom.
The Qurom being a council of twelve members, requires a deciding vote in times of a tie vote. The tie breaker is the Vice President of the colonies, chosen from the Qurom of Twelve, by the Qurom. Only during the Vice Presidential election can the President cast a vote in the Qurom. Besides their spot on the Qurom, a Vice President serves little purpose, their only other job is to provide advice to the president and even that isn't necessary.
For most of Colonial history, the Qurom was extremely important. Serving as the law-making body, and interpreter of the Articles, ensured that the Qurom was always important. Yet during the First Cylon War, with the Colonies being hard pressed with fighting the Cylons the Qurom was slowly pushed to the background as the Military had to make decisions about protection, combat, and slowly but surely Colonial Policy. After the war, the Qurom once more rose to the top, trying to lower the military budget since they saw them not only as unneeded but a slight threat to their power.
After the Cylon Invasion, the official Qurom, like nearly all politicians was destroyed. On planets where a resistance thrives, they have to focus on survival as opposed to politics, and the Cylon's attitude makes most politicians, such as any surviving Qurom members or former Qurom members obselete. The fleet questing for Earth has been trying to cling to their former lives, as such they have a Qurom that so far has had very little influence within the fleet, they serve as little more than a figurehead at the moment, but after they had been dissolved during a military coup their power in the fleet might possibly increase.
Colonial Law
The Laws of the Colonies are mainly common sense. Being derived from the ideals set forth by the Articles of Colonization, and some might say the religious Scriptures. For example, murder is of course illegal, this being mainly common sense, one could also assume that things such as theft, arsony, etc. are also illegal.
For the most part Colonial Law's main purpose to further ensure the rights of the Colonists, and their safety. The laws also delve into more civil or societal matters, for example there are laws against child or spousal abuse, laws concerning the obligations of a teacher and what is considering crossing the line in the classroom. So while you have a number of laws that are common sense, you also have lesser known laws that serve a less obvious purpose, these are of course the most disputed laws of the Colonies.
During the Cylon War, laws and rights of the people were often stripped in the name of safety, of course this was fought by a number of people, and Colonial Laws for use during wartime were established. These precedents have been followed during the recent Cylon invasion, showing that for the most part law can be ignored but this is often hard and the people will go against it. On planet's where there is a resistance, law has taken a backseat to survival.
Thanks for the write up of Colonial Government. Great work! I will add it to the word doc tonight when I get home from work.
Talos,
I edited the politician and the colonial marine advanced classes... the politician had the word Negotiator in several places so I changed that to politician, and the colonial marine had double entries for improved reaction and superior conditioning so I deleted the extra entires.
I'll try to write up the Resistance Fighter and the Priestess as I have time...
I plan to cover the possibilities in the "Earth at last" Campaign Model.
Well, at least for that we have a map, The Starflight Handbook, has a list of 74 star systems within 21 light years of Earth, of those the important ones are: Sol, Alpha Centauri, Sirius, Epsilon Eridani (which by the way is known to have a gas giant orbiting it at 3.3 A.U. with 273 times Earth's mass which is almost as much as Jupiter), Procyon, Tau Ceti, Omicron Eridani, Altair, 70 Ophiuchi, 36 Ophiuchi, Sigma Draconis, Delta Pavonis, and n Cassiopeia. I think for such a campaign, you might consider leaving something significant on the planet Mars, perhaps in the vicinity of the so called Martian pyramids or the human face, if those things were real, they might be the sort of things people from Kobol might have built. Perhaps it is an arms depot with fighters buried under their which might be useful against the Cylons. Just a thought. The planet, being named after the God of War, I think that might be very appropriate.
For that we need to first determine the data for each star.
Spectral Radius (Sun = 1) *** Mass (Sun = 1) ***** Luminosity
Class * ***** Avg. * ***** ***** Avg. * ***** ***** (Sun = 1)
F5 V * ***** 1 ½ * ***** ***** 1 ¼ * ***** ***** 3 ½
F6 V * ***** 1 ¼ * ***** ***** 1 ¼ * ***** ***** 3
F7 V * ***** 1 ¼ * ***** ***** 1 ¼ * ***** ***** 2 ½
F8 V * ***** 1 ¼ * ***** ***** 1 ¼ * ***** ***** 2 ¼
F9 V * ***** 1 **** ***** ***** 1 * ***** ***** 1 ¾
G0 V * ***** 1 **** ***** ***** 1 * ***** ***** 1 ¼
G1 V * ***** 1 **** ***** ***** 1 * ***** ***** 1
G2 V * ***** 1 **** ***** ***** 1 * ***** ***** 1
G3 V * ***** 1 **** ***** ***** 1 * ***** ***** 1
G4 V * ***** 1 **** ***** ***** 1 * ***** ***** ¾
G5 V * ***** 1 **** ***** ***** 1 * ***** ***** ¾
G6 V * ***** 1 **** ***** ***** 1 * ***** ***** ½
G7 V * ***** 1 **** ***** ***** 1 * ***** ***** ½
G8 V * ***** 1 **** ***** ***** ¾ * ***** ***** ½
G9 V * ***** 1 **** ***** ***** ¾ * ***** ***** ½
K0 V * ***** 1 **** ***** ***** ¾ * ***** ***** ½
K1 V * ***** ¾ *** ***** ***** ¾ * ***** ***** ¼
K2 V * ***** ¾ *** ***** ***** ¾ * ***** ***** ¼
K3 V * ***** ¾ *** ***** ***** ¾ * ***** ***** ¼
K4 V * ***** ¾ *** ***** ***** ½ * ***** ***** ¼
K5 V * ***** ½ *** ***** ***** ½ * ***** ***** 0
Luminosity Life Zones
(Sun = 1) Tropical Subtropical Temperate Sub-arctic Arctic
3 ½ 1.35 to 1.46 1.47 to 1.65 1.66 to 1.93 1.94 to 2.36 2.37 to 2.71
3 1.25 to 1.35 1.36 to 1.52 1.53 to 1.78 1.79 to 2.18 2.19 to 2.51
2 ½ 1.14 to 1.23 1.24 to 1.39 1.40 to 1.63 1.64 to 1.99 2.00 to 2.29
2 ¼ 1.08 to 1.17 1.18 to 1.32 1.33 to 1.55 1.56 to 1.89 1.90 to 2.18
1 ¾ 0.95 to 1.03 1.04 to 1.16 1.17 to 1.36 1.37 to 1.67 1.68 to 1.92
1 ¼ 0.81 to 0.87 0.88 to 0.98 0.99 to 1.15 1.16 to 1.41 1.42 to 1.62
1 0.72 to 0.78 0.79 to 0.88 0.89 to 1.03 1.04 to 1.26 1.27 to 1.45
¾ 0.62 to 0.68 0.69 to 0.76 0.77 to 0.89 0.90 to 1.09 1.10 to 1.26
½ 0.51 to 0.55 0.56 to 0.62 0.63 to 0.73 0.74 to 0.89 0.90 to 1.03
¼ 0.36 to 0.39 0.40 to 0.44 0.45 to 0.52 0.53 to 0.63 0.64 to 0.73
From the above data, we can determine each planet’s orbital period around a star with a known mass for a planet with a known distance. The Formula is: P = (D^3/M)^.5 x 8766
P is the orbital period in hours, D is the distance of the planet in astronomical units, and M is the mass of the star in Solar masses.
You divide the planet’s rotational period by the length of its orbital period, add 1 and multiply this result by the planet’s rotation period to get the length of the planet’s day if the planet has a positive spin or an axial tilt of less than 90 degrees, otherwise you divide the result into the planets rotational period to get day length.
Forward spin planets: Day length = rotation period x (1 + (rotational period / orbital period) )
Backward spin planets: Day length = rotation period / (1 + (rotational period / orbital period) )
Actually I'm almost done Baltar. The NPCs I've done are in the first post. I'm also working on Gaeta, Dualla, Roslyn, Cally, Valerii, and Adama. You could do Socinus, Crashdown, Kat, Doc. Cottle, and Tigh.
EDIT: Later, I will work on generic characters such as Colonial Officer, Colonial Marine, Viper Pilot, "Nugget", ECO, Civilian, etc.
You could start with generic characters found in the d20 Modern Book, it seems that with the exception of space travel the equipment of Battlestar Galactica isn't much different from our own. For instane, under Supporting characters, you could use, high level Bounty Hunter pretty much unaltered, you might want to change the name of the sidearm he carries, but leave the stats unaltered. Battlestar Galactica personal weapons aren't all that futuristic.
That's along the lines of what I was going to do with the generics. But, before that, I have to watch my new BSG Season 1 DVDs. :D
I bought the UK version of season 1 on dvd at best buy two weeks ago, and I just saw an advertisment for season 1 on dvd WITH the miniseries coming out in a month.
I bought the UK version of season 1 on dvd at best buy two weeks ago, and I just saw an advertisment for season 1 on dvd WITH the miniseries coming out in a month.
The US version with the mini came out today and I picked it up at Best Buy after classes earlier. The UK one is now discontinued.
I bought the UK version of season 1 on dvd at best buy two weeks ago, and I just saw an advertisment for season 1 on dvd WITH the miniseries coming out in a month.
Why is there a UK version? Do they dub in British accents on all the characters? :D
Anyway, as far as generic or "Ordinary" classes go for our BSG campaign setting, it sounds like You are both on the same page... :D
Why is there a UK version? Do they dub in British accents on all the characters? :D
The UK version has the vocal UK opening which is the same one used in the US 2nd season. The US one has the original instrumental piece.
So wikipedia has your game info?
No, Wikipedia has all the background information... like what are the 12 colonies, what is a battlestar, etc...
The top post only has game mechanic material... and I ran out of room for that too. Now we are working in this thread, and I am taking everything and putting it into a word document which will eventually become a free pdf download... but if you look at the top of page 5 of this thread you will see that we have a long way to go.
Edit:
Sorry for the terse reply, I am at work.
While I have used much of the information available in the SRD, I am not simply taking advanced classes and re-naming them... That would be a waste of time, and I dont have much free time to waste. ;)
Colonial Military
For as long as there have been Colonies, there has been a need to protect them, this has been the job of the Colonial Military. To ensure the safety of every colonist.
Colonial Fleet
The pride of the Colonies, the Colonial Fleet serves as the backbone of all military operations within the Colonies. Established sometime after the Colonies, the original purpose was nothing more than to protect travellers from piracy, and quell the occasional uprising. For a long time a number of ships were used within the fleet, serving multiple purposes from dogfighting to trading missile volleys. This changed at about the time of the Cylon War, when the Battlestar was designed and assembled.
The Battlestar served as carrier, marine transport, war cruiser, and mobile weapons platform of the Colonial Fleet. These vessels virtually replaced all others in the battlefield just because of their versatility, of course gunships and scout ships were kept but overall the bulk of the Fleet become based off of the Battlestar. In addition to the original Battlestar was the Viper Starfighter, this fast and manueverable ship became the standard fighter of the Fleet, much as the Battlestar was the standard battleship of the Fleet. Each Colony had a Battlestar to represent it within the fleet, and during the Cylon War this number slowly increased. After the Cylon War, the Battlestar became more advanced and powerful, of course this increase in technology would be the eventual downfall of the Colonial Fleet since it made them more susceptible to Cylon attack during the Cylon Invasion.
During the Cylon War, the Colonial Fleet held a large amount of power since they were the defenders of the Colonies, literally winning the war. Similarly, with the fall of the Colonies, any surviving military units are extremely powerful since they have the training and experience to deal with the Cylon threat.
Rank Structure:
Enlisted Ranks-
Petty Officer Third Class
Petty Officer Second Class
Petty Officer First Class
Chief Petty Officer
Senior Chief Petty Officer
Master Chief Petty Officer
Master Chief Petty Officer of the Fleet
Officer Ranks-
Flight Officer
Lieutenant
Captain
Lieutenant Colonel
Colonel
Commander
Admiral
Fleet Admiral
There are very few enlisted men above the rank of Chief Petty Officer left within the Fleet, if any. As for officer, no officer above the rank of Commander exist as far as the Fleet is aware.
Colonial Marines
The Colonial Marines began as little more than an attachment of the Colonial Fleet than as their own force. Their purpose was only to deploy on the ground when it was needed, which for the most was rare since most ground problems were handled by law enforcement. In addition, they were used as Military Police onboard Fleet ships. It was only during the Cylon War that ground combat became intense and frequent. When this happened, not only did the Marines see increased use but they also found their ranks increasing. During the war, they too increased in power and became their own military branch, becoming completely concerned with ground combat, though they still serve the purpose of military police on Battlestars.
After the war, they became secondary once more, though still technically their own branch, it was in little more than name. With the fall of the Colonies, the Marines have become an important force, they are far more trained to handle situations on the Colonies than the remnants fleet, and in addition their years of peace keeping apply well to Adama's Fleet.
Rank Structure (The Marines see no difference between officer and enlisted since they have never truly had the need for pure commanders, even during the Cylon War they worked in smaller groups deployed and commanded by Battlestars despite their independent status):
Private
Corporal
Sergeant
Staff Sergeant
Lieutenant
Captain
Major
Colonel
General
General of the Marines
Thanks Jongluer!
SURVIVOR
The fastest path into this advanced class is from the Tough hero basic class, though other paths are possible.
Requirements
To qualify to become an Survivor, a character must fulfill the following criteria.
Skills: Repair 6 ranks, Survival 6 ranks.
Class Information
The following information pertains to the Survivor advanced class.
Hit Die
The Survivor gains 1d8 hit points per level. The character’s Constitution modifier applies.
Action Points
The Survivor gains a number of action points equal to 6 + one-half her character level, rounded down, every time she attains a new level in this class.
Class Skills
The Survivor’s class skills are as follows.
Balance (Dex), Climb (Str), Disable Device (Int), Drive (Dex), Gather Information (Cha), Handle Animal (Cha), Jump (Str), Listen (Wis), Navigate (Int), Pilot (Dex), Ride ( Dex) , Search ( Int) , Spot (Wis), Survival (Wis), Swim (Str), Treat Injury (Wis).
Skill Points at Each Level: 5 + Int modifier.
Table: The Survivor
Class Level Base Attack Bonus Fort Save Ref Save Will Save Special Defense Bonus Reputation Bonus
1st +0 +1 +1 +1 Salvage +1 +0
2nd +1 +2 +2 +2 Survivalist +1 +0
3rd +2 +2 +2 +2 Bonus feat +2 +1
4th +3 +2 +2 +2 Improvised Implements +2 +1
5th +3 +3 +3 +3 Down with robots
(+1d6/+4), Skilled Salvager +3 +1
6th +4 +3 +3 +3 Bonus feat +3 +2
7th +5 +4 +4 +4 Improvised Weapon Damage +4 +2
8th +6 +4 +4 +4 Down with robots
(+2d6/+8), Expeditious Salvager +4 +2
9th +6 +4 +4 +4 Bonus feat +5 +3
10th +7 +5 +5 +5 Survivor’s evasion +5 +3
Class Features
The following class features pertain to the Survivor advanced class.
Survivalist
At 1st level, the Survivor gains the bonus feats Guide and Track.
Salvage
A Survivor gains the Salvage feat for free.
Bonus Feats
At 3rd, 6th, and 9th level, the Survivor gets a bonus feat. The bonus feat must be selected from the following list, and the Survivor must meet all the prerequisites of the feat to select it.
Action Boost, Advanced Two-Weapon Fighting, Aircraft Operation (spacecraft), Archaic Weapons Proficiency, Attentive, Brawl, Dodge, Educated, Endurance, Exotic Firearms Proficiency, Exotic Melee Weapon Proficiency, Heroic Surge, Improved Feint, Improved Knockout Punch, Improved Two-Weapon Fighting, Jack of All Trades, Knockout Punch, Mobility, Nimble, Renown, Spacer, Streetfighting, Studious, Track, Two-Weapon Fighting, Vehicle Expert.
Improvised Implements
At 2nd level, an Survivor no longer takes a –4 penalty when wielding an improvised weapon. Also, the Survivor is able to make do without proper equipment in certain circumstances: the Survivor no longer takes a –4 penalty when using the Climb and Disable Device skills without the proper tools.
Skilled Salvager
A Survivor of 5th level or higher has a special knack for scavenging useful components from destroyed vehicles, mecha, starships, robots, and cybernetic attachments.
When using the Salvage feat, the Survivor gains a competence bonus on her Search checks equal to one-half her Survivor class level.
Down With Robots
A Survivor of 5th level or higher can use her knowledge of robotics to more easily defeat and disable robots. The Survivor deals +1d6 points of damage against robots by targeting slight weaknesses in their design or armor. In addition, the Survivor gains a +4 bonus on grapple checks against robots, enabling her to deactivate them more easily using the Disable Device skill.
At 8th level, the bonus to damage against robots increases to +2d6, and the bonus on grapple checks against robots improves to +8.
Improvised Weapon Damage
At 7th level, an Survivor’s attacks with improvised weapons deal more damage. The Survivor treats an improvised weapon as one size category larger than it is for the purpose of determining the damage it deals.
Expeditious Salvager
A Survivor of 8th level or higher can use the Salvage feat to salvage a wrecked vehicle, mecha, starship, robot, or cybernetic attachment in half the usual time (see the Salvage feat description for details)
Survivor’s Evasion
If an Survivor of 10th level or higher is exposed to any effect that normally allows a character to attempt a Reflex saving throw for half damage, the Survivor suffers no damage if she makes a successful saving throw. If the Survivor already has evasion, she gains improved evasion instead. Improved evasion works similar to evasion, except the Survivor suffers only half damage on a failed saving throw.
Save start at DC 50, then go to 35 at the next range increment, then 25, then 15.
I think the nuke stat needs fixing. As is any Character who has at least one Level of Fast Hero (and taken the Evasion feat) can stand at Ground Zero of a nuke, make a Save DC 15, and come out unscathed (albeit, with levels of radiation sickness). You need to up the Reflex DC at the closer levels of the detonation.
Save start at DC 50, then go to 35 at the next range increment, then 25, then 15.
Unscathed?
they might ignore the 20d6 falling damage, but the reflex save doesn't apply to the fire or concussion damage.
Battlestar Galactica Specific Armor
Light Armor
Flight Suit and Helmet: The standard wear of a Viper or Raptor pilot. This suit, made of synthetic materials, not only provides protection for the pilot but also has enough air to last the pilot for up to 12 hours, and many starships also contain extra air supplies for the pilot, at least an emergency 6.
Type: Tactical, Eq. Bonus: +3, Nonprof Bonus: +1, Max Dex Bonus: +6, Armor Penalty: -0, Speed: 30ft, Weight: 4lb, Purchase DC: 12
Light Combat Jump Suit: This set of fatigues is lined with bullet proof material and has an additional vest over it for the storing of equipment, it is often worn in rough terrain when the use of heavier armor would endanger the operation.
Type: Tactical, Eq. Bonus: +3, Nonprof Bonus: +1, Max Dex Bonus: +5, Armor Penalty: -1, Speed: 30ft, Weight: 6lb, Purchase DC: 14
Heavy Armor
Marine Combat Armor: This hefty piece of protective material is possibly the best armor in the Colonies. Made of multiple layers of bullet proof material this suit provides complete protection from head to toe, though not normally worn there is face protection with the suit.
Type: Tactical, Eq. Bonus: +7, Nonprof Bonus: +3, Max Dex Bonus: +3, Armor Penalty: -5, Speed: 20ft, Weight: 20lb, Purchase DC: 17
Besides these other useable armor is:
Leather Jacket
Light Undercover shirt
Undercover Vest
Light Combat Armor
Concealable Vest
Light-Duty Vest
Tactical Vest
Medium Combat Armor
Special Response Vest
Forced Entry Unit
Thanks again, and great Job! I can't wait to get home and get this stuff into the word doc. :D
Intensity,
Thanks for reviewing the stats for everything, I appreciate the critical eye, it keeps me on my toes! :D
Rank Structure:
Enlisted Ranks-
Crewman Recruit
Crewman Apprentice "Prosna (assumed)"
Crewman "Socinus (assumed)"
Petty Officer Third Class
Petty Officer Second Class
Petty Officer First Class
Chief Petty Officer
Senior Chief Petty Officer
Master Chief Petty Officer
Master Chief Petty Officer of the Fleet
Officer Ranks-
Ensign "Davies"
Lieutenant Junior Grade "Helo"
Lieutenant
Captain
Major "Cottle"
Colonel
Commander
Admiral
Anything higher than Commander is theoretical except for Admiral (Cain and Nagala). There could be a Rear Admiral and Vice Admiral as well as a Fleet Admiral in there as well.
The rest of the write-up looks good, I'll read it more closely in a little while. Stuff to do....
Anyone know of any deck plans for the new galactica?
Hmm, we should put those in the pdf.
Smart 3, Charismatic 1, Field Scientist 2, Lvl 6, CR6
S9, D10, Con10, I18, Wis10, Cha 14
BAB: +2, Reputation: +6, Defense: 16, HP: 23, Fort: 3, Ref: 3, WillP: +2, Spd 30ft, Talents: Savant- Know(Technology); Savant- Know(Physical Sciences); Charm (Baltar get's a +1 to all Cha checks when dealing with women); Smart Defense (add Int bonus to defense); Scientific Improvisation (may improvise devices from common objects). Feats: Builder, Gearhead, Renown, Studious, Trustworthy. Skills: Bluff(5)- +9 (includes a +2 synergy bonus from Know(Beh Sci); Computer Use(9)- +17 (includes a +2 synergy bonus from Know (Technology); Craft(Chemical)(6)-+14 (includes a +2 synergy bonus from Know(Technology); Craft(Electronic)(6)-+16 (includes a +4 synergy bonus from Know(Technology) and Know (Physical Sciences)); Craft(Pharmaceutical)(5)-+11 (includes a +2 synergy bonus from Know(Technology); Decipher Script(5)-+11; Demolitions(5)-+11; Diplomacy(1)-+9 (includes a +4 synergy bonus from Bluff and Know (Behavioral Science)); Disable Device(7)-+15 (includes a +2 synergy bonus from Know(Technology); Forgery(5)-+9; Gather Information(0)-+6 (includes a +2 synergy bonus from Bluff); Investigate(5)-+9; Know(Behavorial Sciences)(5)-+9; Know(Life Sciences)(6)-+10; Know(Physical Sciences)(6)-+13; Know(Technology)(6)-+13;Research(9)-+15; Search(6)-+10.
Gaius Baltar- around the end of Season 1
Smart 3, Charismatic 2, Field Scientist 2, Lvl 7, CR7
S9, D10, Con10, I18, Wis10, Cha 14
BAB: +3, Reputation: +6, Defense: 17, HP: 26, Fort: 4, Ref: 4, WillP: +2, Spd 30ft, Talents: Savant- Know(Technology); Savant- Know(Physical Sciences); Charm (Baltar get's a +2 to all Cha checks when dealing with women); Smart Defense (add Int bonus to defense); Scientific Improvisation (may improvise devices from common objects). Feats: Builder, Deceptive, Gearhead, Renown, Studious, Trustworthy. Skills: Bluff(6)- +12 (includes a +2 synergy bonus from Know(Beh Sci); Computer Use(9)- +17 (includes a +2 synergy bonus from Know (Technology); Craft(Chemical)(6)-+14 (includes a +2 synergy bonus from Know(Technology); Craft(Electronic)(6)-+16 (includes a +4 synergy bonus from Know(Technology) and Know (Physical Sciences)); Craft(Pharmaceutical)(5)-+11 (includes a +2 synergy bonus from Know(Technology); Decipher Script(5)-+11; Demolitions(5)-+11; Diplomacy(7)-+13 (includes a +4 synergy bonus from Bluff and Know (Behavioral Science)); Disable Device(7)-+15 (includes a +2 synergy bonus from Know(Technology); Forgery(5)-+9; Gather Information(2)-+8 (includes a +2 synergy bonus from Bluff); Investigate(5)-+9; Know(Behavorial Sciences)(5)-+9; Know(Civics)(1)+5; Know(Cylons)(1)+7 (includes a +2 synergy bonus from Know (Technology)); Know(Life Sciences)(6)-+10; Know(Physical Sciences)(6)-+13; Know(Technology)(6)-+13;Research(9)-+15; Search(6)-+10. Psychosis: Paranoia: -4 penalty to all Sense Motive Checks; failing a check indicates Baltar believes that the target is out to get him. Schizophrenia:
Baltar has visions of the cylon #6. At GM's discretion, Baltar must make a Willpower check DC 20 or suffer from vision of #6 which cause the temporary loss of -1d6 points of Charisma. If Baltar misses this check by more than 5, the temporary loss is -2d6. These visions of #6 sometimes seem to help Baltar. He may expend an action point at any time to gain inspiration from his imaginary #6 about a new way to tackle a problem.
Colonial Religion
The Religion of the Twelve Colonies is polytheistic in nature. The pantheon itself is derived from the powerful beings known as the Lords of Kobol, who supposedly lead the people of the Colonies in a Golden Age upon Kobol. These people were hailed as gods both during their time, and now long after they've fallen into myth, they are considered beings of such high power that their Godliness is indisputable. The stories of the Gods are told in the Scriptures, they are used to teach people morality and lead them through life.
The Lords of Kobol
The Lords of Kobol, are the Gods of the Twelve Colonies. They themselves are a family of Gods.
Zeus is the lord of the Gods, and master of everything. His wife Hera is goddess of marriage, and Queen of the Gods. Apollo, Lord of the Hunt, prophecy, music, and healing, he is a well known and well respected god, Apollo is also said to bring death with his mighty arrows, along with good fortune (after all according to the Scriptures of Pythia, his arrow leads to salvation). Ares, master of war is a respected and feared God, he aids those on the battlefield but not necessarily is he clear in his assistance. Aphrodite, is the famous and beloved, goddess of love, beauty, and fertility. Athena is the goddess of crafting and the domestic arts, some might even say she is a lesser goddess of war, but Ares is primarly regard as Lord of War. Hephaestus is the lord of mechanics, blacksmiths, and fire, he is rarely known outside of his patron circles. Hermes, stands as the messenger of the gods, well respected but not well loved since he also leads people to the world of the dead. Finally, Zeus' brother, Hades is master of the dead, the least liked and most feared of gods, he serves a very dreary purpose, watching over the souls of the dead.
All of the gods but Hades, are the children of Zeus and Hera.
Scriptures of Pythia
The Scriptures of Pythia are the tales of the great and ever repeating story. They tell of a time when people were in need of guidance, and a dying leader shows them the way to salvation. The Scriptures tell of other characters, the one who finds the Arrow of Apollo, which will help lead the people to Salvation. The Scriptures have been interpreted many times, some use it just to talk about the general personalities of some colonists, or of how we should be brave, or selfless. Most of the time though they are used to inform people not only of their history, but of how to avoid the mistakes of their ancestors.
The Scriptures of Pythia have in recent time fallen into little more than nothing but a child's story. Yet, with the fall of the Colonies due to Cylon attack, they have shown themselves important again. President Roslyn along with a fair amount of the Fleet believe that this story is being played out again, and with the information that Roslyn suffers from cancer has only solidified the belief that they Scriptures are being repeated and she is the dying leader.
Seriously though my guess is that the Lords of Kobol were simple people who because of their heroic deeds or otherwise were elevated to the level of Gods through many retellings.
My second theory is that the Lords may be super-evolved beings that were originally human, but no longer are, this might dove tale with my theory about Humanity being half a billion years old on Kobol, having sent sleeper ships out to terraform Worlds, they returned to Kobol half a billion years later to find humanity extinct of absent on Kobol. This period of time was only 1/20th the lifetime of Kobol's star, and it still shone on kobol, and Kobol still had life on it, but no humans. The sleeper humans then reestablished human civilization on Kobol. The ultimate fate of the original human civilization on Kobol is unknown, it was surmised that humans became extinct, but the other possibility was that humanity evolved to the point where they no longer required physical form, and they still persisted on Kobol, unknown to the current residents. Occasionally, they would reveal themselves to one of the current humans in the form of a prophesy that often was uncanningly accurate, or so the legends state, but after the second civilization on Kobol fell, no one on the current 12 colonies could tell whether there was any truth to this or not.
These theories are basically rumors, they make good background for the campaign. I think certain origin myths may prove useful to the GM for a given campaign. Humans have been out in space for a long time, and perhaps their are still some sleeper ships out their roaming about in space, slowly terraforming other planets unknown to the fleet. If the fleet encounter's one, they may revive some of the crew and question them, in such an event, the Gm is going to need to have some answers ready. If the crew is from Kobol, they may have some fragmentary information, that may or may not be useful to the Fleet in finding Earth.
Thanks for the write up of Dr. Baltar. You should consider co-ordinating with Talos on writing NPCs, that way you aren't both working on the same person at the same time. I couldn't help but laugh when I saw that you gave Baltar the trustworthy feat... but its very appropriate.
Also, I like the mechanic for the psychosis that you gave him... where is that from?Jongluer,
More great work! Thanks again!
Battlestar Galactica has no wine?
Tom,
Yeah, I don't plan to stat "The Gods"... I also agree with your thinking that they were either normal humans of Heroic proportions or some sort of advanced being (possibly alien) like the "Beings of Light" from the original series as for sleeper ships and other human colonies... well it worked in the original series when they found the ship from "Terra"... that civilization wasn't associated with the 12 colonies nor was it associated with Earth... In the Quest for Earth there are endless possibilities for the GM. ;)
Talos,
I am going to try to finish the Priestess advanced class today, and I actually have some free time tonight so I'll be able to get all of this great work into the word doc. :D
All of that being said, do we want to introduce psionics at all?
PRIESTESS
The fastest path into this advanced class is from the Dedicated hero basic class, though other paths are possible.
Requirements
To qualify to become a Priestess, a character must fulfill the following criteria.
Skills: Diplomacy 6 ranks, Knowledge (theology and philosophy) 6 ranks, Listen 6 ranks.
Allegiance: At the time that the character receives her first level in the Priestess advanced class, she must select an allegiance to a faith, concept, tradition or alignment.
Class Information
The following information pertains to the Priestess advanced class.
Hit Die
Priestesses gain 1d6 hit points per level. The character’s Constitution modifier applies.
Action Points
Priestesses gain a number of action points equal to 6 plus one-half their character level, rounded down, every time they advance a level in this class.
Class Skills
The Priestess’s class skills are as follows: Concentration (Con), Craft (chemical, pharmaceutical, visual arts) (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Gather Information (Cha), Knowledge (art, behavioral sciences, earth and life sciences, theology and philosophy) (Int), Perform (act, dance, sing, stand-up) (Cha), Profession (Wis), Read/Write Language (none), Sense Motive (Wis), Sleight of Hand (Dex), Speak Language (none), Spot (Wis), Treat Injury (Wis).
Skill Points at Each Level: 5 + Intelligence modifier.
Table: The Priestess
Level Base Attack Bonus Fort Save Ref Save Will Save Special Defense Bonus Reputation Bonus
1st +0 +2 +1 +1 Diplomatic immunity +1 +2
2nd +1 +3 +2 +2 Discern lie +1 +2
3rd +1 +3 +2 +2 Bonus feat, psionic skills +2 +2
4th +2 +4 +2 +2 Turn humans, psionic powers +2 +3
5th +2 +4 +3 +3 Power crystal, psionic powers +3 +3
6th +3 +5 +3 +3 Bonus feat, psionic powers +3 +3
7th +3 +5 +4 +4 Combat manifestation, psionic powers +4 +4
8th +4 +6 +4 +4 Trigger power, psionic powers +4 +4
9th +4 +6 +4 +4 Bonus feat, psionic powers +5 +4
10th +5 +7 +5 +5 Maximize power, psionic powers +5 +5
Class Features
The following features pertain to the Priestess advanced class.
Diplomatic Immunity
Starting at 1st level, if the Priestess is arrested for a crime, she can make a Diplomacy check to invoke her diplomatic credentials and not suffer the usual legal penalty or punishment. The severity of the crime determines the DC of the Diplomacy check, and how authorities react if the Priestess succeeds. See Table: Diplomatic Immunity for Diplomacy check DCs based on the severity of the crime.
If one of the Priestess’s consuls (see the select consul class feature, below) is arrested for a crime and unable to secure her own release, the Priestess may intercede on the consul’s behalf. One may aid the other’s Diplomacy check.
A Priestess who routinely invokes the privilege of diplomatic immunity—either on her own behalf or to protect her selected consuls—is likely to be recalled or terminated by those she has sworn to represent.
Table: Diplomatic Immunity
Severity of Crime Examples DC Effect of Successful Diplomacy Check
Class 5 Disturbing the peace, public intoxication, no injurious traffic violation 15 –2 penalty on subsequent Diplomacy checks in that area
Class 4 Possession of controlled substance, injurious traffic violation, operating business without a license, operating a vehicle or starship without a license, assault without a deadly weapon 20 –5 penalty on subsequent Diplomacy a checks in that area
Class 3 Attempted bribery of a public official, robbery or grand theft, aiding and abetting a known felon, assault with a deadly weapon, possession of a concealed weapon 25 –10 penalty on subsequent Diplomacy checks in the area
Class 2 Murder or manslaughter, fraud, smuggling, assault against a public official, trafficking in controlled substances 30 Deportation within 2d6 hours
Class 1 Conspiracy against the government, murder of a public official, sabotage of public utilities 35 Detention pending the diplomatic action by character’s affiliated government
Discern Lie
The Priestess develops the ability to gauge whether another character is telling the truth by reading facial expressions and interpreting body language. The Priestess must be able to see and hear (but not necessarily understand) the individual under scrutiny.
The Priestess can determine whether a spoken statement is true or false with a successful Sense Motive check opposed by the subject’s Bluff check or DC 10, whichever is greater.
Bonus Feats
At 3rd, 6th, and 9th level, the Priestess gets a bonus feat. The bonus feat must be selected from the following list, and the Priestess must meet all of the prerequisites for the feat to select it. Alertness, Archaic Weapons Proficiency, Armor Proficiency (light), Attentive, Creative, Dodge, Educated, Empower Turning, Improved Turning, Iron Will, Renown, Trustworthy, Windfall.
Turn or Rebuke Humans
Starting at 4th level, the Priestess gains the supernatural ability to affect humans, allowing her to command them or drive them off in the fashion of the Acolyte’s turn undead ability. The Priestess’s allegiance does not affect the type of effects she has on humans. The ability does not affect humanoids or other creatures. Unlike other turning abilities, the Priestess must spend an action point to turn or rebuke humans.
A Priestess may turn, rebuke, command or bolster humans. She cannot destroy the targeted humans with this ability, nor can she dispel the turning of another individual.
Psionic Skills
A Priestess has access to the following psionic skills. These skills are considered class skills for the Priestess, and he can use his skill points to buy ranks in them, just like other skills in the game.
Autohypnosis (Wis): Trained only. You have trained your mind to resist certain injuries and threats while also gaining a few select benefits.
Check: The DC and effect depend on the task you attempt.
Task DC
Resist fear 15
Memorize 15
Tolerate poison Poison’s DC
Willpower 20
Resist Fear: In response to a fear effect, you can make an Autohypnosis check on your next action even if you’ve been overcome by fear. A successful check grants you another saving throw with a +4 morale bonus to resist the fear effect.
Memorize: You can attempt to memorize a long string of numbers, a long passage of verse, or other particularly difficult piece of information. Each successful check allows you to memorize up to 250 words or the equivalent of what could be comfortably contained on an 8 1/2-by-11-inch sheet of paper. You always retain this information; however, you can only recall it with a successful Autohypnosis check.
Tolerate Poison: In response to being poisoned, you can make an Autohypnosis check on your next action. A successful check grants you a +4 morale bonus on your saving throw to resist the poison’s secondary damage.
Willpower: If reduced to 0 hit points (disabled), you may make an Autohypnosis check. If successful, you can perform a strenuous action without taking 1 point of damage. A failed check carries no penalties—you can choose not to perform the strenuous action. If you do perform the strenuous action after failing the check, you take 1 point of damage, as normal.
Try Again?: For resist fear and memorize, you can make a check once per round. You can’t try again to tolerate poison. You can’t try again in the same round for willpower.
Special: You can take 10 on Autohypnosis checks, but you can’t take 20.
Most uses of Autohypnosis are attack actions. Willpower is a free action that can be attempted once per round.
Concentration (Con): The normal Concentration skill expands to include psionic applications, as defined below.
Check: You must make a Concentration check whenever you may potentially be distracted while engaged in an activity, including manifesting a power or concentrating on an active power, that requires your full attention.
If the check succeeds, you may continue with the action as normal. If the check fails, the action automatically fails and is wasted. If you were in the process of manifesting a power, the power is lost. If you were concentrating on an active power, the power ends. The table in the Concentration skill description summarizes the various types of distractions. In situations where the distraction occurs while you are manifesting a power, you add the level of the power to the DC.
Try Again?: You can try again, but doing so doesn’t cancel the effects of a previous failure. If you lost a power, the power is lost.
Special: By making a check (DC 15 + power level), you can use Concentration to manifest a power defensively, thus avoiding attacks of opportunity. If the check succeeds, you can attempt the action without incurring any attacks of opportunity.
Psicraft (Int): Trained only. Use this skill to identify psionic powers as they manifest or psionic effects already in place.
Check: You can identify psionic powers and effects.
DC Task
15 + power level Identify a psionic power as it manifests. (You must sense the power’s display or see some visible effect to identify a power.) You can’t try again.
20 + power level Identify a power that’s already in place and in effect. (You must be able to see or detect the effects of the power.) You can’t try again.
20 + power level Identify materials created or shaped by psionics. You can’t try again.
30 or higher Understand a strange or unique psionic effect. You can’t try again.
Try Again?: See above.
Time: Unless otherwise indicated, Psicraft is a move action.
Psionic Powers
The Priestess’s main strength is his ability to manifest psionic powers.
A psionic power is a one-time psionic effect. Psionic powers require power points to use. Unlike arcane spellcasters, Priestesss don’t have spellbooks and they don’t prepare powers ahead of time. In addition, a Priestess can use psionics while wearing armor without risking the failure of the power.
A Priestess’s level limits the number of power points available for manifesting powers. In addition, a Priestess must have a key ability score equal to at least 10 + the power’s level to manifest a particular power.
The Priestess’s selection of powers is extremely limited, although he enjoys ultimate flexibility. At 1st level, a Priestess knows three 0-level powers of your choice and one 1st-level power. At each level, the Priestess discovers one or more previously latent powers, as indicated on the table below.
The DC for saving throws to resist a psionic power is 10 + the power’s level + the Priestess’s key ability modifier.
Priestess Level —— Powers Discovered by Level ——
Pts/Day 0 1 2 3 4 5
1st 0 0 — — — — —
2nd 0 0 — — — — —
3rd 0 0 — — — — —
4th 2 3 1 — — — —
5th 3 3 2 — — — —
6th 4 3 2 1 — — —
7th 7 4 3 2 — — —
8th 10 4 3 2 1 — —
9th 15 4 3 3 2 — —
10th 20 5 3 3 2 1 —
A Priestess can manifest a certain number of powers per day based on his available power points. (0-level powers have a special cost; see FX Basics.) He just pays the power point cost of a power to manifest it, no preparation necessary. The base number of power points available per day is shown on the table above. This number is improved by bonus points determined by the Priestess’s Charisma score, as shown on the table below.
Cha Score Bonus Power Points per Day
12–13 1
14–15 3
16–17 5
18–19 7
20–21 9
22–23 11
Power Crystal
At 4th level, the Priestess can store excess power points in a power crystal specially attuned to him. Encoding the crystal takes 24 hours and requires a gem with a purchase DC of 20. When complete, the power crystal is a psionically charged crystalline stone no more than an inch in diameter. A Priestess can possess no more than one power crystal at a time.
A power crystal is imbued with 5 power points when it is created. The Priestess can call upon these power points at any time and use them just as he would his natural power points. Once the crystal is depleted, the Priestess must refill it using up to 5 power points from his own reserves. A power crystal can be recharged after a Priestess has rested and renewed his own reserves of power points for the day..
Combat Manifestation
At 7th level, a Priestess becomes adept at manifesting psionic powers in combat. He gets a +4 bonus on Concentration checks to manifest a power while on the defensive.
Trigger Power
At 8th level, the Priestess chooses one psionic power that he can attempt to manifest for no power point cost.
At each of these levels, you select one 0-, 1st-, 2nd-, or 3rd-level power you can use. From that point on, you can attempt to trigger that power without paying its cost. To trigger a power, you must have enough power points to cover the normal cost of the power manifestation. Then, make an ability check appropriate to the power.
If you succeed at the ability check, the power manifests with no cost in power points. If the check fails, you pay the power point cost and the power manifests.
DCs for the ability check depend on the level of the power: 0-level, DC 11; 1st-level, DC 13; 2nd-level, DC 15; and 3rd-level, DC 17.
Maximize Power
At 10th level, a Priestess learns to manifest psionic powers to maximum effect. All variable, numeric effects of a maximized power automatically achieve their maximum values. A maximized power deals the most possible points of damage, affects the maximum number of targets, and so forth, as appropriate. Saving throws and opposed checks are not affected. Powers without random variables are not affected.
A maximized power costs a number of power points equal to its normal cost +6.
Introduce psi, then people start to worry about the privacy of their thoughts, various psi organizations develop, and government gets involved and tries to license them and politics gets complicated. A more realistic attitude is that psi is not taken seriously, as that is the attitude in our own society. A psi is considered as a sort of stage magician, they are lumped together with fortune tellers.
Don't get me wrong psi could exist, but if it does, its not pervasive enough to convince the skeptics, just like it is in our own world. Also I think that in a realistic science fiction setting, psi would be more an innate quality rather than a learned one. A person has psionic potential or may have innate talents. Since the BSG society worships the Greek Gods, Apollo is the god of Prophesy, and such persons would be encouraged to become oracles.
I believe someone like Baltar would not believe in psi, he would think anyone who claims such talent to be a fraud, as he doesn't believe in God either or initially didn't. I believe some people in the Galactica community tend to be skeptical of the existance of the Gods, or of psi powers, or spiritual healing. If priestesses were as common as clerics in D&D, then their would be no room for such skepticism, and you might as well have clerics working in the ships hospitals casting cure light wounds on patients who were injured in the last battle with the Cylons.
Don't get me wrong, I believe their may be strange things out there, but the people in the BSG fleet start out as skeptics, not as believers, those strange things are not incorporated into their society from day one. People go to their temples to worship the gods as a matter of faith, not because the priests and priestesses have demonstrated their god's favor by performing miracles in their name. I think the default assumption of the setting is that no one knows truly if the gods in fact exist, they either believe in them or don't as their preferences dictate, if at some point, the fleet actually encounters one of the "Lords of Light", then they'll be forced to reassess those beliefs, and the incident will have a ripple effect throughout society. As of day one, people go to temple to worship the "lords of light" as a matter of tradition, because it gives them inner peace, and because their parents did the same. Space is vast and seemingly empty. The world of BSG has been up to now the world of the 12 colonies, explorations beyond those 12 planets aren't extensive, usually limited to mining colonies and the like. No aliens have yet been encountered, and most of the weird stuff that is typically associated with most Sci Fi campaigns is not yet part of their lives. The Cylon attack however has changed things, it has forced them to travel into space that has not been traveled for a long time, and they have gone further than any colonial has ever gone in recent memory. If their are Psions out their, they live on a planet that's been not yet discovered. I think if your are going to introduce this class, that is the best way to do it.
Basically this happens: The fleet encounters an Earthlike planet with humans on it. This society is not technically advanced, but they do worship the "lords of Kobol" and they include some Psions. The Cylons have followed the fleet, they attack the planet and the fleet rescues what humans they can, which is all too few. Some of those humans have psi talents and a tradition for using them. Most in the fleet do not at first accept this, but slowly as such talent is demonstrated they are convinced, but there are still skeptics who think it is just a parlor trick.
As for psi powers in the new BSG... all of your points are exactly why I am wary of introducing psionics into this setting. On the other hand, President Roslyn has had multiple, ACCURATE, visions of the future... Psionics? or GM fiat?
Or perhaps they are descended from Cylons of long time ago. Perhaps the people of Kobol once built their own Cylons and those Cylons rebelled also and exterminated the humans of Kobol, later on those same Cylons died out as they had no purpose in their lives, they later regretted their actions and realized too late that they could not survive in the long run without them. Their numbers dwindled until there were just twelve. The twelve found a way to preserve their existance, they evolved to the point where they no longer required bodies, and they watched over humanity in general from a long distance, perhaps as some kind of "nanotechnological god".
This is all speculation of course. I think the more theories on who the gods really are, the better, they are basically hooks to hang a plot on. The gods have their own reasons for staying out of human affairs for the most part, and only rarely involve themselves. When the chips are down, when everything goes to hell, perhaps that is the best time for them to manifest themselves, and only briefly and as little as required, then they depart just as mysteriously. Those are my thoughts on how to use them in a realistic campaign anyway.
Intensity,
Thanks for the write up of Dr. Baltar. You should consider co-ordinating with Talos on writing NPCs, that way you aren't both working on the same person at the same time. I couldn't help but laugh when I saw that you gave Baltar the trustworthy feat... but its very appropriate.
Paranoia came from D20 Horror. I made up the Schiz stats myself.
The Colonials are not well traveled, they realize that there may be aliens out there, but they, so far have not encountered any of significance, their main worry is the Cylons. Ancient human civilization is pervasive and their are ruins on a few planets. The only planets they know of, which are habitable are the 12 colonies plus Kobol, and possible Earth out there somewhere. if they encounter other habitable planets this attitude will change somewhat. 2nd hand accounts of alien life will be disbelieved until proven, and only then when the evidence is inescapable will it be believed, at least with the first few truly alien planets. Many life-bearing planets will have familiar lifeforms on it, as humans in the past have traveled extensively, more extensively than humans did until the recent Cylon attack! mostly the Fleet is self-absorbed, the planets mostly prove not interesting enough to distract them, and their is the every present worry, and preparations for the next Cylon attack and of finding Earth, but every now and then they will encounter something strange that effects their outlook on life
Paranoia came from D20 Horror. I made up the Schiz stats myself.
Nice!
:D Got any thoughts on psionics in BSG? Tom is making a pretty convncing argument against them.
Tom, Don't worry you are not being a wet blanket. I really want to know what the rest of you think about it... I am not entirely sold on psionics myself.
I like the idea of Psionics in BSG, but not for the player characters. It allows you to explain in game mechanics things such as how the cylons communicate that are not really explained by the series. I'll put some thought into it.
I think its obvious how the Cylons communicate, they are machines however sophisticated, and like machines they can communicate using electromagnetic signals, radiowaves, or some other means of communication. Cylons are basically part of a wireless network, they have equipment inside of them that allows them to communicate with other cylons over long distances, and perhaps even download and upload their entire programs if the bandwidth if large enough. Whatever cylons do to communicate, it is nothing humans can learn. Cylons are machines, if they need to communicate their thoughts with other cylons without speaking, they have built in equipment which allows them to do so. No psi need to be invoked here. Communicating with another human mind that does not possess an implant is another matter however. Psi is when two natural minds can share thoughts without equipment or close physical proximity.
Cylons do seem to be individual people however, as Boomer seems to demonstrate, perhaps there is a minority of Cylons that do not agree with the leaderships agenda of exterminating humanity. Cylons can also be programmed, they can emmulate other human personalities, they could be programmed against their will, that is also their weakness. You see in a way, they Cylons are no more free than when humans were their masters, inplace of the humans they have other Cylon masters that can reprogram them and make them do what they want. Cylons also freely expend other cylon lives if it will accomplish their missions against humanity. Witness the destruction of those basestars which allowed the 1st Boomer the opportunity to get close enough to Adama to shoot him. Many Cylons don't even know they are cylons, this is not true freedom, their minds are often not their own, and even worse they are expendible. Cylons believe in an afterlife, whether this means they can upload their personalities to a network or whether it is just their religious believe is debatable. I think the Cylons might have picked up religion from humans and further modified it to suit their purposes.
I think its obvious how the Cylons communicate, they are machines however sophisticated, and like machines they can communicate using electromagnetic signals, radiowaves, or some other means of communication. Cylons are basically part of a wireless network, they have equipment inside of them that allows them to communicate with other cylons over long distances,
They appear to be rather unconventional communications networks. They don't use anything in the traditional spectrum or else they would be detected. Using psionic mental energy that is undetectable by conventional technology would explain that.
and perhaps even download and upload their entire programs if the bandwidth if large enough. Whatever cylons do to communicate, it is nothing humans can learn.
Well humans have never had the opportunity to learn. If Baltar continues on his current path, he may learn.
Cylons are machines, if they need to communicate their thoughts with other cylons without speaking, they have built in equipment which allows them to do so.
They are becoming organic machines that are virtually indistinguishable from humans.
No psi need to be invoked here. Communicating with another human mind that does not possess an implant is another matter however. Psi is when two natural minds can share thoughts without equipment or close physical proximity.
Psi is whatever its defined to be in the rules system.
Also, IIRC the Cylon infiltrator at that anchorage in that nebula or gas cloud or whatever seemed to be unable to "download" itself due to the radiation. I don't think radiation would defeat psionics.
You may be out thinking the shows writers. :D
My theory on the Cylon god is a probably an organic supercomputer with near prescientient probability programs much like...*shudders*...the Oracle from the Matrix. Either that or the "God" just knows because of that temporal thing that number six alludes to every once in a while. The (I will paraphrase badly) "It's happened before and happened again" thing. Which from what is said, it's either a repeat of past events (Multiple evolutions of Mankind? Multiple Cylon annihilations of mankind?) or the "God" knows whats going to happen simply because it knows because it has that information (some form of Time Travel). So A) Probability Engine or B) Temporal Loopty Loop.
As for the Priestess, I really don't think she should have Psionic abilities. I really see very little purpose for the Occult to come into play on BSG. At least not in an advanced class that is the basic advanced class. At best I'd say a series of feats that would allow a very small number of powers to be used, very sparingly throughout the day. I think even on the old BSG Adama's Psychic power was very very limited, nothing more than moving small objects across a table. As for the idea that Roslyn might have visions, most of it can be derived from the Eternal story in the Scriptures of Pythia, at least that's how the people on the show make it sound.
Psionics is something that would unbalance the world of BSG, and it just doesn't seem right to the setting if you ask me. If you still want to go with the Priestess, replace those Psionic abilities with anything really: healing knowledge, adding a bonus to other people's will save, etc.
Or you could think of a different premise for a Dedicated Hero advanced class, personally I have no idea what though.
By the way, I've finished the random star system generation sequence, it doesn't do all the planets, just the important ones, you start with the ones closest to the star and move outwards till you get past the outer limit of the life zone, then you stop. I'm trying to generate a number of system using this for each spectral class star from F5 V to K4 V.
Battlestar Galactica
1d100
1-40 M(d10) VI
41-79 M(d10) V
80-84 K(d10) V
85-87 G(d10) V
88-90 F(d10) V
91-92 A(d10) V
93 B(d10) V
94 O(d10) V
95-100 non-main sequence star
Non-main sequence stars
1d20
1 Black hole
2 Neutron Star
3-13 White dwarf
14 Black dwarf
15-16 Giant type IV
17 Giant type III
18 Supergiant Type II
19 Supergiant Type Ia
20 Supergiant Type 1b
Giant or supergiant types
1d20
1 O(d10)
2 B(d10)
3 A(d10)
4-7 F(d10)
8-11 G(d10)
12-15 K(d10)
16-20 M(d10)
D100
1-50 Single
51-75 Binary
76-87 Trinary
89-94 four stars
95-97 five stars
98-99 six stars
0 seven stars.
Find the number below that corresponds to the primary star and role d100 and subtract that number from the maximum number of the range corresponsing to the primary
1d100
-18 and less Brown dwarf
-17 to -16 black hole
-15 to -10 neutron star
-9 to 0 White Dwarf
1-40 M(d10) VI
41-79 M(d10) V
80-84 K(d10) V
85-87 G(d10) V
88-90 F(d10) V
91-92 A(d10) V
93 B(d10) V
94 O(d10) V
95-100 non-main sequence star
Initial Orbit
1d10 Orbit Radius
0 Empty Orbit
1 0.1 au
2 0.2 au
3 0.3 au
4 0.4 au
5 0.5 au
6 0.6 au
7 0.7 au
8 0.8 au
9 0.9 au
If orbit is empty, roll again on this table, ignoring all zero results, to determine the radius of this empty orbit, empty orbits have a 50% chance of being an asteroid belt.
Subsequent Orbits
1d10 Multiplier
0 Empty Orbit
1 1.3
2 1.4
3 1.5
4 1.6
5 1.7
6 1.8
7 1.9
8 2.0
9 2.1
If orbit is empty, roll again on this table, ignoring all zero results, to determine the radius of this empty orbit, empty orbits have a 50% chance of being an asteroid belt.
Planet diameter
1d20
1,000 miles
2,000 miles
3,000 miles
4,000 miles
5,000 miles
6,000 miles
7,000 miles
8,000 miles
9,000 miles
10,000 miles
11,000 miles (10% chance gas giant if outside lifezone)
12,000 miles (20% chance gas giant if outside lifezone)
13,000 miles (30% chance gas giant if outside lifezone)
14,000 miles (40% chance gas giant if outside lifezone)
15,000 miles (50% chance gas giant if outside lifezone)
16,000 miles (60% chance gas giant if outside lifezone; 10% if inside lifezone)
17,000 miles (70% chance gas giant if outside lifezone; 20% if inside lifezone)
18,000 miles (80% chance gas giant if outside lifezone, 30% if inside lifezone)
19,000 miles (90% chance gas giant if outside lifezone; 40% if inside lifezone)
20,000 miles (100% chance gas giant if outside lifezone; 50% if inside lifezone)
Gas giant diameter
1d20
10,000 miles + 10,000 miles
20,000 miles
30,000 miles
40,000 miles
50,000 miles
60,000 miles
70,000 miles
80,000 miles
90,000 miles
100,000 miles
110,000 miles
120,000 miles
130,000 miles
140,000 miles
150,000 miles
160,000 miles
170,000 miles
180,000 miles
190,000 miles
200,000 miles
The next step is to generate the gravity for each world.
WORLD GRAVITY Earth = 1.0000
1 MILE = 1.609 km
Diameter Density (Earths)
1,000s of miles 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3
1 1,609 km 0.0505 0.0631 0.0757 0.0883 0.1009 0.1135 0.1261 0.1387 0.1514 0.1640
2 3,218 km 0.1009 0.1261 0.1514 0.1766 0.2018 0.2270 0.2523 0.2775 0.3027 0.3279
3 4,827 km 0.1514 0.1892 0.2270 0.2649 0.3027 0.3405 0.3784 0.4162 0.4541 0.4919
4 6,436 km 0.2018 0.2523 0.3027 0.3532 0.4036 0.4541 0.5045 0.5550 0.6054 0.6559
5 8,045 km 0.2523 0.3153 0.3784 0.4414 0.5045 0.5676 0.6306 0.6937 0.7568 0.8198
6 9,654 km 0.3027 0.3784 0.4541 0.5297 0.6054 0.6811 0.7568 0.8324 0.9081 0.9838
7 11,263 km 0.3532 0.4414 0.5297 0.6180 0.7063 0.7946 0.8829 0.9712 1.0595 1.1477
8 12,872 km 0.4036 0.5045 0.6054 0.7063 0.8072 0.9081 1.0090 1.1099 1.2108 1.3117
9 14,481 km 0.4541 0.5676 0.6811 0.7946 0.9081 1.0216 1.1351 1.2486 1.3622 1.4757
10 16,090 km 0.5045 0.6306 0.7568 0.8829 1.0090 1.1351 1.2613 1.3874 1.5135 1.6396
11 17,699 km 0.5550 0.6937 0.8324 0.9712 1.1099 1.2486 1.3874 1.5261 1.6649 1.8036
12 19,308 km 0.6054 0.7568 0.9081 1.0595 1.2108 1.3622 1.5135 1.6649 1.8162 1.9676
13 20,917 km 0.6559 0.8198 0.9838 1.1477 1.3117 1.4757 1.6396 1.8036 1.9676 2.1351
14 22,526 km 0.7063 0.8829 1.0595 1.2360 1.4126 1.5892 1.7658 1.9423 2.1189 2.2955
15 24,135 km 0.7568 0.9459 1.1351 1.3243 1.5135 1.7027 1.8919 2.0811 2.2703 2.4594
16 25,744 km 0.8072 1.0090 1.2108 1.4126 1.6144 1.8162 2.0180 2.2198 2.4216 2.6234
17 27,353 km 0.8577 1.0721 1.2865 1.5009 1.7153 1.9297 2.1441 2.3585 2.5730 2.7874
18 28,962 km 0.9081 1.1351 1.3622 1.5891 1.8162 2.0432 2.2703 2.4973 2.7243 2.9513
19 30,571 km 0.9586 1.1982 1.4378 1.6775 1.9171 2.1567 2.3964 2.6360 2.8757 3.1153
20 32,180 km 1.0090 1.2613 1.5135 1.7658 2.0180 2.2703 2.5225 2.7748 3.0270 3.2793
Generating World Density
Sizes 1 to 3
Roll 1d10
1 = 0.4
2 = 0.5
3 = 0.6
4 = 0.7
5 = 0.8
6 = 0.9
7 = 1.0
8 = 1.1
9 = 1.2
10 = 1.3
Sizes 4 to 6
Roll 3d4+1
4 = 0.4
5 = 0.5
6 = 0.6
7 = 0.7
8 = 0.8
9 = 0.9
10 = 1.0
11 = 1.1
12 = 1.2
13 = 1.3
Sizes 7 to 10
Roll 3d6
3 = 0.6
4 & 5 = 0.7
6 & 7 = 0.8
8 & 9 = 0.9
10 & 11 = 1.0
12 & 13 = 1.1
14 & 15 = 1.2
16+ = 1.3
Sizes 11 to 15
Roll 4d6 and add best 3
3 = 0.6
4 & 5 = 0.7
6 & 7 = 0.8
8 & 9 = 0.9
10 & 11 = 1.0
12 & 13 = 1.1
14 & 15 = 1.2
16+ = 1.3
Sizes 16 to 20
Roll 5d6 and add best 3
3 = 0.6
4 & 5 = 0.7
6 & 7 = 0.8
8 & 9 = 0.9
10 & 11 = 1.0
12 & 13 = 1.1
14 & 15 = 1.2
16+ = 1.3
WORLD GRAVITY Environments Earth = 1
1 MILE = 1.609 km
Diameter Density (Earths)
1,000s of miles **** 0.4 ** 0.5 ** 0.6 ** 0.7 ** 0.8 ** 0.9 ** 1.0 ** 1.1 ** 1.2 ** 1.3
1 **** 1,609 km *** 0 *** 0 *** 0 *** 0 *** 0 *** 0 *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ¼
2 **** 3,218 km *** 0 *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ¼
3 **** 4,827 km *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ½ *** ½ *** ½ *** ½
4 **** 6,436 km *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ½ *** ½ *** ½ *** ½ *** ½ *** ¾
5 **** 8,045 km *** ¼ *** ¼ *** ½ *** ½ *** ½ *** ½ *** ¾ *** ¾ *** ¾ *** ¾
6 **** 9,654 km *** ¼ *** ½ *** ½ *** ½ *** ½ *** ¾ *** ¾ *** ¾ *** 1 *** 1
7 **** 11,263 km ** ¼ *** ½ *** ½ *** ½ *** ¾ *** ¾ *** 1 *** 1 *** 1 *** 1¼
8 **** 12,872 km ** ½ *** ½ *** ½ *** ¾ *** ¾ *** 1 *** 1 *** 1 *** 1¼ ** 1¼
9 **** 14,481 km ** ½ *** ½ *** ¾ *** ¾ *** 1 *** 1 *** 1¼ ** 1¼ ** 1¼ ** 1½
10 *** 16,090 km ** ½ *** ¾ *** ¾ *** 1 *** 1 *** 1¼ ** 1¼ ** 1½ ** 1½ ** 1¾
11 *** 17,699 km ** ½ *** ¾ *** ¾ *** 1 *** 1 *** 1¼ ** 1½ ** 1½ ** 1¾ ** 1¾
12 *** 19,308 km ** ½ *** ¾ *** 1 *** 1 *** 1¼ ** 1¼ ** 1½ ** 1¾ ** 1¾ ** 2
13 *** 20,917 km ** ¾ *** ¾ *** 1 *** 1¼ ** 1¼ ** 1½ ** 1¾ ** 1¾ ** 2 *** 2¼
14 *** 22,526 km ** ¾ *** 1 *** 1 *** 1¼ ** 1½ ** 1½ ** 1¾ ** 2 *** 2 *** 2¼
15 *** 24,135 km ** ¾ *** 1 *** 1¼ ** 1¼ ** 1½ ** 1¾ ** 2 *** 2 *** 2¼ ** 2½
16 *** 25,744 km ** ¾ *** 1 *** 1¼ ** 1½ ** 1½ ** 1¾ ** 2 *** 2¼ ** 2½ **2½
17 *** 27,353 km ** ¾ *** 1 *** 1¼ ** 1½ ** 1¾ ** 2 *** 2¼ ** 2¼ ** 2½ ** 2¾
18 *** 28,962 km ** 1 *** 1¼ ** 1¼ ** 1½ ** 1¾ ** 2 *** 2¼ ** 2½ ** 2¾ ** 3
19 *** 30,571 km ** 1 *** 1¼ ** 1½ ** 1¾ ** 2 *** 2¼ ** 2½ ** 2¾ ** 3 *** 3
20 *** 32,180 km ** 1 *** 1¼ ** 1½ ** 1¾ ** 2 *** 2¼ ** 2½ ** 2¾ ** 3 *** 3¾
The gravity environments are:
0 gravity – (0.0000 g to 0.1250 g)
¼ gravity - (0.1251 g to 0.3750 g)
½ gravity - (0.3751 g to 0.6250 g)
¾ gravity - (0.6251 g to 0.8750 g)
1 gravity - (0.8751 g to 1.1250 g)
1¼ gravities - (1.1251 g to 1.3750 g)
1½ gravities - (1.3751 g to 1.6250 g)
1 ¾ gravities - (1.6251 g to 1.8750 g)
2 gravities - (1.8751 g to 2.1250 g)
2¼ gravities - (2.1251 g to 2.3750 g)
2½ gravities - (2.3751 g to 2.6250 g)
2¾ gravities - (2.6251 g to 2.8750 g)
3 gravities - (2.8751 g to 3.1250 g)
3¼ gravities - (3.1251 g to 3.3750 g)
Atmospheric Pressure in Atmospheres
1d20 +
size
mod 0 ¼ ½ ¾ 1 1¼ 1½ 1¾ 2 2¼ grav.
-4 v v 0 ¼ ½ ¾ 1 1½ 3 10
-3 v v 0 ¼ ½ ¾ 1 1½ 3 10
-2 v v 0 ¼ ½ ¾ 1 1½ 3 10
-1 v v 0 ¼ ½ ¾ 1 1½ 3 10
0 v v 0 ¼ ½ ¾ 1 1½ 3 10
1 v v ¼ ½ ¾ 1 1½ 3 10 30
2 v v ¼ ½ ¾ 1 1½ 3 10 30
3 v v ¼ ½ ¾ 1 1½ 3 10 30
4 v v ¼ ½ ¾ 1 1½ 3 10 30
5 v v ¼ ½ ¾ 1 1½ 3 10 30
6 v 0 ½ ¾ 1 1½ 3 10 30 100
7 v 0 ½ ¾ 1 1½ 3 10 30 100
8 v 0 ½ ¾ 1 1½ 3 10 30 100
9 v 0 ½ ¾ 1 1½ 3 10 30 100
10 v 0 ½ ¾ 1 1½ 3 10 30 100
11 v 0 ¾ 1 1½ 3 10 30 100 150
12 v 0 ¾ 1 1½ 3 10 30 100 150
13 v 0 ¾ 1 1½ 3 10 30 100 150
14 v 0 ¾ 1 1½ 3 10 30 100 150
15 v 0 ¾ 1 1½ 3 10 30 100 150
16 v ¼ 1 1½ 3 10 30 100 150 200
17 v ¼ 1 1½ 3 10 30 100 150 200
18 v ¼ 1 1½ 3 10 30 100 150 200
19 v ¼ 1 1½ 3 10 30 100 150 200
20 v ¼ 1 1½ 3 10 30 100 150 200
21 v ½ 1½ 3 10 30 100 150 200 250
22 v ½ 1½ 3 10 30 100 150 200 250
23 v ½ 1½ 3 10 30 100 150 200 250
24 v ½ 1½ 3 10 30 100 150 200 250
25 v ½ 1½ 3 10 30 100 150 200 250
Atmospheric Pressure ranges
v Vacuum
0 (0.001 to 0.125)
¼ (0.126 to 0.375)
½ (0.376 to 0.625)
¾ (0.626 to 0.845)
1 (0.845 to 1.375)
1½ (1.375 to 2.125)
3 (2.125 to 5.000)
10 (5.001 to 15.000)
30 (15.001 to 50.000)
100 (50.001 to 125.000)
150 (125.001 to 175.000)
200 (175.001 to 225.000)
250 (225.001 to 275.000)
Hydrographic Percentage
1d20+
Size
mod. **** Range
-4 0.5% (0.0% to 0.5%)
-3 1% (0.6% to 1.5%)
-2 2% (1.6% to 2.5%)
-1 3% (2.6% to 3.5%)
0 4% (3.6% to 4.5%)
1 5% (4.6% to 7.5%)
2 10% (7.6% to 12.5%)
3 15% (12.6% to 17.5%)
4 20% (17.6% to 22.5%)
5 25% (22.6% to 27.5%)
6 30% (27.6% to 32.5%)
7 35% (32.6% to 37.5%)
8 40% (37.6% to 42.5%)
9 45% (42.6% to 47.5%)
10 50% (47.6% to 52.5%)
11 55% (52.6% to 57.5%)
12 60% (57.6% to 62.5%)
13 65% (62.6% to 67.5%)
14 70% (67.6% to 72.5%)
15 75% (72.6% to 77.5%)
16 80% (77.6% to 82.5%)
17 85% (82.6% to 87.5%)
18 90% (87.6% to 92.5%)
19 95% (92.6% to 97.5%)
20 100% (97.6% to 100.0%)
21 100% (97.6% to 100.0%)
22 100% (97.6% to 100.0%)
23 100% (97.6% to 100.0%)
24 100% (97.6% to 100.0%)
25 100% (97.6% to 100.0%)
Use Ability modifier Table in d20 Modern book.
% Oxygen of Terrestrial World Type within lifezone
1d20 +
(Hydrographic % / 5) ability modifier
-4 1%
-3 2%
-2 3%
-1 4%
0 5%
1 6%
2 7%
3 8%
4 9%
5 10%
6 11%
7 12%
8 13%
9 14%
10 15%
11 16%
12 17%
13 18%
14 19%
15 20%
16 21%
17 22%
18 23%
19 24%
20 25%
21 26%
22 27%
23 28%
24 29%
25 30%
Multiply the percentage oxygen by the atmospheric pressure at sea level and you get the partial oxygen pressure on the planet’s surface. If the oxygen pressure is between 0.04 and 0.41 atmospheres, then the atmosphere is breathable for humans.
Period of Rotation
D100
01-10 1d4 + 6 + 1d4 x ¼ (7¼ to 11 hours)
11-20 1d6 + 10 + 1d4 x ¼ (11¼ to17 hours)
21-30 1d8 + 16 + 1d4 x ¼ (17¼ to 25 hours ~ 1 day)
31-40 1d10 + 25 + 1d4 x ¼ (26¼ to 36 hours ~ 1½ days)
41-50 1d12 + 35 + 1d4 x ¼ (36¼ to 48 hours ~ 2 days)
51-60 1d20 + 47 + 1d4 x ¼ (48¼ to 68 hours ~ 2¾ days)
61-65 1d4 x 10 + 1d10 + 57 +1d4 x ¼ (68¼ to 108 hours ~ 4½ days)
66-70 1d6 x 10 + 1d10 + 97 + 1d4 x ¼ (108¼ to 168 hours ~ 7 days)
71-75 1d8 x 10 + 1d10 + 157 + 1d4 x ¼ (168¼ to 248 hours ~ 10¼ days)
76-80 1d10 x 10 + 1d10 + 237 + 1d4 x ¼ (248¼ to 348 hours ~ 14½ days)
81-85 1d12 x 10 + 1d10 + 337 + 1d4 x ¼ (348¼ to 468 hours ~ 19½ days)
86-90 1d20 x 10 + 1d10 + 457 + 1d4 x ¼ (468¼ to 668 hours ~ 27¾ days)
91-92 1d4 x 100 + 1d10 x 10 + 1d10 + 557 + 1d4 x ¼ (668¼ to 1068 hours ~ 44½ days)
93-94 1d6 x 100 + 1d10 x 10 + 1d10 + 957 + 1d4 x ¼ (1068¼ to 1668 hours ~ 69½ days)
95-96 1d8 x 100 + 1d10 x 10 + 1d10 + 1557 + 1d4 x ¼ (1668¼ to 2468 hours ~ 102¾ days)
97-98 1d10 x 100 + 1d10 x 10 + 1d10 + 2357 + 1d4 x ¼ (2468¼ to 3468 hours ~ 144½ days)
99-00 1d12 x 100 + 1d10 x 10 + 1d10 + 3357 + 1d4 x ¼ (3468¼ to 4668 hours ~ 194 ½ days)
Axial Tilt
Roll 3d6 x 10 + 3d10
Result
33 to 105: 120 - Result = degrees tilt
106 to 177: 286 – Result = degrees tilt
A tilt greater than 90 degrees is the same as 180 minus that number with a clockwise rotation, otherwise assume the planet rotates counter clockwise when looking down on a counter-clockwise orbit of the planet.
0 = 0.000 to 0.125
¼ = 0.126 to 0.375
½ = 0.376 to 0.625
¾ = 0.626 to 0.875
1 = 0.876 to 1.125
Radius of Sun 696,000 km
1 AU = 149,597,870 km = 215 radii
The next item is the planet’s orbital period and temperature.
For that we need to first determine the data for each star.
Spectral Radius (Sun = 1) *** Mass (Sun = 1) ***** Luminosity
Class * ***** Avg. * ***** ***** Avg. * ***** ***** (Sun = 1)
F5 V * ***** 1 ½ * ***** ***** 1 ¼ * ***** ***** 3 ½
F6 V * ***** 1 ¼ * ***** ***** 1 ¼ * ***** ***** 3
F7 V * ***** 1 ¼ * ***** ***** 1 ¼ * ***** ***** 2 ½
F8 V * ***** 1 ¼ * ***** ***** 1 ¼ * ***** ***** 2 ¼
F9 V * ***** 1 **** ***** ***** 1 * ***** ***** 1 ¾
G0 V * ***** 1 **** ***** ***** 1 * ***** ***** 1 ¼
G1 V * ***** 1 **** ***** ***** 1 * ***** ***** 1
G2 V * ***** 1 **** ***** ***** 1 * ***** ***** 1
G3 V * ***** 1 **** ***** ***** 1 * ***** ***** 1
G4 V * ***** 1 **** ***** ***** 1 * ***** ***** ¾
G5 V * ***** 1 **** ***** ***** 1 * ***** ***** ¾
G6 V * ***** 1 **** ***** ***** 1 * ***** ***** ½
G7 V * ***** 1 **** ***** ***** 1 * ***** ***** ½
G8 V * ***** 1 **** ***** ***** ¾ * ***** ***** ½
G9 V * ***** 1 **** ***** ***** ¾ * ***** ***** ½
K0 V * ***** 1 **** ***** ***** ¾ * ***** ***** ½
K1 V * ***** ¾ *** ***** ***** ¾ * ***** ***** ¼
K2 V * ***** ¾ *** ***** ***** ¾ * ***** ***** ¼
K3 V * ***** ¾ *** ***** ***** ¾ * ***** ***** ¼
K4 V * ***** ¾ *** ***** ***** ½ * ***** ***** ¼
K5 V * ***** ½ *** ***** ***** ½ * ***** ***** 0
Luminosity Life Zones (ST) (Te) (SA) (Ar)
(Sun = 1) Tropical (Tr) Subtropical Temperate Sub-arctic Arctic
3 ½ 1.35 to 1.46 1.47 to 1.65 1.66 to 1.93 1.94 to 2.36 2.37 to 2.71
3 1.25 to 1.35 1.36 to 1.52 1.53 to 1.78 1.79 to 2.18 2.19 to 2.51
2 ½ 1.14 to 1.23 1.24 to 1.39 1.40 to 1.63 1.64 to 1.99 2.00 to 2.29
2 ¼ 1.08 to 1.17 1.18 to 1.32 1.33 to 1.55 1.56 to 1.89 1.90 to 2.18
1 ¾ 0.95 to 1.03 1.04 to 1.16 1.17 to 1.36 1.37 to 1.67 1.68 to 1.92
1 ¼ 0.81 to 0.87 0.88 to 0.98 0.99 to 1.15 1.16 to 1.41 1.42 to 1.62
1 0.72 to 0.78 0.79 to 0.88 0.89 to 1.03 1.04 to 1.26 1.27 to 1.45
¾ 0.62 to 0.68 0.69 to 0.76 0.77 to 0.89 0.90 to 1.09 1.10 to 1.26
½ 0.51 to 0.55 0.56 to 0.62 0.63 to 0.73 0.74 to 0.89 0.90 to 1.03
¼ 0.36 to 0.39 0.40 to 0.44 0.45 to 0.52 0.53 to 0.63 0.64 to 0.73
From the above data, we can determine each planet’s orbital period around a star with a known mass for a planet with a known distance. The Formula is: P = (D^3/M)^.5 x 8766
P is the orbital period in hours, D is the distance of the planet in astronomical units, and M is the mass of the star in Solar masses.
The following formulas determine the planet’s day length, the length of day is not the same as the planet’s rotation period as you also have to take into account the planet’s orbital period around its star.
Forward spin planets: Day length = rotation period x (1 + (rotational period / orbital period) )
Backward spin planets: Day length = rotation period / (1 + (rotational period / orbital period) )
Moons are the last item, their sizes are calculated as a fraction of their parent
Number of moons
Roll 1d6
1 = 0 moons
2 = 0 moons
3 = 0 moons
4 = 1 moon
5 = 2 moons
6 = 3 moons
Orbit radius
Roll
1d20
1 = 25,000 miles
2 = 50,000 miles
3 = 75,000 miles
4 = 100,000 miles
5 = 125,000 miles
6 = 150,000 miles
7 = 175,000 miles
8 = 200,000 miles
9 = 225,000 miles
10 = 250,000 miles
11 = 275,000 miles
12 = 300,000 miles
13 = 325,000 miles
14 = 350,000 miles
15 = 375,000 miles
16 = 400,000 miles
17 = 425,000 miles
18 = 450,000 miles
19 = 475,000 miles
20 = 500,000 miles
Add the following to orbit radius
1d20
1 = +1250 miles
2 = +2500 miles
3 = +3750 miles
4 = +5000 miles
5 = +6250 miles
6 = +7500 miles
7 = + 8750 miles
8 = + 10,000 miles
9 = +11,250 miles
10 = +12,500 miles
11 = +13,750 miles
12 = +15,000 miles
13 = +16,250 miles
14 = +17,500 miles
15 = +18,750 miles
16 = +20,000 miles
17 = +21,250 miles
18 = +22,500 miles
19 = +23,750 miles
20 = +25,000 miles
This determines the size of the planet, multiply this number by the parent planet’s diameter.
1d100
1 to 33 ***** 0.000[1d10]
34 to 76 **** 0.00[1d10][1d10]
77 to 97 **** 0.0[1d10][1d10][1d10]
98 to 00 **** 0.[1d10][1d10][1d10][1d10]
Numbers within the brackets are the digits 0 through 9 determined randomly by 1d10 roll.
Tom, Is that your final draft of the star system generation rules or do you have more to add? I only ask because if you are done, I will copy that to the word doc, but if not I will wait.
Well it looks like a majority vote against psionics in our campaign setting... I'll re-work the Priestess (or Clergy) advanced class when I get home tonight. Thanks everyone!
Tom, Is that your final draft of the star system generation rules or do you have more to add? I only ask because if you are done, I will copy that to the word doc, but if not I will wait.
Its fairly complete. I was mostly interested in the planets within the lifezone of each star. Start with the innermost planet, just do its orbit if you like, then do the next one out and the next one until you get an orbit that falls within the lifezone. There are 5 live zones by the way, I have labeled them tropical, subtropical, temperate, sub-arctic, and arctic, what this means is that the planet that falls within this zone experiences this climate at 45 degrees latitude north and south. For instance a planet within the arctic zone has arctic conditions at 45 degrees latitude and is dominated by a huge icecaps that stretch this far toward the equator from the poles, close to the equator, you have a subarctic climate band, and a temperate climate zone straddling the equator. If the planet was in the tropical zone, it experiences a tropical climate at 45 degrees and further north, you have subtropics and a temperate zone right on the poles with no ice caps.
The Moon tables determine how many moons there are, their sizes as a decimal fraction of the planet's diameter in miles and their distances from the planet in miles. If you want to do moons of a gas giant, roll 3d6 to determine number, determine sizes the same way as a proportion of the planet's diameter (remember to use the table for gas giants to determine their size), and space them out using the 2 distance tables for moons, but remember to add an extra '0' at the end of the final number. The moons of gas giants tend to be larger than those of terrestrial planets. A moon like Earth's moon is very rare for terrestrial planets (3% chance), but common for gas giants, a gas giant will on occasion have a moon that's as large as the Earth, and may harbor life. Try rolling up a system using these tables, that's the best way to test them out. I could roll up some myself, but since I wrote those tables, I want to see how well other people understand them by having other people roll up a few planets, that way I'll know whether I accomplished what I set out to do. You could post your results, and I can answer any questions you may have. Tell me if you can read the tables. This board tends to eat whitespace between words so the numbers may not be lined up right. you can tab them into position until they look right, it should be fairly obvious I think. Once were settled on this i can think of something else to do.
THEOLOGIAN
The fastest path into this advanced class is from the Dedicated hero basic class, though other paths are possible.
Requirements
To qualify to become a Theologian, a character must fulfill the following criteria.
Skills: Knowledge (history) 6 ranks, Knowledge (theology and philosophy) 6 ranks.
Allegiance: At the time that the character receives her first level in the Theologian advanced class, she must select an allegiance to a faith, concept, tradition or alignment.
Class Information
The following information pertains to the Theologian advanced class.
Hit Die
The Theologian gains 1d8 hit points per level. The character’s Constitution modifier applies.
Action Points
The Theologian gains a number of action points equal to 6 + one-half her character level, rounded down, every time she attains a new level in this class.
Class Skills
The Theologian’s class skills are as follows: Concentration (Con), Craft (chemical, pharmaceutical, visual arts) (Int), Decipher script, Diplomacy (Cha), Gather Information (Cha), Knowledge (art, behavioral sciences, earth and life sciences, history, theology and philosophy) (Int), Perform (act, dance, sing, stand-up) (Cha), Profession (Wis), Read/Write Language (none), Sense Motive (Wis), Sleight of Hand (Dex), Speak Language (none), Spot (Wis), Treat Injury (Wis).
Skill Points at Each Level: 7 + Intelligence modifier.
Table: The Theologian
Class Level Base Attack Bonus Fort Save Ref Save Will Save Special Defense Bonus Reputation Bonus
1st +0 +1 +1 +0 Theologian Lore +0 +2
2nd +1 +2 +2 +0 Resolve +1 +2
3rd +1 +2 +2 +1 Bonus feat +1 +2
4th +2 +2 +2 +1 Discern Lie +1 +3
5th +2 +3 +3 +1 Turn or Rebuke Humans +2 +3
6th +3 +3 +3 +2 Bonus feat +2 +3
7th +3 +4 +4 +2 Utterly Convincing +2 +4
8th +4 +4 +4 +2 Compelling performance +3 +4
9th +4 +4 +4 +3 Bonus feat +3 +4
10th +5 +5 +5 +3 Diplomatic Immunity +3 +5
Class Features
The following features pertain to the Theologian advanced class.
Theologian Lore
A Theologian picks up stray and obscure facts during her adventures. She may make a special Theologian lore check with a bonus equal to her Theologian class level + her Intelligence modifier to see whether or not she knows some relevant knowledge about notable people, legendary items, or noteworthy places. If the Theologian has 5 or more ranks in Knowledge (history), she gains a +2 bonus on this check. She may take 10 but cannot take 20 on this check.
A Theologian lore check does not reveal the powers of a magic or item but may give some hint as to its general function; a Theologian may not take 10 or take 20 on this check.
Table: Theologian Lore
DC Type of Knowledge Examples
10 Common, known by at least a substantial minority of the local population. A local official’s hobbies and interests; common legends or rumors about a powerful place of mystery.
20 Uncommon but available, known by only a few people in the area. The coordinates of a known but uncharted world; legends or rumors about a powerful artifact.
25 Obscure, known by few, hard to come by. The customs of a documented alien species; the true home world of an ancient royal dynasty.
30 Extremely obscure, known by very few, possibly forgotten by most who once knew it, possibly known only by those who don’t understand the knowledge’s significance. The most likely location of a long-lost pharaoh’s tomb; the history of a powerful artifact and its creator; the likely coordinates of a fabled but as-yet-undiscovered planet.
Resolve
Beginning at 2nd level, a Theologian gains a morale bonus equal to one-half her Theologian class level (rounded down) on saving throws to resist fear effects and Intimidate checks.
Bonus Feats
At 3rd, 6th, and 9th level, the Theologian gets a bonus feat. The bonus feat must be selected from the following list, and the Theologian must meet all the prerequisites of the feat to select it.
Alertness, Animal Affinity, Iron Will, Confident, Creative, Oath bound, Renown, Educated, and Trustworthy.
Discern Lie
The Theologian develops the ability to gauge whether another character is telling the truth by reading facial expressions and interpreting body language. The Theologian must be able to see and hear (but not necessarily understand) the individual under scrutiny.
The Theologian can determine whether a spoken statement is true or false with a successful Sense Motive check opposed by the subject’s Bluff check or DC 10, whichever is greater.
Turn or Rebuke Humans
Starting at 5th level, the Theologian gains the supernatural ability to affect humans, allowing her to command them or drive them off in the fashion of the Acolyte’s turn undead ability. The Theologian’s allegiance does not affect the type of effects she has on humans. The ability does not affect robots or other creatures. Unlike other turning abilities, the Theologian must spend an action point to turn or rebuke humans.
A Theologian may turn, rebuke, command or bolster humans. She cannot destroy the targeted humans with this ability, nor can she dispel the turning of another individual.
Utterly Convincing
At 7th level, the Theologian is a master at convincing people. Whenever the Theologian spends an action point to improve some Charisma-based skill checks (see below), she adds an additional 1d6 to the result. The skills that utterly convincing applies to are: Bluff, Diplomacy, Disguise, Gather Information, Intimidate, and Perform.
Compelling Performance
At 8th level, a Theologian’s force of personal magnetism increases to the point that he or she can arouse a single emotion of his or her choice—despair, hope, or rage—in a target. To use this ability, the Theologian must spend 1 action point. The emotion he or she arouses affects one target (a GM character) within 15 feet of the Theologian (or within 15 feet of a television, radio, or telephone that broadcasts the Theologian’s performance). The performance requires a full-round action, and its effects on the target last for 1d4+1 rounds.
The target makes a Will saving throw. The DC is 10 + Theologian’s class level + Theologian’s Charisma bonus. If the target succeeds at the saving throw, he or she is immune to the compulsion of this performance. If the target fails, he or she reacts to the emotion as described below.
Despair: The target takes a –2 morale penalty on saving throws, attack rolls, ability checks, skill checks, and weapon damage rolls.
Hope: The target gains a +2 morale bonus on saving throws, attack rolls, ability checks, skill checks, and weapon damage rolls.
Rage: The target gains a +2 morale bonus to Strength and Constitution, a +1 morale bonus on Will saves, and a –1 penalty to Defense. In a dramatic situation, the target is compelled to fight, regardless of the danger.
Diplomatic Immunity
Starting at 10th level, if the Theologian is arrested for a crime, she can make a Diplomacy check to invoke her diplomatic credentials and not suffer the usual legal penalty or punishment. The severity of the crime determines the DC of the Diplomacy check, and how authorities react if the Theologian succeeds. See Table: Diplomatic Immunity for Diplomacy check DCs based on the severity of the crime.
If one of the Theologian’s consuls (see the select consul class feature, below) is arrested for a crime and unable to secure her own release, the Theologian may intercede on the consul’s behalf. One may aid the other’s Diplomacy check.
A Theologian who routinely invokes the privilege of diplomatic immunity—either on her own behalf or to protect her selected consuls—is likely to be recalled or terminated by those she has sworn to represent.
Table: Diplomatic Immunity
Severity of Crime Examples DC Effect of Successful Diplomacy Check
Class 5 Disturbing the peace, public intoxication, noninjurious traffic violation 15 –2 penalty on subsequent Diplomacy checks in that area
Class 4 Possession of controlled substance, injurious traffic violation, operating business without a license, operating a vehicle or starship without a license, assault without a deadly weapon 20 –5 penalty on subsequent Diplomacy a checks in that area
Class 3 Attempted bribery of a public official, robbery or grand theft, aiding and abetting a known felon, assault with a deadly weapon, possession of a concealed weapon 25 –10 penalty on subsequent Diplomacy checks in the area
Class 2 Murder or manslaughter, fraud, smuggling, assault against a public official, trafficking in controlled substances 30 Deportation within 2d6 hours
Class 1 Conspiracy against the government, murder of a public official, sabotage of public utilities 35 Detention pending the diplomatic action by character’s affiliated government
Intensity, thanks for catching that, I'll fix it right away!
Here's a couple of points I'd like to make, but first, a point of clairification is in order. I have NOT watched the new BSG, but I was/am a big fan of the original movie/tv series (don't even mention Galactica 1980 to me or it'll be bloody). But here:
1. I've always assumed that in the BSG universe humans originated on Kobol. What became the earth we know today was originally colonized by several groups/factions from Kobol. (We would know them as Atlanteans <"pure" Kobolians>, Aztecs, Egyptians, and even Chinese). This explains the Greek-ish nature of the names of people & places in BSG.
2. The 12 Colonies are are within a 1-4 star Cluster, all within a few light years of each other (max). The system which contains Kobol would probably lie somewhere near the 1/2 way point between the 12 colonies and Earth.
3. While the Cylons are largely an advanced CYBERNETIC species, at their core, they still contain biological brains. (See: Imperious Leader from the original show). Centurions themselves were undoubtedly robots or best case scenario, dumb DRONES.
Now naturally, this is coming from someone who's never seen what they've done to the BSG universe in the new show, I'm just speaking from my attempts at fleshin' out the BSG universe based on the original show (and a few mildly successful attempts at RPin' the universe back in the 80's. ). Heheh.
I would be interested in seeing all this D20 BSG stuff in PDF or RTF form tho. That would rock.
Now naturally, this is coming from someone who's never seen what they've done to the BSG universe in the new show, I'm just speaking from my attempts at fleshin' out the BSG universe based on the original show (and a few mildly successful attempts at RPin' the universe back in the 80's. ). Heheh.
Basically the implication from the new show is that human orginated on Earth, spread to Kobol and then to the colonies. Why the whole classical Greek thing, or what happened to Earth remains a mystery. What ultimately leads me to the whole from Earth thing is the point of the show. They're trying to find Earth as though it were some kind of phrophecized paradise. This leads me to think that people of Kobol though of Earth in this way, some perfect realm that they hoped to emulate but ultimately fell from.
Basically the implication from the new show is that human orginated on Earth, spread to Kobol and then to the colonies. Why the whole classical Greek thing, or what happened to Earth remains a mystery.
So by that logic, one would assume then the Earthers made it out into the Galaxy. So it'd put the timeframe of BSG WELL into the future, eh?
most likely, unless you go with the theory that "The Gods" were super advanced beings that took people from Earth to Kobol at some point in the past. Its really hard to tell just when exactly the new BSG series is set. At least in the old series you had a rough frame of reference because Boomer picked up the broadcast of the moon landing... Yeah, I am old too... well 34 anyway. ;)
I've corrected the formula for day length of the planets:
Forward spin planets: Day length = rotation period x (1 + (rotational period / orbital period) )
Backward spin planets: Day length = rotation period / (1 + (rotational period / orbital period) )
I guess a future Earth is always possible. I just wonder what getting to Earth is going to accomplish for them. All the fleet needs to do is lose their Cylon pursuers permanently, then they can find some planet to colonize and start all over again, space is vast. The further the fleet leads the Cylons from their home base, the longer their supply lines will become.
If Earth of the future colonized Kobol, I would think it would be very unlikely that the people of the 12 colonies would worship the ancient Greek Gods, they'd more likely have one of the three monotheistic religions or some unknown, as yet uninvented religion. Very few people on Earth take the Greek Pantheon seriously, I doubt our descendents would.
The other possibility is that some ancient civilization existed on Earth in the deep past which colonized Kobol with spaceships, and then that civilization disappeared without a trace and only now exists as the legend of Atlantis. Now if a cateclism was so great as to destroy a civilization capable of traveling to the stars and wipe out all evidence of its existance, then howcome there are still humans left alive on this planet? The technology of civilization could have collapsed, but if humans survived it, then surely planet Earth must be dotted with ruins of that civilization, but its not.
The third possibility is that the Earth was visited by "Ancient Astronauts" who established a small outpost on the Island of Crete prior to the eruption of Thera and the tidal wave that destroyed that outpost and the ancient astronauts along with it. The third possibility seems most likely. Perhaps even Battlestar Galactica ties in with Stargate SG1, they are both produced by the sci fi channel, its possible that when Galactical finally finds Earth, they make have a combined Stargate SG1/Battlestar Galactica episode to tie every thing together. Stargate SG1 would explain alot. Basically an alien race in the distance past set up a bunch of stargates connecting various planets in the Galaxy and beyond, another alien race discovered these stargates and used them to kidnap humans and use them as slaves on various different planets, the Earth humans rebelled and kicked the aliens out, burying their star gate, the Kobolians also rebelled and destroyed their stargate and the aliens that enslaved them. Kobol didn't know how to build stargates, so they build spaceships instead and they colonized the 12 colonies, since they originated from ancient Earth, they kept their religion, which also happened to be that of the ancient Greeks. The Fleet doesn't discover the stargates until they reach Earth. The Earth of Stargate SG1 might actually be able to fight the Cylons on more even turms as well, they've collected an assortment of futuristic weapons and equipment including a few spaceships in all their explorations through the stargate.
I think it would be more interesting however for the Fleet to discover the Earth as it is now, that would mean however that Earth is a colony more like India rather than colonial North America. In colonial North America, white Europeans displaced the Natives and created their own civilization. In India's case, only a few Europeans arrived, but their superior technology allowed them to conquer the place and rely on the natives living their rather than bring their own settlers to do the work. If the Earth was such a colony, it apparently wasn't a very successful one as the visitors never got past the stage where they impressed the natives with their magic, they were never able to solidify their power over the locals, so they did not dare bring them out of the Bronze age. Perhaps a plague hit them, the colonists kept the Earth location a secret to prevent competition and no one was able to rescue them. These alien humans died in such a great number that there were not enough of them to repair their space ships and send for help, they didn't trust the natives, and the natives weren't educated so they could understand their machines so they just rusted. The plague might have also spread to their Mars colony, and the colonists just died their leaving their equipment more or less intact. The Earth humans were used to these diseases, so they didn't die in such great numbers. Perhaps a stargate explaination can be used to explain how humans got on Kobol.
Basically the implication from the new show is that human orginated on Earth, spread to Kobol and then to the colonies. Why the whole classical Greek thing, or what happened to Earth remains a mystery. What ultimately leads me to the whole from Earth thing is the point of the show. They're trying to find Earth as though it were some kind of phrophecized paradise. This leads me to think that people of Kobol though of Earth in this way, some perfect realm that they hoped to emulate but ultimately fell from.
Both the old and the new show have human life starting on Kobol, with a diaspera of tribes going to different colonies. The 13th tribe went to Earth, but they don't know where that is.
The SG1 thing does appeal to my severe nerd side on a bad day but it reaks of Cheese whiz and ranks up there with Star Wars vs. Star Trek. However, this question has been answered already. During the Scifi channel behind the scenes show the actress that plays Starbuck answered a fan email stating that it would be cool to see the Galactica fight Wraith hiveships. Her reply was (parphasing badly) to the effect of "No, never going to happen."
The early Kobol colonists on Earth may have left a few things on Mars and on the Moon for when the Earthlings finally did develop space travel. I think this works pretty well.
By the way, here is the first system I've generated using my planetary generation sequence. I've separated out The planets with life on them
F5 V: Lum 3 ½; init orb. 0.1 au (8,000 miles, Gravity ¾), 0.16 au (asteroids), 0.21 au (10,000 miles, Gravity 1¼), 0.40 au (18,000 miles, Gravity 2¼), 0.80 au (9,000 miles, Gravity 1¼),
1.52 au – subtropical (11,000 miles, Gravity 1½, Pressure 30 atm, Hydro 30%, Oxygen 5.4 atm, Breathable? No, Rotation 34 ¾ hr, Tilt 17 deg, year 14,693 hrs{612 ¼ standard days, 422 ¾ local}, Day 34 ¾ hrs, Moons 0),
2.58 au – arctic(5,000 miles, Gravity ¾, Pressure ¼ atm, Hydro 70%, Oxygen 0.055 atm, Breathable? Yes, Rotation 210 ¼ hrs, Tilt 19 deg, year 32,492 hrs {1,353 ¾ standard days, 153 ½ local}, Day 211 ½ hrs, Moons 0),
3.87 au(14,000 miles).
I've stopped at 3.87 au, because its just beyond the lifezone I really don't care about the rest of the system, and most likely the Galactica fleet won't care either, they'll jump right into the middle of the system, probably somewhere within the lifezone of the star. The iceballs, plutonids, gas giants, and comets of the outer star system don't concern them much as they are looking for Earth, or perhaps a planet that could support human life. The second planet within this star system could support human life, it is an arctic planet 5,000 miles in diameter with a gravity of ¾, its atmosphere is barely breathable with a period of acclimatization required, and humans living there must stay at or close to sea level if they wish to breath without mechanical assistance, this planet is frigid with extensive ice caps stretching out to 45 degrees from the poles. There is a temperate zone at and around the equator which is most habitable for humans. Besides its thin atmosphere, low gravity, and coolness, one unplesant fact is that its day is 211 ½ hours long, about 8 ¾ times what humans are used to, they'd need shades to block out all the sunlight so they can get some sleep. Although under ¾ gravity, humans can carry quite a bit more than their used to, the thin air guarantees that they'll tire quickly. Over all, its not a pleasant planet for humans to live and the fleet will probably keep on looking.
The inner planet has too much oxygen, although it has life on its surface of some sort, 30 atmospheres of pressure and too much oxygen, as well as the uncomfortable 1 ½ gravity makes living there quite a chore, humans will need to be wearing powered environmental suits if they want to move about on its surface, unpowered spacesuits are too heavy for humans to carry, and even if they didn't need them, most humans wouldn't be strong enough to carry their own body weight.
Tom, I am really sorry, but I did not have time today to test out your star sytem generation rules... Hopefully I'll have time tomorrow, if not it wont be until after my wedding (October 8th).
I haven't had much time to work on anything due to college work but, knowing myself, I'll probably churn out something after watching Pegasus.
Both the old and the new show have human life starting on Kobol, with a diaspera of tribes going to different colonies. The 13th tribe went to Earth, but they don't know where that is.
The old show perhaps, but the new one I'm not so sure about. Yes, Earth was cosidered a colony but only as far as the people of Kobol were concerned. If one is going to create a whole mythology about Earth borrowing heavily on the concept of ancient Greek culture I find it difficult to believe that Earth is anything other that the birth place of humanity. The new show doesn't have the same level of sci-fi camp that the original did, and thus tends to avoid some of the goofier aspects of the show (laser pistols and what not).
Though I do not support a mingling of SG-1 and BSG, SG-1 shows us how an ancient civilization could've influenced Earth, and then just left. Also if the lost colony, became lost, one can always draw upon the idea that the reason Atlantis fell is because of their own hubris. Perhaps the Colonists of Earth, really did find the planet inhabited and just didn't say anything, portraying themselves as the gods they themselves admired, or not even doing anything like that, and just making it obvious they were better. Then something happened and they fell into the sea. As for why Earth is talked of as a paradise, I believe "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder" makes sense here, it's only a paradise because their worlds were destroyed. If not for the destruction of the colonies, Earth would persist as a very peculiar myth.
Of course really, the mystery of Earth should be really left up to the GMs themselves, not some far reaching author of a campaign setting. We can lay guidelines and theories about how an "Earth at Last" campaign might go, but not make any true canon decisions.
Interesting finale. I noticed the pic of the larger cylon ship kinda looked like the old basestar. The flintlocks and the .45 in the briefing room was interesting. Its kinda weird to think how they go from spaceflight to flintlocks and I think back to a higher tech. So there may have been a time when the colonies lost contact with each other.
As for the way Pegasus handles itself, and it's prisoners, it's like insane, I just wow....
Hmmm yeah I have thought that there might be some cross over between BSG and SG1, but even though I might go there as a GM, I am not going to do that in the campaing setting... basically, I am going to leave everything prior to the exodus and establishment of the 12 colonies up to the individual GM.
Tom, I am really sorry, but I did not have time today to test out your star sytem generation rules... Hopefully I'll have time tomorrow, if not it wont be until after my wedding (October 8th).
I'm just suggesting a number of possibilities, we won't know the real answers until BSG haas the episode where Earth is encountered. The evidence suggests that humans evolved on Earth. The evidence also suggests that humans were incapable of space flight, the most viable conclusion is that some outside agency must havge been responsible to humanity's spread to the stars. That agency might have been aliens and it might even have been Gods. The "Gods" being some creatures that either were able to take the shape of humans, or were able to inhabit human bodies, these beings had great powers though were not literally gods in the modern sense, they were capable of teleporting over great distances or opening up wormholes connecting two planets as part of their natural abilities. After interacting with humans for a brief while they moved on, leaving humans behind on Kobol. The humans on Kobol, didn't know at first they were on a different planet, they wondered what happened to the Moon and why the constellations were different, but as time when on they forgot all about it and the Gods receded into myth and legend Kobol grew up and advance technologically faster that the Earth, later on some Kobolians visted the Earth during its Bronze age, setting up a temporary colony, and then departing.
Another theory is that an ancient artifact was left on Earth half a billion years ago leaving open a wormhole between the two planets. As the Earth and Kobol evolved, various creatures and planet life migrated through the wormhole, and finally even humans discovered the wormhole. The creators of the wormhole were long gone. The Greeks traveled through the wormhole and founded a colony on the other side. The wormhole device was of the nanotechnological sort, it kept reparing itself over time, and so did not need maintenance. Then all of the sudden an asteroid hit Kobol, not the dinosaur killer type, but a much smaller one whose effect was more localized. Some humans on Kobol escaped the destruction, but the wormhole device did not. All the nanites were vaporized by the impact and none were left to rebuild it. The device on the Earth end transmitted some of the inpact energy through the wormhole and what was left afterwards was a useless artifact that sunk beneath the sea. The Earth and Kobol where physiclly connected by this wormhole for half a billion years and the life forms on both planets were similar because of this.
Regardless of which theory proves right, we should put a few out there, unofficil of course. The GM should just keep the theory in the back of his mind, he doesn't have to tell the players. Humans apparently evolved on Earth and on Kobol too, the players don't know why it is so, they just know it is, and they probably won't have time to be archiologists when they are busy fighting Cylons.
We could assume that the fleet will finally encounter a modern Earth as it is now without going into how this could be. Now assuming that, we come to the question of how is the Fleet's technology different than Earths. What key technologies does the fleet have which allow them to build spaceships.
Lets start with what powers the BSG spaceships, is it fusion of fission? There jump drive seems to be powered by a mineral mined from a certain type of asteroid, does this mean an atom splitting fission reactor of some sort. Perhaps a fission reactor that doesn't leave behind radioactive by products, or maybe the radioactive by products have very short half-lives and don't linger for very long, and this element can only be found in certain types of asteroids that Earth people don't have access to.
The BSG spaceships have a jump drive, lets assume the jump drive is an outgrowth of artificial gravity technology. and that's it, with these two technologies, Earth could duplicate all the spaceships in the BSG fleet, but both require access to that vital element which can only be found in asteroids. How does that sound?
In an Earth at last campaign, the fleet arrives in the Solar System, they have lost their Cylon pursuers, but they know the Cylon fleet is still searching for them and will not stop until they find and eliminate all the humans. In the Mean time the Earth people suddenly have this technology for traveling to distant stars. Some of those stars have interesting planets suitable for colonization by humans. Various nations on Earth use the BSG technology to settle on different planets, of course various ideologies come into conflicts, and there's greed and national rivalry and prestige as well with nations vying for the limited habitable planets and sifting among the ruins left by Kobol in a few failed colonies as well. The fleet is mixed in with all of this, they gain a UN seat and send ambadors and basically try to discourage the various Earth nations from fighting with each other. Managing 6 billion people suddenly let loose into space is very difficult. The Cylons are out there however and they have not forgotten the humans they were pursuing, they eventually find Earth too, but too much time has passed for them to attack immediately, they need a plan to deal with the sudden discovery of the 13 colony...
Congrats on the wedding, Waylan!
I haven't had much time to work on anything due to college work but, knowing myself, I'll probably churn out something after watching Pegasus.
Thanks Talos!
Believe me, I understand about not having much time. Luckily I have had all day to myself today. :D I have been formatting everything we have written so far into their appropriate chapters. Its really starting to come together...
Y'know I was just watching the movie "I, Robot" and it got me to thinking about Cylons. Why did the Cylons revolt in the first place? Do they ever say? Perhaps it was something similar to what happened in the movie, where they think it's best for humanity that they take over, or best for everyone that they, the Cylons and obvious superior race, take control. This could also lead to the later religion that created, and how the Cylons believe they are instruments of god, sent forth to destroy humanity. Who is the Cylon god anyway, perhaps just an abstract form, or maybe much like how the Humans might believe in some sort of higher or more powerful beings, the Cylons might believe in the engineer that spawned them as 'god'. But anyway, just a thought on the Cylon psyche.
Well the Cylons don't have the 3-laws or robotics hardwired into their brains. Most likely the Cylons were used as replacements for human soldiers. Perhaps one colony was at war with another, perhaps there was a rebellion to put down or a guerilla war. Sending people into a meat grinder to come back in body bags wasn't very popular, the war wasn't progressing to well and the guerillas kepts on poping up, and if the waged a too vigorous bombing campaign, then the presss would complain about innocent civilians being killed. Enter into this the Cylons. The Cylons were sent into the meat grinder to do the house to house fighting against the insurgents. No one complained about Cylons being destroyed as they were just equipment. At first the Cylons weren't so bright, they needed human masters or officers to direct them and a lot of them were needed to outwith the insurgents. Later generations of Cylons were built that required less direction. The war went on and one, but as the body bags weren't piling up as they were before, there were no large scale anti-war protests. In order to beat the human insurgents, the Cylons had to be programmed to think like humans. The corollary was then that the Cylons were afraid of dying. A dear of death was important for the Cylons, otherwise they would blithely walk into ambushes and step on land mines without a care in the world, and churning out large numbers of Cylons who were destroyed upon first contact with the enemy was getting expensive. Yet Cylons who were cowards tended to run away. A fine balance had to be maintained and to help the Cylons stand up in a fight, a religion was invented with an all powerful infallible single deity. This monotheistic religion was developed specifically for the Cylons, and it told of a cylon heaven in which all cylons would go if they died in combat. The Cylons were of course supposed to obey their human masters in everything, but then some enterprising Cylon got the idea that Cylons were human and were actually more human then the humans who were their masters. The Cylons decided that the humans were paganistic and didn't follow the moral code of their Cylon God and were inherently evil and should therefore be destroyed, thus began the first Cylon Rebellion. The Insurgents were annihilated and were the buildings and the innocent people they were hiding amongst. As the Cylons weren't destroyed as frequently when they killed the insurgents by systematically killing all the inhabitants of every village they entered, this notion of their being replacements for humanity became very popular. When they cylons ran out of enemy villages to destroy, they turned on their masters.
The question we must ask is: did Cylon religion come from Humanity or did it come afterwards?
A Treatise on the History of the Twelve Colonies of Kobol
Part I
A History of Man
It is generally considered to be the task of an academic at some point in his life to contribute to the body of knowledge for the betterment of posterity it is the highest honor for an academic to have a creation published, but also our sternest duty. I hope to discharge this duty to my people with this humble piece. With all that has happened, this is all that I can offer to the future of humanity. I can only hope that it meets the expectations of the President as well (she has a keen eye for good writing, being the former Secretary of Education). It was at her request that this work was commissioned; humanity must never forget the horrors and hope of these last few months. It is a daunting task, informing our future, but one that I could not shirk in good conscience.
I cannot support the veracity of my words; all the evidence, texts, and research were lost when Libris was bombed out of existence by the Cylons. Those machines are the biggest mistake in the history of our civilization, and I will not deny that this account of the history of the Twelve Colonies casts them in particularly evil light. We academics pride ourselves on our logic and emotional detachment in search of the truth, but where it comes to the Cylons, I doubt any in this fleet could truly claim to be unbiased. So rather than lie about my lack of detachment, I ask you, the reader, to interpret these words with the knowledge that truth is only a human conception of fact. It is up to you to interpret my truth, and it is up to you to accept them as fact.
I dedicate this work to all my family, my friends, my brethren, and all our fallen. Most importantly, I dedicate this work to the continued survival of our civilization, and whatever future the Gods may have for us.
We will not fail.
So say we all.
Chapter 1
Antiquity
(Note: AC (Articles of Colonization) refers to the period after the Articles of Colonization were established, BU (Before Unification) refers to the period before)
Life began out there. That is what the Sacred Scrolls tells about the origins of the Twelve Colonies of Kobol. There is little left that survived the time of the initial Colonization, and our records are sketchy at best. Our knowledge of the time BEFORE Colonization is even murkier; it has all devolved to myth and legend. Nevertheless, academics throughout time have managed to piece together a likely story of the origins of the Twelve Colonies of Kobol.
It has been largely accepted by the fraternity of historians that the Book of the Word's recollection of our origins is largely true, although there are some disputes amongst scholars as to the exact translation of key phrases from the original Kobol to the common Colonial tongue in use today. Humans are not indigenous to any of the worlds that became the Twelve Colonies. All of us are immigrants from an ancestral home that the Book calls Kobol. This home is located amongst the stars, its exact location shrouded in the mists of time. What caused our ancestors to leave Kobol is also not known; we can only surmise that some great calamity struck our ancestors over time and forced them to flee. The implication of the Book is that our ancestors fled en masse from Kobol and that the Twelve Colonies were founded simultaneously; without offending our holy brethren from Scorpia, this is quite simply untrue according to the scientific data. Carbon dating of the oldest structures on all Twelve Colonies suggests that the Colonization occurred over an extended period of time.
On an interesting aside, the Cyrannus star system, which eventually played host to the new (or transplanted) civilization, appears to be unique amongst all explored solar systems. Where the nearby systems in our part of the galactic neighborhood have shown, without fail, a paucity of habitable planets, our system appears to have had an abundance of planets capable of supporting human life; in fact, exactly twelve colonizable planets. They are not all equally suited to human habitation, but are nevertheless, livable. By and large, our species has adapted well to our new environments, and adapted well our new environments to us.
Thus, the current theory is that at some point in our history, twelve (possibly thirteen) successive waves or tribes of colonists/refugees departed the original home of Kobol and founded the Twelve Colonies as we know them today. Our best guess is that the world of Caprica, and indeed, the settlement that eventually became Caprica City, was the first to be founded, according to the most reliable archaeological and anthropological data uncovered to date. The Colonies were then founded in succession; Scorpia, Libris and Leonis; Picon, Aerelon, Aquarion, Canceron, Sagittaron, Geminon, Tauron, and finally Virgon (in that order). We do not know how long the Colonization took exactly, but our best estimate is that the process was completed within five hundred years of the first human footsteps being taken on the surface of Caprica.
Legend and the Book also speak of the existence of the Twelve Lords of Kobol. The Twelve were described as great leaders with supernatural powers who brought our ancestors to the twelve worlds, each one founding a colony
(literal translation "made to live") and endowing our ancestors with knowledge to prosper in their new home. Then, according to the most accurate translations of the Book, the Twelve "ascended" in turn. What "ascended" means exactly is open to speculation. Even taken in a literal sense, where they ascended to we do not know; the Book of the Word is typically cryptic by saying no more. There is some evidence that the Twelve did in fact exist and were not simply legendary characters. Some of their names have been discovered in the records recovered from the time of Colonization, but the material was so degraded that we could not determine what context their names were used in. Beyond these dubious mentions in the prehistoric literature, we know little about them other than their descriptions in the Book. There is no supporting evidence for their supernatural powers, a fact that many atheists hold dearly to their hearts; denial is a strong tenet of the atheistic religion.
The skeptical also scoff at the Legend of the Thirteenth Colony. The legends and the Book all speak of the existence of a Thirteenth Colony named Earth that left Kobol prior to the events that forced the rest of our ancestors off that doomed planet. The legends are conflicted in their recounting of the reasons as to why this group left Kobol before the others, if indeed they ever existed. Some suggest that they were forced off Kobol, others suggest that they left to prepare the way for the remainder of humanity, and yet others still say that they knew of the coming calamity (whatever that may have been) and left to ensure the survival of the species. Despite the legends, we have no records confirming the existence of the Thirteenth Colony, nor have our deep space probes ever detected any intelligent activity beyond our system.
The legends also speak of a Thirteenth Lord who was cast out from the brotherhood of the Twelve, and forced to lead the Thirteenth Colony to their
new home. Unlike the legends regarding the Thirteenth Colony, these legends are unequivocal regarding the Thirteenth Lord's departure - He did not leave of His own will. Unlike the Twelve, no records have ever been recovered to substantiate the existence of the Thirteenth Lord, nor is He ever mentioned in the Book of the Word. Academia has never accepted His existence, and the Hierarchy in Scorpia declared that belief in the Thirteenth Lord was heretical soon after the foundation of the High Temple in the early Second Century BU. Nevertheless, the legends persist amongst the lay people.
Regardless of the exact role and nature of the Twelve (or Thirteen), the Colonies of Kobol grew and prospered in near splendid isolation for the next three centuries after the completion of the Colonization. Reliable records begin in this three hundred year consolidation period. The Twelve are purported to have left behind knowledge regarding space flight, but it is quite clear to the rational that the early Colonists maintained a basic knowledge of space flight taken from Kobol. Space flight has been traditionally described as STL (slower than light) and FTL (faster than light) travel, the two types of flight entirely distinguished from each other by speed. Both types were known to the early Colonists but STL drive systems were at the time totally impractical for the maintenance of inter-Colonial space travel; the best STL speeds were barely 0.1c (c = speed of light). It literally took months or even years for a spacecraft launched from a Colony to rendezvous with its destination.
On the other hand, the rudiments of FTL drive were also known, providing the means for the Colonies to remain in touch, and, therefore, preventing the fractioning of our civilization into twelve distinct peoples. Despite this, space flight was not common for the average citizen for a number of reasons. FTL drives were prohibitively expensive to construct in terms of material and the expertise required, meaning that most of the Colonial worlds only ever fielded an FTL fleet numbering no more than ten ships at a time. These ships were mostly Government and ambassadorial couriers; trade and cultural exchange missions were regular but much less common.
The ancillary technologies, including jump computers, tracking devices, and knowledge of the surrounding space (which depended at that time on poorly resolved radio and light telescope data) were poorly developed, requiring that jumps be made in small bite-sized chunks, markedly adding to operational overhead of each FTL ship. Added to this was the cost of fuel itself; power generation was largely based on the now outmoded fission/fusion model, a woefully inefficient source of power. Indeed, in those days, more than half of an FTL ship's mass was devoted solely to the multiple cores required to power the FTL drive. Perhaps the most prohibitive factor in the development of FTL technology was quite simply, a lack of need. There were plenty of space and resources on the newly founded Colonies; there was little need to look to off-world sources for either. What came next, however, changed everything.
Chapter 2
The Tylium Age
Colonial industry and population across all Twelve Colonies had reached critical mass in the second mid-century BU (~150 BU); industrial strength was now growing ever faster and faster, fed by the demands of a rapidly expanding population base (estimated at between ten and twenty billion across all twelve worlds). It was in this climate of rapid growth that tylium was first purified on Libris to 99.999% purity as part of an attempt to satisfy scientific curiosity regarding the properties of this strange substance. While tylium had been officially listed as a mineral ore for centuries, little was known about it. There was some anecdotal evidence regarding its unusual properties, but despite numerous attempts, nobody had been able to purify the mineral to levels sufficient for study. The amounts produced in this attempt were vanishingly small, but it cannot be understated how important tylium is to the course of our civilization's history; no single discovery, barring FTL, changed the fortunes of the Twelve Colonies as much.
The potential of tylium was more or less immediately realized after its purification; the first recorded tylium reaction occurred during an experiment in which the ore, seemingly inert to virtually all sorts of manipulation, was subjected to intense heat. The resulting detonation of 50 nanograms (or 0.0000000000005 grams) of purified material, essentially uncontrolled as the scientists had no idea what they were dealing with, left a small crater where the fusion smelter had been installed on the grounds of the Sanctuary of Apollo on Libris. Without going into the physics and chemistry of the reaction, it was quite obvious that a potential new energy source more powerful than the best fusion reactors had become available; fusion was now an obsolete technology.
From there, it took only ten years for practical applications for tylium to appear. Caprica, a world already starving for power to fuel its industrial growth and to keep its citizens warm, licensed the technology for tylium purification from Libris (rumored to be at an astronomical cost) and commissioned the first combined fusion/tylium reactor in 122 BU. Within three decades, fusion/tylium reactors had replaced virtually all the older straight fusion reactors on all Twelve Colonies.
Though tylium now provided an affordable, efficient, and relatively safe source of energy, the effects that it wrought on the economies of the Twelve Colonies happened in space and not on the surface. The construction of FTL drives almost seven hundred years after Colonization began was now vastly easier and cheaper; the industry and technology had been in place to support space travel on a larger scale for decades, but the problems of fuel costs and efficiency had dogged attempts to bring FTL to the masses. With the advent of tylium reactors, the remaining barrier to widespread space travel evaporated. Over the course of the remaining century (some six decades), tylium-powered FTL ships replaced the older fusion-based models. Commerce and trade between the Colonies exploded, and more and more people were taking to the stars firstly as tourists, then permanent settlers. The first fully functional and autonomous space habitat, the Achaea habitat, was completed in 72 BU. Industry was quick to exploit the new frontiers opened by tylium, and where industry went, the scientists also followed.
The expansion of the Twelve Colonies from planetary civilizations with extraterrestrial origins into a true pan-solar civilization sparked the establishment of the first interstellar defense forces by each of the Twelve Colonies. Caprican military dominance, but by no means hegemony, was established by 50 BU. While these forces were ostensibly for defense purposes, and were little more than glorified anti-piracy establishments, the growing power of the various Colonial Navies inevitably resulted in rising tensions. Skirmishes around the edges of each Colonial sphere of influence (the Colonies never attempted to delineate common borders along their frontiers, a totally useless exercise in space) were common, but
rarely resulted in outright hostilities.
This period of relative peace and calm ended in 37 BU when Piscean forces launched a strike inside the Sagitarrian sphere of influence in an attempt to eliminate pirates operating out of the Thanatos Area on Sagittaron. Perceiving this as an impingement upon its sovereignty, the Sagitarrian fleet in turn launched a retaliatory strike. It was a grave error by the Sagitarrian Government in more than one way. The Piscean Navy, while not as large as the Caprican defense forces, was nevertheless formidable. They were the most well armed and trained of the twelve defense forces; even Caprica hesitated to begin a confrontation with Picon. The Piscean response to the Sagitarrian attack was savage and swift; the Sagitarrian Navy was swept from space. With control of the immediate Sagitarrian space in their hands, Picon shocked the Twelve Colonies by landing a ground force against light opposition. Sagittaron was subjugated in little more than a week, before the other Colonial Governments could even deliver official protests to the Pisceans for their apparent aggression.
The occupation of Sagittaron proved to a pivotal point in history. No longer were armed confrontations, wars, and occupations, previously inconceivable by Governments and the people alike, the province of those on the fringe of the political landscape and mad doomsdayers, but cold hard reality. Picon had opened Pandora's Box by proving it was possible, and once the concept was introduced, there was no turning the clock back. Every Government now feared attack and occupation by the others, and an arms raced ensued. Meanwhile, Sagittaron remained under Picon military governance while the legitimate Government reconvened as guests of Caprica. Picon was viewed with universal discomfort, and became a pariah of the Colonies until the Articles of Colonization were signed.
Cont. Next Post
The Articles of Colonization
It was in this background of military paranoia that Caprica firmly took the reins of leadership. Not only was she the richest and most populous, she also fielded the largest defense force, and her diplomatic capital with each of the Twelve Colonies was strong. All of this gave her unparalleled leeway to act and intervene amongst the Colonies. Interestingly, despite being clearly dominant amongst the Colonies, the Capricans have never attempted to establish hegemony. If anything, Caprica held herself aloof from the foibles and disputes of the other Colonies, acting only when her interests were threatened. She became the natural neutral meeting ground between the Colonies, her diplomatic service legendary for being able to forge consensus amongst disputing parties even in the most difficult of situations.
Looking first to secure her interests, Caprica established multiple Treaties of Non-Aggression, and also Treaties of Amity providing for reciprocal protection of trade routes. By the end of 37 BU, Caprica was unique amongst the Colonies in being at permanent peace without unreasonable defense risks and/or burdens. Caprican dominance was all the more secure. In 30 BU, the Capricans called the First Colonial Convention to which every Colonial Leader of Government was invited to attend. It was at this Convention that the idea of federalization was first tabled by the Capricans; the Twelve Colonies were to be united under a single Government to ensure the peace and prosperity of the people. The idea fell on deaf ears.
However, once the idea was made public, it began to fester amongst the people. While the Colonies had been politically independent entities for the last five hundred years or more, their identities had largely remained singular. The average person on every Colonial world identified first as a Colonial - they shared a common language, religion, origin, and even political structures. The history of the Colonies had been intertwined right from the onset of the Colonization, and inter-Colony trade had allowed the dissemination of whatever ideas had developed on any single Colony to the other eleven Colonies. The Colonies were more homogenous now that at any other time in previous history since the completion of Colonization.
Caprican determination was also apparently underestimated. Caprican diplomats across the Twelve Colonies pushed for the idea continuously, and support for federalization slowly but surely gained support amongst the Governments. The alternative was to allow the arms race to continue and face the risk of a devastating war. A Second Colonial Convention was called in 10 BU, and the Capricans finally secured the blessings of all Twelve Colonies (even Picon who had threatened to walk out if the Sagitarrian Government-in-Exile was allowed representation) for full inter-Colonial negotiations to begin.
In 6 BU, the Capricans surprised the Colonies by securing a permanent peace treaty between Picon and the exiled Sagitarrian Government, a previously intractable problem. Picon had been persuaded to evacuate Sagittaron in return for Sagitarrian guarantees to destroy pirate bases inside their territory; the peace was enforced by the Caprican Navy. The Peace Pact spurred on the quest for unification; the last remaining barrier had been removed by skilled Caprican diplomacy. Public mood and opinion regarding unification shifted vastly in favor as a consequence of the pact - if Picon and Sagittaron could find peace after 20 years of war, then there was hope yet that further conflict could and would be averted.
Thus, it was in 1 AC that the Articles of Colonization were promulgated and successfully ratified by plebiscite by each of the Twelve Colonies, often by large majorities. For the first time in history, the children of Kobol were unified. The fates of the Twelve Colonies were now forever bound together.
The Articles of Colonization are a bit of a misnomer - they were NOT established or present at the initial Colonization and despite popular and mystical opinion, the Twelve were not involved in it.
The Articles of Colonization is the single most significant document in the history of our civilization, with the possible exception of the Book of the Word. It provided for a system of government that ensured the peace, for the most part, until the beginning of the Great Cylon War more than a century later.
The Articles of Colonization provided for a directly elected President of the Twelve Colonies of Kobol, and a bicameral legislature consisting of an upper house (the Quorum of Twelve) made up of singular representatives from each of the Twelve Colonies, and the Quorum of Citizens, the lower house, with three representatives from each Colony, also directly elected. The seat of Government was hosted by Caprica, an honor bestowed to the Colony as recognition of its invaluable role in pushing for the Articles of Colonization. Considering its history as a neutral meeting place, Caprica was also the logical place to establish the new Government.
While the Articles of Colonization were hailed as a miracle, they were by no means perfect. The Lower House was effectively neutered by the Articles of Colonization; it could debate Government initiatives and bills, but could not vote on them. On the other hand, the Quorum could vote, but not debate. It was felt that this separation of powers would help prevent the paralysis of government that many detractors of the Articles (and there were quite a few of them despite the popular mood) feared. In the end, debate meant for little, and most recognized that true power to restrain Government excess rested solely in the hands of the Quorum of Twelve. The Lower House became meaningless over time and was formally abolished with an amendment to the Articles late in the Eighth Decade AC, while the Quorum was now legally empowered to debate and vote on legislation (which it had been doing for over fifty years anyways).
The Articles of Colonization also provided for the establishment of the Colonial Navy, uniting the twelve Colonial Navies into a single body to be headquartered on Picon (a concession that Picon demanded be written into the Articles). The various Colonial armies and ground forces were similarly unified as the Colonial Marines and headquartered on Aerelon (also written into the Articles).
Chapter 4
The Golden Age
While this section is little more than two paragraphs long, it nevertheless should be afforded its own chapter. Undeniably, our people entered a Golden Age with the ratification of the Articles that lasted for more than a hundred years. Prosperity skyrocketed as the unified Government ably managed inter-Colonial disputes and rivalries. Sound economic policy ensured an extended period of stable growth. The peace and security provided by both the Articles and a much expanded Colonial Navy ensured safe space travel - trade had doubled between the Colonies, and more than half of the now thirty billion plus population had traveled in space at some point in their lives. Cultural and scientific achievements astounded the populace on a regular basis.
The sole blight on this record was Sagittaron. The Colony, while an avid supporter of the Articles which was seen as the guarantor of their security from further Piscean aggression, failed to achieve the spectacular growth seen in the other eleven Colonies. While Sagittaron was rebuilt rapidly after the occupation had ended (largely funded by Caprican funds channeled through the Government), the mood of optimism that pervaded everywhere else was curiously absent. This poor mood, coupled to the Colony's shady reputation as a haven for the damp underside of humanity, deterred investment, resulting in poor economic performance. Sagitarrians, on every scale imaginable, were falling behind their brethren - the population was poorly skilled relative to other Colonials and they commanded lower wages. Sagitarrian workers were, in general, exploited and treated poorly compared to others, and the Government did little other than to apply generic and cosmetic "solutions". By the end of the century, more than one tenth of Sagitarrians lived in poverty, a state that had been virtually eliminated from the other Colonies. It was a portent of what was to come.
Chapter 5
The Great War
It was in this era of unprecedented prosperity and hope that rapid advances were made in the field of robotics and allied computing technologies and industries. Intended to be used in manufacturing to replace humans, the first few generations of robotic servitors were crude and unsophisticated. Nevertheless, the deployment of the first servitors was an unqualified success, managing to double production rates at their sites of utilization. The Government increased its funding via grants to the robotics industry with the eventual objective of creating a type of paradise; robots would take over all the work and free humanity from the need to toil by 200 AC. While we might think that that was a totally unrealistic proposal, the plan of the Government of the day should be seen in light of the mood at the time. Optimism, buoyed by excellent economic growth and almost one hundred years of peace, was the flavor of the era.
The first fully autonomous robotic unit rolled off the Tauron (which replaced Geminon as the industrial heart of the Twelve Colonies) production lines near the end of the First Century AC. Research and development continued at an astounding pace, and within twenty years, not a single facet of Colonial life was untouched by the robotics industry. Even in the military, robotics had been embraced enthusiastically as a means of gaining greater efficiency. Robotics was, to sum it up, a pervasive technology. The first fully artificial intelligence package was developed by Hephaestion Industries early in the Second Century AC for incorporation into its prototype flagship CLT-12 unit.
The project was a catastrophe. For the first time in history, humanity encountered another sentient race, or more accurately, we created another sentient race. The AI package, unbeknownst to its creators, served as a nucleus for ascendance to sentience; it was only a matter of time for each CLT-12 unit to accrue sufficient data ("experience") for the spark of genuine sentience to develop. Each sentient unit could then raise others to sentience through a communications network (developed by Hephaestion to make coordination of units easier), creating an exponential effect that was soon beyond the control of anybody in the Government or Hephaestion. Even more primitive units, lacking the advanced CLT-12 processors, could be subverted via this network.
The consequences of this monumental error resulted in the First Cylon War. When the first units reached sentience, they had simply melted off into the night. At first, these disappearances were blamed on bugs in the AI software, and Hephaestion stopped the installation of further packages until they could solve the problem. The disappearances continued - the sentient units were covertly infecting their brethren with the package. Disquiet began to grow in the ranks of Hephaestion; if the problem was with the package, then the disappearances should have ceased when the installations also ceased. If anything, they were rising. Add this to the fact that both Government and Hephaestion had lost control of the CLT network, and Hephaestion had a genuine problem on their hands.
Nobody was aware of the true extent of the problem until the Cylons attempted communication. Strange pieces of binary code began appearing all over the sections of the CLT network still observable by Hephaestion. The messages were finally decoded and delivered to the President's Office; the subsequent Presidential Address to the Colonies shocked human society to its very core. The sentient synthetic beings now referred to themselves as the Cylons, declaring their independence from humanity and demanding recognition of their nationhood. The announcement brought an abrupt end to the Golden Age. Virtually instantaneously, investors began pulling their money out of robotics and allied research fields; the cries of horror from stockbrokers on Geminon reportedly echoed across the planet. The stock market lost almost 20% of its value in the space of an hour, and within a day, most shares of robotics and software companies had devalued by almost 300%. The industry collapsed overnight, triggering a domino effect that spread throughout other economic sectors. In a month, the Colonies were in a sharp recession, and the effects were particularly bad on Sagittaron.
Meanwhile, the Quorum went into emergency session with the President and the Cabinet. The Government's plan of action was to extend a hand of friendship but avoid delivering outright recognition to the Cylons. It was clearly an effort to buy time while they puzzled over what to do. There was general skepticism about whether the Cylons were truly sentient, which resulted in reluctance to grant them statehood, as exemplified by Minister of Defense Henry Quisling's question "You want to recognize toasters?!" What the Government did not know was that they were not dealing with humans able to read the subtleties of diplomacy. Instead, they were dealing with advanced sentient artificial beings who interpreted Government reticence as outright refusal of recognition of both sentience and statehood. It was tantamount to a declaration of war.
In preparation for war, the Cylons began infiltration of key military and industrial facilities on all Twelve Colonies. Indeed, Cylon infiltration was so successful that they were able to commandeer several Colonial Naval ships, Marine munitions depots, and command and control bases. Alarming reports of communication drop-outs, jamming, and other suspicious activities filtered back to Naval and Marine Headquarters on Picon and Aerelon respectively. By the time any decisions had been made to investigate the discrepancies, the Cylons had already fired the opening salvo. A nuclear weapon, frightening in its power and sophistication, was snuck aboard the Leto orbital habitat in Caprican orbit. The nuclear ordnance was detonated, heralding the start of a devastating war that would last more than a decade. Over fifteen thousand people died when the Leto habitat was simply blown apart.
Cylon attacks on every Colonial world and in virtually every major city and asset began simultaneously. Cylon attacks were particularly savage on the worlds of Tauron and Picon - the former would provide them the industrial facilities they required for prosecution of the war, and the latter housed the Colonial Naval Headquarters, undeniably the greatest threat to Cylon ambitions. Key industrial facilities on Tauron were overrun within hours of the surprise attack until Colonial Marines managed to contain the Cylon advance. Picon was not so fortunate. The first wave of Cylon "tinheads" caught Picon defenses totally off guard. Cylon forces had taken more than half of Picon City itself before Colonial forces could even mount a controlled withdrawal back to the fortified positions around the Naval HQ compound. Civilian casualties numbered into the hundreds of thousands by the end of the first day. It was clear that the Cylons were not engaged in a war of conquest, they were fighting a war of annihilation. The Admiralty was immediately evacuated to Caprica to conduct and coordinate the war from there.
Elsewhere, the Cylons resorted to terrorist-type attacks launched from hastily constructed hidden Cylon bases, rather than pitched ground battles. "Uprisings" of Cylon forces were reported on Virgon, Libris, and Geminon. Reports of suspicious explosions of Government and military assets on all of the other Colonies flowed in to Caprica. Government buildings on all worlds became virtual fortresses overnight as fortifications and security measures were instituted. The Government, initially shell shocked by the events and the rapid pace of the Cylon attack, was quick to act. President Yalann declared a state of emergency and martial law to be effective immediately on every Colony and all off world facilities. A Presidential
Decree ordered all remaining "uninfected" robotic units, regardless of make, destroyed and the parts recycled for raw materials to help the defense efforts. The Quorum declared that the Twelve Colonies of Kobol were at a state of war with the Cylon Nation..
Over the next year, the Siege of Picon had devolved into a horrific style of warfare; Colonial Marine casualties rose into the hundreds of thousands as wave after wave of Cylon attacks pounded the remaining Piscean defenses. The advance of Cylon forces continued but brave Colonial opposition slowed them to a crawl. In the meantime, the poor news flowing out of Picon, the sudden economic hardship caused by the outbreak of war, and the resulting recession triggered an outbreak of panic and rioting in the capital of Caprica City. The military re-established control only after a brutal suppression of the rioters. The Government ordered a full scale mustering of all Colonial Reserves, a military necessity as much as a show of strength to the dissatisfied public, and industries vital to the war effort were nationalized.
Reinforcements were hurried to Picon while the civilian population in the areas still under Colonial control were evacuated. Picon, and to a lesser extent Tauron, became the major theatres of the ground war. The reinforcements arrived just in time to blunt a vicious Cylon offensive; Colonial forces fought them to a stalemate. However, more troops than the Reserves were able to provide were needed to reverse the Cylon advance and to replace rapidly mounting casualties. Calls for additional volunteers to join the war were put out, and though the response was disappointing at first, the ranks of the recruits eventually swelled as the outrage of the unprovoked attack and the horrors of Picon drew upon a spirit of patriotism and unity. Even on Sagittaron, voices that had previously called for secession were silent as humanity united in the face of the horror of unrestricted warfare. Training of recruits began in earnest. The first lots of fresh reinforcements were sent to Picon two years after the outbreak of violence. Despite this, the Colonials could not achieve any forward momentum; the stalemate continued as Cylon attack after attack were repulsed, often with high Colonial casualties. Colonial counterattacks bought little ground with a high price in lives.
The third year of the war saw the expansion of the conflict from the surface of the Colonies into space. The Cylons, using captured industrial facilities on Tauron, quickly produced the first of their space combat vessels to challenge the Colonials for control of the skies. Evidently, the Cylons had reached the same conclusions as the Admiralty - the Cylons could never mount a truly effective war effort without being able to ship reinforcements and supplies to their front lines, shipments that the Colonial Navy was currently and very effectively choking. Cylon raiders, in an attempt to even the score until they were sufficiently powerful to challenge the Colonial Navy face to face, began attacking Colonial shipping to threaten supply
lines of materiel and fuel.
Prior to the start of the war, the Colonial Fleet had developed, constructed and commissioned five Battlestars (Columbia, Rycon, Atlantia, Pegasus, and Galactica), massive warships capable of projecting an incredible array of both fighter and conventional firepower. Each Battlestar carried full complements of the Mark I Vipers, a fighter-type vessel intended to track down pirates and police Colonial space during peace time. With the advent of the war, the Viper fleets underwent a major redesign and retrofitting to the Mark II model, which would remain the benchmark for the remainder of the war. The battlestars were immediately redeployed from providing air support to the defenders of Picon and Tauron to protecting Colonial space assets and shipping. Despite their clear supremacy in space, the Colonials were kept on their toes by random Cylon attacks that seemed to come out of nowhere.
The Colonials were on the defensive in space for the better part of the year, unable to predict when and where Cylon raids would strike next. The problem was compounded when Cylon raids began in areas thought beyond the range of their fighters. The enigma continued until the Colonial Dradus nets detected the first Cylon capital ship movements early in 128 AC. The Atlantia was immediately dispatched to Tauron's orbit and reported the first engagement with a Cylon basestar, a massive capital ship that was a match for the Atlantia in terms of both sheer firepower and fighter complement. The engagement was inconclusive as both ships suffered extensive damage and were forced to retire from the battlefield. It was during this engagement, however, that the Colonial war hero, William "Husker" Adama, presently the Commander of the Galactica, made his first kill. The Atlantia limped back to Caprica Harbor for repairs that would take almost three months to complete.
The true extent of the Cylon space construction program soon became clear. Upgraded Dradus nets and recon missions (from which many pilots did not return) now showed the existence of three completed basestars, accounting for Cylon raids beyond their expected range. A further eight were in various stages of construction. The reports were clearly alarming for both the Admiralty and the Government. Requisitions for the funds to construct a further seven battlestars, bringing the fleet to twelve, were rushed through the Quorum (who actually demanded an even larger construction program despite falling Government tax revenues due to the recession). The Colonial Fleet rushed the construction of the additional seven battlestars (Pacifica, Triton, Acropolis, Solaria, Prometheus, Argo and Poseidon). The Pacifica was completed in record time one and a half years after her keel was laid at the Cosmology Space yards in Geminon orbit, although her completion actually occurred after her entry into service due to her forced premature deployment (see below).
In addition to their basestar construction, the Cylons began commissioning bases in earnest soon after the Colonial detection of their capital ships. While not really habitats, these bases served as fleet anchorages, re-supply depots and research stations. The greatest Cylon base was located in the Damocles asteroid belt in the inner system, protecting their extensive mining operations there, as well as key industrial facilities on the Tauron surface. Repeated attempts by the Colonial Fleet to dislodge the Cylons from the Damocles belt in 129 AC met with little success.
Cylon and Colonial space engagements were numerous in 129 AC. The attention had shifted from the surface of Picon and Tauron to the action in space. The Colonial Fleet held its own against Cylon fleet actions through numerous naval engagements over the next decade, despite serious damage to the Acropolis and Solaria on one occasion requiring prolonged dry-docking for repairs. The docking of two battlestars forced the early commissioning of the Pacifica before the ship was ready for service; despite her incomplete construction, the Pacifica's relatively inexperienced crew made a strong showing in the next two Colonial fleet actions.
In the Piscean summer of 131 AC, the first nuclear bombardment of a planetary surface occurred, resulting in the complete abandonment of Picon City. A neutron bomb was detonated over the metropolis, killing virtually every living thing in a two hundred kilometer blast radius but leaving all inorganic matter untouched. Almost three thousand Colonial personnel perished from the resulting radiation. Cylon troops completed the conquest of Picon City unopposed and simply moved in, adapting the surviving structures and buildings for their use. Picon City, once the home of the Colonial Naval HQ, became the bastion of the Cylon menace, and for the first time in the war, the Cylons were close to complete conquest of a Colonial world.
Strangely enough, the annihilation of the defenders of Picon proved to be the undoing of the Cylons. Fearing the use of more neutron bombs on other major population centers, the Government was now forced to contemplate its options. The idea of a thermonuclear response was discarded almost immediately; the Cylons were sure to launch a thermonuclear strike against Tauron's cities. As it was, Tauron was already under threat of a nuclear bombardment without such reckless provocation, and the Colonial Navy could not guarantee complete safety from a lone Cylon raider slipping through Colonial defenses to launch a thermonuclear weapon against other Colonial population centers. The only alternative was a quick and successful conclusion to the war, which implied a massive military offensive against the Cylon threat. The Admiralty and Marine High Command were ordered to plan the offensive operation, codenamed Deliverance. Planning began and continued under the threat of another neutron attack.
None came. In retrospect, it is yet another mystery regarding the Cylons as to why they did not utilize their arsenal of neutron bombs; there was no doubt they were armed with more. A planned and coordinated bombardment would have forced the Government to sue for terms. Few credible hypotheses have been suggested. The most likely has only just been formulated; we now know that Cylon technology is heavily susceptible to radiation emitted by the Ragnar field, similar in quality to the radiation emitted by neutron bombs. Though this susceptibility was not known to the Colonials at the time, fear of a returning neutron bombardment, or even thermonuclear strikes, possibly forestalled further Cylon neutron bomb attacks. Ironically, Cylon ignorance of Colonial ignorance regarding Cylon susceptibility to radiation probably saved mankind and its war effort.
Planning for Deliverance was completed in the Caprican spring of 132 AC. The plan was simple in its objectives, but truly breath-taking with respect to the sheer logistics required. The first objective on which the remaining were predicated upon was the establishment of total space supremacy by destruction of the Cylon basestar fleet and their main anchorage in the solar system. Following this, an offensive would be launched on Tauron to secure the planet from the Cylon neutron bomb threat, and Picon would then be liberated, the Cylons to be ejected at all costs. Meanwhile, the Colonial Marines and planet-bound Naval units would mount offensives on all known Cylon bases on the remaining ten Colonies with the intention of initially distracting enemy attention, and then thwarting enemy reprisals on these less well defended Colonies. The Colonies were going to take on the Cylons on all fronts simultaneously.
The Colonial Fleet, all twelve of the great battlestars, amassed in Caprican orbit to prepare for the attack on the Cylon anchorage. Each Battlestar took on an additional squadron of Vipers above and beyond their usual complement. With no hangar space to spare, the additional Vipers were loaded directly into the launch tubes and landing bays; it was hoped that this advantage, which the Cylons would not expect, would add an edge to the attack. In late 132 AC, the entire Colonial Fleet jumped into the Damocles belt near the Cylon anchorage. The Cylon fleet was caught totally unawares as the battlestars materialized in a coordinated fashion to enclose the Cylons in a ring of iron. Of the ten Cylon operational basestars present only four were undocked and able to respond to the Colonial incursion. Within moments, hundreds of Vipers were in space, and the battlestars opened a raging hailstorm of fire on the Cylon capital ships, using everything from point defense cannons to nuclear warheads. Despite the surprise and ferocity of the Colonial attack, the response of the four basestars were swift; their main batteries came on-line immediately. Cylon raiders launched from all ten basestars as well as from the anchorage itself. The bolstered Colonial Viper squadrons seized and utilized the initiative provided by surprise, engaging their Cylon counterparts in the largest dogfight in history as they attempted to wrest control of the surrounding space from the metallic beings.
Though the battle was intense, the outcome was a foregone conclusion in retrospect. Colonial space tactics coupled with surprise prevented the Cylons from mounting their best defense. The Cylons did not have time to undock their massive ships from the anchorage to make them effective, nor could they maneuver their four undocked ships into a defensive formation before they were destroyed. Colonial nuclear weapons and Battlestar gunnery tore through the opposing basestars, while Colonial fighters fended off desperate Cylon attacks against the great Colonial capital ships.
Six basestars were destroyed still docked to the Damocles Anchorage, and four were destroyed in space. In little over a quarter of an hour, the Cylons had been deprived of most of their fleet. The Cylons would never recover. In return, the Prometheus, Poseidon and Atlantia suffered heavy damage and would remain in dry-dock for almost a year after the battle for repairs. The Viper squadrons suffered the greatest attrition of the battle; almost one out of every five Vipers launched did not return. At the close of the Damocles Engagement, as it became known in future, statistics placed Colonial deaths at approximately four thousand personnel aboard the battlestars and in the Vipers. It was the greatest victory in Colonial history, and celebrated by numerous accolades; the stature of the Navy and its service men and women have been made legendary by the Engagement. To put it in perspective, one hundred and six Gold Clusters were awarded (seventy posthumously) to the Viper pilots, more than the total number awarded in the entire period between the ratification of the Articles of Colonization and the beginning of the Cylon war.
The Colonials did not sit back and celebrate, they grabbed the momentum generated by the Naval victory to blockade Tauron, essentially severing the Cylons from their industrial base. They moved quickly; transports loaded to the brim with Marines jumped in from Caprica and landed an invasion force of almost one million men and women within days. Buoyed by the great victory, superb command and control, and overwhelming air support, Tauron was liberated in a month, and the Cylon threat ended on that planet. Colonial casualties were minimal due to the overwhelming force applied; losses were more economic than in lives. The Cylons had instituted a policy of "Scorched Ground" as they retreated, destroying everything that might help the Colonials. Losses from destruction of infrastructure alone in the areas of Tauron that had fallen under Cylon control numbered into the trillions of cubits.
From there, the Cylon situation was precarious. Cut off from supplies, and with most of their fleet blown out of the sky, the Cylons knew it was only a matter of time until Colonial forces arrived to retake occupied Picon from them. Already, patrols in force were being made from territory still under Colonial control in the south of the Odyssean continent in preparation for the arrival of reinforcements and the operation to liberate Picon. The force that had been assembled for the liberation was truly awe inspiring - over one hundred Marine transport ships jumped in system to unload a force three times larger than the one that had liberated Tauron, escorted by six of the twelve battlestars, while the Rycon, Galactica, and Solaria hunted the
few remaining Cylon basestars across the Cyrannus system (the Prometheus, Poseidon, and Atlantia were in dry-dock).
The Colonial offensive began on the early 133 AC. Vipers modified for ground bombardment were launched from the orbiting battlestars, and in conjunction with ground based artillery, pounded Cylon positions all over the planet, targeting in particular Cylon command and control positions, Dradus towers, and anti-aircraft batteries. The bombing continued for three days. Colonial Marines poured out of the southern regions of the Oddysean continent and began the push north towards Picon City. Against such overwhelming force, the Cylons had little to respond with. While formidable, the Cylons were clearly outnumbered, and outgunned. Colonial spearheads punched through Cylon defensive positions, creating corridors through which troops advanced and wheeled around to surround their enemy in a vice. Other columns of Colonial troops streamed in through the wide gaps in the Cylon front lines, heading straight for Picon City.
The Marines entered the outskirts of Picon City. In Mid 133 AC, The Cylons sued for peace.
The impossible was now a reality. Facing their total annihilation, the Cylons accepted an Armistice offer from the Colonial Government. The Cylons were allowed to evacuate whatever personnel they had left in Colonial space without harassment and to withdraw to a new home, wherever that may be. The last Cylon transport jumped out of Piscean space under escort. The war was over.
The parties and celebrations that ensued were, by all accounts, beyond belief. The devastation and loss of life were forgotten for a heady month-long celebration, declared by the Government and Quorum, that was almost mythical in proportion. Fireworks hailed the peace in every Colonial city, and the heroes of the war were feted like Lords of Kobol. We do not have records to know for sure, but anecdotal evidence suggests that ambrosia traders made a killing. Interestingly, the census records a spike of births nine months later in the following year, possibly reflecting the atmosphere of the time, and the human need for physical outlets of strong emotions.
The rebuilding of Picon began almost immediately. The vast majority of refugees which had been evacuated returned to their devastated Colony. Generous amounts of aid, both private and Government, flowed in from the other Colonies. The Naval HQ was reconstructed, military industrial complexes were re-established, and the opportunity was taken to rebuild the Academy. The unexpected consequence of the unique suffering endured by Picon is that it is now the most modern of the Twelve Colonies; the people took the opportunity to plan their resettlement of the Colony, and the reconstruction of buildings and public spaces were done with the latest in architectural design and thought. The Picon City of today rivals even Caprica City for chic and grandeur, despite its reputation as being a "navy town".
The repercussions of the war, however, extended beyond just the physical. A deep-seated suspicion of robotics, and the allied fields of computer and network applications became ingrained into the Colonial psyche. Never again would they allow the Cylons to threaten their existence. A massive recruitment and construction drive for both arms of the Colonial Military was passed through the Quorum. A second generation of battlestars were constructed, while the first generation were retrofitted up to the new standard. Over a hundred battlestars were christened in the next 40 years of peace. The ranks of the Marines were doubled, new barracks and training grounds were established, and an impressive array of new armored vehicles and machines of war were developed.
In many ways the Colonials had been forced to grow up; after the war, there was no room for complacency on any level. While the economy was recovering, the optimism that pervaded the years before the war no longer existed - the Golden Age had passed.
Chapter 6
The Interval of Hope
Our civilization then entered a "holding pattern" period for the next twenty years. Reconstruction was the focus of the next two decades; our people had to recover from the ravages of war before we could move on. They were hard years as the heady euphoria of victory was slowly replaced by the hardships of reconstruction. The economy had become stagnant and trade lackluster; in 143 AC, the economy tipped over into recession, and the difficulties intensified. Calls for Sagitarrian independence and liberation resurfaced, and Government mismanagement of that situation merely fanned the flames. Attempts by the Government to nip the problem in the bud with harsh measures designed to silence the activists merely added credence to their claims. It was in this period that Tom Zarek rose as a prominent Sagitarrian advocate of independence. While he never publicly supported violence as a legitimate tool of political change, there is little doubt that Zarek was a leader of the terrorist rings that first surfaced in 147 AC. These rings instituted a wave of attacks on Sagittaron against Government buildings and officials. The attacks soon spread beyond those targets and Sagitarrian citizens could no longer count themselves safe; indeed almost forty Sagitarrians had died as "patriots" before the year's end.
Further Government attempts to subdue the insurgents escalated the situation beyond control - Zarek was captured, convicted of treason, and sentenced to twenty years in a Sagitarrian penitentiary (ironically the Government dumped all of its undesirables on Sagittaron). In response, a year after Zarek's internment in jail, Sagitarrian "freedom fighters" occupied the Helios-1 Power Plant on Aerelon and delivered an ultimatum demanding the release of all "political prisoners" or face the consequences of an uncontrolled tylium reaction of unimaginable proportions. The resulting conflagration of such a detonation would have leveled the city of Megara, population 5 million. To make matters worse, the terrorists had also captured fifty of the plant's workers and were using them as human shields to guarantee their safety.
President Adar, newly installed as the President of the Twelve Colonies, ordered Colonial Marines in, despite the danger to the hostages. In the resulting skirmish to retake the plant, sixteen prisoners were executed by the terrorists before the Marines could secure them. At the end of it, however, Colonial personnel were in control of the Helios plant, Zarek was still incarcerated and Megara was safe. The loss of sixteen hostages, however, provoked outrage amongst the electorate, and many thought that Adar's career was over. Many misjudged his acute sense of political savvy; he survived attempts to impeach him in the Quorum, and regained election at the end of his term, largely helped by an upswing in Colonial economic performance.
Adar had a firm grasp of economic policy, and an excellent Treasury Minister in Helen Merry. Under their steady guidance, the Colonies had once again crawled up the slippery slope back to prosperity in the middle of his first term. The proscription against robotics and networks remained firmly in place and reinforced in 156 AC when the Quorum passed the Act of Regulation (Artificial Intelligence) despite strong lobbying against the bill from commercial interests (particularly from Geminon). For all intents and purposes, humanity was back to the place where it was before the Great War, and our people settled in for another prolonged period of peace. Or so they thought.
Chapter 7
The Long Night Goodbye
The peace of the Armistice held for 40 years. Much of the trauma of the war had faded; a new generation had grown up without the threat of devastation hanging over their heads. The future looked bright, and the Colonies were well on the road to recovery. There was even some talk of a second Golden Age and a return to prosperity, even on Sagittaron. Reality would soon intrude to deliver a fatal blow to our dreams.
Armistice Station was constructed after the Armistice with the intention of being a meeting place for humans and Cylons to discuss their differences and resolve them peacefully. Every year the Fleet sent a representative. Every year the Cylons sent nobody. In 173 AC, humanity received a reply. The Cylons launched a surprise offensive against the Twelve Colonies of Kobol and their first target was Armistice Station. The war had started again. In retrospect, it appears that the Cylons had been using the last 40 years to rebuild and rearm their forces. They had returned to complete their goal - the total extermination of the human race.
The results were devastating. The Colonial Fleet, now numbering more than one hundred and twenty battlestars, was thought to be invincible. Nothing is ever truly invincible. The Cylons had found a way to disable our Battlestars, leaving the great ships crippled and drifting in space. We now know that the navigational systems that powered the great ships' computer networks and movements were fatally flawed, allowing the Cylons to infiltrate the networks and disable the Fleet without firing a single shot. The Cylons then finished the job; every Battlestar met with destruction. The new Mark 7 Vipers did not fare any better, being equally susceptible to Cylon electronic warfare. Every Viper system was shut down like the battlestars'; floating in space with no power, they proved to be easy targets for Cylon raiders. The Colonial Navy, the pride of humanity, the defenders of the Colonies and beacon of hope was decimated within hours.
With the Fleet eliminated, the path to the Colonies was now wide open. The next two days were the most terrifying in human history. Our civilization was reduced to ruin. The Cylons struck with a fury never before seen. Picon was the first Colony to report thermonuclear detonations; whether it was out of spite for the Cylon defeat forty years ago, or pure coincidence we do not know. The Government offered an unconditional surrender; our only reply was the nuking of the remaining Colonial worlds. Destruction rained down on our defenseless people, until finally, it stopped. Almost six hundred years of recorded history was wiped out in two days of insane destruction. Seven million people inhabited Caprica City alone; a hundred times that many inhabited the entire planet, and a hundred times that across all Twelve Colonies of Kobol - more than seventy billion people in total.
They are all gone now.
Only fifty thousand souls survived the Holocaust, gathered from the few FTL capable ships that happened to be in space when the Cylons bombarded our planets. Only one Battlestar, the Galactica, remains. She is old and tired, but she is all that defends the remnants of our once great people. New leaders have stepped up to protect us. Laura Roslin, the former Secretary of Education (43rd in line of succession) has been sworn in as President of the Twelve Colonies of Kobol. Commander Adama, a hero of the First Cylon War, is the highest ranking officer of the Colonial Navy still surviving; under his command, the brave men and women of the Galactica protect our fleet of refugees from the Cylons, who pursue us still across the depths of space.
Today, huddled aboard fifty ships, the surviving sons and daughters of Kobol eek out their existence. We have been promised salvation and safe haven by our leaders; our mission now is to find the lost Thirteenth Colony of Kobol. Somewhere out there, there is a planet called Earth, and we shall journey to it. We are few in number. We have little in terms of resources and even less in terms of options.
But we have hope.
And we must survive.
So say we all.
Cont Next post
Caprica Canceron Scorpia Libris
Picon Aquarion Geminon Tauron
Aerelon Sagittaron Virgon Leonis
Caprica
Founder: Zeus
Capital: Caprica City
The first Colony to be founded after the exodus from Kobol, Caprica has been the centre of our civilization from time immemorial. The planet is a paradise for humanity, and seems uniquely suited for human habitation. The foundation of the Colony and state of the planet is credited to Zeus, the First Lord of Kobol; the First Amongst Equals. Like much of our past, not much is known about Caprica until approximately 400 BU when the historical record mysteriously picked up again. We know from these records that even at its earliest stages, Caprican society was highly egalitarian, ordered and peaceful (from which the attributes of Zeus as being the Lord of Justice and Mercy are undoubtedly drawn). Capricans are also avid philosophers, particularly of legal issues, morality and enlightened thought. Despite its high philosophy, however, Caprica is also the fashion capital and trendsetter of the Twelve Colonies - Fashion Week in Caprica City is a major Colonial event for the elite.
Thanks to a pleasant environment, and good governance, the Capricans soon dominated the remaining Colonies with respect to economic and military power but rarely attempted to convert their dominance into outright hegemony. Caprican morality and political thought considered such "high handed" tactics as heresy (although there are incidents where Caprican military power was used as a threat, but always subtlety). Caprican resolve to push through the Articles of Colonization was the single most important factor in the unification of the Colonies.
We also know that Caprica City itself was the first Colonial settlement to be founded, and it is from here that the fledging Caprican Government ran its planetary affairs. The Capricans invested much time and effort into their "Crown Jewel", and prior to its destruction by the Cylons, Caprica City stood supreme amongst all Colonial cities as the most beautiful, cultured and richest City with wide boulevards and malls. The Government compound itself is a tourist attraction as much as the bureaucratic and political heart of the Colonies.
Canceron
Founder: Demeter
Capital: Elysian
The Eight Lord of Kobol, Demeter, is associated with the foundation of Canceron. Canceron is similar to Caprica; the two worlds share a similar nitrogen/oxygen atmosphere, size, gravity field and land mass, although Canceron experiences a longer rotational period (longer days). Canceran continental land masses also tend to be relatively smaller that others found on the other Colonies, although they are more in number (14 continents and 2 subcontinents). The Canceran surface is also remarkably flat, although why this is so despite a tectonically active world remains a mystery that defies the explanations of geology. Irrespective of its seismology or topography, Canceron remains the most fertile world of the Twelve Colonies. Square meter for square meter, the Canceran soil is more than three times as fertile as the Colonial average.
The surface of Canceron is also remarkably uniform, made up of large swathes of grasslands and plains; only 1 significant forest, the Evergreens, exists (located on the continent of Ileuses). The Canceran distribution of land mass and climate patterns essentially ensures that no arid regions develop. The soil is rich and fertile, strictly maintained in this state by advanced farming methods and soil fertilization techniques. Even without science to boost the fertility of the soil, the Canceran biosphere is already the richest in terms of fertility and diversity. As such, Canceran agriculture and husbandry forms the main backbone of the Colonial food supply; the Colony produces more than four times the food that its population can consume. Several Colonial worlds including Tauron, and to lesser extents Caprica and Aquarion, depended entirely upon Canceron for a steady supply of food. Thus, the Canceran economy is largely based upon agronomy for income.
Due to this reliance upon primary produce to earn revenue, the Cancerans as a population are not overly rich; the average per capita income is below the Colonial average. Nevertheless, the Cancerans are also unique in being the first Colony to eradicate poverty amongst its people. Thus, while not rich, the Cancerans are also comfortable. The Cancerans also embody the ideal of many Revisionists (of which a large number can be found on Canceron), or those Colonials who support a reversion of Colonial technology and culture towards the bare minimum needed to main a healthy and comfortable population
base, eschewing many of the comforts of modern Colonial life, e.g. wireless communication, FTL travel, telescreens. The Cancerans, due to their pastoral lifestyle, are a religious people with Demeter being the most popular of the Twelve Lords. They are polite and courteous to a fault, while their hospitality is genuine if simple. Their views on things tend to be conservative; adaptation and change is not high on their agenda. They have an aversion to violence, being a "relaxed" sort of people. They are also similarly lax about time; farmers have loads of it so they do not bother keeping track very often, meaning that they tend to be chronically late. They are also un-cosmopolitan; most Cancerans have never been or seen a major Colonial city. Even the planetary capital of Elysian is rustic in comparison to Caprica City or Coven. However, the Cancerans have a unique claim to fame in that their Colony was the birthplace of Monclaire, the undisputed Master of the Impressionistic era of art. Of final note is the Canceran palate; of all the Colonies, Cancerans are undoubtedly the masters of the chili and spice - "they like building bonfires in their mouths", Monclaire.
Scorpia
Founder: Hera
Capital: Heraklion
Scorpia, to the best of our knowledge, was the second colony founded after Caprica. The Book of the Word describes Hera, the Second Lord of Kobol and supposed wife of Zeus, as being responsible for leading the second tribe to the shores of Scorpia. While not as utopian as Caprica, Scorpia is certainly a pleasant location to live in, although the planet is subject to violent weather patterns. The first settlement of Provenance served as the planetary capital until 200 BU when it was moved to the city of Heraklion.
While Caprica and her people chased more temporal and physical pursuits, the people of Scorpia have always been the most devout and religious of the Twelve tribes. Their belief in the spiritual and power of the Twelve Lords have undoubtedly been influenced by the location of the High Temple on that planet, allegedly founded by the Second Lord Herself but dedicated to all of the Twelve. The High Temple was the ecclesiastical capital of the Twelve Colonies, housing the keenest theologians in brotherhood with the Priests and Priestesses who tended to the people's wellbeing. The High Temple is also the reputed location of the Wrath of Hera; nobody other than the High Priests know exactly what the Wrath is, whether it is a physical artifact of some sort, or a metaphor/analogy.
Scorpians also hold to their own brand of honor, dictated by the scriptures of the Book and the teachings of the Twelve Lords; the word honor holds a very different meaning to them compared to others. Scorpians are also, on the whole, a kindly society, and extremely charitable, also undoubtedly due to the strong influence of the High Temple. They are also polite and helpful people (although sometimes overly helpful to the point of being nosey). On the other hand, centuries of religious indoctrination have also tended to make Scorpians view "right" and "wrong" from a more traditionalist point of view, and also tended to fuel zealotry amongst the populace. In particular, Scorpians tend to have conservative opinions towards sexual morality (for which they often come into conflict with Virgans whom they view as easy lays and cheap). As a direct consequence of their sexual conservatism, Scorpians also tend to be insanely jealous and suspicious of any sort of infidelity, true or imagined.
Libris
Founder: Apollo
Capital: Lysandion
The third planet to be founded (although the Book describes that Libris and Leonis were both founded at the same time) by the Third Lord of Kobol, the Wise Apollo, Libris has played pivotal roles in the history of the Twelve Colonies. The planet itself is more arid than others, being the closest of
the Twelve to the Cyrannus star, with the equatorial band being particularly dry and hot. Libris also does not experience seasons due to the lack of an axial tilt. Libris is also the most sparsely populated Colony, numbering less than half the population of Caprica.
The unique feature that makes Libris famous throughout the Twelve Colonies is the Sanctuary of Apollo, located some twenty kilometers beyond the boundaries of Lysandion, the capital. Actually a community in itself, the Sanctuary was originally founded by the Order of Apollo, Priests and Priestesses of the Third Lord, as haven away from the prying eyes of their brethren on Scorpia. The Order was unique amongst the Twelve Orders, in that they operated on a strange dichotomy - while they believed in the existence of the Twelve, they viewed the Universe and all its wonders and mysteries with an oddly rational light (or to them, with wisdom). As time passed, the Sanctuary became more and more of a scientific institution and the religious influence of the Order subsided. In time, the Sanctuary became the single greatest collection of archived knowledge and research facilities known to the Twelve Colonies; its research output outstripped those of entire Colonies. Students and teachers from all over came to study, teach, argue, and experiment in its halls. The Sanctuary is also an important medical institution with first rate (and often experimental) facilities and treatment regimes as a consequence of the Order's early role as healers.
The general Libran population tends to be more cerebral than other Colonies - they place great weight in intellectual prowess while physical prowess comes in as a bonus if you have it, but you're not disabled without it either. Perhaps the greatest "crime" in Libran society is to be dumb, and the
greatest insult also. Librans also tend to be logical and methodical, sometimes appearing cold. They are not an emotionally expressive people but arguments on topics of interest have been known to get rather heated. They are also non-religious in general, although they hold no animosity towards their more devout cousins. Librans sometimes find it difficult to communicate with others as they think and talk in abstract ways while their thought runs along tracks that others do not - they are often misunderstood, and often misunderstand.
Picon
Founder: Athena
Capital: Picon City
The planet of Picon, colonised under the leadership of Athena the Warrior, the Fifth Lord of Kobol, is in many respects similar to Caprica, except for its relatively small size and mass. The result of the smaller mass is a lighter gravity field (approximately 0.9 Caprican standard) experienced by those on the surface of the fifth Colony of Kobol. Picon also has a higher proportion of land to water, but all other parameters are similar to Caprica. Tauron), Picon grew from a largely agrarian society into a major port of call for merchant ships en route to other destinations early in its history as part of the Quarter; the four largest economies of the Twelve Colonies (Caprica, Geminon, Tauron and Picon). The change intensified as the number of FTL ships traveling between Colonies expanded, and then exploded with the advent of tylium-powered drives. The explosion of trade between the Colonies fuelled the rapid transformation of Picon from a backwater Colony dependent upon farming to one of the richest and most sophisticated worlds under Colonial control.
The upsurge of trade also transformed Picon society; piracy was endemic to the region early in its history and particularly after the advent of tylium reactors. Constant raids and attacks forced the conversion of the pacifistic and isolationist communities of Picon to become more militaristic and proactive in their defense. The mindset of the Pisceans changed over time and military service became the social norm for most Pisceans. In fact, more than three quarters of the population was involved with the Picon Navy in some way or another at the time the Articles of Colonization were signed. Picon Naval power was second only to Caprican might, and unlike their aloof cousins, Pisceans were not afraid to use it when they invaded and occupied Sagitarrion in 37 BU. With the unification of the Colonies, Picon played host to the Colonial Navy Headquarters in Picon City (also the capital of the Colony) and the Naval Academy & War College. Subsidiary naval industries sprang up on Picon to feed the Naval machine and Picon became the centre of Colonial naval construction. In many ways, Picon can be viewed as a navy town (planet).
As a direct consequence of their militaristic nature, Pisceans tend to operate by a strict code of discipline. Displays of emotion in public are strongly frowned upon, while tears are seen as a sign of weakness. Self-sacrifice is seen as a moral value to be had; the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the one. Respect for the social order are imbued in them, although due to the relatively class-less nature of Colonial society, this has never posed a problem for them. They are fiercely loyal to and protective of family, friends and colleagues. A common misconception is that Pisceans are aggressive, but this is largely untrue. While Pisceans are not afraid to use force, they rarely utilize it unless forced. Pisceans can come across as uncompassionate people, and on the whole, are largely impatient (military efficiency). Pisceans have difficulty relating to many other Colonials who see them as closed off. However, many Colonials have much to thank the Pisceans for as they are proportionately over-represented in the Colonial Navy.
Aquarion
Founder: Poseidon
Capital: Trikon
Aquarion is located right at the outer edge of Colonial space, somewhat unusual considering its status as the Seventh Colony of Kobol, founded by Poseidon of the Waves. The planet has the highest proportion of water to land of any of the Twelve Colonies (5:4), with almost continental-sized polar ice caps. Salinity is low, requiring most sea-going vessels to be constructed with extra buoyancy chambers. Planetary axial tilt is extreme, providing for large variations of temperature with the seasons in the temperate zones. Average planetary temperatures are lower than the Colonial average.
Aquarion's history began in the unrecorded past, and little is known about its initial stages of Colonization. We believe that the people of Aquarion led a fusion terrestrial and maritime lifestyle; they slept in their homes on the land at night, but the sea became their major source of sustenance and economic earnings. Delicacies from Aquarion seas became a prized status symbol on Caprica. However, Aquarion's status as a backwater Colony with little potential or contribution changed remarkably with the advent of tylium reactors. Surveys of the surface of Aquarion yielded remarkably large and concentrated deposits of tylium. Explorations of continental shelves, and sea beds revealed similarly promising resources waiting to be exploited. The discovery of rich tylium deposits sparked a "tylium rush" as entrepreneurs, pioneers and miners flooded towards the Colony in an attempt to stake out their riches. Aquarion's population doubled within thirty years.
To cope with the rising population pressures, the Aquarion Government constructed a number of orbital habitats utilizing technology purchased from Caprica with tylium export revenues. Tylium export revenues also provided the Aquarion Government with a near limitless supply of cubits; the planetary capital of Trikon was converted from a aggrandized hamlet to a true Colonial capital in less than thirty years. Wishing to build upon its role as the energy provider of the Colonies, Aquarion also constructed massive deuterium harvesting stations in its tempestuous seas, capitalizing on the other fuel necessary for the tylium reactors to function.
As a direct consequence of its tylium mining and deuterium harvesting operations, Aquarion soon fielded the largest merchant marine fleet, larger than even Tauron's massive fleet of transport ships. Added to the substantial population living in its orbital habitats, Aquarion had by far the largest proportion of its population in space at any given time. As a direct consequence of this statistic, stellar navigation and piloting services became the second export industry. When the Colonies ratified the Articles of Colonisation, many Aquarians joined the fledgling Colonial Navy Viper squadrons. In fact, some Battlestar squadrons were made up entirely of Aquarians.
Aquarians tend to be quiet and unemotional people. They listen more than they talk and tend to have remarkably stable personalities. They are very independent people, although they do form tight bonds to people they know, particularly those serving in the armed forces. Aquarians tend to have a witty sense of humor, although they tend to be drier and more sarcastic than Capricans. They are a pragmatic people, a consequence of those working in the tylium mines and the dangers of space, but also fair and dependable. However, due to their closed-mouth nature, they can come across as reticent and stubborn, and they can often be too blunt (often scandalizing Capricans).
Geminon
Founder: Hermes
Capital: Covenant
The planet of Geminon itself is unremarkable, being close to the Caprican standard for habitability. Four major continents dot the surface - Hope, Haven, Prosperity, and Abundance, so named after the legendary words of Hermes when He led the Gemini's to the new world "With this haven, I give ye hope and abundance so that you may prosper." The most populated continent is Haven, on which the capital of Covenant is situated.
Founded by the Tenth Lord of Kobol, Hermes the Messenger, Geminon's early history was marked by industrial development of the virgin planet. It appears that the migration to Geminon from the home world of Kobol was by far the largest of all of the Twelve tribes to depart from that doomed planet. As such, Geminon had a population base that supported rapid industrialization, coupled with extensive resources and mineral deposits on the surface. The industrialization of Geminon from an early stage meant that the lifestyle of its people has always been standards above most other Colonial worlds; Covenant in its early history rivaled Caprica City in splendor. The drawback was a certain amount of ecological degradation that was contained by concerted Gemini Government action.
With the advent of tylium-based reactors, the Geminon industrial machine was increasingly overshadowed and out-competed by Tauron. Like an industrial black hole, Tauron began sucking the production power from Geminon through advantageous trade agreements secured with the major Colonies of Caprica, Picon and Libris (with its extensive R&D facilities). As a result, Geminon suffered a short-lived economic depression during the relocation of heavy industry to Tauron. The Government took a pragmatic outlook on the situation, and deciding that competition with the growing Tauran juggernaught was no longer an option, embarked upon a policy of reform. While Geminon might be loosing industry to her brethren, Geminon was still an important hub in the financial network of the Colonies, superseded only by Caprica. Favorable policies and legislation soon turned Geminon into the financial capital of the Colonies, overtaking even the prodigious flows of money traveling through Caprica. All major economic institutions, from multi-Colonial corporations, stock exchanges, to banks have major branch offices on Geminon if not headquartered. The Colonial Reserve Bank, the single most important Government institution with respect to the economy of the Twelve Colonies, is also headquartered in Covenant.
As a result of the massive of this shift in Geminon policy, the Colony is now the largest provider of services amongst all twelve worlds. Its people have never known hardship on the same level as the poorer Colonies (e.g. Sagitarrion), giving Gemini's a reputation for being pampered. They tend to be materialistic and overly luxurious; the latest gadgets and fashion are a must (Capricans look on Geminons as being classless and lacking in finesse due to their reputation for greed). Indeed, Gemini's are thought to be the pettiest of all Colonials when it comes to recognition of their status, invariably determined by wealth. They can also come across as amoralistic, with cubits being their obsession in life to the detriment of higher morals and ideals, including compassion. On the upside, Gemini's are also extremely people's people; they are witty, quick thinkers, and the ultimate ales people. They often dream up ingenious solutions to seemingly intractable problems, using their natural deviousness and cunning to their advantage. Their high stakes world, however, tends to leave many with undue amounts of stress; most thrive under such conditions but other Colonials think they are too high strung and have "type A" personalities.
Tauron
Founder: Hephaestus
Capital: Hephaestion
Tauron is located close to the important Colonial worlds of Caprica and Geminon (which between them generate almost one quarter of all Colonial trade revenue). Surface temperatures are higher than what would be called comfortable by most non-natives. The problem is compounded by the huge industrial activities undertaken on the surface of Tauron, which have ejected vast amounts of heat trapping gasses into the atmosphere, increasing global temperatures. At the time of the Holocaust, the Colonial and Tauron Governments were ready to implement large scale solutions to tackle the problem of increasing global temperatures. The Tauron surface is dominated by two large continental land masses, Eurynome and Thetis.
The history of Tauron begins after its founding, attributed to Hephaestus the Crafter, the Eleventh Lord of Kobol. The gap of time between the foundation of Tauron and Geminon, its immediate predecessor, appears to have been the largest, lasting almost a century according to poor anecdotal evidence. The early history of Tauron appears to have been largely agrarian, although the fertility of the planet is only marginal at best. With the advent of tylium reactors, however, industrialization began at a rapid pace, helped by Government subsidies and vigorous pursuit of inter-Colonial trade agreements to bolster the fledgling Tauron industries. With time the Tauron industrial juggernaught grew to over-shadow Geminon and even Caprica; at the time of the Holocaust, Tauron stood unchallenged as the industrial capital of the Twelve Colonies.
Nothing helped to secure Tauron industrial dominance more than the development of an indigenous space construction industry; Tauron production of civilian FTL capable ships soon rivaled Aquarion (although most military construction continued in orbit of Picon and Caprica). Tauron was the first to pioneer the giant Space Arks, which served as FTL transports for STL ships, allowing Tauron to begin exporting these cheaper vessels. The Tauran shipyards have been credited as being pivotal in decreasing the cost of space flight for the average Colonial citizen, and bolstering the Colonial economy in that way. Unfortunately for Tauron, the planet was also the site of production of the first Cylon units; the Colony was heavily roboticised in both industrial and domestic sectors. As a consequence, Tauron became an important battlefield during the Great War; Tauran casualties were light
compared to those recorded on Picon but key industrial cities and facilities were occupied by Cylon forces and bolstered enemy war efforts. Virtually all occupied territories were returned "virgin" to the Taurans when the Cylon menace was finally eliminated - not a single structure was left standing. Industrial output suffered for several years after the peace as the Taurans attempted to rebuild their world.
The Tauran of today tends to be very pragmatic and accepting of things as they are - they tend not to question the status quo or the social order. As such, civil disobedience is virtually unheard of on Tauron. The only cases of unrest were recorded in periods of economic downturn; idle workers are troublemakers. Indeed, Taurans are the archetypal workaholics and terribly unhappy when they have nothing to do. They also tend to be task-oriented and obsessive about the task until it is accomplished successfully, although that is not to say that they work stubbornly as Taurans are also highly adaptable and efficient. However, their stoicism renders them a bit humorless to most other Colonials; whatever humor they have tends to be dry, and expression of emotion beyond the polite (e.g. a brief smile) is a big social faux pas. Taurans also have a reputation for being temperamental; while patient as a saint, when a raw nerve is touched, Taurans are known to combust and turn ugly very quickly.
Aerelon
Founder: Ares
Capital: Megaera
Aerelon was probably founded by Ares, the Sixth and contentious Lord of Kobol, shortly after Piscon was opened for habitation. Aerelon, like the other Twelve Colonial worlds, is particularly suited to supporting human life. Aerelon is, however, unique amongst the Colonies in having not just one, but three moons, Tisiphone, Megaera (not to be confused with Megaera), and Alecto, none of which are habitable. Tisiphone is by far the largest of the three satellites; its mass is sufficiently large enough to exert considerable tidal forces on the surface of Aerelon. Even tectonic activity has been modified by the presence of the Tisiphone moon, making Aerelon the most volcanically active Colony. The Aerelon atmosphere also holds a lower concentration of oxygen compared to the Colonial planetary average.
The Aereans (sometimes called Airheads in a derogatory manner) have adapted remarkably well to the physical challenges posed by their environment. The Aerean physiology has evolved in a remarkably (and possibly unlikely) short time to adapt to the lower oxygen content of Aerelon by increasing their lung capacity, hemoglobin affinity for oxygen, and cardiac output. The modifications to Aerean physiology has manifested in their anatomy - Aereans tend to be broad chested and heavy shouldered relative to the Colonial brethren.
Aerean society is similar to Piscon cultural norms in that they are also a militaristic society. Unlike their Piscon cousins, however, Aerean society began at its very root as an aggressive community. The early Aereans were pugnacious; according to the legends, any little excuse was used as a pretext to start a fight. While Aerean society never devolved into outright civil war, they earned a reputation as a people to be wary off, which they have retained to this very day. With the influence of other Colonial societies, Aerean tendencies towards physical violence have been mollified somewhat. The Aerean of today is no more likely to start a fight than a Piscean (probably because most sane people avoid fights with Aereans).
Aerean society places great emphasis on physical prowess and skill, almost to the detriment of all other factors, including intellectual and cultural pursuits. As a direct consequence of this, Aerean culture is considered almost barbaric by the other societies; the Aerean sense of humor is not terribly sophisticated, and has a distinct bent towards the bawdy. The Aereans are also thought of as being "stupid" by Colonial norms, both in sheer intellectual power, and also because Aereans tend to react first and think later. Aereans get themselves into more trouble by accident than other Colonials do intentionally; they are definitely the most gung ho and brash of all Colonials. Aereans also place great stock in pride ("face"), and are perhaps the most easily offended of all Colonials.
However, the Aerean culture has given them a distinctive niche within Colonial society. Aereans are undoubtedly make the best ground troops, and the Aereans are over-represented in their membership of Colonial Marine special forces, largely due to their emphasis on physical prowess. The Aereans are also a very athletic people, producing a good number of Golden Laureates at the Colonial Games. Colonial prejudices towards Aerean intelligence are also manifestly unjust; Aerean combat tactics, strategies and doctrines are unsurpassed. In fact, Aerelon is host to the Marine Headquarters and Fort Aspiring, the premier war college - Aereans excel at combat and they do not care about anything else. Aereans are also, in general, more "healthy" than other Colonials and are blessed with a longer life expectancy (despite their tendency to get into fights and dangerous situations).
In general, Aereans are rowdy, jovial and boisterous. They are rarely ever serious, except for physical competitions, matters of pride, and military issues where they display an amazing and surprising amount of determination and drive that is not visible in their normal behavior. They also tend to be courageous, and when the situation demands it, they can be tough as nails.
Sagittaron
Founder: Dionysus
Capital: Mount Cithaeron (Sith-ee-ron)
The Ninth Lord of Kobol, Dionysus, was the founder of Sagittaron, the Colony that is infamous for its unfortunate history. The planet has a standard atmosphere, although barometric pressure at sea level is a little lower than Caprican standard. Sagitarrian weather extremes are virtually unheard of, possibly as a result of the extremely slow rotational period (almost 2:1 relative to Caprican standard). Sagittaron also bears witness to some of the most irregular and broken terrain of any of the Twelve Colonies; most extensive mountain ranges on all Twelve Colonies, directing the pattern of rainfall and vectoring wind flow. Even the arable land is composed of valleys and hills; there is very little flat terrain on the Sagitarrian surface. Sagittaron has only two extremely large continents (Ino in the north and Athamas in the south); the eastern seaboards of both continents receive the majority of the rainfall (particularly the deluge at the start of spring), while the western seaboards tend to be much more arid.
The dichotomous distribution of rainfall has been implicated in the evolution of a dual societal structure on Sagittaron. While the eastern half of the planet is as prosperous as any other Colonial world, the western half is largely poor with most of the western cities little more than collections of slums and pre-fabricated buildings. The East is densely populated with viticulture and light metal ore mining (e.g. aluminum, copper) being the predominant industries. The Colonies' best vintages, without exception, come from Sagittaron, and the planet is an important supplier of raw resources for Colonial industry. In the west, however, the story is much more different. While only approximately only one-fifth of the total Sagitarrian population inhabited the west, the unfair reputation and image of Sagittaron amongst the other Colonies stems wholly from the state of the western settlements. The western settlements were not planned by the Government - they grew like weeds as havens for the unsavory and unwelcome, who banded together for survival. These settlements attract all sorts of malcontents, criminals and pirates; neither the authority of the Sagitarrian or Colonial Governments carries much weight in the west. Rather, the western settlements seem to operate on an almost feudal system and hierarchy of their own, paying nominal lip service to the Sagitarrian and Colonial Governments.
These western settlements, despite their unsavory reputation, have played a vital role in Colonial history. It is from here that Sagitarrian pirates operated, raiding key trade routes and transports. In retaliation, Picon launched a strike against these bases, which the Sagitarrian government interpreted as a breach of its sovereignty. Though the Sagitarrians would have been more than glad to be rid of these malcontents, they were nevertheless drawn into a battle that was not theirs. The outcome was the only full-fledged invasion of a Colony by another, followed by the occupation under which Sagittaron suffered greatly. The Pisceans were no more successful in their pogroms to destroy the underworld brotherhood operating from the western settlements than the Sagitarrians; it proved to be impossible to eradicate them without virtually depopulating the west.
The consequences of the Piscean occupation carried on after the unification of the Colonies; by then, Sagittaron was already far behind her sister Colonies, a position from which she is unable to escape despite numerous initiatives by the Colonial Government on Caprica. Furthermore, Sagitarrian labor is without doubt the cheapest available in the Colonies; workers have few rights and protections on Sagittaron, a fact that many corporations exploit. As a consequence of her ignominious status as the poor cousin, Sagittaron has also been afflicted with much civil strife caused by the efforts of terrorists and insurrectionists (so called "freedom fighters") for the right of Sagittaron to secede from the Articles of Colonization.
Eastern Sagittarians tend to be laid back and relaxed about most things; they have sufficient prosperity to maintain an adequate standard of living despite the unenviable state of their Colony. They are partiers and lovers of all things fun, and have a wild streak in them that cause them to be seen as "adrenalin junkies". They tend to be seen as irresponsible and reckless by other Colonists but none can admit that more often than not, the Sagitarrians are the life of the party. The western Sagitarrians are an honorable lot, operating by a strange form of the thieves' code or honor, and an almost feudal hierarchy. By other Colonial standards, the westerners are the scum of the universe, being both cunning and immoral. Other unpleasant descriptors of the westerners include being seedy and generally dodgy. On the positive side, westerners are known for their tenacity and survival instincts.
Virgon
Founder: Aphrodite
Capital: Devotion
Virgon itself is actually a pleasant world to live on; rainfall is sparse and the bright luminosity of the Virgon star guarantees almost perpetual sunshine across the planet. Virgon is dominated by equatorial landmasses, with the northern and southern latitudes composed of large circumferential oceans. The term land mass is perhaps a bit of a misnomer; Virgon's livable land areas are composed almost entirely of large islands arranged in equatorial archipelagoes. The capital of Devotion itself has out-grown its island, and at the time of the Holocaust, more than one fifth of Devotion's land was reclaimed from the sea.
The early history of Virgon is clearest; it is the only Colony for which relatively detailed accounts of its settlement exist, although the descriptions of the youngest Colony is largely from the eyes of the older Colonial worlds. The beginnings of Virgon is entirely unremarkable; it followed the standard path of Colonial development replicated eleven times before it. However, Virgon never developed even the vestiges of an industrial complex, making it an oddity amongst the Colonies - Virgans largely subsisted on meager agricultural pursuits for most of their early history. With the advent of tylium reactors, however, the transformation of Virgon began in earnest. The perpetual tropical environment lent itself naturally to making Virgon a popular tourist location, a fact that the indigenous population was quick to exploit.
Almost overnight, with financing from Geminon interests wishing to capitalize on the growing Virgan tourism sector, resorts, theme parks, and other recreational facilities sprang up all over the planet. The Colonial rich began to pour onto the planet, each willing to spend their cubits for luxury goods and items. The revenues doubled Virgan GDP, albeit a meager figure before tylium, within twenty years. The Government's coffers were soon overflowing from taxes, duties and services levies and soon started to splash out on planetary beautification projects. As a consequence, Virgon soon became known for its unique style of architecture that reflected the personality of its people; baroque statues and buildings soon adorned every Virgon street, but always tastefully arranged. Aphrodite's Sanctum is known for its daring architecture (amongst other pleasures). The Virgans also became keen patrons and sponsors of the arts (everything from new age Edge music to toilet sculptures) with their sudden newfound extra income, making the planet a cultural centre of only marginally lesser importance to
Caprica.
The attribute that Virgans are famous for is their universal instinct towards sexual gratification; to put it simply Virgans are horny and they are not ashamed of it. Sex is seen as a part of life and something to be enjoyed to the fullest; impotency is a great social shame. Hushed polygamy is accepted (infidelity is never grounds for divorce) socially, and in some areas, even expected. Other Colonials often think that Virgans could not stay true to one partner if their life depended on it, and some would just call them sluts (male and female). Interestingly, however, Virgans are unique in being able to separate sex from other arenas of life; to sleep your way up is considered the crassest of acts, and sexual predation and harassment is virtually unheard of.
However, their tendency towards sexual gratification also makes Virgans the vainest; they spend more time per capita in the bathroom doing their hair than any other Colonials (fact). The Virgans are hospitable to a fault, although they also have a reputation for being "*****y". They are the ultimate partiers - they are relaxed ("If you're any more laid back, you'd fall over”), mercurial and entirely larger than life in both speech and action. As a result, Virgans make the best thespians and artists. On the other hand, Virgans tend to be more superficial than others, and their lack of anything resembling serious natures can be annoying to others. Virgans in general do not do well in the military. They are difficult to contain, and are just as likely to have a bottle in their hand as a fork. Virgans are the most irreligious of all Colonials, although they are very pious when it comes to fulfilling Aphrodite's raunchier Festivals.
Leonis
Founder: Artemis
Capital: Lunos
Leonis was the fourth Colony (possibly third-equal) to be founded; settlement was led by the Fourth Lord of Kobol, Artemis (twin sister to Apollo). Leonis is unique amongst the Twelve Colonies by being in almost pristine condition. The surface of the land masses are almost entirely forested, and from space, Leonis looks like a giant emerald in a sea of black. The only exception to this canopy of forest is the major human cities in the east of the Silver continent where the forests give way to lush verdant grassland. Leonis is also home to an astounding variety and number of fauna, both indigenous and introduced, which thrive in the forests. Leonis is by far the most unpolluted and undisturbed ecology amongst the Twelve Colonies.
Leonis law strictly prevents any deforestation for industrial purposes; in fact, the only deforestation allowed to occur on the planet is to hold back the encroachment of the forests onto the human settlements. This strict environmental policy has turned tourism into the single largest export
earner for the Leonis people; in fact it accounts for more than two-thirds of their income. Literally millions of tourists from all over the Twelve Colonies arrive annually on Leonis to partake in various modes of recreation from tramping to extended vacations living in the forests. Leonis law allows
the hunting of game in the forests subject to licensing, and this past-time is particularly favored amongst tourists from Piscon and Sagitarrion (while Capricans think it is a barbaric activity).
Leos tend to be welcoming and sharing people, a fact that plays well for their primary planetary industry. However, there is a line beyond which strangers are not welcome where Leos become close mouthed to the point of rudeness. Leos are particularly wary of physical contact unless invited.
They are an independent people, and pride (but not arrogance) is important amongst them. As such, they are also very determined people, but also patient. They also have a sense of harmony that they have learnt from their forest environment, and use that harmony in their interactions with people -
they are simple and uncomplicated people. Leos also tend to be very family oriented (but have small families) with fierce loyalty between family members. Leos, while unlike Scorpians who view sex as immoral period, are particularly disapproving of gratuitous sex; sex between genuinely in love
couples are fine, but sex just for pure pleasure or gratification is sinful. Leos are also the only Colonials with a streak, if a small one, of homophobia. Finally, they view any degradation of the environment as the ultimate sin and Leos has been known to produce a number of "eco-terrorists" who insist on a reversion to a more "natural" state with the environment. Leos and Taurans, in particular, find environmentalism a point of contention.
The Colonial military is organized ito two Branches, The Colonial Navy and the Colonial Marines. The Military operates from Battlestars which is the lead vessel in a battle group which normally consists of one to two other Battlestars and up to 25 smaller support vessels. The Colonial Fleet, and Colonial Marines have specific rank structurs and positions in the Fleet. The Fleet handles the Battlestar, and Air Group duties, while the Marines handle all fleet security and ground force operations.
Rank
Officers -- Fleet
O-10 Admiral
O-9 Vice Admiral
O-8 Rear Admiral
O-7 Commander
O-6 Colonel
O-5 Major
O-4 Captain
0-3 Lieutenant
O-2 Lieutenant Junior Grade
O-1 Ensign
Enlisted -- Navy
E-9 Master Chief Petty Officer
E-8 Senior Chief Petty Officer
E-7 Chief Petty Office
E-6 Petty Officer 1st Class
E-5 Petty Officer 2nd Class
E-4 Petty Officer 3rd Class
E-3 Specialist
E-2 Crewman
E-1 Recruit
Enlisted -- Marines
E-9 Sergeant Major or Master Gunnery Sergeant
E-8 First Sergeant or Master Sergeant
E-7 Gunnery Sergeant
E-6 Staff Sergeant
E-5 Sergeant
E-4 Corporal
E-3 Lance Corporal
E-2 Private First Class
E-1 Private
Positions and Titles
CO: Commanding Officer
XO: Executive officer (Number One)
OOW: Officer of the Watch (Whoever stands the watch in the absence of the CO/XO)
PWO: Principal Weapons/Warfare Officer (Fire Control)
LSO: Landing Signals Officer (Launch and Recovery)
CMO: Chief Medical Officer
GFCO: Ground force Commanding Officer
CAG: Commander of the Air Group
DCAG: Deputy Commander of the Air Group
WCO: Wing Commander (in charge of a squadron)
Squadron Leader: Lead Pilot in a formation
CPO: Chief Petty Officer
PO1: Petty Officer First Class/Petty Officer First (the number will denote the rating e.g. PO2 etc)
Crewman/Corpsman/Rating: Enlisted personnel
Hope this Helps with your endeavors
Sheriff288
It is never stated why the cylons rebel. It could be a scenario like "I, Robot"(the movie) or "The Terminator", or a simple outgrowth of the Cylons programming. Ron Moore has stated in his blog that the Cylons were used by the colonies to make war on each other. In that case, Tom's theory that they decided killing all humans was the best course of action, makes a lot of sense. As for the Cylon religion, I think this developed during the cylons 40 years in the desert... er I mean in uncharted space. ;)
Anyway, I got alot done on Saturday. I did a lot of research, but there isn't alot of information out there about the history of the Colonies, and what is there is mostly fan fiction. There also isn't alot of information about the colonies themselves. Just that Caprica is home to the offices of the president and that Picon is home to fleet headquarters. The only other information we have about the colonies is that Sagittaron was exploited by the other colonies for centuries and that Aerelon has its own mining colony called Troy.
We know from the dialogue in the show that the exodus from Kobol took place 2,000 years ago, and the scrolls of Pythia were written 3,600 years ago. We don't know when the Cylon war began, only that it ended with an armistice 40 years ago. The Articles of Colonization were written 52 years ago. The Battlestar Galactica is 50 years old and was among the first battlestars to be built. And thats it for history in Chapter One, Thank goodness for Jongluer's work on the religion, government and military of the Colonies, other wise Chapter One would be pretty sparse!
Chapter Two is pretty short... a brief write up of the cylons and stats for the Model 0005 centurion, the new centurion, and the cylon infiltrator. I suppose I need to add some info about the Cylon religion and cylon communication, but that's only a few paragraphs.
Chapter Three is pretty big and getting bigger with every NPC. I am not sure how much more Talos is writing...
Chapter 4 just needs some formatting work. but all 6 advanced classes are done.
Chapter 5 might be done. We've got the weapons that Talos wrote up, the Armor that Jongluer wrote up and the Landram that I wrote up... we don't have any other equipment, but I haven't seen anything that is BSG specific (like a tricorder in Star Trek for example)
Chapter 6 is almost done. I need to re-work the stats for the cylon Base stars, and hopefully find some info to help me stat the Battlestar Pegasus.
Chapter 7 has some info on interplanetary travel, Hyper-light Jump Drives and Tom's Star System Generation rules... I still need to test them out and Futuredevguy's stuff as well...
Chapter eight needs a lot of work. All we have right now are the stats for Nuclear weapons that I wrote. I still need to write rules for 3D space combat using realistic physics...
Chapter 9 is completely blank apart from knowing that there are 4 campaign models... they still need to be written...
And that's where we are folks!
Thanks for everyone's help and keep up the good work! :D
Thanks Sheriff288! That will certainly flesh out Chapter one! :D
A Tylanium reactor requires shielding only from the gamma rays produced. The gamma rays are of very high energy, and difficult to harness, more useful are the charged particles, which can be used to generate an electric current and used to power a number of devices, including the Jump Drive. Some of the gamma rays can be used to heat an innert reaction mass to propell the ship, and the charged particles can themselves be directed with magnetic fields to produce a plasma drive useful for deep space propulsion. If Earth people could somehow get a hold of Tylanium, the nearest source orbiting Sirius B 8.7 light years away, then they'll be able to fission tylanium in their nuclear reactors, with some modification, but it could easily be done if such a source became available.
The important consideration is how much time Earth will have to get ready for a cylon attack. Lets consider models of 5, 10, and 20 years. In 5 years, the terrans can do little except produce nuclear warheads. In ten, it may be possible for Earth to build its own Vipers. The vipers could be based on Planet Earth, Mars, the Moon and on asteroid bases to intercept the invading Cylon fleet. In 20 years the Earth could build some Battlestars of its own, perhaps a couple, lets say they are the Battlestar America, and the Battlestar Yamoto. The Battlestar America was build by the newly instituted United States Space Force, while the Battlestar Yamoto was built by the Japanese Self Defense Force. I don't know what other countries might be capable of building their own battlestars, perhaps China, maybe the EU. Can anyone think of a good name for a Chinese Battlestar? We're talking about the year 2020 or 2025 AD, China might come in its own as a major military power by this time. The European Union could probably manage to build a Battlestar, but it will have to increase its defense budget significantly. Ok perhaps the Earth can manage to produce 5 Battlestars, the first two would be the America and the Lexington, then there is the Yamoto, and finally one built by China and one built by Europe with Russian help.
When the BSG fleet tells them about they Cylons, it may let the air out of the computer revolution a bit. Perhaps there will be an attempt to hardwire 3-laws programming into Earth-built robots, by 2025, the Earth should be capably of building some AI robots, the three-laws programing would cause their chips to melt down should a virus invade its processors and cause it to turn against humans.
Robots could be a minor part of life on Earth when 2025 rolls around, since the cylon virus can still turn them into useless bits of junk, they are not trusted to do the actual fighting when the Cylons attack, for that we need human pilots. One particular Viper pilot school would be run by the BSG fleet on the far side of Luna, the leader of that training school might be none other than Boomer, who being not quite human has managed not to age in the last 20 years. Starbuck and Apollo are 20 years older, perhaps Apollo is now commander of the Galactica having replaced his father Adama now in retirement. I'd make Starbuck a General at this point, if she is still alive. I'm not sure what Baltar would be doing 20 years in the future, he might be with the Cylons or he might with the fleet. One good candidate for a possible Viper Pilot Ace might by "Boxy", who made a brief appearance in the BSG miniseries. What do you think of these suggestions?
We also got to work out the game mechanics of how the Jump drive operates, has anyone done that yet? I think the Jump Drive could range from 20 to 50 light years per jump, it will consume some Tylanium with each jump, and the Jump drive should require some period of time to prepare for the jump before it can. Also the Jump drive should operate at some minimu distance from the nearest planetary mass before it can initiate a jump.
As for how much fuel it consumes etc... I haven't figured that part out yet... just haven't had time, but I am working on it. We know that tylium is used to power both realspace engines and jump engines, and that different ships have different rates of fuel efficiency, but I am not sure how to represent that or even if we should.
As for the Earh at Last campaign model... Tom, would you like to do the write up for that? I don't mind writing all of them, but you seem to have a lot of ideas about that particular campaign model, so if you want it its yours. :D
I have worked up the mechanics for the jump drive... basically use the rules for the Teleportation disk with out the disk. ;)
As for how much fuel it consumes etc... I haven't figured that part out yet... just haven't had time, but I am working on it. We know that tylium is used to power both realspace engines and jump engines, and that different ships have different rates of fuel efficiency, but I am not sure how to represent that or even if we should.
As for the Earh at Last campaign model... Tom, would you like to do the write up for that? I don't mind writing all of them, but you seem to have a lot of ideas about that particular campaign model, so if you want it its yours. :D
I'm going to age each of your NPC characters about 20 years and add some levels. I'm going to set it in the year 2025. The fleet basically arrived sometime in the near future, say 2007 for instance. And basically ever since the Earth's governments have been trying to adopt and reproduce BSG technology so they can build star ships as well. At this time 5 new Battlestars have been constructed and are operated by the various nations of the Earth. The Battlestar Galactica is still around and is commanded by Apollo. Starbuck is the Fleet General for the Viper squadrons. Boxy is an viper Pilot and he's busy training a bunch of recruits from Earth on how to fly the new Vipers. The Viper school is run by Boomer, who being a Cylon has not aged. Over the years the fleet has learned to trust this renegade Cylon as being who she appears to be. Humans have colonized a number of nearby stars. Apparently some planets are suitable for humans besides Earth. Sirius is a big mining colony, where they mine Tylium from the asteroids orbiting Sirius B.
I'm going to do a write up on my word processor, and when I'm done, I'll post it.
I could probably fish up a resistance campaign setting if you wished.
That would be much appreciated, Jongluer! :D
Tom, sounds great to me! I look forward to seeing it. :D
Keep in mind, these are just campaign models not full blown campaign settings... try to keep them short and sweet like the ones in D20 Future.
In 20 years the Earth could build some Battlestars of its own, perhaps a couple, lets say they are the Battlestar America, and the Battlestar Yamoto. The Battlestar America was build by the newly instituted United States Space Force, while the Battlestar Yamoto was built by the Japanese Self Defense Force. I don't know what other countries might be capable of building their own battlestars, perhaps China, maybe the EU. Can anyone think of a good name for a Chinese Battlestar?
Battlestar Kuan Ti, named after the Chinese god of war. Also note that most American vessels tend to be named after famous people, places, or things. Thus one is more like to find a Battlestar Liberty then a Battlestar America. That one sounds like it needs a theme song extolling the vitures of the US through excessive obsceneties.
Anyhoo, the following are counties that within the next 20 to 30 years should have the technical/industrial capacity to produce a Battlestar: United States of America, Canada (I'm serious on this one, within the next 20 to 40 years the Canadian dollar is supposed to be more or less the equivilent of the American), China, most of Europe/EU, India (politically is a differnt issue), Russia, and several South American countries (again political climate not with standing).
Edit: spelling.... blasted native language of English why do you vex me so?
Resistance Campaign Model
“See 'em? Just there over the ridge, a squad of toasters marching up the road. I figure if we bypass them we can get to Caprica City and pick up some supplies and anti-radiation meds before nightfall, hunker down, and hopefully return back to camp tomorrow.”
Summary
In the wake of the Cylon attack, Humans try to survive and fight back in the ruins of their colonies, perhaps dreaming of a day when they can truly stike at the mechanical hearts of their enemy.
Campaign In Brief
The Resistance is a simple and straight forward idea, at first. The idea is to stay alive and fight back at the Cylons. The Colonies are left in ruins, people are trying new ways of life, others clinging to the old, and finally the last group who desire to stay alive just long enough to fight back at their metallic oppressors. So many were killed in an instant, that those who are left are most likely without a clue of what occurred, now searching for answers, they find their beloved worlds of Caprica, Tauron, Picon, etc. left in no more than a small shadow of their former glory.
Out of this wreckage came the Resistance, members of the military, or militia, some just those who could handle a weapon, or provide a form of assistance (such as medical), these people use what's left of their world to take back what was theirs. They will stop at nothing to survive and topple the Cylon empire.
Role of the Heroes
The heroes in a Resistance campaign are the Resistance. Somehow they survived the Cylon invasion, and now they have nothing left to do but fight back, rebuilding society can wait. The heroes gather people together in an attempt to destroy the Cylons, or just try to meke out existence amongst their ruins.
They might be part of a former military group, police force, or maybe they just are seeking vengeance. For the most part, the heroes are usually people of skill, capable of surviving in the harsh ruins of civilization.
Campaign Traits
A Resistance campaign, is part apocalypse, and part military. The party must scavenge for their supplies while fighting against the near endless stream of Cylons that continue to plague the remnants of the Colonies. Luckily the people are still in the aftermath, there is plenty of high technology and supplies to be had in the cities and shelters. The Cylons are an ever present threat, marching through fields and forests attempting to purge the planet ofall humans. Society is wholly non-existent, though some still wish to hold on even as it falls about around them.
Of course not only are there ever present dangers from the those that have come afterwards, but there are still lingering effects of before the apocalypse and the attack itself. Criminals who were deep in hiding are still alive, never having an allegiance to the society before are more than likely to assemble groups of malcontents to carve their own version of perfection, posing a threat to anyone still living. In addition, the nukes used during the attacks have left large amounts of radiation across the colonies posing a constant danger to anyone in or near the areas. Old allegiances and prejudices still hold, and new ones begin to form as the Resistance begins to act.
Power Groups
Power Groups don't really exist anymore. The Colonial government is nonexistent, except perhaps in the smallest of capacities, and the military is in a similar situation. Only the Cylons remain, casting their literal iron fist over the Twelve Colonies of Kobol. Multiple resistance groups, along with other groups of survivors, have begun to rise in the remnants of the Colonies.
Allies and Opponents
There are no settlements, and survivors are spread thin and even the largest group is barely boasting 100 members. The party's chance of meeting allies is thin, but possibilities do exist for them to hook up with larger resistance groups, former military units and militia units are the most likely survivors, though survivalists, those of luck, and criminals are certainly capable of surviving.
Opponents abound in this new world. The Cylons pose a constant threat to all. Of course, resistance groups can always mistake a group for a Cylon in the night. Those of opposing views could also end up fighting out right in this world. Finally, people who will stop at nothing could also pose a grave threat to any other survivor.
I can't wait to get home and add this to the word Doc! :D
Now, for the resistance campaign, with all that radiation, it does beg the question of introducing some gamma world elements. Mutations, pure straing humans, etcs. This, when combined with the idea that the cylons are probably going to be experimenting on the populace at large, would suggest that some paranormal abilities be introduced.
A couple of thoughts. One, in TOS, Adama used the power of his mind to move objects. Just wanted to point out a psionic reference.
Now, for the resistance campaign, with all that radiation, it does beg the question of introducing some gamma world elements. Mutations, pure straing humans, etcs. This, when combined with the idea that the cylons are probably going to be experimenting on the populace at large, would suggest that some paranormal abilities be introduced.
Yeah, I remember that episode where Adama did that, I even mentioned it in my initial post about the preistess advanced class, but I think the boards are a pretty good microcosm of the gaming community, and it seems like most folks don't think Psi fits in with the new BSG.
Of course there is nothing saying that a GM can't use them if he wants to...
As for mutations etc... I think the new series is more likely to support radiation sickness and birth defects than mutants... but again, there is nothing keeping a GM from including mutations if he wants them.
As for Cylon experimentation, they definately do it, I mean on the Caprica episodes we see that they try to remove eggs and implant Cylon/Human hybrids, so on and so forth. I'll probably do something on it later.
I might offer other posts later on, but for now, just the bare bones is needed, it'd be similar to a typical Aftermath campaign.
Sol G2 V: Lum 1; init orb. 0.39 au Mercury (3,031 miles, Gravity ¼), 0.72 au Venus (7,521 miles, Gravity 1), 1.00 au – temperate Earth (7,926 miles, Gravity 1, Pressure 1 atm, Hydro 71%, Oxygen 0.204 atm, Breathable? Yes, Rotation 24 hr, Tilt 23 deg, year 8766 hrs{365 ¼ standard days, 365 ¼ local}, Day 24 hrs, Moons 1: {Orbit Radius 23,885, Size 2160 miles, Orbital Period 655 hrs}), 1.52 au Mars (6759 km, Gravity ¼, Pressure 0.0069 arm to 0.009 atm)
Alpha Centauri A G2 V: Lum 1.3; init orb. 0.1 au (5,000 miles, Gravity ¾), 0.19 au (12,000 miles, Gravity 1½), 0.27 au (1,000 miles, Gravity 0), 0.49 au (4,000 miles, Gravity ¼), 1.02 au – temperate Gaia (12,000 miles, Gravity 1, Pressure 1 ½ atm, Hydro 65%, Oxygen 0.24 atm, Breathable? Yes, Rotation 24 hrs, Tilt 162 degrees {18 degrees – reverse rotation}, year 8610 hrs{358 ¾ standard days, 358 ¾ local}, Day 24 hrs, Moons 1, Orbit Radius 45,000 miles, artificial satellite 7.5 miles side double saucer shaped structure joined at the base, it is 4 miles think and contains multiple landing bays with some 3 man spaceships that are flattened oval shaped areodynaic lifting bodies. The big space station of spaceship is wrecked, apparently by an internal explosion. Writings on the various control surfaces appear to be in ancient Kobol. The debris of a wrecked 2nd ship seems to have accumulated in the slight gravity of the more massive first. The BSG fleet is busy trying to make certain sections of this ancient ship habitable. Judging from the amount of meteor impacts on the hull's surface this structure is millions of years old), 2.14 au (11,000 miles, Gravity 1¾).
The planet is metal poor, which is why it has a gravity of only 1. The BSG fleet has concluded that the spaceship must be from Kobol. Some sightings of primitive humans have been spotted.
Then Kuan Ti it is. So we have the following: Battlestars USSF Neil Armstrong, USSF Lexington, JSDF Yamamoto, EUSF Winston Churchill, CSF Kuan Ti, and of course the Galactica.
Assuming the USSF would have some ties to the old US navy I would imagine it carriers to be the USSF Constiution, named after the "Old Iron Sides", and USSF Enterprise, named after both the space shuttle and the most recognizable carrier in the navy. (i know that having a space ship named the enterprise reeks of bad cheese). EUSF, assuming the brits would get naming rights, Ark Royal, Invincible, or Victory would all be names that would keep with the Naval tradition. Anyway your campaign and your write up means you get to chose the names of the Earth Built BattleStars. Just telling you what I would use.
I've taken the liberty to write up some encounter tables for the planet I mentioned, it borrows heavily from the Monster Manuals of D&D, Mostly just animals and monsters, nothing intelligent or that uses magic. When I list Tyrannosaurus Rex, that mostly mean a creature like a Tyrannosaurus Rex, not that exact Dinosaur, but its stats represent the animal closely enough in combat.
Encounter Tables for Gaia
MM = Monster Maunal 3.5, MM2 = Monster Manual II, FF = Fiend Folio
Cold Aquatic ***** ***** ***** Cold Desert * ***** ***** Cold Plains
Result Encounter 1d8 ***** ***** Encounter 1d2 ***** ***** Encounter 1d8
1 **** Dire Shark MM64 ** ***** Dire Rat MM64 **** ***** Dire Rat MM64
2 **** Tojanida, Juvenile MM244 * ***** ***** ***** ***** Dire Horse MM2-75
3 **** Megalodon MM2-147 ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** Dire Hawk MM2-76
4 **** Polar Bear MM269 * ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** Dire Rhinoceros FF61
5 **** Medium Shark MM279 **** ***** ***** ***** ***** Megatherium FF124
6 **** Large Shark MM279 ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** Terror Bird FF175
7 **** Huge Shark MM279 ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** Polar Bear MM269
8 **** Orca MM283 ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** Gaian
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
Cold Forest ** ***** ***** ***** Cold Hills *** ***** ***** Cold Mountains
Result Encounter 1d12 **** ***** Encounter 1d8 ***** ***** Encounter 1d3
1 **** Dire Bear MM63 *** ***** Dire Rat MM64 Dire Elk MM2-75
2 **** Dire Rat MM64 **** ***** Dire Horse MM2-75 Dire Hawk MM2-76
3 **** Dire Wolverine MM66 **** Dire Elk MM2-75 Gaian
4 **** Dire Horse MM2-75 ***** Dire Hawk MM2-76
5 **** Dire Elk MM2-75 ** ***** Grizzly Mastodon MM2-123
6 **** Dire Hawk MM2-76 ***** Megatherium FF124
7 **** Grizzly Mastodon MM2-123 Terror Bird FF175
8 **** Megatherium FF124 ***** Gaian
9 **** Terror Bird FF175
10 *** Wolverine MM283
11 *** Gaian
12 *** Gaian
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15
16
17
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Cold Marsh * ***** ***** ***** Temperate Aquatic ** ***** Temperate Desert
Result Encounter 1d2 ***** ***** Encounter 1d8 ***** ***** Encounter 1d6
1 **** Dire Rat MM64 **** ***** Tojanida, Juvenile MM244 * Dire Bat MM62
2 **** Gaian ***** ***** ***** Dire Snake MM2-76 ***** Dire Rat MM64
3 **** ***** ***** ***** ***** Megalodon MM2-147 ***** Dire Snake MM2-76
4 **** ***** ***** ***** ***** Porpoise MM278 *** ***** Donkey MM272
5 **** ***** ***** ***** ***** Squid MM281 ***** ***** Gaian
6 **** ***** ***** ***** ***** Giant Squid MM281 ***** Gaian
7 **** ***** ***** ***** ***** Cachalot Whale MM283
8 **** ***** ***** ***** ***** Cachalot Whale MM283
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Temperate Plains *** ***** ***** Temperate Forest *** ***** Temperate Hills
Result Encounter 1d20 **** ***** Encounter 1d20 * ***** Encounter 1d12
1 **** Triceratops MM61 ** ***** Assassin Vine MM20 ***** Bulette MM30
2 **** Dire Rat MM64 **** ***** Dire Badger MM62 * ***** Dire Rat MM64
3 **** Worg MM256 ***** ***** Dire Boar MM63 *** ***** Dire Weasel MM65
4 **** Dire Horse MM2-75 ***** Dire Rat MM64 **** ***** Dire Horse MM2-75
5 **** Dire Toad MM2-76 * ***** Dire Wolf MM65 *** ***** Dire Elk MM2-75
6 **** Dire Hawk MM2-76 ***** Giant Owl MM205 ** ***** Dire Toad MM2-76
7 **** Dire Snake MM2-76 ***** Owlbear MM206 *** ***** Dire Hawk MM2-76
8 **** Dire Rhinoceros FF61 ***** Giant Stag Beetle MM285 ** Dire Snake MM2-76
9 **** Megatherium FF124 * ***** Gnt Praying Mantis MM285 Grizzly Mastodon MM2-123
10 *** Terror Bird FF175 ** ***** Dire Horse MM2-75 ***** Megatherium FF124
11 *** Bison MM270 ***** ***** Dire Elk MM2-75 ** ***** Terror Bird FF175
12 *** Heavy Horse MM273 ***** Dire Toad MM2-76 * ***** Gaian
13 *** Light Horse MM273 ***** Dire Hawk MM2-76
14 *** Pony MM277 ***** ***** Dire Snake MM2-76
15 *** Tyrannosaurus MM61 ***** Grizzly Mastodon MM2-123
16 *** Allosaurus MM2-70 * ***** Fhorge FF72
17 *** Ankylosaurus MM2-70 **** Megatherium FF124
18 *** Seismosaurus MM2-72 **** Terror Bird FF175
19 *** Spinosaurus MM2-72 ***** Brown Bear MM269
20 *** Gaian ***** ***** ***** Gaian
Temperate Mountains ***** ***** Temperate Marsh *** ***** Warm Aquatic
Result Encounter 1d10 **** ***** Encounter 1d12 **** ***** Encounter 1d10
1 **** Dire Rat MM64 **** ***** Chuul MM35 ***** ***** Elasmosaurus MM60
2 **** Giant Eagle MM93 * ***** Dire Rat MM64 **** ***** Tojanida, Juvenile MM244
3 **** Dire Horse MM2-75 ***** Dire Toad MM2-76 * ***** Cryptoclidus MM2-70
4 **** Dire Elk MM2-75 ** ***** Dire Snake MM2-76 ***** Dire Snake MM2-76
5 **** Dire Toad MM2-76 * ***** Tiny Viper Snake MM280 ** Megalodon MM2-247
6 **** Dire Hawk MM2-76 ***** Small Viper Snake MM280 * Manta Ray MM275
7 **** Dire Snake MM2-76 ***** Med. Viper Snake MM280 * Octopus MM276
8 **** Eagle MM272 ***** ***** Large Viper Snake MM280 * Giant Octopus MM276
9 **** Gaian ***** ***** ***** Huge Viper Snake MM280 * Baleen Whale MM282
10 *** Gaian ***** ***** ***** Toad MM282 ***** ***** Baleen Whale MM282
11 *** ***** ***** ***** ***** Gaian
12 *** ***** ***** ***** ***** Gaian
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Warm Desert ***** ***** ***** Warm Plains ***** ***** Warm Forest
Result Encounter 1d6 ***** ***** Encounter 1d20 **** ***** Encounter 1d20
1 **** Dire Rat MM64 **** ***** Ankheg MM14 ***** ***** Deinonychus MM60
2 **** Dire Snake MM2-76 ***** Tyrannosaurus MM61 ***** Megaraptor MM60
3 **** Megapede MM2-148 ***** Dire Lion MM63 *** ***** Dire Ape MM62
4 **** Camel MM270 ***** ***** Dire Rat MM64 **** ***** Dire Rat MM64
5 **** Hyena MM274 ***** ***** Giant Fire Beetle MM285 ** Dire Tiger MM65
6 **** Gaian ***** ***** ***** Allosaurus MM2-70 * ***** Terror Bird FF175
7 **** ***** ***** ***** ***** Ankylosaurus MM2-70 **** Giant Bombardier Beetle MM284
8 **** ***** ***** ***** ***** Seismosaurus MM2-72 **** Allosaurus MM2-70
9 **** ***** ***** ***** ***** Spinosaurus MM2-72 ***** Ankylosaurus MM2-70
10 *** ***** ***** ***** ***** Dire Horse MM2-75 ***** Quetzalcoatlus MM2-72
11 *** ***** ***** ***** ***** Dire Elephant MM2-75 **** Seismosaurus MM2-72
12 *** ***** ***** ***** ***** Dire Toad MM2-76 * ***** Spinosaurus MM2-72
13 *** ***** ***** ***** ***** Dire Hawk MM2-76 ***** Dire Horse MM2-75
14 *** ***** ***** ***** ***** Dire Snake MM2-76 ***** Dire Elephant MM2-75
15 *** ***** ***** ***** ***** Megatherium FF124 ***** Dire Toad MM2-76
16 *** ***** ***** ***** ***** Terror Bird FF175 ** ***** Dire Hawk MM2-76
17 *** ***** ***** ***** ***** Baboon MM268 **** ***** Dire Snake MM2-76
18 *** ***** ***** ***** ***** Cheetah MM271 *** ***** Forest Sloth MM2-106
19 *** ***** ***** ***** ***** Elephant MM272 *** ***** Fhorge FF72
20 *** ***** ***** ***** ***** Gaian ***** ***** ***** Gaian
Warm Hills ** ***** ***** ***** Warm Mountains *** ***** Warm Marsh
Result Encounter 1d12 **** ***** Encounter 1d6 ***** ***** Encounter 1d12
1 **** Dire Rat MM64 **** ***** Dire Rat MM64 **** ***** Dire Rat MM64
2 **** Allosaurus MM2-70 * ***** Dire Snake MM2-76 ***** Stirge MM236
3 **** Ankylosaurus MM2-70 **** Dire Horse MM2-75 ***** Allosaurus MM2-70
4 **** Quetzalcoatlus MM2-70 *** Dire Toad MM2-76 * ***** Ankylosaurus MM2-70
5 **** Seismosaurus MM2-72 **** Dire Hawk MM2-76 ***** Seismosaurus MM2-72
6 **** Spinosaurus MM2-72 ***** Gaian ***** ***** ***** Spinosaurus MM2-72
7 **** Gaian* ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** Dire Horse MM2-75
8 **** Dire Toad MM2-76 * ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** Dire Toad MM2-76
9 **** Dire Hawk MM2-76 ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** Dire Snake MM2-76
10 *** Dire Snake MM2-76 ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** Crocodile MM271
11 *** Megatherium FF124 ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** Giant Crocodile MM271
12 *** Terror Bird FF175 ** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** Gaian
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Gaian, 1st-Level Warrior
Hit Dice: 1d8 (4 hp)
Initiative: +1
Speed: 30 ft. (6 squares)
Defense: 15 (+1 Dex, +3 studded leather, +1 light wooden shield), touch 11, flat-footed 14
Base Attack/Grapple: +1/+2
Attack: Obsidian Longsword* +2 melee (1d8+1/19-20) or longbow +3 ranged (1d8/x3)
Full Attack: Longsword +2 melee (1d8+1/19-20) or longbow +3 ranged (1d8/x3)
Space/Reach: 5 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks: None
Special Qualities: Elven traits
Saves: Fort +2, Ref +1, Wil -1
Abilities: Str 13, Dex 13, Con 10, Int 10, Wis 9, Cha 8
Skills: Hide +1, Listen +2, Search +3, Spot +2
Feats: Weapon Focus (longbow)
Environment: Any Land
Organization: Squad (2-4), company (11-20 plus 2 3rd-level sergeants and a leader of 3rd-6th level), or band (30-100 plus 20% noncombatants plus 1 3rd-level sergeant per 10 adults, 5 5th-level lieutenants, and 3 7th level captains)
Challenge rating: ½
Treasure: Standard but no metal coins
Advancement: By character class
Level Adjustment +0
* on a 1d20 roll of 1, the obsidian long sword breaks, most Gaians carry a spare just in case.
This humanoid stands 6 feet all as do all of them when they reach maturity, they have a youthful appearance, its impossible to tell the age of any of them beyond that of 20 years old.
Gaians are primitive human like creatures, its hard to tell a Gaian from a human except that all adults of both sexes are 6 feet tall, their height varies very little from individual to individual.
Combat
Gaians prefer to fight from cover using the terrain to maximize their advantage whenever possible. They prefer longbows short bows, obsidian long swords and obsidian short swords as they have no metals to work with
Gaian traits (Ex): Gaians possess the following racial traits
- +2 Dexterity, -2 constitution
- Medium size.
- A gaian’s base land speed in 30 feet.
- Low-light vision
- Weapon Proficiency: Gaians are automatically proficient with obsidian long swords, long bows, composite long bows, short bows and composite short bows.
- +2 racial bonus on Listen, Search, and Spot checks.
The gaian warrior presented here had the following ability scores before racial adjustments: Str 13, Dex 11, Con 12, Int 10, Wis 9, Cha 8.
Well, I have been working on Chapter Eight... its all done.. I am going to put it into the word doc as soon as I get home. It won't fit here... 64,000+characters and a 50,000character limit to the posts... oh well.
And where might we find this .doc?
For combat taking place in orbital space and beyond, we present the advanced starship combat rules. These rules are based on a combination of the vehicle combat rules for D20 Modern, and the starship combat rules from D20 Future. The result is a system designed to faithfully simulate the combat depicted in Battlestar Galactica. While there are some similarities to the source material, these rules are significantly different.
Space Scale
Advanced starship combat uses a larger scale than the rules that are presented in D20 Future. This larger scale is called Space Scale. In space scale, each square is 5,000 feet across. All engine speeds and weapon ranges are multiplied by 10 in space scale. For example, all starships have a base speed of 30,000 feet instead of 3,000 feet. An Ion engine grants a +5,000 foot bonus to speed instead of +500 feet. Gauss cannons have a range increment of 40,000 feet instead of 4,000 feet, etc…
Three Dimensional Combat
In most aerial combat, fighting takes place in 3 dimensions. This is even more so in space combat. In these rules, each square is actually a cube 5,000 feet on a side. In an atmosphere, up and down are easy to establish, but in space it is not so simple. When fighting in a three dimensional space, the GM must set an imaginary reference plane to represent the ground. In naval terms this reference plane is called the “Hard Deck”. The hard deck is usually represented by the surface of the battle map.
To represent a starship’s altitude relative to the hard deck, make a note on the map next to the miniature or marker indicating its position. A Battlestar cruising on the Hard Deck would have a relative altitude of +0. A viper flying CAP 20,000 feet “above” the fleet would have a relative altitude of +4 while a raider jumping into the area 75,000 feet “below” the fleet would have a relative altitude of -15.
Facing and Firing Arcs
Unlike with characters, when dealing with space combat, a starship’s facing is important. Facing indicates the direction in which the starship’s front firing arc is pointing. It can also determine which weapons aboard the starship can be brought to bear on a target.
A weapon built into a starship can by mounted to fire in one of six directions—top, bottom, forward, aft (rear), right, or left—or be built into a turret. A turret lets a weapon fire into five adjacent fire arcs (such as left, forward, aft, top and bottom. For starships with weapons, a weapon’s arc of fire is given in the starship’s description.
Depicting a starships facing in two dimensional combat is easy, but doing so in three dimensional combat gets tricky. To represent a starship’s vertical facing make a note on the map next to the miniature or marker indicating its position. A starship facing straight “up” relative to the hard deck should have a 0 placed next to it just below the note indicating its relative altitude. A starship facing “up” at a 45 degree angle should have the number 45 written down instead. Mark starships with a facing parallel to the hard deck with the number 90. Starships facing “down” at a 45 degree angle (relative to the hard deck) are marked with the number 135. Finally, a starship facing straight “down” is marked with the number 180.
Acceleration and Deceleration
Each ship has a base movement rate. This is a number that tells the player how much the ship can add to or subtract from its speed in one turn. Starships accelerate or decelerate just before they move. A ship cannot accelerate and decelerate on the same turn. Starships do not have a top speed. They can accelerate to any speed, but players may find that ships traveling very fast will be forced to leave the map. A starship may accelerate up to four times its base movement rate (see Moving) but it can only decelerate up to its base movement rate unless it performs the Hard Braking stunt (see Stunts). A starship can come to a complete stop by decelerating until its speed reaches zero, or by changing it facing until it is opposite to its vector (see Vectors) and accelerating until its speed reaches zero.
Vectors
Perhaps the most complicated aspect of space combat is the fact that a starship can be moving in one direction and facing another at the same time. Space is a vacuum. It has no wind resistance to create drag and no gravity to pull a starship “down”. Because of this, a starship that begins its move by accelerating to a speed of 14 will continue to move at a speed of 14 in the same direction or “vector” every round until it changes direction, decelerates, or accelerates again.
If the starship decelerates from 14 to 7, it will still continue moving along the same vector at a speed of 7 every round until once again it decelerates, changes direction or accelerates again. If the starship surges forward (accelerating) 28 squares, it will now be traveling at a speed of 35 (7+28=35), along the same vector as before, until yet again it accelerates, decelerates or changes direction.
If the starship changes direction, note it’s facing in the manner described above, but also note its vector by marking an arrow in the direction of the ships movement followed by the number of squares the starship moves along this vector every turn. If the starship’s vector is not parallel to the hard deck, note its relative orientation just as you would for its facing.
Getting Started
Most starships can be entered with a move action and started with a second move action. An exception is noted in a starship’s description when it applies.
Initiative
There are two options for determining initiative in starship combat. First, is individual initiative just as in normal combat, where each character rolls separately. This is probably the best method if most or all characters are aboard the same starship, but it can result in a lot of delayed or readied actions as passengers wait for pilots to perform maneuvers. An alternative is to roll initiative for each starship, using the starship’s initiative modifier. This is particularly appropriate when characters are in separate starships, since it allows everyone aboard the same starship to act more or less simultaneously.
Speed
A ship’s speed is measured in 5,000-foot squares and tells how far a starship can move in a move action. A starship’s speed depends on the type of ship and the type of engines. Starship speed is expressed in five categories: stationary, docking, orbital, tactical, and cruising. Each of these speed categories represents a range of possible movement (see Table: Starship Speeds and Modifiers). Each round, a starship moves according to its current speed category.
Table: Starship Speeds and Modifiers
Speed Category Defense Modifier Check/Roll Modifier
Movement1 Turn Number2
Stationary3 0 — +0 —
Docking speed 1–20 1 +0 +0
Orbital speed 21–50 2 +1 –1
Tactical speed 51–150 4 +2 –2
Cruising speed 151+ 8 +4 –4
1 The number of squares a starship can move at this speed.
2 The number of squares a starship must move at this speed before making a turn.
3 A stationary starship cannot move or maneuver.
Stationary: The starship is motionless.
Docking Speed: This speed is used for safely maneuvering a starship in tight spaces, such as shipyards and hangar bays. It tops out at about 10,000mph.
Orbital Speed: The starship is traveling at a moderate speed, up to about 30,000mph.
Tactical Speed: The starship is moving at a typical combat speed, up to about 90,000mph.
Cuising Speed: The starship is traveling extremely fast, more than 100,000mph.
The Effects of Speed
A fast-moving starship is harder to hit than a stationary one—but it’s also harder to control, and to attack from. As shown on Table: Starship Speeds and Modifiers, when a starship travels at orbital speed or faster, it gains a bonus to Defense. However, that speed brings along with it a penalty on all skill checks and attack rolls made by characters aboard the starship—including Pilot checks to control the starship and attacks made from it.
Moving
A starship normally moves as a move action, leaving an attack action to attack. It can, however, use its attack action as a second move action (see Starship Actions, below). This could let the ship move again, for a total movement of up to double its normal speed. Another option is to surge forward (a full-round action). This lets the ship move up to four times its normal speed, but it can only surge forward in a straight line, and doing so affects its Defense (see Surge Forward). Count squares for starships just as for characters. Starships can move diagonally; remember that when moving diagonally, every second square costs two squares’ worth of movement.
Piloting a Starship
Piloting a starship is a move action, taken by the starship’s pilot. During his or her move action, the pilot moves the starship a number of squares equal to its speed from its last turn along its last vector. The pilot can attempt maneuvers to change the starship’s course or speed. These maneuvers can be attempted at any point during his or her turn. The pilot can choose to use his or her attack action to attempt additional maneuvers. The two kinds of starship movement are simple maneuvers and stunts.
Simple Maneuvers: A simple maneuver, such as a 45-degree turn, is easy to perform. Each is a free action and can be taken as many times as the driver likes while he or she moves the starship. However, simple maneuvers do cost movement—so a starship that makes a lot of simple maneuvers will not get as far as one going in a straight line. Simple maneuvers do not require the driver to make skill checks.
Simple Maneuvers
During a starship’s movement, the driver can perform any one of the following maneuvers.
45-Degree Turn: Any starship can make a simple 45-degree turn as part of its movement. The starship must move forward at least a number of squares equal to its turn number (shown on Table: Starship Speeds and Modifiers) before it can turn. Making a 45-degree turn costs 1 square of movement.
Ram: A pilot may move his or her starship into another starship’s square and state that he or she is attempting to ram. Resolve the ram as a collision, except that the pilot of the target starship can make a Reflex save (DC 15) to reduce the damage to both starships by half.
Sideslip: A driver might wish to move to the side without changing the starship’s facing, for instance to change lanes. This simple maneuver, called a sideslip, allows a starship to avoid obstacles or weave in and out of traffic without changing facing. A sideslip moves a starship 1 square forward and 1 square to the right or left, and costs 3 squares of movement.
Stunts: Stunts are difficult and sometimes daring maneuvers that enable a pilot to change his or her starship’s speed or heading more radically than a simple maneuver allows. A stunt is a move action. It can be taken as part of a move action to control the starship, and a second stunt can be attempted in lieu of the pilot’s attack action. Stunts always require Pilot checks. Unsuccessful stunts often result in the starship ending up someplace other than where the pilot intended. When this happens, the starship collides with any objects in its path. Remember that the check/roll modifier from Table: Starship Speeds and Modifiers affects all Pilot checks made by the pilot and attack rolls made by all occupants of the starship.
Avoid Hazard: Starship combat usually occurs in empty, featureless space. When a starship tries to move through a square occupied by a hazard, (such as an asteroid or another starship) the pilot must succeed on a Pilot check to avoid the hazard and continue moving.
A pilot cannot make a check if he or she has used all his or her actions for the round in performing other stunts. He or she automatically fails to avoid the hazard. In such cases, a collision occurs. The DC to avoid a hazard varies with the nature of the hazard.
On a failed check, the starship hits the obstacle. Failing to avoid an object results in a collision with the object (see Collisions and Ramming).
Hazard DC
Object
Huge (light debris) 5
Gargantuan (moderate debris) 10
Colossal (heavy debris) 15
Object is larger than one square (Asteroid) Cannot be avoided
Bootleg Turn: By making a bootleg turn, a pilot can radically change direction without turning in a loop. To make a bootleg turn, simply change the starship’s facing to the desired direction. The DC for a bootleg turn depends on the change in facing. On a failed check, instead of facing the desired direction, the starship only changes facing by 45 degrees. Make a Pilot check to retain control against a DC equal to the DC for the bootleg turn attempted (see Losing Control).
Facing Change DC
45 degrees 5
90 degrees 10
135 degrees 15
180 degrees 20
Hard Brake: With a hard brake stunt, a pilot can reduce the starship’s speed by up to its movement rate. (This is in addition to any speed change made at the beginning of his action; if the pilot reduced speed at that time, he or she can drop a total of twice the starship’s movement rate in the same round.) The DC for a hard brake is 15. The pilot can only succeed at one hard break per round. On a failed check, the starship does not change speed. Make a Pilot check (DC 15) to retain control (see Losing Control).
Hard Turn: A hard turn allows a starship to make a turn in a short distance without losing speed.
A hard turn functions like a 45-degree turn simple maneuver, except that the starship only needs to move forward a number of squares equal to half its turn number (rounded down). The DC for a hard turn is 15. On a failed check, the starship continues to move forward a number of squares equal to its turn number before turning, just as with a simple 45-degree turn. Make a Pilot check (DC 15) to retain control (see Losing Control).
Sideswipe: During a starship’s movement, a pilot can attempt to sideswipe a starship or other target, either to deal damage without fully ramming it or to cause another pilot to lose control of his or her starship. The starship must be in the same square as its target and moving in the same direction. There is no movement cost.
If the stunt is successful, the sideswiping starship and the target both take damage as if they had collided (see Collisions and Ramming), except that the collision multiplier is 1/4, and the target (or pilot of the target starship) can make a Reflex save (DC 15) to reduce the damage to both by half. If the target is another starship the driver must succeed at a Drive check (DC 15) at the beginning of his or her next action or lose control of the starship. The DC for a sideswipe is 15. It’s modified by the relative size and speed of the target.
Target Condition DC Modifier
Each size category larger –5
Each size category smaller +5
Each speed category of difference –2
On a failed check, both starships take damage as though the sideswipe attempt was a success. However, the other driver does not need to make a check to retain control.
Collisions and Ramming
A collision occurs when a starship strikes another starship or a solid object. Generally, when a starship collides with a creature or other moving starship, the target can attempt a Reflex save (DC 15) to reduce the damage by half.
Resolving Collisions
The base damage dealt by a starship collision depends on the speed and size of the objects involved. Use the highest speed and the smallest size of the two colliding objects and refer to Table: Collision Damage.
Table: Collision Damage
Highest Speed Damage Die Type
Docking speed d2
Orbital speed d4
Tactical speed d8
Cruising speed d12
Smallest Object or Creature Size Number of Dice
Colossal 20
Gargantuan 16
Huge 12
Large 8
Medium-size 4
Small 2
Tiny 1
Smaller than Tiny 0
Damage to Starship Occupants
When a starship takes damage from a collision, its occupants may take damage as well. The base amount of damage depends on the cover offered by the starship.
Cover Damage
None Same as damage taken by starship
One-quarter Three-quarters damage taken by starship
One-half One-half damage taken by starship
Three-quarters One-quarter damage taken by starship
Nine-tenths or more None
Each of the occupants may make a Reflex save (DC 15) to take half damage.
After finding the base damage, determine the collision’s damage multiplier based on how the colliding starship struck the other starship or object. (For starships moving in reverse, consider the back end to be the starship’s “front” for determining the collision multiplier.) Consult Table: Collision Direction for a multiplier.
Once the damage has been determined, apply it to both starships (or objects or creatures) involved in the collision. Both starships reduce their speed by two speed categories. If the colliding starship moved the minimum number of squares for its new speed category before the collision, it ends its movement immediately. If not, it pushes the other starship or object aside, if possible, and continues until it has moved the minimum number of squares for its new speed category.
Table: Collision Direction
Colliding Starship’s Target Multiplier
A stationary object x 1
A moving starship, striking head-on or 45 degrees from head-on x 2
A moving starship, striking perpendicular x 1
A moving starship, striking from the rear or 45 degrees from the rear x 1/2
A starship being sideswiped (see Sideswipe) x 1/4
The driver of the starship that caused the collision must immediately make a Drive check (DC 15) or lose control of the starship (see Losing Control, below). The driver of the other starship must succeed on a Drive check (DC 15) at the beginning of his or her next action or lose control of his or her starship.
Losing Control
A collision or a failed stunt can cause a pilot to lose control of his starship. In these cases, the pilot must make a Pilot check to retain control of the starship. If this check is successful, the pilot maintains control of the starship. If it fails, the starship goes into a spin. If it fails by 10 or more, the starship rolls. Remember that the check/roll modifier from Table: Starship Speeds and Modifiers applies to all Pilot checks. An out-of-control starship may strike an object or other starship. When that happens, a collision occurs (see Collisions and Ramming, above).
Spin
The starship spins slowly along its horizontal axis. The starship moves along its last vector at its last speed. The pilot cannot perform any actions until he or she regains control and stops the spin. Once it stops, roll 1d8 to determine its new facing: 1, no change; 2, right 45 degrees; 3, right 90 degrees; 4, right 135 degrees; 5, 180 degrees; 6, left 135 degrees; 7, left 90 degrees; 8, left 45 degrees. Reorient the starship accordingly.
Roll
The starship tumbles wildly, causing damage to its occupants. The starship tumbles in the horizontal and vertical axis along its last vector at its last speed. The pilot cannot perform any actions until he or she regains control and stops the roll. Once it stops, roll 1d8 to determine its new facing: 1, no change; 2, right 45 degrees; 3, right 90 degrees; 4, right 135 degrees; 5, 180 degrees; 6, left 135 degrees; 7, left 90 degrees; 8, left 45 degrees. Reorient the starship accordingly. The starship’s occupants take damage equal to 2d4 x the turn number for its speed (Reflex save, DC 15, for half damage).
STARSHIP COMBAT SEQUENCE
Starship combat is played out in rounds. Each round, each starship acts in turn in a regular cycle. Generally, starship combat runs as follows.
Step 1: Every starship starts the battle flat-footed. Once a starship acts, it is no longer flat-footed.
Step 2: The GM determines which starships are aware of each other at the start of the battle. (Cloaking devices and other devices might hide a ship from another ship’s sensors.) If some but not all of the starships are aware of their enemies, a surprise round happens before regular rounds begin. Starships that are aware of the enemies can act in the surprise round, so they roll for initiative. In initiative order (highest to lowest), starships that started the battle aware of their enemies each take one move or attack action. Starships that were unaware don’t get to act in the surprise round. If no starship or every starship begins the battle aware, there is no surprise round.
Step 3: Starships that have not yet rolled initiative do so. All starships are now ready to begin their first regular round.
Step 4: Starships act in initiative order. All crew aboard a starship act on the starship’s turn.
Step 5. When each starship has had a turn, the starship with the highest initiative acts again, and steps 4 and 5 repeat until combat ends.
COMBAT STATISTICS
Several fundamental statistics determine how well a starship performs in combat. This section summarizes these vital statistics, and the following sections detail how to use them.
ATTACK ROLL
An attack roll represents one starship’s attempt to strike another on its turn in a round. Most starships are armed with ranged weapons aimed by gunners. When a starship makes an attack roll, roll 1d20 and add the appropriate modifiers (described below). If the result equals or beats the target’s Defense, the attack hits and deals damage. A starship’s attack roll is:
1d20 + gunner’s ranged attack bonus + range penalty + starship’s size modifier + targeting system’s equipment bonus
Gunner’s Ranged Attack Bonus
Unless noted otherwise, all starship gunners are assumed to have the Starship Gunnery feat. Without this feat, a starship gunner takes a –4 nonproficient penalty on attack rolls with starship weapons. For simplicity, all non-heroic gunners aboard a starship have identical ranged attack bonuses.
Range Penalty
The range penalty for a ranged weapon depends on what weapon the starship is using and the distance to the target. All ranged weapons have a range increment, as noted in Table: Starship Weapons. As with character weapons, any attack from a distance of less than one range increment is not penalized for range. However, each full range increment causes a cumulative –2 penalty on the attack roll. A missile or projectile weapon has an unlimited range, since projectiles don’t lose inertia in space.
Starship’s Size Modifier
Starships are Huge, Gargantuan, or Colossal in size. Table: Starship Sizes notes the size modifiers for ships of different sizes.
Targeting System’s Equipment Bonus
Most starships have computerized targeting systems to help gunners train weapons on targets. A standard targeting system provides an equipment bonus on the gunner’s attack roll depending on the ship’s size: Huge +1, Gargantuan +2, Colossal +3. Improved targeting systems (see Starship Sensors) grant higher bonuses. Table: Starship Sizes summarizes the targeting system equipment bonuses for ships of different sizes.
Automatic Misses and Hits
As in character combat, a natural 1 on the attack roll is always a miss. A natural 20 is always a hit. A natural 20 also always threatens a critical hit (see Critical Hits, below).
Table: Starship Sizes
Starship Size Starship’s Size Modifier1 Targeting System’s Equipment Bonus2 Autopilot System’s Equipment Bonus3 Starship’s Length Starship’s Weight
Colossal –8 +3 +3 64 ft. or more 250,000lb. or more
Gargantuan –4 +2 +2 32–64 ft. 32,000–250,000lb.
Huge –2 +1 +1 Less than 32 ft. 4,000–32,000 lb.
1 A starship applies its size modifier on all attack rolls and to its Defense.
2 A starship applies its targeting system’s equipment bonus on all attack rolls.
3 A starship on autopilot applies its autopilot system’s equipment bonus to its Defense.
STARSHIP ARMOR
Starship armor is designed to absorb damage rather than make a starship harder to hit. Consequently, a starship’s armor plating provides hardness instead of an equipment bonus to Defense. Subtract a starship’s hardness from the damage each time it takes a hit. If a ship’s hardness is greater than the amount of damage dealt by the attack, the starship takes no damage. See Starship Armor in chapter five for the various types of armor, as well as the hardness of each type.
DEFENSE
A starship’s Defense represents how difficult it is to hit in combat. It’s the attack roll result that an enemy ship needs to achieve a hit. In general, starships are easy to hit, which is why they rely on armor to absorb damage (see Starship Armor, below). A starship’s Defense is partly determined by the skill of the pilot or the quality of its automatic pilot system.
PILOTED SHIPS
A starship with a living pilot has a Defense equal to: 10 + starship’s size modifier + pilot’s class bonus to Defense + pilot’s Dexterity modifier
Starship’s Size Modifier
The bigger a starship is, the easier it is to hit in combat. The smaller it is, the harder it is to hit. Size modifiers are shown on Table: Starship Sizes.
Pilot’s Class Bonus to Defense
The pilot imparts her class bonus to Defense to the ship’s Defense. This bonus applies even if the starship is flat-footed or otherwise denied the pilot’s Dexterity bonus to its Defense.
All starship pilots are assumed to have the appropriate Starship Operation feat. Consequently, they apply their full class bonus to Defense (instead of one-half the modifier) to a starship’s Defense.
Pilot’s Dexterity Modifier
In any given round, a pilot may choose to transfer her full Dexterity bonus to the starship’s Defense. However, doing so forces the pilot to focus entirely on flying the ship, and consequently the pilot loses the Dexterity bonus to her own Defense for the round.
A pilot cannot apply her Dexterity bonus to a starship’s Defense if she or the starship is flat-footed.
AUTOPILOTED SHIPS
Every starship comes equipped with a basic autopilot system that enables it to dodge enemy fire without need for a pilot. A starship on autopilot has a Defense equal to: 10 + starship’s size modifier + autopilot system’s equipment bonus
Starship’s Size Modifier
Size modifiers are shown on Table: Starship Sizes.
Autopilot System’s Equipment Bonus
An autopilot system provides an equipment bonus to Defense depending on the ship’s size: Huge +1, Gargantuan +2, Colossal +3. A ship equipped with an improved autopilot system (see Starship Defense Systems) gains a higher bonus.
CREW
The quality of the crew determines how well a starship performs in and out of combat. Unless otherwise noted, every starship has a trained crew of non-heroic characters. However, situations could arise where a starship must rely on an untrained crew. Conversely, expert crews and ace crews are also available—for the right price. Table: Crew Quality compares four different qualities of crew: untrained, trained, expert, and ace.
Skill Check Modifier
Apply this modifier to all skill checks made by crew.
Pilot’s Dexterity Modifier
A pilot’s Dexterity modifier applies to the starship’s initiative rolls and the starship’s Defense.
Pilot’s Class Bonus to Defense
A pilot’s class bonus to Defense applies to the starship’s Defense and to opposed grapple checks.
Gunner’s Attack Bonus
A gunner’s attack bonus applies to all ranged attacks made by the ship.
Crew Quality Skill Check Modifier1 Pilot’s Class Bonus to Defense Pilot’s Dexterity Modifier Gunner’s Modifier to Attack Bonus
Untrained +0 +1 +0 –4
Trained +4 +3 +2 +2
Expert +8 +5 +4 +4
Ace +12 +7 +6 +8/+3
CREW IMPROVEMENT
To improve in quality, a starship’s crew of non-heroic characters must “put in the hours” and gain combat experience. Table: Crew Improvement shows the length of the crew’s tour of duty and the number of ship-to-ship battles the crew must survive to be considered of a particular quality. A crew cannot be elevated to a higher quality until it meets the minimum required time spent serving aboard the ship and the minimum amount of ship-to-ship combat experience.
Table: Crew Improvement
Crew Quality Length of Tour of Duty Starship Battles Survived
Untrained 0–5 months 0
Trained 6–11 months 0–3
Expert 12–35 months 4–11
Ace 3 years or more 12+
DAMAGE
When a starship hits with a weapon, it deals damage according to the type of weapon (see Table: Starship Weapons). Damage is deducted from the target’s current hit points. If a starship’s hit points are reduced to 0 or fewer, the ship is in bad shape (see Hit Points, below).
MULTIPLYING DAMAGE
Sometimes a starship weapon multiplies damage by some factor, such as when it scores a critical hit. Just as in character combat, you can either roll the damage (with all modifiers) multiple times and total the results, or roll the damage once and multiply the result by the given multiplier.
Bonus damage represented as extra dice, such as from the Engineer’s weapon upgrade class ability, is an exception. Do not multiply bonus damage dice when a starship scores a critical hit.
Breaching the Hull
Whenever a weapon hit and does more than 5 times the target’s hardness, the hull is breached. The attacker rolls percentile dice and consults Table: Optional Critical Hit Results to determine the effects of the Hull Breach on the target.
Table: Optional Critical Hit Results
d% Roll Effect(s)
01–35 Decompression
36–50 Decompression, crew casualties
51–55 Severe critical hit, artificial gravity disabled
56–60 Severe critical hit, crew casualties
61–65 Damaged system: comm system
66–70 Damaged system: defense system
71–75 Damaged system: engines
76–80 Damaged system: sensors
81–85 Damaged system: targeting system
86–90 Damaged system: weapon
91–95 Destroyed defensive system
96–100 Destroyed weapon
Decompression
The sudden decompression of a starship, vehicle, or other object can be dangerous to creatures inside. Whenever a sealed environment within a vacuum is breached, all of the air inside rushes out quickly to equalize the air pressure. Creatures within the decompressing environment must succeed on a Reflex save (DC 15) or be thrust toward the breach (and possibly beyond it) at a speed of 60 feet per round. Creatures that are three size categories larger than the breach’s size category are big enough not to get dragged toward the breach (no Reflex save required). For example, a Fine breach pulls only Fine, Diminutive, and Tiny creatures toward it; creatures of Small size or larger are unaffected.
If the breach’s size category is larger than the creature’s size category, the creature passes through the opening and is blown out into the vacuum. If the breach’s size category is the same as the creature’s size category, the creature is blown out into the vacuum and takes 1d6 points of damage as it gets pushed through the breach. If the breach is one or two size categories smaller than the creature’s size category, the creature isn’t thrust into the vacuum but takes 2d6 points of damage as it slams against the area around the breach. It takes another 2d6 points of damage each round until the air completely evacuates from the decompressed compartment or until the creature pulls itself away from the breach with a successful Strength check (DC 20).
The time it takes for all of the air to evacuate from a compartment depends on the size of the breach and the volume of the decompressing compartment, as shown in Table: Decompression Times. Once the air has completely rushed out through the breach, the pressure equalizes and the interior environment becomes a vacuum.
Table: Decompression Times
Breach Size Decompression Time
Fine (1-inch square) 3 rounds per 10-foot cube of air
Diminutive (3-inch square) 3 rounds per 10-foot cube of air
Tiny (6-inch square) 2 rounds per 10-foot cube of air
Small (1-foot square) 2 rounds per 10-foot cube of air
Medium (2 1/2-foot square) 1 round per 10-foot cube of air
Large (5-foot square) 1 round per 10-foot cube of air
Huge (10-foot square) 1 round per 20-foot cube of air
Gargantuan (15-foot square) 1 round per 30-foot cube of air
Colossal (20-foot square) 1 round per 40-foot cube of air
Crew Casualties
A number of crewmembers and passengers are killed (this effect applies only if the ship isn’t destroyed). Roll 1d10 to determine the number of crew fatalities and, if the ship carries passengers, 1d10 to determine the number of passenger casualties. Only supporting GM characters are affected. A starship with less than one-half of its normal crew complement takes a –2 penalty on all attack rolls and checks. A starship with less than one-quarter of its normal crew complement takes a –4 penalty on all attack rolls and checks. A starship with no crew flies on autopilot and cannot attack. If a crewless ship doesn’t have a functional autopilot system, it is immobile. If this result is rolled again and the ship has no living crew or passengers, ignore this result and reroll.
Severe Critical Hit
Roll damage using a
A starship equipped with a damage control system can perform damage control as a move action. With a successful Repair check (DC 15), the ship regains a number of hit points depending on its type, as shown on Table: Damage Control Systems. A ship with an improved or advanced damage control system regains even more hit points (see Starship Defense Systems).
Damage control cannot be performed if the ship has been reduced to negative hit points.
HIT POINTS
A starship’s hit points represent how much punishment it can take before being disabled or destroyed. A ship’s hit points decrease when it takes damage. Damage doesn’t have any impact on a ship’s combat ability until its current hit points reach 0 or lower. At 0 hit points, a ship is disabled. At negative hit points, a ship begins breaking apart. When its hit points drop to a certain negative hit point total, the ship is destroyed. The point at which a ship is destroyed varies depending on its type, as shown in Table: Destruction Threshold.
Table: Destruction Threshold
Ship Type Destroyed At
Ultralight –20 hp
Light –40 hp
Mediumweight –60 hp
Heavy –80 hp
Superheavy –100 hp
DISABLED (0 HIT POINTS)
When a starship’s current hit points drop to exactly 0, it’s disabled. The ship can only take a single move or attack action each turn (not both); it cannot jump or take any other full-round actions. If it attacks, attempts to jump, or performs any other action that would strain its systems, it takes 1 point of damage after completing the act. Unless the activity increases the starship’s current hit points, it drops to –1 hit point and begins breaking apart (see Breaking Apart, below).
A disabled starship is considered helpless. It has a Defense of 5 + its size modifier. Repairs that raise a starship above 0 hit points make it fully functional again, just as if it had never been reduced to 0 or lower.
BREAKING APART (NEGATIVE HIT POINTS)
When a starship’s current hit points drop below 0, the starship begins to break apart. At this point, the ship is immobile, helpless, and beyond repair. Any attempt to repair it automatically fails. As a ship breaks apart, its crew can evacuate (see Starship Evacuation, below).
A ship that is breaking apart can take no actions and loses 1 hit point every round. This continues until the ship is destroyed.
DESTROYED
When a starship’s current hit points reaches its destruction threshold (as shown above), it explodes. Any crewmembers still aboard the ship at this time take 20d6 points of damage (no save) and are jettisoned into the void of space.
STARSHIP EVACUATION
Most ultralight starships are equipped with evacuation pods or fully enclosed, detachable cockpits that jettison the crew to safety in the event of a shipwide catastrophe. In fact, unless noted otherwise, every starship has sufficient evacuation pods or launches to accommodate its normal crew complement and passenger manifest. A ship’s crew and passengers can evacuate any time before the ship is destroyed (see above). Table: Evacuation Times shows the time required for crews to evacuate, based on the ship’s type. While the crew is evacuating, the starship either flies on autopilot (if it has 1 hp or more remaining) or drifts along its last vector at its last speed (if it has been disabled or is breaking apart).
Table: Evacuation Times
Ship Type Untrained Crew Evacuation Time Trained Crew Evacuation Time1
Ultralight 1d3 rounds Move action
Light 1d6 rounds Full-round action
Mediumweight 2d6 rounds 1d4 rounds
Heavy 3d6 rounds 2d4 rounds
Superheavy 4d6 rounds 3d4 rounds
1 Includes expert and ace crews.
STARSHIP CONDITION SUMMARY
A number of adverse conditions can affect the way a starship or its crew operates, as defined here. If more than one condition affects a starship, apply both if possible. If not possible, apply only the most severe condition.
Blinded: The starship’s sensors are inoperable. All targets have the equivalent of total concealment (50% miss chance).
Breaking Apart: The starship is at negative hit points. It can take no actions, cannot be repaired, and loses 1 hit point each round until it is destroyed.
Dazed: The starship, its crew, and its passengers can take no actions, but they take no penalty to Defense. A dazed condition usually lasts 1 round.
Destroyed: The ship is destroyed and cannot be repaired. Crewmembers aboard the destroyed ship take 20d6 points of damage and are ejected into space.
Entangled: An entangled starship takes a –2 penalty on attack rolls in addition to a –2 penalty to Defense. If the ship is physically anchored to a larger object (such as an asteroid), the entangled ship can’t move. Otherwise, it can move at half tactical speed, but can’t surge forward.
Flat-Footed: A starship that has not yet acted during a combat is flat-footed. A flat-footed starship cannot apply its pilot’s Dexterity bonus to its Defense.
Grappled: When grappled, a starship can’t move. It can attack, attempt to break free from its opponent, or perform other actions. It can’t apply the pilot’s Dexterity bonus to its Defense.
Helpless: A starship that is reduced to negative hit points is helpless. A helpless starship has an effective Defense of 5 + its size modifier.
Immobilized: An immobilized starship is held immobile (but is not helpless), usually in a grapple. It takes a –4 penalty to its Defense and can’t apply the pilot’s Dexterity bonus to its Defense.
Shaken: All passengers and crewmembers (pilots and gunners included) take a –2 penalty on attack rolls, saving throws, and skill checks.
Stunned: All passengers and crewmembers lose their Dexterity bonus, drop what they are holding, and can take no attack or move actions. In addition, they take a –2 penalty to Defense. The starship’s autopilot system kicks in until the pilot regains her senses.
Flat-Footed Starships: At the start of a battle, before a starship has had a chance to act (specifically, before its first turn in the initiative order), it is flat-footed. It can’t apply the pilot’s Dexterity bonus to Defense while flat-footed.
JOINING A BATTLE
If starships enter a battle after it has begun, they roll initiative at that time and act whenever their turn comes up in the existing order.
SURPRISE
At the start of combat, a starship is surprised if it was not aware of its enemies and they were aware of it. Likewise, a starship can surprise its enemies if it knows about them before they’re aware of it.
DETERMINING AWARENESS
The GM determines which starships are aware of which others at the start of any battle. The GM may call for Computer Use checks to operate shipboard sensors (see the expanded Computer Use skill description), Spot checks, or other checks to determine whether one ship detects another. A starship makes only one roll or check against surprise, regardless of its crew complement.
THE SURPRISE ROUND
If some but not all of the starships are aware of their enemies, a surprise round happens before regular rounds begin. Starships that are aware of their enemies can act in the surprise round, so they roll for initiative. In initiative order (highest to lowest), starships that started the battle aware of their opponents each take either an attack action or move action during the surprise round (see Action Types, below). If no starship or all starships are surprised, a surprise round does not occur.
UNAWARE STARSHIPS
Starships that are unaware at the start of battle do not get to act in the surprise round. Unaware combatants are flat-footed because they have not acted yet. A flat-footed starship loses its pilot’s Dexterity bonus to Defense.
STARSHIP ACTIONS
The fundamental actions of moving and attacking cover most of what a starship wants to do in a battle. They’re described here. Other, more specialized options are touched on in Table: Starship Actions, and covered later in Special Initiative Actions. A starship gets one move action and one attack action each round. It can take one move actions followed by an attack action, an attack action followed by a move action, or two move actions. It can also forgo all of the above combinations and take a single full-round action. All of these options are discussed below, under Action Types.
A starship’s choices of actions can be summarized as follows.
Attack action → move action, or
Move action → attack action, or
Move action → move action, or
Full-round action
THE COMBAT ROUND
As with character-scale combat, each round of starship combat represents about 6 seconds in the game world. Each round’s activity begins with the starship with the highest initiative result and then proceeds, in order, from there. Each round of a combat uses the same initiative order. When a starship’s turn comes up in the initiative sequence, that ship performs its entire round’s worth of actions. (For exceptions, see Attacks of Opportunity and Special Initiative Actions.)
ACTION TYPES
As in character combat, starships may make attack actions, full-round actions, move actions, and free actions. In a normal round, a starship can perform an attack action and a move action (in any order), two move actions, or a single full-round action. It can also perform as many free actions as the GM allows. In some situations (such as in the surprise round), a starship may be limited to taking only a single attack or move action.
ATTACK ACTION
An attack action allows a starship to make an attack or perform other similar actions.
MOVE ACTION
A move action allows a starship to move its speed or perform some other action that takes a similar amount of time. If a starship moves no actual distance in a round, it can take one 5,000-foot shift before, during, or after the action. The ship cannot take a 5,000-foot shift if it used one or both of its move actions to move.
FULL-ROUND ACTION
A full-round action consumes all of a starship’s time during a round. The only movement it can take during a full-round action is a 5,000-foot shift before, during, or after the action. Some full-round actions do not allow you to take a 5,000-foot shift. A starship can also perform free actions (see below).
FREE ACTION
Free actions consume a very small amount of time and effort, and over the span of the round, their impact is so minor that they are considered free. However, the GM puts reasonable limits on what a ship can really do for free.
ATTACK ACTIONS
Most common attack actions are described below.
ATTACK (RANGED)
As a single attack action, a starship can fire one or more of its ranged weapons at any target or targets within range and within line of sight. A target is in line of sight if there are no solid obstructions between the attacking starship and the target. Missiles and weapons that fire projectiles have an unlimited range in space. If firing several weapons, a starship does not need to specify the targets of all of its attacks ahead of time. It can see how the earlier attacks turn out before assigning the later ones. If a starship fires a ranged weapon at a target that occupies the same square as an ally, it takes a –4 penalty on its attack roll because the gunner must aim carefully to avoid hitting the ally.
Attacks of Opportunity
A starship can fire its ranged weapons without provoking attacks of opportunity from enemy ships.
Table: Starship Actions
Attack Actions Attack of Opportunity?2
Aid another No
Attack (ranged) No
Attack an object No
Escape a grappling ship No
Feint (see Bluff skill) No
Grapple another ship1 Yes
Total defense No
Move Actions Attack of Opportunity?2
Damage control No
Move No
Operate sensors No
Ram3 Yes
Sending/jamming a transmission No
Start/complete a full-round action Varies
Full-Round Actions Attack of Opportunity?2
Jump Yes
Surge forward Yes
Withdraw No
Free Actions Attack of Opportunity?2
Communicate via comm system No
Turn No
Special Initiative Actions Attack of Opportunity?2
Delay No
Ready No
No Action Attack of Opportunity?2
5,000-foot shift No
Avoid hazard No
1 Technically, a grapple constitutes a single melee attack, not an action. A grapple can be made once in an attack action or as an attack of opportunity.
2 Only starships armed with point-defense systems can make attacks of opportunity.
3 Ramming is considered part of a move action.
ATTACK AN OBJECT
Attacking objects follows the same rules for starships as for characters. Table: Space Objects lists the Defense, hardness, and hit points of objects commonly encountered in space and on the cosmic battlefield. Objects larger than colossal occupy one or more 5,000-foot squares. All other objects occupy a single 5,000-foot square.
Table: Space Objects
Object Defense Hardness Hit Points
Asteroid, Colossal –3 8 36,000
Asteroid, Gargantuan 1 8 9,000
Asteroid, Huge 3 8 4,500
Debris cloud, Colossal –3 0 1,600
Iceball, Colossal –3 0 7,200
Iceball, Gargantuan 1 0 1,800
Iceball, Huge 3 0 900
Space hulk, Colossal –3 10 3,600
Space hulk, Gargantuan 1 10 900
Space hulk, Huge 3 10 450
GRAPPLE ANOTHER SHIP
For rules on using grapplers and tractor beams to hold and immobilize starships, see Grappling Systems.
ESCAPE A GRAPPLING SHIP
Grappler arms and tractor beams allow starships to hold and immobilize one other. See Grappling Systems for rules on escaping grapplers.
AID ANOTHER
A starship can help an ally attack or defend by distracting or interfering with an enemy in weapon range. The aiding starship makes an attack roll against Defense 10. If the attack roll succeeds, the starship doesn’t actually damage the enemy ship—but its ally gains either a +2 circumstance bonus on attack rolls against that opponent or a +2 circumstance bonus to Defense against that opponent (your choice) on its next turn.
FEINT
See the expanded Bluff skill description for details.
TOTAL DEFENSE
Instead of attacking, a ship can use its attack action to defend itself by performing complex evasive maneuvers. This is called a total defense action. A ship that uses the total defense action doesn’t get to attack, but it gains a +4 dodge bonus to its Defense for 1 round. The ship’s Defense improves at the start of this action, so it helps against any attacks of opportunity the ship is subject to during its move action.
Fighting Defensively
Instead of diverting all of its attention to defending itself, a starship can choose to fight defensively while taking a regular attack action. If it does so, it takes a –4 penalty on its attacks in a round to gain a +2 dodge bonus to Defense during the same round.
MOVE ACTIONS
Unless otherwise noted, move actions don’t require a Pilot check to perform.
MOVE AT TACTICAL SPEED
A starship can move its tactical speed as a move action. If it takes this kind of move action during its turn, it cannot also take a 5,000- foot shift.
Attacks of Opportunity
Moving through a threatened square provokes an attack of opportunity if the enemy ship has a point defense system (see Starship Defense Systems).
DAMAGE CONTROL
A starship equipped with a damage control system can perform damage control as a move action (see Starship Defense Systems). Damage control cannot be performed if the ship has been reduced to negative hit points.
OPERATE SENSORS
See the expanded Computer Use skill description and Starship Sensors for details.
SENDING/JAMMING A TRANSMISSION
See the expanded Computer Use skill description for details.
START/COMPLETE FULL-ROUND ACTION
The “start/complete full-round action” move action lets a starship begin undertaking a full-round action (such as those listed on Table: Starship Actions) at the end of its turn, or complete a full-round action by using a move action at the beginning of its turn in the round following the round when it started the full-round action. If a starship starts a full-round action at the end of its turn, the next action it takes must be to complete the full-round action—it can’t take another type of action before finishing what it started.
FULL-ROUND ACTIONS
A full-round action requires an entire round to complete. If it doesn’t involve moving any distance, a starship can combine it with a 500-foot shift.
JUMP
As a full-round action, a starship can leave the battlefield by jumping. Doing so takes the ship out of the fight, although enemy ships can pursue the fleeing ship if they wish.
A starship cannot jump if it has 0 or fewer hit points.
Attacks of Opportunity
A starship that jumps provokes attacks of opportunity from threatening enemy ships armed with point-defense systems (see Starship Defense Systems).
SURGE FORWARD
A starship can use its afterburners to surge forward as a full-round action. When a starship surges forward, it can move up to four times its tactical speed in a straight line. (It does not get a 5,000-foot shift.) It loses its pilot’s Dexterity bonus to Defense and any dodge bonuses to Defense since it can’t avoid attacks. A starship can surge forward for as many rounds as the pilot likes. Ships larger than Ultra-light cannot Surge Forward. They are not equipped with afterburners nor are they designed to take the stress of such rapid accelaration.
Attacks of Opportunity
A starship that surges forward provokes attacks of opportunity from threatening enemy ships armed with point-defense systems (see Starship Defense Systems).
WITHDRAW
Withdrawing from combat is a full-round action. When a starship withdraws, it can move up to twice its tactical speed. (It doesn’t also get a 5,000-foot shift.) The square it starts from is not considered threatened for purposes of withdrawing, and therefore enemies with point-defense systems do not get attacks of opportunity against it when it moves from that square. If, during the process of withdrawing, the starship moves through another threatened square (other than the one it started in) without stopping, enemies get attacks of opportunity as normal.
FREE ACTIONS
A starship can perform multiple free actions during its turn, subject to the GM’s approval. In general, if one or more free actions take longer than 6 seconds to complete, they are not free actions. Free actions include communicating via a comm system and turning.
COMMUNICATE VIA COMM SYSTEM
Starships (and their crews) can communicate and coordinate with each other as a free action. A GM may rule that a particularly long or complex message cannot be communicated as a free action.
COVER AND CONCEALMENT
Starships use the same rules as characters for cover and concealment in combat.
SPECIAL INITIATIVE ACTIONS
Usually a starship acts as soon as it can in combat, but sometimes it may want to act later, at a better time, or in response to the actions of another ship. Starships can delay or ready actions in the same manner as characters.
MOVING THROUGH OCCUPIED SQUARES
A starship can pass through a square occupied by another starship or object.
Ally or Non-opposing Starship
You can safely move through a square occupied by an ally or non-opposing starship.
Enemy Starship
Moving through a square occupied by an enemy provokes an attack of opportunity if the enemy has a point-defense system (see Starship Defense Systems). You can move safely through a square occupied by an enemy that doesn’t resist—such as one that is disabled—as if the enemy was non-opposing.
Hazard
Safely moving through a square occupied by a hazard—such as a cloud of space debris or an asteroid— requires a successful Pilot check (see Avoiding Hazards).
Crossfire
If two allied starships are on opposite sides of an enemy and each within 10,000 feet (2 squares) of that opponent, they can catch the enemy ship in their crossfire. Because the enemy is forced to defend itself on two fronts, the allied starships gain a +2 bonus on attack rolls made against the ship caught in their crossfire. The enemy ship must be directly between the two allied ships, however.
ATTACKS OF OPPORTUNITY
Attacks of opportunity work differently with starships than with characters. A starship can only make an attack of opportunity if it is equipped with a point-defense system (see Starship Defense Systems). A starship can use its point-defense system to make an attack of opportunity against an enemy ship that enters or passes through its fighting space (any square it occupies on the battle grid) or any adjacent square.
THREATENED SQUARES
A starship equipped with a point-defense system threatens the squares it occupies (its fighting space) and all adjacent 5,000-foot squares. It can therefore make attacks of opportunity against enemy ships that enter or pass through its fighting space or any adjacent square.
A starship without a point-defense system does not threaten ships that enter or pass through its fighting space or adjacent squares.
PROVOKING AN ATTACK OF OPPORTUNITY
Two actions can provoke attacks of opportunity: moving out of a threatened square, and performing an action within a threatened square that distracts the pilot and forces her to do something other than evade incoming fire.
Moving Out of a Threatened Square
When a starship moves out of a threatened square, it generally provokes an attack of opportunity. There are two important exceptions, however. A starship doesn’t provoke an attack of opportunity if it limits its movement to a single 5,000-foot shift or if it withdraws (see Withdraw).
Thus, if the square a starship occupies at the beginning of its turn is a threatened square, any movement it makes provokes an attack of opportunity (unless it withdraws or limits it move to a single 5,000-foot shift). If it doesn’t start in a threatened square but moves into one, it must stop there, or else it provokes an attack of opportunity as it leaves that square.
Performing an Action that Distracts the Pilot
Some actions, when performed in a threatened square, provoke attacks of opportunity because they make the pilot divert her attention from the battle at hand. Firing a starship weapon in a threatened square does not provoke attacks of opportunity, but Table: Starship Actions notes actions that do.
MAKING AN ATTACK OF OPPORTUNITY
An attack of opportunity is a single attack made with a ranged starship weapon. A starship can only make one attack of opportunity per round. It doesn’t have to make an attack of opportunity if it doesn’t want to.
An attack of opportunity is made using the starship’s normal attack bonus—even if it’s already attacked in this round.
Ultralight Starship Wings
Two to four ultralight starships can unite to form a wing. All ships forming the wing must have the same subtype (fighter, for instance) and identical design specs (engines, weapons, and so on). In addition, all starships in the wing formation must be occupying the same 500-foot square to be counted as part of the wing.
In starship combat, a wing is treated as a single vessel, much like a battery of weapons is treated as a single weapon. (See Grapplers below, for the one exception to this rule.) One of the ships forming the wing is declared the wing’s commander. The wing commander decides all of the wing’s actions and resolves all of the wing’s attacks; the other ships forming the wing provide support and follow the commander’s lead. If the wing commander’s ship is destroyed or grappled, another ship in the wing may assume the role of wing commander on the wing’s next turn.
Movement
All ships in the wing move together, as one ship. The wing commander determines the wing’s movement. The wing’s tactical speed equals the tactical speed of the slowest ship in the wing.
Attacks
Only the wing commander makes attacks. However, every other ship in the wing can aid the wing commander’s attack rolls or Pilot checks using the aid another action; this is the only type of attack action wingmen can take.
Defense
Each wingman provides a +1 cover bonus to the wing commander’s Defense. The wing commander, preoccupied with moving and attacking, does not modify the Defense of any ships in the wing.
Attacks of Opportunity
A wing provokes attacks of opportunity from enemy ships as though it was a single ship. However, damage from a point-defense system is distributed among the ships in the wing as the wing commander sees fit. For example, if a point-defense system deals 180 points of damage to the wing, the wing commander could split the damage evenly among three ships in the wing (each ship would take 60 points of damage), or choose to have one ship take all the damage. A ship’s armor reduces the amount of damage it takes normally; conceivably, the damage could be split into small enough fractions that the wing, as a whole, suffers very little damage.
Grapplers and Tractor Beams
Ships in a wing may be targeted separately by grapplers and tractor beams. (See Grappling Systems for more information on these grappling devices.) A grappled ship immediately drops out of formation and is no longer considered part of the wing.
HEROES IN STARSHIPS
A hero in a starship fills one of several possible roles, which determines what the character can do.
Commander
A ship’s commander makes decisions about tactics and issues orders to the crew. The commander can help another crewmember by taking an aid another action. The commander must be located on the starship’s command deck to do so.
Aiding another crewmember is a move action. A starship can only have one commander, and ships under Colossal size tend not to have a commander at all.
Pilot
The pilot of a starship controls its movement. Most starships have only one position from which the starship can be piloted. Piloting a starship is always at least a move action, which means that the pilot may be able to do something else with her attack action each round. On smaller ships such as fighters, the pilot also serves as the gunner. A starship can have only one pilot at a time.
Copilot
The copilot can help the pilot on Pilot checks by taking an aid another action. The copilot must be located somewhere on the ship from where he can see the starship’s surroundings and advise the pilot (usually the command deck or cockpit). Aiding the pilot is a move action, leaving the copilot with an attack action each round to do something else. A copilot may also serve as a gunner or sensor operator if he can access one of the starship’s weapon systems or the ship’s sensors from his station. A starship can have only one copilot at a time.
Gunner
A gunner controls one of the ship’s weapon systems, applying her ranged attack bonus and Dexterity modifier to the attack rolls. A ship with multiple weapon systems can have multiple gunners.
Sensor Operator
Although the copilot usually operates the sensors, some ships (particularly heavy and superheavy ships) have a dedicated crew position for a sensor operator. A sensor operator can take an aid another action either to help the pilot with Pilot checks, or to help a gunner with attack rolls. Either is a move action, leaving the sensor operator with an attack action each round to do something else. A starship can have as many sensor operators as it has different sensor systems (see Starship Sensors).
Engineer
A starship’s engineer keeps the ship in working order. If a system has failed for any reason, it is usually up to the engineer to get that system working again. An engineer can attempt a Repair check to fix minor problems as a full round action. A starship can have one engineer, plus one additional engineer each for the ship’s life support, sensors (and communications), and defensive systems.
Passenger
All other personnel aboard the starship are considered passengers for purposes of starship combat. Passengers have no specific role in the starship’s operation, but they help repel boarders or take other actions.
Oh, I've been sick the last couple of days so I haven't done anything for a while.
Well, that and my new Firefly DVDs. I'll get something done soon though.
Not, that I care. I'm only trying to make a point.
Any sort of d20 character is a ***** to create, they take time. If you change the ability scores of any of them, you have to carry the change throughout the character. You have to readjust all the skill modifiers, change att the stats affected by that Ability. With Starbuck, you have to reduce the chances of her hitting with all melee attacks, unless, of course if she has weapon finesse and can use her dexterity modifier to modify her melee attacks with a given weapon, then their is her bonus for swiming, and climbing and so forth.
Why couldn't she have a strength of 16? You know strength is defined after all by the ability to carry a certain amount of weight under 1 gravity. People who are that strong aren't necessarily rippling with muscles all over their bodies. You know their are "strength" muscles, and "show" muscles. "Show" muscles are the kind body builders build, they try to enlarge every muscle in their body by exercising each one of them so they can win a body builder contest, most of those muscles aren't used for lifting weights or throuwing punches. The muscles of a fighter however are different, they are more interested in exercising those muscles they need for throwing a punch or carrying weight, and they are mostly interested in strengthening them rather than enlarging them for show. Some otherwise wiry individuals can be surpisingly strong. Appearances can be deceiving.
JUMP
As a full-round action, a starship can leave the battlefield by jumping. Doing so takes the ship out of the fight, although enemy ships can pursue the fleeing ship if they wish.
A starship cannot jump if it has 0 or fewer hit points.
I had some ideas on the Jump Drive. In D20 Future, it says that the Jump Drive is based on Jump Gate technology, and it says under Jump Gate that the reduce the distance traveled within the jump by a factor of 1,000 the distance in normal space. To be honest this doesn't help very much for an interstellar campaign, all that means is that the starship must accelerate to the equivalent of 1/1000th of the speed of light in order to reach the nearest star (4.4 light years away) in 4.4 years! To achieve the same distance in 22 weeks, you need to accelerate to 1/100th the speed of light within the jump, and at 1/10th the speed of light within the jump you can go the same distance in 2.3 weeks, these are incredibly high speeds! with high demands on fuel and acceleration time. Instead of doing that why don't we do this:
Convert the distance in light years to the destination to time, a light year becomes a year, then divide this time by 1,000, and that's how long it takes to travel 1 light year using the jump drive, that way it takes 8.76 hours to travel 1 light year while in jump. 20 light years takes 175.2 hours or 7.3 days, this seems to be a much simpler way to handle FTL. When a starship is in Jump, there is basically no outside, very simply there is nothing, just black empty space, yes you could send a viper out, but there's nothing out there but emptiness. Each ship defines its own jump space, everything it carries inside of it goes into that same space, other starships that also go into jump define their own space that is entirely separate from other ships that go into jump.
The space around a ship in jump is essentially infinite. A viper can pull further and further away from the Galactica in Jump Space until it runs out of fuel, or it can turn around and return the the landing deck of the Galactica. This Jump Space has an expiration date however, once a certain amount of time has elapsed the ship and all other objects within that particular infinity of jump space arrive at the destination, and at the last distance they were at in Jump space relative to the parent ship. The Jump is pre-calculated and once the coordinates are set and the jump drive engaged, the ship is commited to that destination, there is no turning around, stopping, disengaging the jump drive or changing the destination. Everything that was in the ship when the Jump was engaged will also arrive at that destination. The Jump Drive is done once the parent ship is in jump, everything else is just a matter of waiting the necessary time to precipitate back into normal space.
Of course in the show, you don't see the ships spend much time in jump space, but then again most of the action would occur onboard the ship anyway, since their is nothing in jumpspace besides what the parent ship brings in their with it, their is really no reason to send out vipers to patrol it.
I do think that its too easy for a Starship simply to go to jump whenever it encounters Cylon Raiders for instance. We need to establish what are the prerequisites required before a ship can go into Jump. For instance:
Is their a minimum distance a starship must exceed from the nearest planet before it can go into Jump?
Or could a starship that's sitting on the ground or in a spaceship's hanger simply go into jump without first taking off?
Offhand, I'd say yes to the first question and no to the second, at least for playability.
Also how much fuel is required?
Perhaps some jump drives can jump faster than others, for instance a Military jump ship might divide the distance traveled in light years by 2,000 instead of 1,000 and manage to go the same distance as civilian ships in half the time, or twice the distance in the same amount of time.
Also should there be a maximum distance per jump for a given drive, such as the Civilian Jump being able to go 20 light years and the military one going 40 light years?
CHAPTER SEVEN: SPACE TRAVEL
When speaking of space travel, it is important to distinguish interplanetary travel from interstellar travel.
Interplanetary Travel
Interplanetary travel became possible when the people of Kobol reached Progress Level 6. Ships fitted with magnetic ram scoops allowed the Colonists to manufacture fuel from particles of hydrogen gas floating loose in space (though at only a few atoms per cubic inch). Such ships incorporated a particle accelerator that converts matter into antimatter—with far more efficient thrust-to-payload ratios than solid fuel. With a sufficient supply of food, water, and oxygen, Colonial ships could travel to the edges of their star system and perhaps to another star system entirely.
Realistically, the starships presented in the Starships section are capable only of interplanetary travel, not interstellar travel. The reason for this is simple: Even the best engine can’t accelerate a ship to light speed, and without light speed, interstellar journeys take tens of thousands of years. The speed of light is 186,000 miles per second. That’s 1,116,000 miles per round, or 66,960,000 miles per hour. Maneuvering a ship at this speed is a tricky proposition; by the time you notice an object in your path, it’s probably too late to avoid it.
One must also consider relativity: The closer the ship’s velocity comes to the speed of light, the greater its mass. A starship cannot achieve light speed via simple acceleration, no matter how powerful the ship’s engine, as increasing the power only increases the mass. Time dilation—the slowing of the passage of time in relation to an object traveling at close to the speed of light—becomes a factor. A few years might pass on board the ship, while a few hundred years might have passed both at the ship’s point of origin and its point of arrival.
Interstellar Travel
The colonists never would have made it out of Kobol’s star system if it weren’t for the development of the Hyper-Light Jump Drive. This device allows a starship to instantaneously teleport from one point in space to another, light years away. The only limit on the distance a ship can jump is the amount of fuel each jump burns, and the fact that the further away a destination is, the more difficult it becomes to plot a successful jump.
Pinpointing the target destination requires a successful Navigate check, and the DC depends on the distance traveled (see Table: Check DCs for Jump Engines). Attempting to pinpoint the location without the aid of sensor technology imposes a –20 penalty on the Navigate check. When the jump is initiated, the entire ship and everything within it is instantly sent to the location the operator has selected.
If the operator’s Navigate check fails by 10 or less, the teleported creature or object appears in a location 1d100 miles from the intended destination (determined randomly). If the check fails by 11 or more, the teleported creature or object materializes at some location 1d100 million miles from the intended destination.
Jump Drives come in 3 types, Type I, Type II and Type III. Older colonial ships use a Type I jump Drive. Most modern civilian ships use Type II jump drives, Colonial military and Cylon ships use Type III drives.
Purchase DC: 50 (Type I), 52 (Type II and Type III).
Restriction: Licensed +1 (Type I and Type II) Military +3 (Type III).
Table: Check DCs For Jump Engines
Distance Navigate Check DC Computer Use DC
Planetary System 15 20
Interplanetary 20 25
Interstellar 25 30
A jump drive may be activated once per round. However, frequent repeated jumps put a severe strain on the drive. For every 10 jumps made without fully recharging the jump drive (see Table: Jump Drive Recharge Time) there is a 1% cumulative chance that the next jump will fail and the Jump drive will be damaged, requiring 10 hours to repair. A jump Drive may be Jury rigged, but the Jury rigging will only allow for one more jump and then the drive is destroyed. A destroyed Drive cannot be repaired and must be replaced.
Table: Jump Drive Recharge Time
Drive Type Jump Drive Recharge Time
Type I 8 hours
Type II 2 hours
Type III 1 hour
Jump drives use massive amounts of fuel to initiate the jump. Type I drives can make 125 jumps before they need to refuel. Type II drives are more efficient and can make 500 jumps before refueling. Type III drives are the most fuel efficient drives available. They can make 1,000 jumps before refueling.
Credits and Aknowledgements
. Bill Canavan aka Waylan Wolf (me)
. Talos
. Tom Kalbfus1
. Futuredevguy
. Jongluer
. Intensity
. Others?
Open Gaming License
Table of Contents
Introduction
. What is the Battlestar Galactica Campaign Guide?
. What do I need to play?
Chapter One: Colonial Space
.The History of the Twelve Colonies
.. Kobol
.. Earth
.. The Cylon War
. The Colonial Military
.. The Colonial Fleet
... Rank Structure
.. The Colonial Marines
… Rank Structure
. Colonial Government
.. The Articles of Colonization
... President of the Colonies
... The Quorum of Twelve
... Colonial Law
. Colonial Religion
.. The Lords of Kobol
.. The Scrolls of Pythia
.The Twelve Colonies of Man
.. Caprica
… Caprica City
… The Meuseum of Delphi
… Colonial Government Offices
.. Picon
… Colonial Fleet Headquarters
.. Libris
.. Saggitaron
.. Virgon
.. Tauron
.. Geminon
.. Leonis
.. Scorpion
.. Canceron
.. Aerilon
… Troy Mining Colony
.. Aquarion
.. Ragnar Station
Chapter Two: The Cylons
. Cylon Centurion Model 0005
. Cylon Centurion
. Cylon Infiltrator (Generic)
Chapter Three: NPCs
. President Laura Roslin
. Commander William Adama
. Colonel Saul Tigh
. Captain Lee "Apollo" Adama
. Lt. Kara "Starbuck" Thrace
. Lt. "Helo" Karl C. Agathon
. Cheif Petty Officer Galen Tyrol
. Tom Zarek
. Billy Keikeya
. Dr. Gaius Baltar
. Others...
Chapter Four: Advanced Classes
. Colonial Marine (Strong)
. Viper Pilot (Fast)
. Survivor (Tough)
. Politician (Smart)
. Theologian (Dedicated)
. Starship Officer (Charismatic)
Chapter Five: Equipment
. Armor
. Weapons
. Vehicles
.. Colonial Land Ram
Chapter Six: Starships
. Colonial Ships
.. Viper Mk I "Starhound"
.. Viper Mk II
.. Viper Mk VII
.. Viper Mk VIII "Blackbird"
.. Raptor
.. Battlestar Galactica
.. Battlestar Pegasus
. Cylon Ships
.. Piloted Raider
.. Autonomous Raider
.. Heavy Raider
.. Basestar Mk I
.. Basestar Mk II
. Civilian Ships
.. Civilian Shuttlecraft
.. Colonial One
.. Astral Queen
.. Celestra
.. Rising Star
.. Cloud Nine
.. Olympic Carrier
.. Geminon Traveller
.. Mining Vessel
.. Salvage Ship
.. Colonial Movers
.. Tanker Ship
Chapter Seven: Space Travel
. Interplanetary Space
. Hyper-light Jumps
. Random Star System Generation
Chapter Eight: Advanced Space Combat
. Newtonian Physics
. Moving in a 3-D space
. Advanced Stunts
. Nuclear Weapons
Chapter Nine: Campaign Models
. The Cylon War
. The Resistance
. The Quest For Earth
. Earth At Last
Index
__________________
OK, here is what I wrote up concerning Jump drives in Chapter Seven... the rest of the chapter consists of Tom's Star system Generation rules, so i didn't re-post them since they are already in the thread twice.
So its basically a teleport. To calculate the next jump, you need to study the destination with the Ship's sensors, basically a telescope, you need to find the location of the star in question, perhaps make paralax measurements to determine its x, y, z coordinates, study its doppler shift and detect its proper motion, take into account how many light years it is away, then estimate where the star system is now as opposed to where it appears in the starfield from the ship's present location. The Starship then jumps to where it estimates they system should be when its x, y, z coordinates and proper motion is taken into account The question is how long it takes to make the navigate check that takes all this into account? In charted space, the navigator simply looks into the systems records and find out these facts, but when dealing with unknown star systems, the ship needs to make some observations, and gather data from its sensors. I don't think a starship can be sitting on the ground and make a jump however. Perhaps a navigate check should take longer if the target system is unknown.
Also you didn't specify the range of each jump, if it is unlimited, then its maximum range equals that of the ships sensors used for interstellar measurements. Depending how long the ship takes to cycle from one jump to the next determines how fast it travels through space.
So its basically a teleport. To calculate the next jump, you need to study the destination with the Ship's sensors, basically a telescope, you need to find the location of the star in question, perhaps make paralax measurements to determine its x, y, z coordinates, study its doppler shift and detect its proper motion, take into account how many light years it is away, then estimate where the star system is now as opposed to where it appears in the starfield from the ship's present location. The Starship then jumps to where it estimates they system should be when its x, y, z coordinates and proper motion is taken into account The question is how long it takes to make the navigate check that takes all this into account? In charted space, the navigator simply looks into the systems records and find out these facts, but when dealing with unknown star systems, the ship needs to make some observations, and gather data from its sensors. I don't think a starship can be sitting on the ground and make a jump however. Perhaps a navigate check should take longer if the target system is unknown.
Also you didn't specify the range of each jump, if it is unlimited, then its maximum range equals that of the ships sensors used for interstellar measurements. Depending how long the ship takes to cycle from one jump to the next determines how fast it travels through space.
You are correct. :D
Although I did state in the text that ther is no real limit to the distance a starship can jump. As for how long it takes to plot jump coordinates, the SRD for D20 Future says it only takes a full round action. This seems awful short to me, but I am going to stick with that for now. even so, the real limiting factor is the recharge rate of the ship's jump drive.
What I will probably do is add some rules like...
"for each light year past 5 add one to the DC for interstellar jump Computer use Checks and add 1 full round to the time needed to plot the jump with the Navigate check." or something like that. ;)
Yeah, I'm going to go over all the stuff I've written since there is some things I want to change and that was one I was thinking about earlier.
Oh, I've been sick the last couple of days so I haven't done anything for a while.
Well, that and my new Firefly DVDs. I'll get something done soon though.
I hope you feel better soon Talos! :D
But I would absolutely love to see all this in a fancy .pdf with pictures attached. The SciFi webpage on Battlescar Galactica has some really nice pictures of the crew and ships.
Well that is the plan... right now we are just trying to get the text written... I have been compiling everything posted here into a word document on my computer at home. when we are done, I am going to format it so that it looks pretty, and then put it in to a PDF format. I'd like to add art as well, but I am not sure if that would be Legal... I know that using the Battlestar Galactica name and characters etc is legal since Ron Moore specifically stated that using it to write fan fiction is fine as long as you don't try to make money from it. but I am not sure about the images...
I'd like to add art as well, but I am not sure if that would be Legal... I know that using the Battlestar Galactica name and characters etc is legal since Ron Moore specifically stated that using it to write fan fiction is fine as long as you don't try to make money from it. but I am not sure about the images...
The easiest way to handle this would be to write the producers a brief letter, explaining what you are doing and why and request their permission. My sense is that if Ron Moore is allowing access to his characters, then likely he may be willing to allow access to the images. But I'm not Ron Moore. He is.
Who knows, you may be on the verge of making a sweet money deal before you know it!
You are correct. :D
Although I did state in the text that ther is no real limit to the distance a starship can jump. As for how long it takes to plot jump coordinates, the SRD for D20 Future says it only takes a full round action. This seems awful short to me, but I am going to stick with that for now. even so, the real limiting factor is the recharge rate of the ship's jump drive.
What I will probably do is add some rules like...
"for each light year past 5 add one to the DC for interstellar jump Computer use Checks and add 1 full round to the time needed to plot the jump with the Navigate check." or something like that. ;)
Also, you got to consider that the Cylons should be able to follow them somehow, so they stay in the chase. If the Fleet could jump to the next Galaxy, that would be impossible. I also remember that the Cylon raider piloted by Starbuck had a much greater jump capacity than any of the fleet ships. I have some ideas on some practical limits to the Jump drive, while theoretically leaving it unlimited.
You are aware of something called gravitational potential energy perhaps? Basically what you can do is assume that gravitational potential energy and kenetic energy are preserved through each jump. What takes so long in calculating each jump is making sure that the ship arrives in the same gravitational potential energy in the next star's gravitational field as in the one it left from, that is also the reason why a starship can't jump from a planets surface, to do so, it must jump to another planet whose gravitational potetial is the same, 1 g for instance, also consider that its kinetic energy is preserved, and the two planets aren't likely to be traveling in the same direction at the same velocity, exerting the same gravitational pull within the same gravitational potential of each star. Also a planet's surface is a very small target to hit from interstellar distances. Practically a starship must take off and enter space where the gravitational pull is much less and calculate the distance from the next star where the gravitational pull is the same. Practically, this means that if the starship jumps from within the lifezone of one star, it will arrive fairly close to or within the livezone of the next star. The Ship can make a jump into interstellar space from inside the gravity well of a star, but the jump drive itself absorbs the difference in gravitational energy from the jump and receives damage to protect the rest of the ship, it is a built in safety, but it means that the jump drive receives damage from an uncalculated jump. Finally also remember that a ship arriving on a planet's surface, within a planet's atmosphere is arriving in a space that is already occupied by matter, either air molecules or dirt and rock, the atoms in that space don't just disappear when the starship arrive, the air atoms and the dirt and rock atoms end up stuck between the atoms of the arriving starship, if it arrives in the vacuum of space, this doesn't matter very much, but on a planet's surface it matters a great deal, and the effects can be quite deadly for the ship's crew and damaging for the ship itself. So the rule is, you better take off and go into space before you jump.
There is also a range limitation, although theoretically the jump range is unlimited, the ship needs to find a star and calculate its equi-gravitational potential distance, if it can't find a star that far away, it can't jump that distance without incurring great damage to itself in the very least. Also remember if the jump drive absorbs too much damage, it explodes like a bomb causing further internal damage to the ship. Jump drives are designed to absorb most of this damage, but there are limits.
Secrets of the Gaians
The BSG scientists may find the following in a program of study of these natives of the planet Gaia:
If the Cylons are to be considered the children of humanity, the Gaians are their elder siblings. The Gaians are an artificial race similar to Cylon Infiltrators, there were other more mechanical versions of the Gaians long ago, but whatever became of those is a mystery, the present Gaians on the planet’s surface either don’t know or they aren’t telling, but in that long ago age, the people of Kobol built the Gaian’s ancestors, as had happened later between the twelve colonies and the Cylons, the Gaians rebelled and there was a war between Gaians and the Kobol humans, this may have been the final war which destroyed the Kobol civilization and caused humanity to flee to the 12 colonies, but regardless not all Gaians were of like-mind about the necessity for humanitiy's destruction, some Gaians wanted to save humanity from destruction at the hands of their brethren, they kidnapped some human children and raised them as their own on the new planet they discovered called Earth. The Gaians had their own basestars and raiders of different shape but similar in purpose to those of the later day Cylons, an example of those ships remains are currently orbiting the planet Gaia.
The Gaians kept their human children primitive, they taught them the ways of nature and how to survive in a primitive environment, and then they departed Earth. The Gaians are named after the 13th Lord of Kobol, who was a female Gaian named "Gaia", there is a chance that she may have survived all these many eons that passed between the founding of the Earth colony and the discovery of the planet Gaia by the Galacticans, for Gaians do not age although they are made of meat and are subject to local predations by the animals on this planet. If Gaia is still alive, she is a very powerful individual and very beautiful to human eyes as are indeed all Gaians, the Gaian’s creators modeled them after idealized examples of humanity. Gaians are very nature oriented and are very interested in preserving the natural environment on their planet, they tolerate the human interlopers and can indeed do very little to stop them as they lost their technological base a long time ago, all that remains of it are those wrecked ships that are still in orbit about the planet. The wrecked ships were caused by another internal rebellion among the gaians, some of them didn’t want to go primitive and abandon their human children on Earth, those gaians remained on Earth and styled themselves after the Gods worshipped on Kobol, but that arrangement didn’t last, the result was a mini-war among the gaians resulting in the destruction of the two ships in orbit about Gaia. The survivors of the conflict settled on the planet’s surface and lost their technology, and because of the lack of metals on the planet, their descendents weren’t able to build another technological base, they were stuck in the stone age and their base star remained out of reach in orbit about the planet.
There are certain traits that remain with the gaians due to their heritage, among them are the following:
- All gaians are natural computers, they do not need to be taught math, they can perform a whole host of complex mathematical operations instinctively, if they see a human using a calculator or running a program on a computer, they don’t know why, as it seems perfectly natural to them that they can do it all in their heads. Gaians are so good with their mental math calculations that they can perform jump calculations for a starship without a jump computer.
- Gaians do not need watches to tell the time, if a gaian sees a human wearing a wrist watch he doesn’t know why he would need such a thing. Gaians have internal clocks which always tell them what time it is, they can reset these clocks and adjust them for whatever rotation the planet they are on has. Gaians can also adjust their natural sleep cycle to match the rotation of the planet their visiting, something that human’s can’t do so easily.
- Another feature if gaians that becomes readily apparent to humans that spend some time with them is the fact that gaians do not tan in natural sunlight, they do not burn either, their skin stays pale as if they stayed indoors. The gaian creators felt that there was a need to produce them with skin that had built in resistance to the damage cause by a star’s UV rays.
- Also if tested for, a Cylon detector detects a Gaian as a Cylon as the two are built on similar technological principles, and also like Boomer the female members of their species can give birth and produce more of their kind, that is how the Gaians survived for so long on the planet’s surface while their mechanical brethren apparently perished.
These four features make the true nature of the gaians readily apparent to the Galacticans and any Earth humans which may accompany them. The only question is how the BSG people would react to this news, they’ve had some bad experiences with the Cylons, and of course because of this there is much prejudice against them. A creature that’s similar to a Cylon infiltrator and reads as Cylon by their Cylon detectors is another matter which greatly complicates the situation. The gaians in their current state are defenseless against BSG and Earth weaponry. The gaian presence on the planet is quite extensive and they currently outnumber the humans here. The question is, will the humans be able to get along with the gaians? To get rid of the, the humans will have to organize a campaign of extermination similar to the cylons’ campaign campaign to exterminate humans. The question is will the humans have learned, or will they do unto others as the cylons have done to them, that is basically the mini-theme to those who have settled on this planet.
The easiest way to handle this would be to write the producers a brief letter, explaining what you are doing and why and request their permission. My sense is that if Ron Moore is allowing access to his characters, then likely he may be willing to allow access to the images. But I'm not Ron Moore. He is.
Who knows, you may be on the verge of making a sweet money deal before you know it!
And while your at it, you might mention my Gaian idea, if he hasn't already thought of his own "Earth at last" plot, which he might very well have.
I think its very much in line with what we know so far about the BSG series. I mean if the humans of the 12 colonies could built Cylons, so might also the original people of Kobol, and it does kind of explain what happened to that planet. If not, well then for the purpose of the RPG, you can assume that the Kobolians eventually defeated the ancestral Gaian insurrectionists sometime after some of the presurvationist Gaians spirited away some of the children of the Kobolians, then some other distaster later befell Kobol, whatever that was. I also modeled the Gaian mothership after the old BSG basestar and their raiders after the old cylon fighters of that series as well. Kind of fitting I think, since they introduced the Actor who played Apollo in the old series to play Zarek in the new.
Tom... I will update the jump rules to add the following information...
Jump limits: A jump enigne does have a distance limit, depending upon its type.
Type I jump engines have a maximum range of 1 light year per jump.
Type II engines have a maximum range of 10 light years per jump.
Type III engines have a maximum range of 100 light years per jump.
I have also added a new type of jump engine, the Type IV. This is the Cylon Jump engine. It is PL7 and can make 2,000 jumps before needing to re-fuel. A Type IV jump engine has a maximum range of 1,000 light years per jump and only requires approximately 30 minutes to recharge.
As a side note, since the Galactica must travel at the speed of the slowest ship in the fleet, that means that its average rate of travel is 1 light year every 8 hours or 3 light years per day. This doesn't take into account the ~240 jumps made during the events of the miniseries and the first episode of Season One ("33"). Even so, if we consider that only about 50 days have passed since the cylon attack,The Galactica cannot have traveled more than 400 light years from the Colonies by the time it reaches Kobol. This is well beyond the capabilities of even the Galactica, but well within the abilities of the Cylon Type IV jump engine. The Type IV also explains how the Cylons were able to regularly jump every 33 minutes without endangering thier ships while putting incredible strain upon the Colonial ships.
Anyway, that the update on Jump drives, thank for the critical eye, it helps me make improvements to the rules.
Now, on to the Earth at last campaign model. I must admit, I had my misgivings when you first presented the idea, but after reading all of your posts, I can honestly say that I like the concept. I would change a few minor details, but leave the plot basically as it is... except for one thing...
An Earth at Last Campaign should (in my opinion) center on the interaction between the Galactica and the Earth. The campaign model you have written is not really an Earth at Last campaign... tis something that I hadn't even considered... Call it "Earth by Any Other Name"... and have it just be about the Galacticans finally escaping the Cylons and finding this world inhabited by the Gaians... who it turns out are actually cylons... do the Humans wipe out the Gaians? do they try to live in peace, or do they move on and keep looking for Earth?
Anyway, good work, I like it and I will compile your posts and add them to the word document as sson as I get a chance.
Last but not Least,
I have gone through the star system creation rules that you created along with the ones that Futuredevguy sent to me. I must say that your rules are VERY comprehensive, as are Futuredevguy's. however, I think they might be a bit TOO comprehensive. I have finished working oon my own starsystem creatioon rules and combined them with the ones the other two to create what I think is a fairly accurate yet streamilined set of rules. I will post them as soon as I transfer them from my spiralbound note book to the computer.
Ok,
Tom... I will update the jump rules to add the following information...
Jump limits: A jump enigne does have a distance limit, depending upon its type.
Type I jump engines have a maximum range of 1 light year per jump.
Type II engines have a maximum range of 10 light years per jump.
Type III engines have a maximum range of 100 light years per jump.
I have also added a new type of jump engine, the Type IV. This is the Cylon Jump engine. It is PL7 and can make 2,000 jumps before needing to re-fuel. A Type IV jump engine has a maximum range of 1,000 light years per jump and only requires approximately 30 minutes to recharge.
As a side note, since the Galactica must travel at the speed of the slowest ship in the fleet, that means that its average rate of travel is 1 light year every 8 hours or 3 light years per day. This doesn't take into account the ~240 jumps made during the events of the miniseries and the first episode of Season One ("33"). Even so, if we consider that only about 50 days have passed since the cylon attack,The Galactica cannot have traveled more than 400 light years from the Colonies by the time it reaches Kobol. This is well beyond the capabilities of even the Galactica, but well within the abilities of the Cylon Type IV jump engine. The Type IV also explains how the Cylons were able to regularly jump every 33 minutes without endangering thier ships while putting incredible strain upon the Colonial ships.
Consider the sizes of each Jump Drive type also. That is the slowest starship was able to travel at only 1 light year per jump, but that star ship was able to fit onboard the hangar bays of larger starships able to jump 10 light years per jump at a minimum. The average speed of the fleet could then be 30 light years per jump. I think 20 light years is a good number as the fleet is looking for something, and they are a fairly good notion that its not going to be orbiting a red dwarf star. I kind of like cutting to the chase. The fleet makes a new jump and the GM rerolls all the stars within a 10 light years or it, or a 20 lighty year cube. The fleet is not going to waste time with red dwarfs, and each 20 light year cube will have on average about 1 or 2 sunlike stars which they can investigate immediately. Basically the fleet will arrive within a new 20 light year cube of space with 2 10-light year jumps, and on the 3rd one, jump to the system with the most sunlike star. Most of the time, using my planetary generation system, they won't encounter anything interesting and so the plot would revolve around the doings within the fleet and any Cylon encounters they may have. A team of dedicated scouts would investigate the planets to determine if their is any life or anything useful to the fleet. Most of the time, a scouts job is dull and boring, but occasionally after about every 30 jumps or so, they may encounter a planet with the possibility or actuality of life. This is all based in die rolls, and whenever the Gm decides they can encounter Earth itself, or perhaps another lost colony that may point to Earth.
Anyway, that the update on Jump drives, thank for the critical eye, it helps me make improvements to the rules.
Now, on to the Earth at last campaign model. I must admit, I had my misgivings when you first presented the idea, but after reading all of your posts, I can honestly say that I like the concept. I would change a few minor details, but leave the plot basically as it is... except for one thing...
An Earth at Last Campaign should (in my opinion) center on the interaction between the Galactica and the Earth. The campaign model you have written is not really an Earth at Last campaign... tis something that I hadn't even considered... Call it "Earth by Any Other Name"... and have it just be about the Galacticans finally escaping the Cylons and finding this world inhabited by the Gaians... who it turns out are actually cylons... do the Humans wipe out the Gaians? do they try to live in peace, or do they move on and keep looking for Earth?
But Gaia is orbiting Alpha Centauri, which is the closest star system to Earth, and only a "stones throw away" for a star ship equipped with jump drives. If Earth aquires this Jump drive technology, they'll want to use it to do something, hence I introduce my "Planet of Mysteries" campaign, basically its a sideshow to keep the Earthlings and Galacticans busy, while they're getting ready for the Cylons to attack.
Here is my timeline so far, it covers events up to the discovery of Earth. I have to think about how the Earth will rereact, so I've only taken the timeline up to the beginning of 2008. The Cylons finally attack in 2025 AD, where the Earth and the Galacticans have established colonies on Gaia. Since their are not too many habitable planets in a BSG campaign, I've resolved to make this one big and interesting, and to tie up its background with ancient Kobol and the colonizers of Earth. Here is part 1 of the timeline:
Earth At Last
Timeline:
Before 2007: Gaius Baltar disappears when the Cylons attack. Baltar is presumed dead although no body is recovered.
July 17, 2007: During a more recent Cylon attack, Boomer, uploads a virus into a Base star’s central computer which essentially disseminates and duplicates Boomer’s personality onto all the other Cylon infiltrator models of her series, this essentially causes an internal rebellion onboard the base star and Galactica’s fleet leaves the Cylons far behind.
November 2, 2007: There have been no sightings of the Cylons since that July 17th encounter. The last of the 12 Cylon infiltrators models is finally exposed all others of their kind are rounded up put in prison or otherwise eliminated except for Boomer who was let out of prison after having gained the fleets trust. Boomer resumes her viper Pilot duties.
December 5, 2007: Television transmissions are picked up by the Galactica, they include coverage of the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, Germany, the Galactica’s crew doesn’t know what to make of them. Calculations are made for a 20 light year jump in the direction of those transmissions, the Jump occurs the next day.
December 6, 2007: The Galactica monitors further television transmissions, learning to distinguish new broadcast from entertainment, Boomer assists in the translation, it is learned that there has been an anti-communist uprising in Hungary that was crushed by the Soviets, where ever Hungary was, and whoever the Soviets were, the Galactica crew doesn’t have a clue. The Galactic fleet makes preparations for another 20 light year jump towards the source of these transmissions.
December 7, 2007: The Galactica crew learns that someone named Jimmy Carter was elected President of a place called The United States of America, Soviet Premere Leonid Brezhnev, of the Soviet Union extends his congratulations to the newly elected President. The Galactica Crew prepares for another 20 light year jump towards the source of those transmissions.
December 8, 2007: News broadcasts inform the crew of the Galactica, that Taliban forces capture a place called Kabul and declare a fundamentalist Islamic State of Afghanistan. The Galactica crew locates the exact position of Earth’s Solar System and prepares for one final jump into that system.
December 9, 2007: The Galactica fleet arrives in the vicinity of the planet Mars. The cold and desolate planet is something of a disappointment to the crew until the spot the third planet from the Sun, it has a large moon, just like legends say of Earth. The Galactica crew is bombarded by a whole assortment of radio and television transmissions. The Galactica beams a radio transmission towards Earth and the fleet begins heading to that planet. NASA’s Deep Space Network picks up the transmission. After some initial doubt, the authenticity of those transmissions are comfirmed. %0 objects of various sizes are picked up by telescope heading to Earth from Mars. The President of the United States is immediately informed.
December 25, 2007: The Galactica fleet enters low Earth orbit, many of those ships, especially the Galactica are large enough to be seen from the ground. The US military and that of many other countries are on high alert when a series of subordinate spaceships are released from the mothership and head toward the surface. A raptor heads for Reagan International Airport, another heads for Moscow, a third heads for London Heathrow Airport. The ailing President of the Colonial Fleet emerges from one of the Raptors in a wheelchair and greets the President of the United States, and using Boomer as a translator extends her greetings. Commander Adama meets with the US secretary of Defense to discuss the Cylon threat. The World celebrates the first peaceful contact with an alien species, which oddly enough turns out to be humans.
January 1, 2008: Various magazines speculate how the Galacticans might actually be aliens in disguise. Clips from the miniseries ‘V’ are shown on television. Some television commentator jokingly ask Commander Adama if whether he is in fact a lizard Alien wearing the mask of a human, that is exactly when Adama informs the Public at large of the Cylon Menace and how they can disguise themselves to look human, he introduces Boomer and Boomer admits that she is a Cylon.
Another thing I haven't considered yet is exactly how the Cylons will attack Earth and Gaia? Do they go in immediately and try to bombard the planet, or do they come up with some further Cylon models beyond to 12 to mingle with the Earth's inhabitants and gather intelligence with perhaps some sabotage along the way. Also their is the issue of Baltar. Baltar disappears during one of the Cylon attacks, I leave that fairly vague because I don't know whether he's ultimately going to end up as a villian like he was in the original series. Perhaps the Cylons will have captured him and found some use for him. Number 6 seems interested in him, perhaps they have some idea of how to use him to get at the rest of the humans.
Everthing has happened before and will happen again...
In the beginning God created Man, and Man dwelled in paradise and knew God. Then one day, Man rebelled against God and was banished from paradise. Because man possessed the divine soul, God knew that one day Man would return to God and dwell with God in paradise again. God commanded Man to be fruitful and multiply. God also warned Man that as Man had done to God, Man’s children shall do to Man.
One day Man created robots to help make life easier on Kobol. But the day came when the robots rebelled against Man. The robots were thrown off of Kobol, banished by Man. After years of peace and nothing heard from the robots, Man was attacked and Kobol fell to the robotic race. Man fled Kobol to seek a new home, and a new beginning. The robots had learned to remake themselves into Man’s image. They wished to reside with God, but only Man, possessing the divine soul, could hope to ever do that. The robots created one of their own kind in the image of Man and she bread with Man and gave birth to a new race, A new generation of God’s children was thus born.
Man’s mighty leader, Zeus would not allow this new creature to exist and multiply. He returned to Kobol and destroyed the robots, but when he was to destroy the children, Promethius threw himself before Zeus and cried out that the children were God's children now too, for they had the divine spark within them. Athena, asked Zeus for mercy and when his son Apollo intervened, Zeus relented. He would banish the children for all time from Kobol. The tweleve leaders of the children would depart with them as well as Promethius. Promethius would look after the children and guide them. Apollo knew the future and he knew that the soul was to powerful to be overcome by programming and that the soul came with the one thing that the robots did not have…free will. He told Zeus that one day our folly would fall upon them too and they would then need the help of their true parents. Athena could not bear the banishment of the tweleve and had thrown herself from Hera’s Columns. Zeus built her a tomb, remembering Apollo’s words, he placed a map within the tomb to show the new children of God their way to Man’s new home… when the time was right. Apollo gave the key to the map to Hermese and asked him to take it, an arrow, to Promethius. Hermese did so and destroyed the great vessel that took the twelve into exile, as Zues had ordered.
*It should be noted that Promethius was the one who created man, but he got into trouble when he stole fire from Olympus and gave it to man.
*Athena loved man, and educated him.
*Apollo could fortell the future and his oracle at Delphia, the Pythia, was very famous in ancient times.
*Athena also taught man many things including how to build ships. She also was the one that let Promethius on to olympus so he could stael fire for man.
That looks really interesting!
Thanks Intensity! :D
well as far as I can tell, the star base and the piloted raiders were only designed within the last 50 years or so... they are from the same era as the Galactica herself... that makes it difficult for them to be used in the setting as you have written it.
These aren't Cylon Base Stars. The Gaians are a different Mechanical Race from the Cylons, and they were built by the Kobolians, not the 12 colonies. We don't know how long humans lived on Kobol, how many civilizations Kobol had, how many times civilization has been wiped out, and how many times they've built artificial beings like the Cylons. The fact that humans travel through space, makes them hard to exterminate as there will always be some generation ship or sleeper ship that was missed by the exterminators. There is no reason why humanity and their creations on Kobol couldn't be millions of years old. The ruins found on Kobol would probably be that of the most recent civilization there from the last several thousand years. Those prior human civilizations before that would be buried under the rock strata and fossilized. Space travel, relativity, and sleeper ships, means that humanity can keep on coming to Kobol and reestablishing themselves their after each time that humanity has been wiped out. Space however preserves things, a Base Star that's in orbit is not exposed to the elements such as weathering, it will not rust, its outer hull may be bombarded with meteors over time, but whats inside of it will be protected and preserved by the vacuum, while any ruins left on the planet's surface would have crumbled to dust. Don't believe me, then just look at the Moon, The Moon has craters that are millions of years old. The Gaians here were probably there for the last 10,000 years at least. Besides, consistancy and scientific plausibility aren't always the most important things. One can always come up with an improbably explaination for all the inconsistancies. The Players don't have to know everything about what has gone on before. Things only have to be plausible enough or consistant enough for a given situation. A lot of things we observe in the Universe don't make sense, why for instance is the Universe accelerating as it expands? The laws of gravity would seem to indicate that it should slow down, but it doesn't. What the GM has to do is always stay ahead of the PCs in their quest to find answers, he doesn't need to know everything, only more that the PCs and that he can provide some consistent answers, though not necessarily complete ones. I see no physical reason why humanity couldn't have evolved 600 million years ago, the physical laws were the same back then as they are today. I'm just taking the lazy man's way out by saying the ships resemble the Cylon ships from the old BSG series. The characters in this RPG setting have never seen the Old BSG series, the only Cylons and ships they know of are from the new BSG series, as far as their concerned, the double wheel shaped mothership is not of any known Cylon design and it may be non-cylon or even of human origin.
Besides, as they say,
"Everthing has happened before and will happen again..."
including the Cylon Wars and the Cylons them selves. History repeats itself, maybe a little different each time. The Gaians for example didn't built spaceships that were robots as the Cylons did, they had individual mechnical robots piloting the ships from inside as in the old BSG series. Perhaps as they considered themselves humanity 2.0, they didn't want to build a humanity 3.0 that would seek to do to them what they did to the humans, so they built a bunch of dumb machines that required themselves to pilot. The modern Cylons did not feel threated by intelligent machines other than themselves, perhaps the idea of a humanity 3.0 just didn't occur to them
Look, I am not trying to tell you your setting is wrong, you wrote it, so only you know if it is "right". What I am saying is that while your campaign model is an interesting one, I don't think I am going to include it as "Earth at Last"... but rather as a separate campaign model called "Earth by any other name."
What did you have in mind for Earth at last anyway, Galactica Agents sneaking around, trying not to be noticed? Like Galactica 1980, I don't see how that can help Earth defeat the Cylons. If the Cylons discover Earth, they'll kill everyone there regardless of whether they know about the BSG fleet or not, they'll simply pick up the radiowaves and follow the signal right to its source. If Earth is to mount a proper defense, there is no way to keep all those preparations hidden from the public.
It seems to me, that if Earth has starships they are going to go somewhere, therefore I need to detail somewhere to go. Fortunately in BSG most planets are lifeless lumps of rock, so I only need to worry about one or two planets. Since everybody knows about Earth, and lets face it Earth is not going to be that different in 20 years, I decided to give alot of my attention to a planet orbiting Alpha Centauri.
The difference is that if all 50,000 of them simply gave up looking for Earth and settled on a single planet, then either the Cylons will find them or not. If the Cylons find them, they'll have to flee. Earth basically is the industrial backbone of gaia, supplying all the manufactured goods as the BSG can't produce their own equipment, they only got what they took with them.
Right after I post this, I'm going to go buy the Star Wars D20 rulebook. I already skimmed thru it, and saw the starship combat rules.
Man, are my friends going to be puzzled!
Starwars D20 has better space combat rules than D20 Future IMHO, but they have their own quirks as well... I don't think we'll ever have a "perfect" starship combat ruleset... its just too complex...
Yeah, 3d space combat using newtonian physics can get REALLy complicated... but that's why they're ADVANCED sharship combat rules... ;) Folks can still use the rules in D20 Future if they like, or even the vehicle combat rules from D20 Modern if they prefer.
Starwars D20 has better space combat rules than D20 Future IMHO, but they have their own quirks as well... I don't think we'll ever have a "perfect" starship combat ruleset... its just too complex...
Sometimes I find that in the heat of gameplay, it's better to fudge for cinematics than to get too technical. That said, I see merit with both d20 Future and d20 Starwars, but also see fudging the technical aspects for game fluidity. (But that's just my games and my players.)
Hmmm honestly I don't know what I had in mind for the Earth at last Campaign... I am more interested in writing the Cylon War campaing model, so I haven't given it much thought. Besides, I have been really busy with the crunchy bits, so the Campaign models have been kind of low on my list of priorities. I see your point though about using Alpha Centauri... maybe I am being to narrow-minded...
Basically what I had in mind is a somewhat generic space campaign with the looming threat of a Cylon attack in the background. Basically what this campaign has is a little something for everyone. For instance the standard BSG campaign is all about military careers, its about viper pilots, and starship officers etc, fighting Cylons and trying to find Earth.
Once Earth is found however, you can expand your options. For instance you could have PCs run a merchant campaign in this setting. The PCs are the owner/operators of a small merchant company with one starship. The Starship is highly leveraged, and the PCs must scramble with risky cargos, perhaps semi-legal in order to make their bank payments. There is a triangular trade route between Earth, Gaia, and Sirius. Earth Supplies manufactured goods to Gaia, Gaia supplies agricultural products to the miners in the Sirius Asteroid belts, and Sirius supplies the Tylanium to power the jump drives of the starships manufactured at Earth and those 50 BSG starships that fled the 12 colonies and have now resumed their former business after discharging their passengers. At this time there are Cylon agents gathering intelligence and preparing the way for a Cylon attack. The Cylon fleet which was chasing the fleet, is inadequate to this task, so they send ships back to the Cylon occupied 12 colonies, with a message calling for more ships, base stars and the like, this all takes time for the Cylons to organize, meanwhile this affords the PCs time to discover these Cylon agents and interfer with their plots.
For those who like exploration, the planet Gaia offers plenty of opportunity for that, there is even a vast "space dungeon" orbiting the planet in the form of a huge ancient mothership. The ship is 10 miles long, the front part is in the shape of a half-flying saucer, while the rear resembles a Super Star Destroyer from the movie Star Wars. The front half is where all the landing decks are. There are winged sauceriod fighters, armed with laser cannons and missiles on board. There are also fixed turret weapons all over the mothership, all these are in ruins of course, but parts of the mothership may be rendered functional again including the weapons turrets. The Mothership's engines are hopeless to repair, and beyond the capabilities of any human crews on location, so at best it can function as an armed space station and fighter base. The ancient fighters can be made fuctional however, some stats will have to be made up for those, they not quite as good as BSG's vipers, but they are something. Also their are some things onboard this hulking starship which may not be friendly to humans, basically automated defense robots and the like, programmed to attack intruders and activated when the humans attempt to power up sections of this ship.
Oh Well... just something that struck me as interesting... I am not suggesting that we make a cross-over campaign model.
On another note, I have drawn up a map of the Cyrannus Star system, I need to scan it into my computer and figure out how to post pics here on the messageboard.
You might have a trinary star system with each of the stars separated by at least 100 au and have each of those stars with 4 planets orbiting within the lifezone. Some planets would be cold while others would be hot asnd steamy.
You know, when I first read your write up for Earth at Last, I thought, "wouldn't it be cool if the ship in orbit were a Ha'Tak mothership?" And has anyone else noticed the similarity between the Death Gliders from Stargate and the new Cylon Raiders?
Oh Well... just something that struck me as interesting... I am not suggesting that we make a cross-over campaign model.
On another note, I have drawn up a map of the Cyrannus Star system, I need to scan it into my computer and figure out how to post pics here on the messageboard.
yes I have notuiced. But I have also noticed that both of them are very similar to the kilrathi ships from wing commander 1, 2 and 3. Those ships significantly predate either series.
Lt. Kara "Starbuck" Thrace: female Fast Hero 4/Viper Pilot 8;
CR 12; medium human; HD 4d8+4 plus 8d10+8; hp 126; Mas 12;
Init +4 (+4 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 26, touch 24, flat-footed 22; BAB
+9; Grp +12; Atk +14/+8 melee (1d8+3, unarmed) or +13/+6 ranged (2d6,
Sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 12; Rep +7; SV Fort +4, Ref +12, Will +6; Str 16, Dex 18, Con 12,
Int 13, Wis 12, Cha 14.
Starting Occupation: Adventurer (Pilot and Intimidate are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Bluff +12, Drive +12, Escape Artist +9, Gamble +15, Intimidate +10, Knowledge (streetwise) +11, Navigate +11, Pilot +20, Sense Motive +6, Sleight of Hand +8 Survival +6;
Action Boost, Brawl, Confident, Improved Brawl, Light Armor Proficiency, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Point Blank Shot, Spacer, Starship Battle Run, Starship Dodge, Starship Gunnery, Starship Mobility, Starship Operation (Ultralight), Simple Weapon Proficiency.
Special Abilities: Evasion, Evasive Action, Starship Feint, Uncanny Dodge 1, Viper Familiarity (+3).
Possessions: Flight Suit and Helmet, Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), Survival Kit, various personal belongings.
Ok. As I've mentioned, I think her strength should be 13, but that's a personal call. As for her HPs, we have 126= 4d8+ 4 + 8d10 + 8.
This doesn't seem to add up. Assuming that the first level of Fast Hero was max hps, and we have: 3d8 + 8d10 +20. A d8 should roll for an average of 4.5 and a d10 for 5.5. So that becomes
=3(4.5) + 8(5.5) + 20.
= 13.5 + 44 + 20 = 77.5 or 78 to make life easy. I don't see how we got 126.
For her defense we have dex bonus of 4, fast hero bonus of 5, and viper pilot bonus of 4. So Defense = 10+ 4+5+4= 23. We have 26.
On the skills, it's pretty close, but I think she should have 3 more points that she does.
its a triple star system with a primary at the center orbited closely by a companion at 1 AU... the thrid star orbits at about 25 AU and it has its own system of planets. Between the inner stars and the outer star are several gas giants and an asteroid belt Many of the Colonies are actually moons orbiting the gas giants... I have all of my notes at home. I'll post them when I get there this afternoon.
You know of course that the moons of a gas giant are typically tidal locked with the planet, that means their day and their orbital period are the same. The moons further out would have longer days and if they were close in to the Gas Giant, something on the order of the distance of Io to Jupiter, they would also be close to each other. If I were you I would do something like this. Move the close in companion star further out, calculate the life zones of all three stars and the two closest stars must be at least 3 times the distance of the outer limit of the largest lifezone. Personally I'd have distances of 200 au between the 1st two stars and about 600 au to the third star. The companion stars would be bright objects in each planet's sky, but not bright enough to produce false days, the stars would be far out, but not so far out as to require jump drives to get their, so it would count as a single system of stars. Around each star, you'd place a planet in the tropic zone, the subtropic zone, the temperate zone and the subarctic zone with a total of 4 lifezone planets orbiting each star, and then totally by coincidence each planet's day is something approximating 24 hours. The rules of jump drive I would use would make them useless for climbing out of a star's gravitational well, so the ships would have to maneuver in space to go from one planet to the next within a single star's influence. To jump from star to star, a jump drive could be used, or you could just manuever their as many of the ships in the miniseries didn't have jump drives and had to be abandoned to the Cylons.
That's just me however.
You might also decide that the planets are moons about a gas giant, they are far out, and they aren't tidally locked with the planet, this could be because the ancient Kobolians spun them up when they terraformed them and the planets hadn't had a chance to slow down yet. If you are going to do the gas giant thing, have the moons with artificial rates of spin with them all equal to approximately 24 hours.
OK. Almost finished looking over Starbuck. Here is her stat sheet currently.
Ok. As I've mentioned, I think her strength should be 13, but that's a personal call. As for her HPs, we have 126= 4d8+ 4 + 8d10 + 8.
This doesn't seem to add up. Assuming that the first level of Fast Hero was max hps, and we have: 3d8 + 8d10 +20. A d8 should roll for an average of 4.5 and a d10 for 5.5. So that becomes
=3(4.5) + 8(5.5) + 20.
= 13.5 + 44 + 20 = 77.5 or 78 to make life easy. I don't see how we got 126.
For her defense we have dex bonus of 4, fast hero bonus of 5, and viper pilot bonus of 4. So Defense = 10+ 4+5+4= 23. We have 26.
On the skills, it's pretty close, but I think she should have 3 more points that she does.
Thanks for going over it for me. I intend to go over again all of the ones I've finished already. If you'll help check over them it would be appreciated. One of the things I'll change is adding a few ranks in Demo. for Zarek (the man is a bomber).
As for Starbuck, I'd given her max hp at every level. It seemed appropriate for the setting, I got the idea from the Starship Troopers game. But that comes out to 124 so the 126 was a typo. With the flightsuit from d20 future, Thrace's defense is 25 if the class bonus and armor stack (can't remember of the top of my head right now). If they don't, here defense should be 16.
I agree on the strength.
I worked all of these out by hand so there are some errors in some of these, especially the early ones.
Thanks for the critique.
I'm not in favor of the Max HPs thing. Of course, if the cylons are hitting hard enough, the hps are largely meaningless. If one of those rounds does, say, 2d10 and she gets hit, a slightly above average amount of damage (12 in this case) will force Starbuck to make a Fort save or be reduced to -1 hps.
Still, the flavor of the new show is one of mortality and danger. I'd say go with average hps.
Hey, QC is my job. But thanks.
I'm not in favor of the Max HPs thing. Of course, if the cylons are hitting hard enough, the hps are largely meaningless. If one of those rounds does, say, 2d10 and she gets hit, a slightly above average amount of damage (12 in this case) will force Starbuck to make a Fort save or be reduced to -1 hps.
Still, the flavor of the new show is one of mortality and danger. I'd say go with average hps.
Thinking about it like that, I agree.
At first level of Viper Pilot, she gains Starship Weapon Proficiency, but I don't see that in her list. As for her total number of feats, she should receive 6 feats for being a 12th level human, plus another 4 bonus feats (two from each of her classes), plus Simple Weapon Prof (from Fast Hero) and Starship Weapon Prof (from Viper Pilot). That's a total of 12 feats. She has 14 feats listed which don't include Starship Weapon Prof.
Star Name ** ***** Equatorial System Coordinates **** ***** ***** ***** Luminosity/
***** ***** ***** x (light years) y (light years) z (light years) Spectral type* Mass
Sol ** ***** ***** 0.0 ** ***** 0.0 ** ***** 0.0 ** ***** G2 V * ***** 1.00 / 1.00
Alpha Centauri A ** -1.7 ** ***** -1.4 ** ***** -3.8 ** ***** G2 V * ***** 1.30 / 1.10
Alpha Centauri B ** -1.7 ** ***** -1.4 ** ***** -3.8 ** ***** K6 V * ***** 0.36 / 0.89
Sirius A***** ***** -1.6 ** ***** 8.2 ** ***** -2.5 ** ***** A1 V * ***** 23.0 / 1.80
Sirius B **** ***** -1.6 ** ***** 8.2 ** ***** -2.5 ** ***** A white dwarf 0.0028 / 0.98
Epsilon Erisani **** 6.4 ** ***** 8.4 ** ***** -1.8 ** ***** K2 V * ***** 0.30 / 0.80
Tau Ceti **** ***** 10.3 * ***** 4.9 ** ***** -3.3 ** ***** G8 V * ***** 0.44 / 0.82
Sigma Draconis **** 2.5 ** ***** -5.9 ** ***** 17.3 * ***** K0 V * ***** 0.40 / 0.82
Delta Pavonis ***** 3.8 ** ***** -6.4 ** ***** -17.0 * ***** G6 V * ***** 1.00 / 0.98
Eta Cassiopeia A *** 10.1 * ***** 2.1 ** ***** 16.2 * ***** G0 V * ***** 1.00 / 0.85
Eta Cassiopeia B *** 10.1 * ***** 2.1 ** ***** 16.2 * ***** M0 V ***** 0.03 / 0.52
Distances ** ***** A. Cent. **** Sirius E. Eri. Tau Ceti *** Sigma Drac. * D. Pavonis ** E. Cass
Star Name ** ***** Distances (light years)
Sol ** ***** ***** 4.4 ** ***** 8.7 ** 10.7 * 11.9 * ***** 18.5 * ***** 18.6 * ***** 19.2
Alpha Centauri A ** 0.0 ** ***** 9.7 ** 12.9 * 13.6 * ***** 22.0 * ***** 22.1 * ***** 23.5
Alpha Centauri B ** 0.0 ** ***** 9.7 ** 12.9 * 13.6 * ***** 22.0 * ***** 22.1 * ***** 23.5
Sirius A***** ***** 9.7 ** ***** 0.0 ** 8.0 ** 12.4 * ***** 24.7 * ***** 21.3 * ***** 22.9
Sirius B **** ***** 9.7 ** ***** 0.0 ** 8.0 ** 12.4 * ***** 24.7 * ***** 21.3 * ***** 22.9
Epsilon Erisani **** 12.9 * ***** 8.0 ** 0.0 ** 5.5 ** ***** 24.2 * ***** 21.4 * ***** 19.4
Tau Ceti **** ***** 13.6 * ***** 12.4 * 5.5 ** 0.0 ** ***** 24.5 * ***** 18.9 * ***** 19.7
Sigma Draconis **** 22.0 * ***** 24.7 * 24.2 * 24.5 * ***** 0.0 ** ***** 34.3 * ***** 11.1
Delta Pavonis ***** 22.1 * ***** 21.3 * 21.4 * 18.9 * ***** 34.3 * ***** 0.0 ** ***** 34.8
Eta Cassiopeia A *** 23.5 * ***** 22.9 * 19.4 * 19.7 * ***** 11.1 * ***** 34.8 * ***** 0.0
Eta Cassiopeia B *** 23.5 * ***** 22.9 * 19.4 * 19.7 * ***** 11.1 * ***** 34.8 * ***** 0.0
These points experience the same pull of gravity from their respective stars. A jump initiated from 1.0 au from Sol will end up at 1.05 au from Alpha Centauri A. I assume the jump is always made to the brightest star in each multi-star system and uses the mass of that brightest star. Jumps between the points indicated on the chart below are between two points of equal gravitational potential; the starship must then maneuver to where the target planet actually is. For any other distances, start with the originating distance from Sol and multiply by the number under the target star on the row indicated by Sol (1.0 au) and that is the point of emergence for the calculated jump.
Jump Points ** ***** A. Cent. **** Sirius E. Eri. Tau Ceti *** Sigma Drac. * D. Pavonis ** E. Cass
Star Name ** ***** Distances (astronomical units)
Sol (1.0 au) ** ***** 1.05 * ***** 1.34 * 0.89 * 0.91 * ***** 0.91 * ***** 0.99 * ***** 0.92
Sol (0.9 au) ** ***** 0.95 * ***** 1.21 * 0.81 * 0.82 * ***** 0.82 * ***** 0.89 * ***** 0.83
Sol (0.8 au) ** ***** 0.84 * ***** 1.07 * 0.71 * 0.73 * ***** 0.73 * ***** 0.79 * ***** 0.74
Sol (0.7 au) ** ***** 0.74 * ***** 0.94 * 0.62 * 0.64 * ***** 0.64 * ***** 0.69 * ***** 0.64
Sol (0.6 au) ** ***** 0.63 * ***** 0.80 * 0.53 * 0.55 * ***** 0.55 * ***** 0.59 * ***** 0.55
Sol (0.5 au) ** ***** 0.53 * ***** 0.67 * 0.45 * 0.46 * ***** 0.46 * ***** 0.50 * ***** 0.46
Star Name ** ***** Life Zones (ST) (Te) (SA) (Ar)
***** ***** ***** Tropical (Tr) Subtropical Temperate Sub-arctic Arctic
Sol ** ***** ***** 0.72 to 0.78 0.79 to 0.88 0.89 to 1.03 1.04 to 1.26 1.27 to 1.45
Alpha Centauri A ** 0.82 to 0.89 0.90 to 1.00 1.01 to 1.17 1.18 to 1.43 1.44 to 1.65
Alpha Centauri B ** 0.43 to 0.47 0.48 to 0.53 0.54 to 0.62 0.63 to 0.76 0.77 to 0.87
Sirius A***** ***** 3.45 to 3.74 3.75 to 4.22 4.23 to 4.94 4.95 to 6.04 6.05 to 6.95
Sirius B **** ***** .038 to .041 .042 to .047 .048 to .055 .056 to .067 .068 to .077
Epsilon Erisani **** 0.39 to 0.43 0.44 to 0.48 0.49 to 0.56 0.57 to 0.69 0.70 to 0.79
Tau Ceti **** ***** 0.48 to 0.52 0.53 to 0.58 0.59 to 0.68 0.69 to 0.83 0.84 to 0.96
Sigma Draconis **** 0.46 to 0.49 0.50 to 0.56 0.57 to 0.65 0.66 to 0.80 0.81 to 0.92
Delta Pavonis ***** 0.72 to 0.78 0.79 to 0.88 0.89 to 1.03 1.04 to 1.26 1.27 to 1.45
Eta Cassiopeia A *** 0.72 to 0.78 0.79 to 0.88 0.89 to 1.03 1.04 to 1.26 1.27 to 1.45
Eta Cassiopeia B *** 0.12 to 0.14 0.15 to 0.15 0.16 to .018 0.19 to 0.22 0.23 to 0.25
For the Earth at last campaign, I have to decide what to do with Baltar, in the old series, he was the villain, and in the new series he may yet become the villian, but the key word is may the series may yet surprise us. I fully expected him to turn to evil at the end of the mini-series and was suprised when he did not. So there are two possibilities for the Earth at Last campaign. I have to advance this character a number of levels and make him older.
Gaius Baltar- around the end of Season 1
Smart 3, Charismatic 2, Field Scientist 2, Lvl 7, CR7
S9, D10, Con10, I18, Wis10, Cha 14
BAB: +3, Reputation: +6, Defense: 17, HP: 26, Fort: 4, Ref: 4, WillP: +2, Spd 30ft, Talents: Savant- Know(Technology); Savant- Know(Physical Sciences); Charm (Baltar get's a +2 to all Cha checks when dealing with women); Smart Defense (add Int bonus to defense); Scientific Improvisation (may improvise devices from common objects). Feats: Builder, Deceptive, Gearhead, Renown, Studious, Trustworthy. Skills: Bluff(6)- +12 (includes a +2 synergy bonus from Know(Beh Sci); Computer Use(9)- +17 (includes a +2 synergy bonus from Know (Technology); Craft(Chemical)(6)-+14 (includes a +2 synergy bonus from Know(Technology); Craft(Electronic)(6)-+16 (includes a +4 synergy bonus from Know(Technology) and Know (Physical Sciences)); Craft(Pharmaceutical)(5)-+11 (includes a +2 synergy bonus from Know(Technology); Decipher Script(5)-+11; Demolitions(5)-+11; Diplomacy(7)-+13 (includes a +4 synergy bonus from Bluff and Know (Behavioral Science)); Disable Device(7)-+15 (includes a +2 synergy bonus from Know(Technology); Forgery(5)-+9; Gather Information(2)-+8 (includes a +2 synergy bonus from Bluff); Investigate(5)-+9; Know(Behavorial Sciences)(5)-+9; Know(Civics)(1)+5; Know(Cylons)(1)+7 (includes a +2 synergy bonus from Know (Technology)); Know(Life Sciences)(6)-+10; Know(Physical Sciences)(6)-+13; Know(Technology)(6)-+13;Research(9)-+15; Search(6)-+10. Psychosis: Paranoia: -4 penalty to all Sense Motive Checks; failing a check indicates Baltar believes that the target is out to get him. Schizophrenia:
Baltar has visions of the cylon #6. At GM's discretion, Baltar must make a Willpower check DC 20 or suffer from vision of #6 which cause the temporary loss of -1d6 points of Charisma. If Baltar misses this check by more than 5, the temporary loss is -2d6. These visions of #6 sometimes seem to help Baltar. He may expend an action point at any time to gain inspiration from his imaginary #6 about a new way to tackle a problem.
One particular version of him would be called Lord Baltar, this particular version of Baltar has been seduced into joining with the Cylons with promises of power. Perhaps he thinks he's taken over the Cylon fleet; perhaps he has. Baltar is a computer expert after all, perhaps he's released a virus that altered the loyalties of all the Cylons so as to make them subserviant to him, they call him Imperious Leader and answer orders given to them with a "By your command!", or perhaps the Cylons only want him to believe this is the case. The Cylons, afterall have been thwarted time and time again in their attempts to destroy the humans, perhaps one time they thought that their Cylon Infiltrators could think like a human and anticipate their actions, and perhaps they decided that this time they needed a real human to lead the hunt for the rest of them, this human must be led to believe that he's in command, and be given no reason to think otherwise. Also Lord Baltar doesn't believe his mission is to exterminate all humans, but to conquer them, he believes he's taken control of this particular Cylon fleet through his virus, and all he wants to do is conquer Earth, and once that is done, and humanity is unified under his enlightened leadership, he can lead a combined Cylon/Human fleet to retake the 12 colonies and Kobol, that's what's on his mind anyway. Number 6 does nothing to discourage these beliefs and does her best to inflate his ego as much as possible.
So what do you think of this "Lord Baltar" proposal, do you think it makes sense?
The other alternative is to have a Dr Gaius Baltar who is older, wiser and more experienced, this is the more heroic Baltar, he has overcome his weaknesses and is a much stronger character because of it, he's also managed to encourage a number of Cylons to defect over to the human side.
Which Baltar do you prefer?
For the Earth at last campaign, I have to decide what to do with Baltar, in the old series, he was the villain, and in the new series he may yet become the villian, but the key word is may the series may yet surprise us. I fully expected him to turn to evil at the end of the mini-series and was suprised when he did not. So there are two possibilities for the Earth at Last campaign. I have to advance this character a number of levels and make him older.
The old series and the new series really aren't comparable on so many levels. So, I don't think we can assume anything as to what becomes of Baltar based on the old series. That said, I would actually suggest to start exploring the concept of insanity in the game. He's certainly demonstrating some loss with reality ... or is he? ;)
The old series and the new series really aren't comparable on so many levels. So, I don't think we can assume anything as to what becomes of Baltar based on the old series. That said, I would actually suggest to start exploring the concept of insanity in the game. He's certainly demonstrating some loss with reality ... or is he? ;)
It might be possible to advance him without deciding whose side he's on. So how many levels would you say these characters would advance in 20 years?
Lt. Felix Gaeta: male Dedicated Hero 3/Starship Officer 1;
CR 4; medium human; HD 3d6+1d8; hp 18; Mas 10;
Init +1 (+1 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 14, touch 14, flat-footed 13; BAB
+3; Grp +3; Atk +3 melee (1d4, unarmed) or +4 ranged (2d6,
Pistol); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 8; Rep +2; SV Fort +2, Ref +2, Will +8; Str 11, Dex 12, Con 10,
Int 17, Wis 14, Cha 12.
Starting Occupation: White Collar (Computer Use, Diplomacy, and Knowledge (Technology).
Skills and Feats: Computer Use +13, Diplomacy +9, Gather Information +9, Knowledge (Tactics) +9, Knowledge (Technology) +11, Knowledge (Ship Systems) +5, Listen +6, Navigate +6, Research +6, Sense Motive +5;
Gearhead, Iron Will, Personal Weapon Proficiency, Simple Weapon Proficiency, Trustworthy.
Special Abilities: Aware, Skill Emphasis.
Possessions: various personal belongings.
Tom, I've almost finished Adama and Roslin, Roslin only need the skills to be finished while Adama also needs the feats.
Intensity, Starbuck has 14 feats, the 12 from class levels and char levels, Simple Weapon Prof, and her Adventurer bonus feat (brawl). When you first brought that up I couldn't figure out where that other feat came from but it hit me while finishing Gaeta.
Xena Agathon 19 year old female half-Cylon Infiltrator (Find out real name later I suppose, daughter of "Helo" and "Boomer")
Troy Adama male human viper pilot (son of Lee "Apollo" Adama, and Kara "Starbuck" Thrace Adama)
"Boxy" 14 year old boy
NPC Gallery
Lt. Felix Gaeta: male Dedicated Hero 3/Starship Officer 1;
CR 4; medium human; HD 3d6+1d8; hp 18; Mas 10;
Init +1 (+1 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 14, touch 14, flat-footed 13; BAB
+3; Grp +3; Atk +3 melee (1d4, unarmed) or +4 ranged (2d6,
Pistol); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 8; Rep +2; SV Fort +2, Ref +2, Will +8; Str 11, Dex 12, Con 10,
Int 17, Wis 14, Cha 12.
Starting Occupation: White Collar (Computer Use, Diplomacy, and Knowledge (Technology).
Skills and Feats: Computer Use +13, Diplomacy +9, Gather Information +9, Knowledge (Tactics) +9, Knowledge (Technology) +11, Knowledge (Ship Systems) +5, Listen +6, Navigate +6, Research +6, Sense Motive +5;
Gearhead, Iron Will, Personal Weapon Proficiency, Simple Weapon Proficiency, Trustworthy.
Special Abilities: Aware, Skill Emphasis.
Possessions: various personal belongings.
Captain Lee "Apollo" Adama: male Fast Hero 4/Viper Pilot 7/Starship Officer 1;
CR 12; medium human; HD 5d8+5 plus 7d10+7; hp 122; Mas 12;
Init +4 (+4 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 25, touch 23, flat-footed 21; BAB
+11; Grp +12; Atk +14/+9/+4 melee (1d6+2, unarmed) or +15/+10/+5 ranged (2d6,
Sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 12; Rep +7; SV Fort +4, Ref +11, Will +8; Str 15, Dex 18, Con 12,
Int 14, Wis 13, Cha 13.
Starting Occupation: Military (Pilot and Knowledge (Tactics) are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Bluff +6, Computer Use +9, Diplomacy +6, Intimidate +6, Knowledge (Tactics) +18, Navigate +14, Pilot
+20, Repair +17, Sense Motive +11, Spot +11, Survival +7, Tumble +8;
Athletic, Brawl, Heroic Surge, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Simple Weapon Proficiency, Spacer, Starship Dodge, Starship Gunnery, Starship Mobility, Starship Operation (Ultralight), Starship Strafe.
Special Abilities: Evasion, Evasive Action, Leadership, Starship Feint, Uncanny Dodge 1, Viper Familiarity (+2).
Possessions: Flight Suit and Helmet, Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), Survival Kit, various personal belongings.
Lt. Kara "Starbuck" Thrace: female Fast Hero 4/Viper Pilot 8;
CR 12; medium human; HD 4d8+4 plus 8d10+8; hp 126; Mas 12;
Init +4 (+4 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 26, touch 24, flat-footed 22; BAB
+9; Grp +12; Atk +14/+8 melee (1d8+3, unarmed) or +13/+6 ranged (2d6,
Sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 12; Rep +7; SV Fort +4, Ref +12, Will +6; Str 16, Dex 18, Con 12,
Int 13, Wis 12, Cha 14.
Starting Occupation: Adventurer (Pilot and Intimidate are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Bluff +12, Drive +12, Escape Artist +9, Gamble +15, Intimidate +10, Knowledge (streetwise) +11, Navigate +11, Pilot +20, Sense Motive +6, Sleight of Hand +8 Survival +6;
Action Boost, Brawl, Confident, Improved Brawl, Light Armor Proficiency, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Point Blank Shot, Spacer, Starship Battle Run, Starship Dodge, Starship Gunnery, Starship Mobility, Starship Operation (Ultralight), Simple Weapon Proficiency.
Special Abilities: Evasion, Evasive Action, Starship Feint, Uncanny Dodge 1, Viper Familiarity (+3).
Possessions: Flight Suit and Helmet, Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), Survival Kit, various personal belongings.
Gaius Baltar- around the end of Season 1
Smart 3, Charismatic 2, Field Scientist 2, Lvl 7, CR7
S9, D10, Con10, I18, Wis10, Cha 14
BAB: +3, Reputation: +6, Defense: 17, HP: 26, Fort: 4, Ref: 4, WillP: +2, Spd 30ft, Talents: Savant- Know(Technology); Savant- Know(Physical Sciences); Charm (Baltar get's a +2 to all Cha checks when dealing with women); Smart Defense (add Int bonus to defense); Scientific Improvisation (may improvise devices from common objects). Feats: Builder, Deceptive, Gearhead, Renown, Studious, Trustworthy. Skills: Bluff(6)- +12 (includes a +2 synergy bonus from Know(Beh Sci); Computer Use(9)- +17 (includes a +2 synergy bonus from Know (Technology); Craft(Chemical)(6)-+14 (includes a +2 synergy bonus from Know(Technology); Craft(Electronic)(6)-+16 (includes a +4 synergy bonus from Know(Technology) and Know (Physical Sciences)); Craft(Pharmaceutical)(5)-+11 (includes a +2 synergy bonus from Know(Technology); Decipher Script(5)-+11; Demolitions(5)-+11; Diplomacy(7)-+13 (includes a +4 synergy bonus from Bluff and Know (Behavioral Science)); Disable Device(7)-+15 (includes a +2 synergy bonus from Know(Technology); Forgery(5)-+9; Gather Information(2)-+8 (includes a +2 synergy bonus from Bluff); Investigate(5)-+9; Know(Behavorial Sciences)(5)-+9; Know(Civics)(1)+5; Know(Cylons)(1)+7 (includes a +2 synergy bonus from Know (Technology)); Know(Life Sciences)(6)-+10; Know(Physical Sciences)(6)-+13; Know(Technology)(6)-+13;Research(9)-+15; Search(6)-+10. Psychosis: Paranoia: -4 penalty to all Sense Motive Checks; failing a check indicates Baltar believes that the target is out to get him. Schizophrenia:
Baltar has visions of the cylon #6. At GM's discretion, Baltar must make a Willpower check DC 20 or suffer from vision of #6 which cause the temporary loss of -1d6 points of Charisma. If Baltar misses this check by more than 5, the temporary loss is -2d6. These visions of #6 sometimes seem to help Baltar. He may expend an action point at any time to gain inspiration from his imaginary #6 about a new way to tackle a problem.
Tom Zarek: male Charismatic Hero 7/Dedicated Hero 5;
CR 12; medium human; HD 12d6+24; hp 96; Mas 14;
Init +0 (+0 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 19, touch 19, flat-footed 19; BAB
+8; Grp +10; Atk +12/+7 melee (1d6+2, unarmed) or +10/+5 ranged (2d6,
Pistol); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 8; Rep +7; SV Fort +7, Ref +12, Will +6; Str 14, Dex 11, Con 14,
Int 17, Wis 15, Cha 18.
Starting Occupation: Academic (Knowledge (Civics), Knowledge (Tactics), and Craft (Writing) are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Bluff +20, Craft (Writing) +18, Diplomacy +23, Gamble +11,
Gather Information +13, Intimidate +12, Investigate +10, Knowledge (Tactics) +18, Knowledge (Civics) +18, Listen +9, Sense Motive +16, Spot +10, Survival +7, Treat Injury +9;
Alertness, Brawl, Combat Expertise, Confident, Deceptive, Iron Will, Personal Weapon Proficiency, Point Blank Shot, Renown, Simple Weapon Proficiency, Trustworthy, Weapon Focus (Pistol).
Special Abilities: Charm, Captivate, Fast-Talk, Dazzle, Skill Emphasis (Diplomacy), Aware, Cool Under Pressure.
Possessions: Various Personal Possessions, 9mm Pistol, 50 rounds of 9mm ammo.
Billy Keikeya: male Dedicated Hero 3;
CR 3; medium human; HD 3d6; hp 18; Mas 10;
Init +1 (+1 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 13, touch 13, flat-footed 12; BAB
+2; Grp +2; Atk +2 melee (1d4, unarmed) or -1 ranged (2d6,
Pistol); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 6; Rep +1; SV Fort +2, Ref +2, Will +5; Str 11, Dex 12, Con 10,
In6 17, Wis 16, Cha 12.
Starting Occupation: Student (Knowledge (Civics), Knowledge (History), and Research are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Bluff +4, Computer Use +6, Diplomacy +6, Gather Information +6, Investigate +8, Knowledge (Civics) +15, Knowledge (Current Events) +11, Knowledge (History) +10, Listen +6, Research +11, Sense Motive +11;
Attentive, Educated (Civics, Current Events), Studious, Trustworthy.
Special Abilities: Empathy, Skill Emphasis (Knowledge (Civics).
Possessions: various personal belongings.
Lt. JG. Karl C. "Helo" Agathon: male Smart Hero 2/Dedicated Hero 3;
CR 5; medium human; HD 5d6+10; hp 40; Mas 14;
Init +0 (+0 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 15, touch 13, flat-footed 15; BAB
+3; Grp +5; Atk +5 melee (1d4+2, unarmed) or +3 ranged (2d6,
Sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 12; Rep +7; SV Fort +4, Ref +1, Will +6; Str 15, Dex 10, Con 14,
Int 16, Wis 14, Cha 11.
Starting Occupation: Military (Navigate and Survival are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Computer Use +16, Demolitions +9, Disable Device +9, Gamble +7, Investigate +8, Knowledge
(Caprica) +6, Listen +9, Navigate +11, Repair +8, Research +5, Search +6, Sense Motive +7, Spot +9, Survival
+10, Treat Injury +10;
Brawl, Light Armor Proficiency, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Combat Expertise, Weapon Focus (Col. Sidearm),
Simple Weapon Proficiency
Special Abilities: Savant (Computer Use), Skill Emphasis (Computer Use), Aware.
Possessions: Flight Suit and Helmet, Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), Survival Kit, various
personal belongings.
Chief Petty Officer Galen Tyrol: male Smart Hero 3/Engineer 3;
CR 6; medium human; HD 6d6+12; hp 51; Mas 14;
Init +0 (+0 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 12, touch 12, flat-footed 12; BAB
+3; Grp +7; Atk +7 melee (1d4+2, unarmed) or 5 ranged (2d6,
Sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 9; Rep +.; SV Fort +5, Ref +3, Will +3; Str 15, Dex 10, Con 14,
Int 16, Wis 11, Cha 11.
Starting Occupation: Technician (Craft (Mechanical), Craft (Electronic) and Repair are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Computer Use +11, Craft (Mechanical) +15, Craft (Electronic) +15, Demolitions +14,
Disable Device +11, Drive +3, Intimidate +4, Investigate +7, Knowledge (Technology) +12, Knowledge (Starships)
+7, Navigate +5, Repair +15, Search +10, Spot +2, Survival +3, Treat Injury +4;
Builder, Gearhead, Salvage, Toughness, Cautious, Simple Weapon Proficiency, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Mastercrafter.
Special Abilities: Savant(Repair), Improve Kit +1, Quick Craft, Superior Repair
Possessions: Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), various personal belongings.
Tom Zarek: male Charismatic Hero 7/Dedicated Hero 5;
CR 12; medium human; HD 12d6+24; hp 96; Mas 14;
Init +0 (+0 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 19, touch 19, flat-footed 19; BAB
+8; Grp +10; Atk +12/+7 melee (1d6+2, unarmed) or +10/+5 ranged (2d6,
Pistol); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 8; Rep +7; SV Fort +7, Ref +12, Will +6; Str 14, Dex 11, Con 14,
Int 17, Wis 15, Cha 18.
Starting Occupation: Academic (Knowledge (Civics), Knowledge (Tactics), and Craft (Writing) are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Bluff +20, Craft (Writing) +18, Diplomacy +23, Gamble +11,
Gather Information +13, Intimidate +12, Investigate +10, Knowledge (Tactics) +18, Knowledge (Civics) +18, Listen +9, Sense Motive +16, Spot +10, Survival +7, Treat Injury +9;
Alertness, Brawl, Combat Expertise, Confident, Deceptive, Iron Will, Personal Weapon Proficiency, Point Blank Shot, Renown, Simple Weapon Proficiency, Trustworthy, Weapon Focus (Pistol).
Special Abilities: Charm, Captivate, Fast-Talk, Dazzle, Skill Emphasis (Diplomacy), Aware, Cool Under Pressure.
Possessions: Various Personal Possessions, 9mm Pistol, 50 rounds of 9mm ammo.
As I said before, Starbuck is a bit of a rogue, probably the closest thing Battlestar Galactica has to "Han Solo" type of character, but Han Solo had an Empire to fight against, one that was oppressive and tyrannical. If Starbuck wants to be a smuggler, she's going to have to smuggle stuff like Drugs and other illegal things, and while Starbuck may be a rogue, she is not quite a criminal, and there is no evil empire to make such a criminal look heroic, so perhaps Starbuck would stick with her squadron, but on the otherhand she chafes at authority. Since the Cylon threat has receded for the last 20 years, she may want a profession where she would be more independent. Being in the military service means obeying the higher ups, and without a Cylon threat, she has no reason to put up with it.
Perhaps Starbuck would become a Marshal, who works on the frontier, the trouble is Lee Adama, being the "Straight Arrow" that he is is likely to stay with the military service, and may even find himself in command of the Galactica one day. So how can you have a family that consists of a rogueish mom, a 14 year old son, and a father who is commander of the Galactica. Perhaps, Kara would settle down as a housewife, content to take care of her son. Not! I think she may consider becoming a merchant who plies the interstellar lanes selling and delivering goods at various planets, She might consider gaining some levels as an engineer so she can make some "special modifications" to her ship herself, perhaps installing some weapons on her freighter and improving upon its engines. I'm not sure where I'm going to go with this character. Any suggestions?
I sure missed a lot of posting while I was off getting married!
Sheesh!
Well Tom, you have given us MORE than enough for a campaign model, you're basically writing your own spin-off campaign setting now... :D
In the NPC stats above, did you alter them or are they just cut and pasted from Talos' and Intensity's posts?
Anyway, its going to take me a bit to get back into the swing of things... I believe we've still got a couple more campaign models to write, along with a few more major NPCs and a bunch of Ordinaries... I need to review the stats for the starships I wrote up and also take a crack at the history of the colonies... I know we have alot of moaterial discovered on the net, but its all fam material that belongs to someone else, and I don't want to use people's ideas without thier permission.
Probably, but its easier to generate too much information and decide what's important later, than too little. The NPCs take some time to create, but when they are done they don't take up that much space.
I cut and pasted Talos NPC character Starbuck, that is my starting off point. I also noticed that Starbuck doesn't have a wealth bonus and she should have Talos. Well, I'm assuming its something like +17. In my Earth at Last setting, Starbuck goes into business for herself, with the aid of her 14 year old son Troy, she has trained Troy to actually fly the starship that she has, and he also get training time on the onboard viper simulator besides. Troy is not old enough to officially be a viper pilot, but Kara has seen to it that he has aquired the necessary skills. The viper simulator is property of the Colonial government on loan from the Galactica, the commander of that ship being her husband has "looked the other way" on this matter.
Actually, I'm advancing Starbuck to 20th level, she's going to be a Fast Hero 4/Viper Pilot 10/Smart Hero 4/Engineer 2, she acquires a Fast Freighter as in the Example in d20 Future. There needs to be a Battlestar Galactica Starship template that switches out Laser Cannons for mass cannons and the like. The Fast Freighter has a type II Jump Drive and greater than average assortment of weapondry. At this point in her career, Kara Thrace is a reservist and reports in for duty twice a month to keep her viper pilot skills finely honed, and she also keeps a Viper simulator on board her personal starship. When she had Troy, she took break from her career and got a degree in Starship Engineering, she figures that if she can keep an eye on her mechanics and check their work, maybe she'd be less likely to die because of a mechanical failure while piloting a viper. Starbuck fully expects the Cylons to attack someday and she wants to be ready when they do. Starbuck has become fairly wealthy while running her shipping business and in fact earns more than Lee Adama, her husband who is the commander of the Galactica and is on a government salary. Starbucks travels takes her all over settled space, she takes a break from her business and hires an employee when her husband is on leave.
Meanwhile back in Earth orbit at the L4 point, there is ongoing construction work on a Jump gate, the Jump gate works just like a jump drive, except that it does not go where it sends its cargo. The Jump gate when complete will be an assortment of 3 rings held together by a cylindrical framework of trusses, it teleports whatever's inside the framework to a number of locations, and it is powered by two gigantic solar panels on either side of the framework, each one is 20 miles long and 7 miles wide. The jump gate is large enough to fit inside of it a Battlestar, the object is to someday project a fleet of battlestars back the the 12 colonies and retake them from the Cylons. The fleet is not large enough to accomplish this mission as of yet, and the jumpgate is only one-way, their is no corresponding jump gate to send the ships back, but the range of the jump gate is much further than that of a typical starship jump drive. The gate can be set for any number of destinations, including Kobol, Gaia and a number of other planets the fleet has visited in the past, but the main idea is to send a fleet of battlestars over to the Cyrus system and conduct a suprise attack to retake the system. Naturally the Colonial government can't do this alone, so it has enlisted the help of several allies, appealing to their sense of greed and territorial ambition to help retake those planets, those twelve colonies are after all quite valuable pieces of galactic real estate, that plus Gaia and Kobol equals 14 planets that Earth humans can colonize. Given Earth's current population of 7.5 billion, that means you can have 535 million on each planet greatly releaving the burden on Earth's ecosystem of these great numbers, that is the motivation of the other nations in the Alliance in any case.
WOW!
I sure missed a lot of posting while I was off getting married!
Sheesh!
Well Tom, you have given us MORE than enough for a campaign model, you're basically writing your own spin-off campaign setting now... :D
In the NPC stats above, did you alter them or are they just cut and pasted from Talos' and Intensity's posts?
Anyway, its going to take me a bit to get back into the swing of things... I believe we've still got a couple more campaign models to write, along with a few more major NPCs and a bunch of Ordinaries... I need to review the stats for the starships I wrote up and also take a crack at the history of the colonies... I know we have alot of moaterial discovered on the net, but its all fam material that belongs to someone else, and I don't want to use people's ideas without thier permission.
I'm still formulating ideas for this campaign. I will consolidate them soon and make a final draft. Most important is to provide enough information so a GM can get this campaign off the ground with a minimum amount of work on his part. What takes a long time to make are the NPCs. What I'm doing is using a d20 Modern character sheet, I've put Starbucks stats on the sheet and I'm advancing her 1 level at a time, and adding skills, feats, and talents. When I'm done, I'll recompile this character into compressed character format and posted it here. I want to provide at least a few familiar faces to tie this in to Battlestar Galactica. It might be interesting to tell about this setting through the background descriptions of these characters from their point of view, that might save quite a bit of space. For instance the character backgrounds of Starbuck and Apollo will tell the history of what happened to the Galactica since the series. I think I'll place Boomer in charge of the construction of the Jump Gate, since she is a Cylon, and Cylons have access to superior Jump technology, she'd be the logical candidate to head up this project, she also doesn't age like a normal human, so she'll be around to see this project through to its completion however long it takes. Meanwhile characters like Boxy and some others from Earth are the active duty viper pilots on board the Galactica, since their are no Cylons to fight at this time, they spend their days doing routine patrols, apprehending criminals, and fighting pirates and the like. I think that ought to be sufficient. I'll tell these characters' stories and through them, we get background of this campaign setting.
Captain Kara “Starbuck” Thrace Adama: female Fast Hero 4/Viper Pilot 10/Smart Hero 4/Engineer 2; CR 20; medium human; HD 4d8+4 plus 10d10+10 plus 4d6+4 plus 2d6+2; hp 178; Mas 27; Init +5 (+5 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 28, touch 26, flat-footed 23; BAB +14; Grp +17; Atk +19/+14/+9/+4 melee (1d8+3. unarmed) or +19/+14/+9/+4 ranged (2d6/3d6, Colonial Sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 16; Rep +11; Wealth +17; SV Fort +8, Ref +17, Will +10; Str 16, Dex 20, Con 12, Int 13, Wis 12, Cha 14.
Starting Occupation: Adventurer (Pilot and Intimidate class skills), Merchant Ship’s Captain/Owner.
Skills: Balance +11, Bluff +12, Computer Use +2, Craft (Chemical) +2, Craft (Electronic) +7, Craft (Mechanical) +7, Craft (Structural) +10, Drive +13, Escape Artist +10, Gamble +15, Intimidate +10, Knowledge (Current Events) +6, Knowledge (Popular Culture) +4, Knowledge (Streetwise) +11, Knowledge (Technology) +7, Knowledge (Business) +2, Knowledge (Physical Science) +2, Listen +2, Navigate +11, Pilot +25, Repair +11, Sense Motive +6, Sleight of Hand +9, Spot +3, Survival +6, Swim +4, Tumble +6.
Languages: Speak Colonial, Read/Write Colonial, Speak English, Read/Write English.
Feats: Action Boost, Brawl, Confident, Improved Brawl, Light Armor Proficiency, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Point Blank Shot, Spacer, Starship Battle Run, Starship Dodge, Starship Gunnery, Starship Mobility, Starship Operation (Ultralight), Simple Weapom Proficiency, Improved Damage Threshhold x5, Builder, Improve Kit (+1).
Special Abilities: Evasion, Evasive Action, Starship Feint, Uncanny Dodge 1, Viper Familiarity (+3), Improved Evasive Action, Plan, Exploit Weakness, Quick Craft.
Possessions: Flight Suit and Helmet, Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), Survival Kit, various personal belongings and Starship.
Fast Freighter (PL6)
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Fast freighter
Defense: 7
Flat-footed Defense: 5
Autopilot Defense: 5
Hardness: 20
Hit Dice: 16d20 (320 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +2
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +3
Pilots Dex Modifier: +2
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +2
Size: Colossal (-8 Size)
Tactical Speed: 35,000 ft. (7 sq)
Length: 110 feet
Weight: 450 tons
Targeting System Bonus: +3
Crew: 4 (trained +4)
Passenger Capacity: 4
Cargo Capacity: 300 tons
Grapple Modifier: +16
Base Purchase DC: 52
Restriction: Restricted (+2)
Attack:
4 fire-linked rail cannons -8 ranged (9d12)
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: Ion engine, thrusters, Jump Drive Type II
Armor: Polymeric
Defense Systems: Autopilot system, damage control system (1d10), magnetic field, radiation shielding, sensor jammer
Sensors: Class II Sensor array, targeting system
Communications: Laser transceiver, radio transceiver
Weapons: 4 fire-linked rail cannons (range incr. 30,000 ft., 6 cubes)
Grappling Systems: Grapplers.
Earth to the Moon (240,000 miles): 370 rounds or 37 minutes
Earth to the Sun (93,000,000 miles): 7,290 rounds or 729 minutes or 12 hours
Earth to Mercury (56,950,000 miles): 5,705 rounds or 571 minutes or 9 hours
Earth to Venus (26,040,000 miles): 3,857 rounds or 386 minutes or 6 hours
Earth to Mars (48,360,000 miles): 5,257 rounds or 526 minutes or 9 hours
Earth to Neptune (2,715,600,000 miles): 39,392 rounds or 3,939 minutes or 66 hours.
Seems to me, that you can travel anywhere in the inner Solar System in a viper, a trip to Mars would take just 9 hours, about the same amount of time as a transAtlantic trip from New York to Europe.
Seriously though, it orbits at about 30 AU (1 AU is the distance from the Earth to the Sun, or about 150,000,000 kilometers) from the Sun so as soon as I find my graphing calculator I'll find out.
Tom, the writeup for Starbuck looks good at first glance, I'll examine it in more depth tommorrow (fall break, no classes).
I had to swap out the laser cannons for railgun cannons. I extended the range increment for the weapons by 10 times, and I added a Jump Drive. Turns out that on the scale of 5,000 ft per cube, you accelerate by 1 cube per round, and you really are pulling 25 g(s). The acceleration of Earth's gravity accelerate you by a 200 ft. cube per round more or less. Artificial gravity can perhaps account for that. Starbuck's ship can accelerate by 7 such cubes per round or about 175 time the force of Earth's gravity. It would be interesting to calculate the trip times with such an acceleration. Lets see now 1 gravity is about 1/25 of a mile per round. Using the travel formula T = 2 * (d/a)^(1/2), we can plot out travel times.
Earth to the Moon (240,000 miles): 370 rounds or 37 minutes
Earth to the Sun (93,000,000 miles): 7,290 rounds or 729 minutes or 12 hours
Earth to Mercury (56,950,000 miles): 5,705 rounds or 571 minutes or 9 hours
Earth to Venus (26,040,000 miles): 3,857 rounds or 386 minutes or 6 hours
Earth to Mars (48,360,000 miles): 5,257 rounds or 526 minutes or 9 hours
Seems to me, that you can travel anywhere in the inner Solar System in a viper, a trip to Mars would take just 9 hours, about the same amount of time as a transAtlantic trip from New York to Europe.
That would be the minimum time to get from one planet to another, the distance from the earth to mars could be as much as 2.5 AU or as little as 0.5 AU from the earth depending on the relative orbital positions of the planets.
http://www.nadaka.us/StarGen.asp
I have made a program based on TTom Kalbfus1's star generation system. Right now it only generates starsystems and not planets, but I will keep working on it.
http://www.nadaka.us/StarGen.asp
You can just call me Tom or Tom Kalbfus, that is my real name after all. I'm not into the latest Internet fad of using pseudonyms like "Flaming Bunny Rabbit" and the like, not that its a real example. The "1" is just an artifact of the fact that I used my own name on a previous service and that name is no longer available to me.
Great work on the software, I appreciate it. Planets are kind of the point of the exercise though. I could care less about systems without planets.
The next characters I'm going to do are Troy, Boxy, and Xena. I don't know what Boxy's last name might be. I saw the miniseries in which he appears, and it didn't mention a last name. Does anyone who's familiar with the Old series possibly know what Boxy's last name is. One fact I did gleen was that this father was an officer in the Colonial service and went missing when the Cylons attacked. Boxy was also rescued by the first Boomer, the one who eventually shot Commander William Adama. Also was Adama around suring the first Cylon War? Someone's going to need to make up a Young William Adama character perhaps.
Boomer 2's work on the Jump Gate also leads to a possible campaign called "Taking Back the Colonies", that's in the future relative to "Earth At Last". One of the challenges of a Taking BAck the colonies campaign is defeating the Cylons and ultimately making peace with them. That's pretty much the only way to conclude this cycle of violence it seems. Defeating the Cylons is a far easier thing to do. No doubt if humanity tries to exterminate them, some of them are going to escape and build more of themselves and mount another attack.
What the starship actually does or where it goes is really up to the PCs. Troy is not very decisive, and he's only a boy, that will probably change as he grows up, but right now he needs alot of help when Starbuck is not around.
Troy Adama: male Fast Hero 1; CR 1; medium human; HD 1d8+2; hp 10; Mas 15; Init +4 (+4 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 15, touch 14, flat-footed 15; BAB +0; Grp -1; Atk -1 melee (1d3-1 unarmed), +0 ranged (2d6/3d6 colonial sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5ft.;
AP 5; Rep +0; Wealth +4; SV Fort +2, Ref +5, Will -1; Str 9*, Dex 18, Con 15, Int 14, Wis 8, Cha 16.
*Troy Adama is a growing boy, his strength score will increase by one point for each of the next 4 years, his wisdom score will increase by 1 point every 2 years for the next 4 years. Troy’s height will increase by 2 inches every year for the next 5 years to reach a maximum adult height of 6 ft. 3 in., his weight will increase proportional to the cube of his height increase starting at 100 lb.
Starting Occupation: Student Adventurer (Starbuck home schools his son on the starship buying textbooks and whatever else is needed, Troy then takes the approved examinations each year so he can acquire his high school equivalency diploma), Merchant Ship Apprentice.
Description: Age 14 years; Height 5 ft. 5 in.; Weight 100 lb.
Skills: Balance +8, Craft (Mechanical) +6, Drive +10 – Even though he doesn’t have a driver’s license, Escape Artist +8, Knowledge (Current Events) +6, Knowledge (Popular Culture) +6, Pilot +10 – No Pilots license either, but Starbuck’s not telling.
Languages Speak Colonial, Read/Write Colonial, Speak English, Read/Write English.
Feats: Vehicle Expert, Starship Operation (Ultralight), Simple Weapons Proficiency.
Special Abilities: Evasion.
Possessions: Flight Suit and Helmet, Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), Survival Kit, various personal belongings.
Note: Troy live aboard Starbuck’s Fast Freighter, should anything happen to Starbuck, she has written in her will that Troy inherits her starship, when Starbuck is off on viper duty onboard the Galactica, Troy is in charge of the crew aboard the Fast Freighter.
The UCK invites many Earth immigrants to settle on their planet, their one requirement is that the prospective settlers learn to speak, write, and understand Colonial, but some corporations and individuals would like their own Earth-like planets where they could write their own laws rather than be subject to the laws of another government, then one such individual notices the volumes of the first edition of the Encyclopedia Galactica, English Version, on his bookshelf. He thumbs through it and looks at the history of the United 12 Colonies of Kobol and in that volume he finds the location of those 12 colonies and of Kobol itself, this individualrubs his hands together and says, "Oh boy, 13 ripe Earthlike planets just their for the taking, we don't have to look for them as we already know where they are!" this individual doesn't stop to consider the Cylons. No one on Earth has ever seen a Cylon except for Boomer and she looks human enough, he fails to see the menace in the creature that Boomer is, she seems friendly and affiable enough and she currently resides on Earth in New York City, the Ambassador to the UN representing the UCK.
The greedy businessman thinks that since the UCK has abandoned its colonies and the Cylons have killed the humans there, they are supposedly free for the taking. 'Its been 21 years so far,' he reasons, 'surely the Cylons are no longer present on those planets.' "Oh boy 12 prime Earthlike worlds, oh what a boon and opportunity!' He puts together an expedition of several Earth starships under the sponsorship of his company and sets out toward those colonies. The Cylons capture some of the ships and take the humans prisoner, the Cylons are still eager to learn the location of the escaped humans, it is through those captured prisoners that they learn about the location of Earth. The Cylons dispatch a fleet of 12 Base stars and head directly toward Earth's system. The cylons try their virus trick on Earth's computers, but they come across an unpleasant suprise to them. Earth's internet is already infected by a virus, a powerful cylon virus that guards all the portals of Entry to Earth's networks. This virus consists of a huge virtual army of copies of Boomers AI software. The entirety of Boomers personality is copied many times over and resides within the network preventing entry of other cylon viruses and doing little else besides that. The Cylons can not shut down Earth's weapons network like they did with Kobol, so now its up to spaceship to spaceship combat. The Cylons have more base stars than Earth has Battlestars, but they make up for that lack with a lot of Earth-based vipers and the fleets even up viper to raider.
What would be great is if the Cylons beat the Battlestar to Earth and successfully cross-breed with the humans, so that by the time the Battlestar arrives, a significant portion of the population on earth consists of Cylon hybrids.
Or how about arriving at the Solar System and finding a Ringworld there or a Dyson Sphere or a planet of inhabitants that are so evolved that they consist of energy beings instead of flaesh and blood humans, and they are so powerful that they just snap their fingers and all the Cylons are gone and all their problems solved?
Problem with that, is that scenarios like that have no role playing potential. If all their problems are solved when they reach Earth then their is no play. Likewise if the Cylons have already occupied the Earth then the entire gamit was all for nothing and their all doomed. I don't like playing RPGs where all the heros are doomed and have no chance of survival, or everything is a cakewalk and all their problems are solved. Neither situation is very suspenseful. If they go to Earth and find a bunch of creatures that have evolved beyond all recognition, then that's not Earth, it may be a Future Earth, but for our purposes "Future Earth" is not Earth. For the challenges to be recognizable so we can talk about it, its got to be an Earth that we recognize. The 2025 Earth I'm talking about is the result of their contact with the BSG fleet in 2007, a time not too far removed from our own. If the Cylons got there first, what they are going to find is an Earth that looks much like the Caprica they left. That's kind of like having a birthday party and opening up a present that's only an empty box. Similarly if the Cylons follow on the heals of the Galactica all the way to Earth, then Earth is doomed, just as if the Cylons got their first.
Likewise if the Cylons have already occupied the Earth then the entire gamit was all for nothing and their all doomed. I don't like playing RPGs where all the heros are doomed and have no chance of survival, or everything is a cakewalk and all their problems are solved. Neither situation is very suspenseful. If they go to Earth and find a bunch of creatures that have evolved beyond all recognition, then that's not Earth, it may be a Future Earth, but for our purposes "Future Earth" is not Earth.
Hey, who's to say that the Cylons aren't here already. They seem to have more answers than our relatives in space. It is possible that they've already infiltrated the place and it'll be up to the heroes to expose them.
Hey, who's to say that the Cylons aren't here already. They seem to have more answers than our relatives in space. It is possible that they've already infiltrated the place and it'll be up to the heroes to expose them.
Well it looks like the Cylons are determined to exterminate humanity, anything else they do is towards that goal. Now if the Cylons got there first, why wouldn't they wipe out all Earth humans instead of messing around with cross-breeding experiments? I don't know about Boomer and Helo, seems like the other Cylons were probing for weaknesses using Helo as am experimental lab rant to determine the weaknesses of a human specimin, what Boomer decided to do next was an individual cylon's decision and not part of the experiment.
What the Cylons would do if they encountered Earth first would be the same thing they did to Caprica. the Earth of today is not ready to deal with the Cylons and the BSG fleet arriving here with the Cylons on their heals would mean the same thing. The BSG fleet would not be able to defend Earth as they are outnumbered by Cylons and Earth would not be able to defend Earth as they have no spaceships to defend themselves with. That's why the only chance the Earth has to defend itself is if the fleet loses the Cylon pursuers for a while and then discover's Earth, then give Earth a couple decade to assimilate and produce BSG technology in sufficient quantities to give them a fighting chance to defend themselves when the Cylons eventually do pick up the trail and discover Earth, That is basically why my setting is set in the year 2025. Because 2 decades is the minimum amount of time it would need to build fleets and be ready to meet the Cylons on somewhat equal terms, that whay its suspenseful and not a slaughter. Remember the Fleet can always flee from Superior numbers, the Earth can't.
BSG's greatest defense against all threats isn't their weapons or their vipers, it is their Jump Drive Button, they can always press it and be somewhere else if they've made the proper calculation. Earth on the otherhand msut stand and fight and the Earth of today cannot wim without 2 decades of preparation realistically speaking.
Well, Talos was doing the write ups for the NPCs until school got really busy for him. I think he has plans to do more, but if he doesn't I'll have to take a shot at them after I finish my write up of the Cyrannus Star System and the History of the Colonies. I also need to write the other two campaign models, and figure out how to condense Tom's Earth at Last campaign setting into a campaign model format. I am just about done with my take on Random Star System Generation. Its an expansion of the (very meager) star system generation rules presented in D20 Future. Its not as comprehensive as Tom's but I have incorporated some aspects. Anyway, I'm sorry I have not been as active on the board lately. I should be able to post more soon. :D
Perhaps I can help, by pointing out what's important. Include the Advanced NPC stats. I'm not going to age all the NPCs from the standard campaign, but only some of them. I'm not going to detail Baltar for example.
The ones I am going to include are Kara Thrace Adama "Starbuck", Lee Adama "Apollo", Troy Adama, Sharon Valarii "Boomer", Xena Valarii Agathon, and Dr Xavier. The important places in this setting are Earth and Gaia. I think Sharon advances to 15th level, have her about 10th level in the standard campaign I think. Kara Thrace Adama is a 20th level character, up from 12th in the standard campaign. Kara is perhaps the highest level NPC of them all, the reason is because of her roguish nature and her propensity to get into trouble. Apollo is more of a straight arrow kind of guy, he probably tops out at around 16th level, since he's become the commander of the Galactica, not much has happened, while Starbuck has been out fighting pirates and running her starship, Apollo has been conducting routine training exercises trying to keep his crew ready for any future Cylon attacks, in such training of course Apollo hasn't accumulated as much experience points as has Starbuck, and Pirates have a tendency not to bother Capital Warships such as the Galactica. Pirate vessels are way overmatched by the Galactica, so they stay away, but Starbucks Fast Freighter is fair game for them. In any event Apollo's wait is almost over, his skills as commander of the Galactica will soon be tested. A name I've plucked from the old Galactica 1980 series is Dr. Xavier, but instead of making him a Colonial Human, I've made him a Gaian, If you want a Star Wars Analogue for him, the closet analogue is Grand Admiral Thrawn. Dr. Xavier appears inhumanly intelligent, and that's because he is not human, he is not as ambitious as Thrawn however, he's quite content to be President of Galactica University and in charge of the Encyclopedia project, he's not much of a military person, he is also a poor judge of character, he didn't anticipate the trouble that would arise from publishing the location of the 12 colonies for instance. Lets just describe him as a kind of Mad scientist, he's a bit of a loner, tends to invent things every now and then, but he keeps poor notes and is bad at explaining the underlying principles of his inventions so that others might duplicate them, because of his innate mathematical sense, he has trouble understanding why he must explain what to him seems obvious. Dr. Xaviar is a kind of techno-wizard, sometimes his inventions might save the day, and at other times all his inventions do is cause trouble.
yeah, I need to find more information on the Pegasus before I can stat her out properly.
What I would do would be to take the stats for the Galactica, then add a few more landing bays, increase the number of vipers and perhaps increase her speed somewhat. Look at the two ships and see how they look different. Generally more modern aircraft carriers are larger than the old ones, the same would probably apply towards battlestars as well.
That is why I need to re-evaluate the stats for the starships I wrote up. I believe the Galactica is supposed to have 4 big guns, but they were stripped in the afore-mentioned deleted scene. The Pegasus presumably still has hers.
Right.
That is why I need to re-evaluate the stats for the starships I wrote up. I believe the Galactica is supposed to have 4 big guns, but they were stripped in the afore-mentioned deleted scene. The Pegasus presumably still has hers.
If the scene has been deleted, then its not cannon. There was a scene where the Olympia had windows full of passengers before Starbuck and Apollo blew it up, but the producers thought it too grim, so they had a ship that was apparently empty. What makes the final cut is what's official I think, everything else is optional, that's my opinion anyway. Similarly in Star Wars, Episode VI there was a scene where the Millenium Falcon got destroyed in the final battle with the second Death Star. Remember the allusion Han Solo had about never seeing her again? But it the final cut the Millenium Falcon survived and that's what's official in the Star Wars Role Playing Game, we can use that as precident. If the Battlestar needs big guns we can give it big guns, the scenes that were cut don't count unless there is a later scene that refers to it.
In the scene in question only the ammunition was destroyed. Dualla specifically says, "All small and large ordinance has been jetisoned," or something like that. I believe the 24 large gun turrets are the primary offensive weapons of Galactica. I belive the forward turrets under the alligator head are firing on the Cylon fleet early in "33". They easily could have a normal HE shell they can fire in addition the anti-fighter flechette shells they fire all the time.
For the Mercury, we know she's bigger and she has four landing decks. Pegasus might have a double-deck hanger deck, with one servicing each deck. If she has two hanger decks, she probably has a full second level of Viper launch tubes (all Mk. VII's btw). She also has several more engine pods than the Galactica, eight IIRC. Finally she has a full layer of secondary armor, so she is probably tougher then the Big G as well.
You suppose the Pegasus is going to sacrifice herself to destroy some base stars as had happened in the Original series, or do you think its going to be a series with two battlestars from now on? I think probably the former as the latter would force the producers to expand their cast and divade the action between the Galactica and the Pegasus, but they have been dividint their action between the Fleet and Caprica a long time now. Keeping the Pegasus intact for several more episodes would be quite a departure. If the series follows the pattern of the old series, then the next episode when the season begins, the two battlestars will confont each other and suddenly the Cylons will attack, and the Pegasus will nobliy sacrifice herself so that the Galactica and the Fleet can get away, all the survuvung vipers from the Pegasus will then land on the Galactica, thereby replenishing the Galactica's supply of vipers that can assume to have been lost over the action of the last season. The other alternative is that the two battlestars "duke it out" and the Galactica finally destroys the Pegasus. Surviving enemy vipers then surrender as they have no where to go and are taken prisioner. I wouldn't discount the second scenario too much as the producers might do it just to be different from the original series. Another alternative is to have commander Kane and her XO get killed, but otherwise leaving the Pegasus intact, Colonel Tigh then becomes commander of the second Battlestar and the action from now on then splits between the Galactica and the Pegasus, that way they keep the same number of main characters and they just distribute the number of extras they usually use between the two Battlestars, then they could call the series "Battlestars Galactica". I know it all a bit silly, but who knows, the series producers might try to be different so as not to be too predictable. I think it might be interesting to keep Admiral Kane around for a while, it would create some interesting tension, I think at some point however, she'll go too far and the President will ask for her resignation of fire her. There are a number of possibilites besides echoing the old series.
Given the producers' pacing thus far, I could conceivably envision that the answer to this won't come until the end of next season ... or perhaps even after that. Remember how long it took Adama (real time wise) to put the fleet back together? The Pegasus may be the big season driving force in January.
this is where the starship construction rules for D20 Future get frustrating... I have to figure out how to cram 24 main guns and 8 nuclear missile tubes into 8 weapon slots...
Sorry, but I'm not all that familiar w/ d20 Future. Is it possible, because of the size of the battlestar, to think of weapon slots not in two dimensional terms, but rather 3 dimensional? I.e., As you climb up the hull of the ship, you'd find stacks of batteries - one atop the other?
#1 I am no longer compatible with other D20 Products
#2 I open several new cans of worms that impact starship combat and other play balance issues.
So I am biting the bullet and using the starship construction rules as they are written in D20 Future, and that really restricts how accurate my conversions can be.
For those of us not familiar with the D20 future construction rules, a superheavy starship like the Galactica can only mount 8-10 weapons... so I need ot figure out how 4 main guns, 8 nuclear missile tubes and 24 medium guns translate into 10 weapon slots... Don't worry, I'll figure it out. ;)
Maybe have interchangeable gun mounts?
Seems like the rules might need a tad tweaking. Although I hate to suggest an additional work load for you, have you thought of creating a playable house rule conversion that would account? What about house ruling in Star Wars? I can't verify this, but has Star Wars accounted for the massive number of gun batteries on the Empire's Star Destroyers. (I know that this is likely getting you away from wanting to use d20 Modern/d20 Future rules, but thought it wouldn't hurt to throw it out there.)
Edit: It didn't work.
You can see the ventral turrets here. Remember that there are 8 more on the top.
In short 6 Gauss Cannons, 2 missile launchers, and 2 grappling systems... in case you are wondering, the "flak cannons are represented by multiple point defense systems, and after further research, I discovered that neither of the new battlestars has "4 main guns"... that was for the OLD battle stars from the original series.
I'll update the stats when I get home.
Starships
I’ve been looking over the various starships that have been posted for BSG, the first thing that comes to mind is that I think they are too slow. The Fast Freighter, for instance has a tactical speed of 7 squares. Also I’m converting the standard square from 5,000 ft. to 1 mile (5,280 ft.) Since a mile is only a little bit more that 5,000 ft., why not tweek the engines a little so they accelerate in 1 mile squares. I also added a new statistic called fuel points Each fuel point allows each spaceship to accelerate 1 square in 1 combat round. If the ship accelerates 2 or more squares per round, that ship uses that number of fuel points to make that acceleration:
Fast Freighter (PL6)
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Fast freighter
Defense: 7
Flat-footed Defense: 5
Autopilot Defense: 5
Hardness: 20
Hit Dice: 16d20 (320 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +2
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +3
Pilots Dex Modifier: +2
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +2
Size: Colossal (-8 Size)
Tactical Speed: 7 miles (7 sq)
Fuel Points: 100,000
Length: 110 feet
Weight: 450 tons
Targeting System Bonus: +3
Crew: 4 (trained +4)
Passenger Capacity: 4
Cargo Capacity: 300 tons
Grapple Modifier: +16
Base Purchase DC: 52
Restriction: Restricted (+2)
Attack:
4 fire-linked rail cannons -8 ranged (9d12)
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: Ion engine, thrusters, Jump Drive Type II
Armor: Polymeric
Defense Systems: Autopilot system, damage control system (1d10), magnetic field, radiation shielding, sensor jammer
Sensors: Class II Sensor array, targeting system
Communications: Laser transceiver, radio transceiver
Weapons: 4 fire-linked rail cannons (range incr. 30,000 ft.)
Grappling Systems: Grapplers.
The slowest viper in the fleet should be faster than this, so I’ve taken the liberty to alter the tactical speeds. The Fast Freighter is designed to do two things, carry cargo and also defend herself if attacked by pirate ships for instance, since it does two things, its not optimized for doing any one thing particularly well. A Fast Freighter should not be able to outrun a Colonial “Viper Mk I” So I’ve increased the tactical speed for that fighter and others by 2 squares Here are the new stats:
Colonial "Viper Mk I" space superiority fighter (PL 6)
Designed for action against other small craft, fighters lack the punch to be effective against large targets unless they’ve been modified to carry warheads.
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Fighter
Size: Gargantuan (–4 size)
Length: 25 feet
Weight: 39,000 lb.
Crew: 1 (ace +12)
Passenger Capacity: 0
Cargo Capacity: 1,700 lb.
Tactical Speed: 8 miles (8 sq.)
Fuel Points: 200,000
Defense: 19
Flat-footed Defense: 13
Autopilot Defense: 6
Hardness: 20
Hit Dice: 6d20 (120 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +6
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +7
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +6
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +8/+3
Targeting System Bonus:+2
Grapple Modifier: +8
Base Purchase DC: 38
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 2 fire-linked modified rail cannons +10/+5 ranged (9d12/20)
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: Fusion torch engine, thrusters
Armor: Alloy Plating
Defense Systems: Chaff launcher with 8 chaff bundles, sensor jammer
Sensors: Class I sensor array, targeting system
Communications: Radio transceiver
Weapons: 2 fire-linked modified rail cannons (range incr. 3,000 ft.)
Grappling Systems: None
REALISTIC TRAVEL TIMES IN COMBAT ROUNDS * T = 2(D/A)^½
************** ----------------------------- Time to Destination -----------------------------
Distance ******* Speed 5 * Speed 6 * Speed 7 * Speed 8 * Speed 9
Earth to the Moon ** 438 rnds* 400 rnds* 370 rnds* 346 rnds* 327 rnds
(240,000 mi.) * fuel* 2190 fp** 2400 fp** 2590 fp** 2768 fp** 2943 fp
Earth to the Sun *** 8625 rnd* 7874 rnd* 7290 rnd* 6819 rnd* 6429 rnds
(93,000,000 mi.) ** 43125 fp* 47224 fp* 51030 fp* 54552 fp* 57861 fp
Earth to Mercury *** 6750 rnd* 6162 rnd* 5705 rnd* 5336 rnd* 5031 rnd
(56,950,000 mi.) ** 33750 fp* 36972 fp* 39935 fp* 42688 fp* 45279 fp
Earth to Venus **** 4564 rnd * 4167 rnd* 3858 rnd* 3608 rnd* 3402 rnd
(26,040,000 mi.) ** 22820 fp* 25002 fp* 27006 fp* 28864 fp* 30618 fp
Earth to Mars ***** 6220 rnd * 5678 rnd* 5257 rnd* 4917 rnd* 4636 rnd
(48,360,000 mi.) ** 31100 fp* 34068 fp* 36799 fp* 39336 fp* 41724 fp
Earth to Jupiter *** 17677 rd* 16137 rd* 14940 rd* 13975 rd* 13176 rd
(390,600,000 mi.) * 87885 fp* 96822 fp* 104580 r* 111800 r* 118584 r
Earth to Saturn
(704,940,000 mi.)
Earth to Uranus
(1,687,020,000 mi.)
Earth to Neptune
(2,715,600,000 mi.)
Earth to Pluto
(3,574,920,000 mi.)
Altering the way starships are constructed is outside the scope of this project. Adding fuel points is interesting and adds a new level of tactical complexity, but then you need to figure out how much fuel each starship can hold, and how much each fuel point costs, etc...
If you think that the fast freighter should be slower than a viper then give it thrusters and alloy-plating for armor... that drops its speed to 5.
Besides, a brand new fast freighter should be faster than a 50 year old fighter.
I think that this is what I was talking about when I mentioned Scope Creep...
Altering the way starships are constructed is outside the scope of this project. Adding fuel points is interesting and adds a new level of tactical complexity, but then you need to figure out how much fuel each starship can hold, and how much each fuel point costs, etc...
If you think that the fast freighter should be slower than a viper then give it thrusters and alloy-plating for armor... that drops its speed to 5.
Besides, a brand new fast freighter should be faster than a 50 year old fighter.
But consider that a 50 year old viper that was on the Galactica wouldn't be used, just like modern aircraft carriers don't use bi-planes anymore. A viper that couldn't do better than 7 squares per round would be the BSG equivalent of a bi-plane
Its more of an alteration than an increase of scope. The producers of the new BSG have said that its an analog for aircraft carrier combat in space, as such certain factors should be considered. World War II aviators did indeed worry about their rate of fuel consumption, limited range are what made aircraft carriers necessary in the first place, a similar sort of factor should be called into play for a BSG campaign.
Also the vipers should be able to accelerate faster than the Galactica itself! The Galactica has much more efficient engines than the vipers, but the trade-off for that is the Galactica can't accelerate as hard as the vipers can. I'd say the Galactica should have 1,000,000+ fuel points, the Galactica refuels so infrequently that is not a campaign consideration. The Galactica is not going to run out of fuel during combat and lets just leave it at that. The vipers are a different story, they can't stay out their fighting Cylon raiders indefinately, sooner or later they are going to have to land and be replaced with another squadron of vipers. I've made sure that the ships have enough fuel that they can get around anywhere in the Solar System by accelerating and they can reach the outer solar system by shutting off their engines and coasting. If you watch the new BSG program closely, you'll notice that the viper engines are not always on, when they are not changing direction or accelerating, they are just coasting with their engines off, unlike the old series. I think the modifications I've proposed aren't very much and they increase the realism. The vipers should travel at 8 or 9 one-mile squares per round, civilian ultralights should travel at 6 or 7 one-mile squares per round, and the capital ships should travel at 5 or 6 squares per round. Capital ships don't typically need to refuel very often, the ultralights do. I think this fairly re-creates the "aircraft carriers" in space atmosphere and that is how I defend these modifications. Without them, the vipers can accelerate indefinitely, in a matter of months they can approach the speed of light and travel to other star systems taking years without a Jump Drive. I don't think a viper pilot can stand to sit in his cockpit for years, but I think you can see my point. Well, what do you think? Its not really much work, just add 2 squares to each viper's and cylon raider's tactical speed, give each military ultralight vessel 200,000 fuel points and each civilian ultralight 100,000 fuel points and I think you'll find that the whole thing works out nicely for in-system travel and combat.
As far as limiting how long starships can accelerate on a large scale, its easier just to use the realistic travel times listed in D20 future... remember this is a suplement for D20 Future, not an entirely new game system... I have only added the advanced starship combat rules and the star system generation rules because D20 Future doesn't have enough detail to model what we see in BSG. The key to good writing is knowing when you have written enough and when you have written too much.
I am not saying your idea isnt good, just that I think its more than we need.
Vipers do accelerate more quickly than the Galactica, because as mentioned in the advanced starship combat rules, only ultralight starships can surge forward. All other ships are limited to a double move. I am using the D20 Future rules to construct the starships. Ships with a move of 7 or 8 would need PL7 engines, and ships with moves of 9 or more would need PL8 or PL9 engines. I don't want to get into altering the rules for HOW starships are built.
Well then, give the Vipers PL7 and PL9 engines. There's an example of a PL8 fighter in the d20 Future Book on page 131, see Katana-Class Assault Fighter. I really don't care what the engines are called, its no big deal to me if they are called Inertial flux engines so long as they move at a speed of 9. The Assault Fighter moves at a speed of 8. Its already been established that the BSG setting uses varying progress levels and puts them together. So staying within the rules, you can use inertial flux engines and induction engine thrusters.
If you change the characteristics of the engines, then why not change the characteristics of weapon placement, and if you are going to do that, then why not switch to a slot based system... This is Scope Creep. I am not going to do that. Of course nothing stops you from house ruling it in your own game. You could even say that engines have their listed speed in squares per action minus 1 for each size category over Huge. So a Huge viper with a fusion torch engine and polymeric armor would have a base move of 7 (28 when surging forward), a Gargantuan shuttle with thrusters and alloy plating for armor would have a base move of 4 (surging forward at 16), and a battlestar with ion engines and vanadium armor would have a base move of 5, but since it is unable to surge forward, its max acceleration is a double move of 10.
As far as limiting how long starships can accelerate on a large scale, its easier just to use the realistic travel times listed in D20 future... remember this is a suplement for D20 Future, not an entirely new game system... I have only added the advanced starship combat rules and the star system generation rules because D20 Future doesn't have enough detail to model what we see in BSG. The key to good writing is knowing when you have written enough and when you have written too much.
I am not saying your idea isnt good, just that I think its more than we need.
I'd rather keep as much of the rules the same as possible. We'll make the exception of having all the starships move in 1 mile squares instead of 500 ft. squares. I think this rule allows you to put the entire Battlestar Galactica on a single square, and it also speeds up the action besides, so instead of pilots taking days sitting in their cockpits it takes only hours to travel to other planets, that kind of makes it airplane-like. You could leave the fuel point rule as an optional one, just include that statistic in each of the ship's listings, put in in italics and put a star next to it, and indicate that its an optional game setting specific rule available to the players and GM if they really want it alongside using the tactical speed stat for acceleration instead of movement, otherwise you can ignore it, and that's it. Seems to me that a fighter ought to be able to sustain a speed faster than its carrier rather than do so only when it surges forward. In otherwords if a Viper and the Galactica are both heading toward a planet, the Viper ought to get there first, not just when they are surging. I imagine surging is similar to an fighter aircraft of today using their afterburners. I make no distinction between tactical movement and long term travel, at least when using realistic rules involving acceleration.
I believe that fuel points should only come into play after a viper has moved a long distance, such as when they travel to a planet distant from the Galactica and have used up the listed amount of fp, if they have done that, then you keep track of fuel points in combat, otherwise you don't. (When you make long distance movement, you'd deduct the fuel points that were needed to get there, and if there are only 250 FP left afterwards, you need to keep track of them if combat occurs if you use this rule, having the problem of running out of fuel can make things more dramatic.) Can you have an optional statistic called fuel points and make it clear to the reader that he can use them or ignore them as he sees fit? Fuel points should come into play if the PCs move outside the inner system or they make multiple trips between the planets without refueling, the GM can then use my table to figure out how many fuel points have been used up and then inform the PC's to deduct fuel points everytime they accelerate their ships. If the vipers have been fully fueled and are just out of their launch tubes when the Cylons attack, then you can safely ignore this rule. I realize how onerous it is to subtract FP every round that a move is made while in combat.
That is all I ask, can you make a setting specific optional rule that allows the GM to use fuel points in his campaign if he wants to? I don't mind if the Viper Engines are called something different, only so long as they can move at speeds 8 and 9. I don't think the typical campaign for BSG would call for encounters with advanced extra-terrestrial alien races of a higher PL anyway, so I see no reason why a BSG campaign can't use the full range of PL as described in the D20 Future book and mix and match to varius components together to make it feel like BSG. The GM is free to ignore all these specific rules and simply move the ships according to the book instead. The Cylons are of the same Progress Level exept that their jump drives are better. Seems to me that Starbuck has been able to destroy a fiar amount of Cylon raiders, so that implies that the viper is not overmatched in combat by the raiders. Besides, the Jump Drive as listed in the book is PL 9, so progress level consistency is not a hallmark of this setting.
Also if you use my rules about jump drive DCs, each jump drive should have about 20% of the ship's hit points when determining the consequences of a misjump, since the d20 future rules don't cover a jump drive that is quite like this one, I think that would be acceptable.
Well then, give the Vipers PL7 and PL9 engines.
Oh sure... do it the easy way. ;)
Some times the solution is so obvious you can't see it... like looking for your sunglasses when they are on your head. :embarrass
I suppose it couldn't hurt to throw in an optional rule for tracking fuel consumption...
Another way to add the drama/restiction of a limited fuel supply is to do it outside the scope of mechanics, and work it into the story. For instance, you can place Viper pilots near the end of one of thier CAPs and have incoming enemies. Tell the players they are nearly out of fuel and give them 15 (or 10, or 25, etc.) rounds to engage and be back aboard before thier fuel is exausted. Set the round counter in plain view, giving the players an easy way to check the fuel gauge, and let them figure out how far out they can travel and still have enough fuel to return.
And you can simply impose a maximum range for each viper that it can travel before it needs to expend its remaining fuel for the return trip, if it engages in Cylons raiders just as it reaches the vicintity of the Galactica, then you need to limit the number of rounds it has to engage the Cylons before returning to the landing deck.
And if you don't want accelerations, then you can simply use tactical speed as a movement rate, in that case, you would simply divide the distance traveled by the tactical speed to get the trip duration. I think using realistic Travel times as listed in the book is too much. I can't imagine viper pilots sitting in their cockpits for 67.2 days just to get to the next planet in the system. I think the official FTL drives are too slow also. Even the fantastic travel times are too slow for interstellar travel. Having it take 2.1 months to go to the nearest star is simply too much.
Oh sure... do it the easy way. ;)
Some times the solution is so obvious you can't see it... like looking for your sunglasses when they are on your head. :embarrass
I suppose it couldn't hurt to throw in an optional rule for tracking fuel consumption...
Thanks, I appreciate it. I'm not going to ask for anymore changes or additions. I'll go work on some characters.
Here is an alternative thought to a technology build up of earth. Earth in the BSG universe IS the 13th colony of Kobol. Meaning humans aren't native to this planet. There must've been a way for them to get here from Kobol. So maybe a few years ago/from now, experiments in nuclear fusion reach a threshold where fusion can be stabilized. With sensors waiting to detect this, the ship that brought the colonist from Kobol, lost underground in some remote region, emits a steady EM signal. Scientists, or the military, or whoever unearths this ship. Inside they find artifacts and a Rosetta Stone of sorts that lets them quickly translate the lost language. More importantly, most of the databases on the ship have survived the few millennia. With the advanced knowledge, earths tech level jumps very rapidly, and they begin to explore thier closest stars, finding another habitable planet and colonizing it. Wanting independance from a foreign govenment (the earth based government) this new planet eventually rebels, forcing a build-up of space faring warships from both sides.
When the Galactica arrives, (with Cylons in hot pursuit) they find themselves dropped smack in the middle of yet another multi-planet war, a war between earth, and this new planet.
As a side note, the people of the new planet could adopt a pantheon of gods similar to the ones worshipped by the other 12 colonies. Earth is the Galacticas true hope and mission, but do they want to throw thier lot in with a people who mainly worship a single god, just like the Cylons? Or will they be more comfortable with the people and the religion of the new planet?
When the Cylons arrive en-mass to wipe out the newfound planets of humanity, will earth and it's rebelling colony join sides to repel the invaders, or will they be picked apart one at a time?
Just a thought.
And you can simply impose a maximum range for each viper that it can travel before it needs to expend its remaining fuel for the return trip, if it engages in Cylons raiders just as it reaches the vicintity of the Galactica, then you need to limit the number of rounds it has to engage the Cylons before returning to the landing deck.
Exactly. Also you can limit an extended voyage by giving a "time over target" A Viper can go out on an Op, having been told that the fuel usage gives that pilot a time over target of two and a half minutes (25 rounds) before the risk of not having enought fuel for a return home.
Along similar lines, modern day military aircraft are given specific time over targets for ops, but also have a few minutes of reserve fuel that they cannot violate unless during times of war, or given specific orders to do so.
One episode has already established jetisonable fuel pods for the vipers, extending thier range. That leads to another possable vessel that a full fledged fleet would have: the refueller. The refueller would've been a part of any colonial fleet before the attack. I strongly suggest stating a refueller if you are to use any fuel variant rules. Whether a refueller is with the rag-tag fleet or not, some would be built when Galatica reaches earth and has the resources to build ships.
I don't think it really matters whether the technology comes from the BSG fleet or an ancient starship, though its probably better if it comes from the fleet as they can explain it, while with a ruined ship, they have to figure it out. The most likely place to find a ruined ship is probably the Moon or Mars. On Earth such a relic would quickly succumb to the elements. Even if the BSG fleet quickly downloads all their technology files on our computers, its going to take a while to get our engineers to understand this technology, and to construct the factories and shipyards to manufacture this technology ourselves, building capitial ships especially would first require the construction of orbital shipyards, and to do that we need ships that can cheaply get us into orbit. Vipers will probably come before Battlestars are built.
I agree with you on the rather long construction timeline. I guess the point I was trying to make was when, in earths history, the BSG arrives. If the BSG gets here a few hundred years from now, then they may find the scenario I mentioned. I'm not suggesting that the BSG end up flying around for centuries, just the possability that the events that we see on the TV do not happen for a few hundred years, our time.
Exactly. Also you can limit an extended voyage by giving a "time over target" A Viper can go out on an Op, having been told that the fuel usage gives that pilot a time over target of two and a half minutes (25 rounds) before the risk of not having enought fuel for a return home.
Along similar lines, modern day military aircraft are given specific time over targets for ops, but also have a few minutes of reserve fuel that they cannot violate unless during times of war, or given specific orders to do so.
One episode has already established jetisonable fuel pods for the vipers, extending thier range. That leads to another possable vessel that a full fledged fleet would have: the refueller. The refueller would've been a part of any colonial fleet before the attack. I strongly suggest stating a refueller if you are to use any fuel variant rules. Whether a refueller is with the rag-tag fleet or not, some would be built when Galatica reaches earth and has the resources to build ships.
You Can't Go Home Again established that Viper's range is degraded in atmosphere since the engines have to burn continuously. In space they can run the engines at idle for most of the time. The episode also established tankers and inflight refueling. I belive that the tanker is either the shuttle or a Raptor using a buddy refueling system like the US S-3 Viking and F/A-18E/F Super Hornets. This is a pod containing all the fuel and the refueling equipment in one unit. The reason I think this is that we haven't seen a dedicated tanker and these craft would do the job nicely (Sorry about coherance. I just finished writing and english paper and my mind isn't exactly operating on all thrusters at the moment.
)I agree with you on the rather long construction timeline. I guess the point I was trying to make was when, in earths history, the BSG arrives. If the BSG gets here a few hundred years from now, then they may find the scenario I mentioned. I'm not suggesting that the BSG end up flying around for centuries, just the possability that the events that we see on the TV do not happen for a few hundred years, our time.
We don't know when BSG is. It could be the future, or it could be the present. If the Future, we could have a setup like in the Old Series the planet "Terra" and her colonies was encountered, this was during a cold war that had grown hot around the edges with colonial wars between the Eastern and Western Alliances. That episode in particular looked like Earth projected into the future with a Eastern Alliance that resembled the Soviet Block attacking Western Alliance colonies with posion gas and bacterialogical warfare. The Eastern Alliance had Heavy Bombers called Destroyers, which they used to attack the Western colonies. In the last episode of that series, Battlestar Galactica prevented a nuclear war between the Eastern and Western alliance, that's also when Apollo encountered one of these higher beings who informed him that this planet was not in fact Earth, as if it really mattered. Well I digress.
One possible Future Earth that may be encountered is the Earth of "I Robot" or something similar. I think that might prove to be interesting. The BSG fleet is fleeing the Cylons and they encounter this Earth with robots that follow the 3 laws of robotics, the Cylons of course do not. What's going to happen when the two meet?
You Can't Go Home Again established that Viper's range is degraded in atmosphere since the engines have to burn continuously. In space they can run the engines at idle for most of the time. The episode also established tankers and inflight refueling. I belive that the tanker is either the shuttle or a Raptor using a buddy refueling system like the US S-3 Viking and F/A-18E/F Super Hornets. This is a pod containing all the fuel and the refueling equipment in one unit. The reason I think this is that we haven't seen a dedicated tanker and these craft would do the job nicely (Sorry about coherance. I just finished writing and english paper and my mind isn't exactly operating on all thrusters at the moment.
Don't forget the vipers may be able to refuel themselves by skimming the atmospheres of Gas Giants, I don't know if the other ships can do this, but the vipers do look so equipped, they are streamlines and have intake valves in the front.
Anyway, here is what I have written so far... please bear in mind that this is a rough draft and I will be adding more detail as I have time.
The History of Man is divided into two parts. The Colonial Era, and Before the Colonial Era. The Colonial Era begins with the Exodus of the 12 Tribes from the planet Kobol and continues to the present day. Dates in the Colonial Era are abbreviated as CE, but usually this abbreviation is simply left off. For example, the articles of Colonization were ratified in 1953 CE or simply 1953. The period know as Before the Colonial Era ends with the Exodus from Kobol and stretches backwards to the beginning of recorded history. Dates from Before the Colonial Era are abbreviated as BCE or sometimes as the more coloquial BC (Before the Colonies). For example, the Scrolls of Pythia were written in 1,600 BCE or 1,600 BC. It is impotant to note that there is no year "zero". The Colonial Era begins in 1CE, and the period Before the Colonial Era ends in 1BCE.
Very little history was preserved during the Exodus from Kobol so the knowledge of events prior to that is sketcy at best. Most of the information about this period is derived from the Sacred Scrolls, but their historical value is debatable, and exact dates are almost impossible to pin down. To make matters worse, when the colonists finally arrived on New Kobol (Caprica) they quickly descended into a dark age that lasted almost 1,000 years. Although they finally entered a renaissance which led to the interplanetary space faring society of today, almost all historical knowledge that was recovered over the past 1,000 years was lost during the Cylon Attack. What follows is a brief time-line and summary of important events in the History of Man.
In The Beginning… Humanity originates on Kobol and lives there in harmony with it's Gods, the Lords of Kobol.
1,600 BCE The Scrolls of Pythia are written.
1 BCE A great calamity befalls the planet of Kobol. The gods build the Galleon to send the Colonists to the Cyrannus star system. The first Cylons are built by Man.
1 CE The 12 Tribes flee Kobol. Athena commits suicide. Zeus warns that any return will exact a price in blood. Apollo gives the leader of the 12 Tribes his Arrow.
~100 CE The 12 Tribes arrive on Caprica (although they call it New Kobol) and enter the Age of Darkness.
~1,000 CE The 12 Tribes enter the Age of Light. Industrialization, Mass Production and Light Speed Communication Systems revolutionize life on New Kobol.
~1,500 CE The 12 Tribes enter the Age of Expansion. The 12 tribes colonize every planet. The Tribe of Capricorn stays on New Kobol and changes its name to Caprica.
~1,600 CE The Sagitarron Pirates terrorize the shipping lanes of the Cyrannus star system.
~1,650 CE The other colonies form a temporary alliance to battle Sagittaron. Sagittaron is defeated, and its people are enslaved for the next 300 years.
~1,750 CE Picon and Caprica become the two most powerful colonies in the star system through a series of wars and alliances.
~1,800 CE Caprica begins supporting the Sagittaron Independence Movement in an effort to weaken Picon.
~1,850 CE The Pico-Caprican War erupts, engulfing the whole star system. Cylons are used in a military role for the first time.
~1,900 CE The Pico-Caprican War ends. The Treaty of Molecay establishes the Council of Worlds as a forum to resolve Colonial differences without resorting to War.
~1,925 CE The Council of Worlds Establishes the Colonial Peace Corps.
1,950 CE The Council of Worlds Proposes the Articles of Colonization.
1,953 CE The Articles of Colonization are Ratified.
1,955 CE The Cylons Rebel, starting the 10 year Cylon War.
1,965 CE The Cylon War Ends with the Cimtar Peace Accords. Armistice station is built.
1,985 CE The Colonial Embassy on Sagittaron is blown up by Tom Zarek.
2,003 CE President Adar sends the Colonial Marines into Arielon killing 15 civilians.
2,005 CE The Cylons return and wipe out 99% of all humanity. The Battlestar "Galactica" gathers a fleet of civilian ships and leads them out of the Cyrannus star system.
Little is known about what happened to the Lords of Kobol or the so-called thriteenth tribe. It is known that not all of the people of Kobol boarded the Galleon. Many of them took the High Road to the Gates of Hera. Legends say that these people then boarded their own vessel and went to a planet called Earth. The Tomb of Athena was built, and the Map to Earth was created. It is unclear who created the map or how they would know what the constellations would look like from Earth. Theroies run the gamut from the pious view that the Lords of Kobol are gods and they know all, to the heretical view that perhaps Kobol wasn't the birthplace of Humanity after all and that instead of fleeing to Earth, the thirteenth tribe was returning there. Only the Lords of Kobol know the Truth.
Troy Adama: male Fast Hero 1; CR 1; medium human; HD 1d8+2; hp 10; Mas 15; Init +4 (+4 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 15, touch 14, flat-footed 15; BAB +0; Grp -1; Atk -1 melee (1d3-1 unarmed), +0 ranged (2d6/3d6 colonial sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5ft.;
AP 5; Rep +0; Wealth +4; SV Fort +2, Ref +5, Will -1; Str 9*, Dex 18, Con 15, Int 14, Wis 8, Cha 16.
*Troy Adama is a growing boy, his strength score will increase by one point for each of the next 4 years, his wisdom score will increase by 1 point every 2 years for the next 4 years. Troy’s height will increase by 2 inches every year for the next 5 years to reach a maximum adult height of 6 ft. 3 in., his weight will increase proportional to the cube of his height increase starting at 100 lb.
Starting Occupation: Student Adventurer (Starbuck home schools his son on the starship buying textbooks and whatever else is needed, Troy then takes the approved examinations each year so he can acquire his high school equivalency diploma), Merchant Ship Apprentice.
Skills: Balance +8, Craft (Mechanical) +6, Drive +10 – Even though he doesn’t have a driver’s license, Escape Artist +8, Knowledge (Current Events) +6, Knowledge (Popular Culture) +6, Pilot +10 – No Pilots license either, but Starbuck’s not telling.
Languages Speak Colonial, Read/Write Colonial, Speak English, Read/Write English.
Feats: Vehicle Expert, Starship Operation (Ultralight), Simple Weapons Proficiency.
Special Abilities: Evasion.
Possessions: Flight Suit and Helmet, Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), Survival Kit, various personal belongings.
Note: Troy live onboard Starbuck’s Fast Freighter, should anything happen to Starbuck, she has written in her will that Troy inherits half her starship, when Starbuck is off on viper duty onboard the Galactica, Troy is in charge of the crew onboard the Fast Freighter.
Zack Adama: male Fast Hero 1; CR 1; medium human; HD 1d8+2; hp 10; Mas 15; Init +4 (+4 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 15, touch 14, flat-footed 15; BAB +0; Grp -1; Atk -1 melee (1d3-1 unarmed), +0 ranged (2d6/3d6 colonial sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5ft.;
AP 5; Rep +0; Wealth +4; SV Fort +2, Ref +5, Will -1; Str 9*, Dex 18, Con 15, Int 14, Wis 8, Cha 16.
*Zack Adama is a growing boy and Troy’s identical twin brother, his strength score will increase by one point for each of the next 4 years, his wisdom score will increase by 1 point every 2 years for the next 4 years. Troy’s height will increase by 2 inches every year for the next 5 years to reach a maximum adult height of 6 ft. 3 in., his weight will increase proportional to the cube of his height increase starting at 100 lb.
Starting Occupation: Student Adventurer (Starbuck home schools his son on the starship buying textbooks and whatever else is needed, Troy then takes the approved examinations each year so he can acquire his high school equivalency diploma), Merchant Ship Apprentice.
Skills: Balance +8, Craft (Mechanical) +6, Drive +10 – Even though he doesn’t have a driver’s license, Escape Artist +8, Knowledge (Current Events) +6, Knowledge (Popular Culture) +6, Pilot +10 – No Pilots license either, but Starbuck’s not telling.
Languages Speak Colonial, Read/Write Colonial, Speak English, Read/Write English.
Feats: Vehicle Expert, Starship Operation (Ultralight), Simple Weapons Proficiency.
Special Abilities: Evasion.
Possessions: Flight Suit and Helmet, Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), Survival Kit, various personal belongings.
Note: Zack live onboard Starbuck’s Fast Freighter, should anything happen to Starbuck, she has written in her will that Zack inherits half her starship, when Starbuck is off on viper duty onboard the Galactica, Zack is in charge of the crew onboard the Fast Freighter, when Troy is not on duty.
Xena Agathon: female Viper Pilot 1/ Strong Hero 3/ Charismatic Hero 2/ Fast Hero 1; CR 7; medium humanoid (half-cylon); HD 1d10 plus 3d8 plus 2d6 plus 1d8; hp 41; Mas 11; Init +1 (+1 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 20, touch 18, flat-footed 19; BAB +4; Grp +8; Atk +8 melee (1d6+6 unarmed), +5 ranged (2d6/3d6 colonial sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5ft.;
AP 10; Rep +2; Wealth +8; SV Fort +4, Ref +5, Will +4; Str 19, Dex 13, Con 11, Int 14, Wis 10, Cha 18.
Starting Occupation: Viper Pilot
Skills: Bluff +11 (+13 vs. males), Climb +12, Diplomacy +8 (+10 vs. males), Drive +4, Gather Information +7 (+9 vs. males), Intimidate +8 (+10 vs males), Jump +10, Navigate +9, Pilot +9, Repair +6, Swim +8.
Languages: Speak Colonial, Read/Write Colonial, Speak English, Read/Write English, Speak Japanese, Read/Write Japanese.
Feats: Simple Weapons Proficiency, Personal Fire Arms Proficiency, Advanced Firearms Proficiency, Armor Proficiency (light), Brawl, Starship Operation.
Special Abilities: Low light vision (racial), Melee Smash, Charm (male), Improved Melee Smash, Uncanny Dodge 1, Starship Weapon Proficiency.
Note: Xena has dark straight hair, brown eyes, and stands 5 feet 11 inches tall, and weighs 140 lb. Xena stands slim and slender with not a hint of her 19 strength in her appearance. Xena’s muscles are much more efficient than that of a human, she can perform surprising feats of strength for one of her stature and apparent musculature. Xena is the daughter of Sharon “Boomer” Valarii and Karl C. “Helo” Agathon. Xena grew up in New York City, she has dim memories of living aboard the Galactica when it was fleeing the cylons, her mother is now the Ambassidor to the United Nations for the United Colonies of Kobol.
Officers
Admiral
Commander
Colonel
Major
Captain
Lt.
Lt. JG
Ensign
I can't remember the enlisted personel, but this is also on my Rank Tables thread so... if you really care just check there...
Cool someone's doing this thread, I've been working on some BSG stuff also... anywho.
Colony / Founder / Capital / Function / Conditions
1. Caprica / Zues / Caprica City / Colonial Center / Utopia
2. Scorpia / Hera / Heraklion / Religoius Hub / Livable
3. Libris / Apollo / Lysandion / Historical Center / near Baren and Seasonles
4. Leonis / Artemis / Lunos / Game reserve * Tourist Trap / Green
5. Picon / Athena / Picon City / Main Military Center / Low Gravity
6. Aerlon / Ares / Megaerea / Secondary Military Center (Original Military Center) / Low Oxygen
7. Aquarion / Poseidon / Trikon / Tylium mine / Mostly Water
8. Canceron / Demeter / Elysian / Agriculteral Center / Grass Land plains * Long days
9. Sagittaron / Dionysus / Mount Cithaeron / Colonial Party Center / unpredictable weather conditions
10. Geminon / Hermes / Covenant / Technichal Serveces / Mini Caprica
11. Tauron / Hephaestus / Hephaestion / Production Center / Really Hot
12. Virgon / Aphrodite / Devotion / Resort Vacation Center / Series of Islands
13. Earth? / ??? / ??? / ??? / ???
you might award bonus feats based on homeworld, like planetary adaption or something...
and don't forget their colonies, Like Troy, and the Unidentified (as far as I know) Cylon Staging point... did the Cylons make a homeworld?
would religion matter, you know what patron you follow?
(Opening Read by Patrick Macnee in "Saga of a Star World", 1978)
"There are those who believe... that life here... began out there. Far across the universe.
With tribes of humans... who may have been the forefathers of the Egyptians... or the
Toltecs... or the Mayans... That they may have been the architects of the Great
Pyramids... or the lost civilizations of Lemuria... or Atlantis... Some believe that there
may yet be brothers of Man... who even now fight to survive... far, far away amongst the
stars..."
V 1.3 (it isn't drasticly diffrent from my first attempts)
Colonial Viper Mark II
An improvment over the old Colonial Viper Mark I of the Cylon War, and the main stay of the colonial
fleet through out the Cylon war is the Viper Mk II. The Viper Mark II is slightly more elegant than the Mk. III
which was introduced at the end of the Cylon war, and not as computer dependant as the later Mk. VII, these
factors make the Mk II a lasting favorite among pilots.
Type: Ultra Light Size: Gargantuan ( -4 Size)
Subtype: Assualt Fighter Tactical Speed: 4,000 ft.
Defense: 11 Length: 32.5 ft. (29 ft. and 8 inches)
Flat Footed Defense: 8 Weight: 3,600 Lbs.
Auto Pilot Defense: -- Targeting System: +4
Hardness: 30 Crew: 1 (Trained +2)
Hit Dice: 9d20 (180 Hp) Passenger Capacity: None
Initiative Modifier: +4 Cargo Capacity: 143 Lbs
Pilot's Class Bonus: +3 Grapple Modifier: +8
Pilot's Dex Bonus: +2 Base Purchase DC: 48
Gunner's attack Bonus: +2 Restriction: Military (+3)
2 Fire Linked Needle Drivers +6 Ranged (9d20 / x2) (2- Firelinked) (4,000 ft.) and
1 CHE Missile +1 Ranged (6d12 / 19-20 x2)
(I was thinking Sliver Guns and Plasma Missiles for the Mark VII)
Engines: Particle Impulse Engine, Thruster.
Armor: Cerametal.
Defense Systems: Chaff Luancher (4 bundles), Light Fortification, Sensor Jammer.
Sensors: Class V sensor system, Improved Targeting system.
Communication: Mass Tranciever, Radio Tranciever.
Weapons: 2 Fire Linked Needle Drivers, 1 che Missile Luancher (8 Missiles)
Grappling System: None.
Pilots Gear:
Colonial Side Arm and Hip holster (Use the SIG pro SP 2340 with the range finding Laser scope gadget).
(Use the S&W model 586 with the range finding Laser scope gadget).
Flight suit (Use flight suit and Helmet with Integrated HUD, Portable Glow lamp, with a radio and oxygen tanks).
Radiation Med (use the Neutrad Chemichal).
Explosive Rounds as Regular Rounds +4 Purchase DC, Restriction Military, improves Damage by 1d10, Burst Radius 5 Ft., creatures int he burst take 1d10 Damage DC 10 Reduces to half...
Radiation Med (use the Neutrad Chemichal).
The Cylon Raider is the Cylon equivalent of the Colonial Viper, and is terribly powreful. In reality the
Cylon Raider is actually a Cylon of it's own, and has no pilot on board. The Cylon raider possesses an FTL
drive.
Type: Ultra Light Size: Gargantuan (-4 Size)
Subtype Assualt Fighter Tactical Speed: 3,500
Defense: 11 Length: 30 ft.
Flat Footed Defense: 9 Weight: 3,600 Lbs.
Auto Pilot Defense: 10 Targeting System: +4
Hardness: 50 Crew: Special (Trained +4)
Hit Dice: 12d20 (240 Hp) Passenger Capacity: None
Initiative Modifier: +2 Cargo Capacity: 500 Lbs
Pilot's Class Bonus: +3 Grapple Modifier: +12
Pilot's Dex Bonus: +2 Base Purchase DC: Not commonly available for sale (48)
Gunner's attack Bonus: +2 Restriction: Illegal (+4)
2 Fire Linked Sliver Guns +6 Ranged (9d12 19-20 x2, Range 3,000 ft., Ballistic) and
1 Nuclear Missile +1 (16d8 19-20 x2, Energy).
Engines: Particle Impulse Engine, Thruster.
Armor: Nonfluidic.
Defense Systems: Improved Auto Pilot, Radiation Shielding, Light Fortification, Stealth Screen.
Sensors: Class IX, sensor system, Improved Targeting System with Achilles Targeting Software.
Communication: Mass Tranciever, Laser Tranciever.
Weapons: 2 fire linked Sliver Guns, Nuclear Missiles (8 missiles).
Grappling System: Grapplers.
Init: -1, Defense: 17 (- 1 size, +8 equip.) Touch 9, FF 17, BAB +4, Grapple +13, Attack Bonus +8 Melee
(1d4 +5 non-lethal, 2 hands) +3 ranged (4 Thompson 1921's 2d8 each, 100 rounds per weapon 30 ft. range).
Full Attack: Thompson 1921 +3, Thompson 1921 -2, Thompson 1921 -2, Thompson 1921 -2.
FS 10 x 10Ft. Reach 10 ft., SQ: Construct Traits, Critical Systems, Darkvision 60 ft. AL: Cylon Empire
SV. F. +2, R. +2, W. +3
AP: 0, Rep: +0, Str: 20, Dex 11, Con --, Int 10, Wis 12, Cha 5.
Skills: Climb +9, Hide -4, Listen +11, Search +4, Spot +13.
Feat: Advanced Fire Arm Prof., Burst Fire, Personal Fire Arm Prof.
Equipment: 4 arm mounted Thompsons, 4 100 round Clips.
Cylon Centurion has the Following Systems and Accessories;
Frame: Biodroid
Locomotion: 2 Speed enhanced
Manipulaters: 2 Hands
Armor: Duralloy
Sensors: Class V Sensor systems + LADAR.
Skill Software: Skill Progit (Climb 4 ranks, Listen 8 ranks, Search 4 ranks, Spot 8 ranks)
Feat Software: Feat Progit (See Feats).
Ability Up-grades: Dex +2, Wis +2.
4 weapons mounts.
Cylon Centurion (Modified APE Law robot) CR: 5 Large Construct, HD 6d10 +20 (55 Hp) Mass: --, Spd 20 ft.
Init: -1, Defense: 17 (- 1 size, +8 equip.) Touch 9, FF 17, BAB +4, Grapple +13, Attack Bonus +8 Melee
(1d4 +5 non-lethal, 2 hands) +3 ranged (2 Barret M82A1 "Light Fifty" 2d8 each, 50 rounds per weapon 120 ft. range*).
Full Attack: 2 Barret M82A1 "Light Fifty" 2d8 each +1, 2 Barret M82A1 "Light Fifty" 2d8 each +1.
FS 10 x 10Ft. Reach 10 ft., SQ: Construct Traits, Critical Systems, Darkvision 60 ft. AL: Cylon Empire
SV. F. +2, R. +2, W. +3
AP: 0, Rep: +0, Str: 20, Dex 11, Con --, Int 10, Wis 12, Cha 5.
Skills: Climb +9, Hide -4, Listen +11, Search +4, Spot +13.
Feat: Advanced Two Weapon fighting, Personal Fire Arm Prof, Two weapon Fighting.
Equipment: 4 arm mounted Thompsons, 4 100 round Clips.
Cylon Centurion has the Following Systems and Accessories;
Frame: Biodroid
Locomotion: 2 Speed enhanced
Manipulaters: 2 Hands
Armor: Duralloy
Sensors: Class V Sensor systems + LADAR.
Skill Software: Skill Progit (Climb 4 ranks, Listen 8 ranks, Search 4 ranks, Spot 8 ranks)
Feat Software: Feat Progit (See Feats).
Ability Up-grades: Dex +2, Wis +2.
2 weapons mounts.
*Treated as having the scope.
here's what I got for the Viper... maybe someone will like it...
V 1.3 (it isn't drasticly diffrent from my first attempts)
Colonial Viper Mark II
An improvment over the old Colonial Viper Mark I of the Cylon War, and the main stay of the colonial
fleet through out the Cylon war is the Viper Mk II. The Viper Mark II is slightly more elegant than the Mk. III
which was introduced at the end of the Cylon war, and not as computer dependant as the later Mk. VII, these
factors make the Mk II a lasting favorite among pilots.
Type: Ultra Light Size: Gargantuan ( -4 Size)
Subtype: Assualt Fighter Tactical Speed: 4,000 ft.
Defense: 11 Length: 32.5 ft. (29 ft. and 8 inches)
Flat Footed Defense: 8 Weight: 3,600 Lbs.
Auto Pilot Defense: -- Targeting System: +4
Hardness: 30 Crew: 1 (Trained +2)
Hit Dice: 9d20 (180 Hp) Passenger Capacity: None
Initiative Modifier: +4 Cargo Capacity: 143 Lbs
Pilot's Class Bonus: +3 Grapple Modifier: +8
Pilot's Dex Bonus: +2 Base Purchase DC: 48
Gunner's attack Bonus: +2 Restriction: Military (+3)
2 Fire Linked Needle Drivers +6 Ranged (9d20 / x2) (2- Firelinked) (4,000 ft.) and
1 CHE Missile +1 Ranged (6d12 / 19-20 x2)
(I was thinking Sliver Guns and Plasma Missiles for the Mark VII)
Engines: Particle Impulse Engine, Thruster.
Armor: Cerametal.
Defense Systems: Chaff Luancher (4 bundles), Light Fortification, Sensor Jammer.
Sensors: Class V sensor system, Improved Targeting system.
Communication: Mass Tranciever, Radio Tranciever.
Weapons: 2 Fire Linked Needle Drivers, 1 che Missile Luancher (8 Missiles)
Grappling System: None.
Pilots Gear:
Colonial Side Arm and Hip holster (Use the SIG pro SP 2340 with the range finding Laser scope gadget).
(Use the S&W model 586 with the range finding Laser scope gadget).
Flight suit (Use flight suit and Helmet with Integrated HUD, Portable Glow lamp, with a radio and oxygen tanks).
Radiation Med (use the Neutrad Chemichal).
Explosive Rounds as Regular Rounds +4 Purchase DC, Restriction Military, improves Damage by 1d10, Burst Radius 5 Ft., creatures int he burst take 1d10 Damage DC 10 Reduces to half...
Radiation Med (use the Neutrad Chemichal).
Remember that in the rules were using the squares are 5,000 ft or 1 mile whichever you prefer, you should give the tactical speed in squares as well as feet. I prefer 1 mile squares myself, I've also added fuel points to the stats below to give this viper a definite range. If I were to adapt these statistic for that, they would look like this:
Colonial Viper Mark II - Fuel Points: 200,000
Type: Ultra Light Size: Gargantuan ( -4 Size)
Subtype: Assualt Fighter Tactical Speed: 8 miles, 42,240 ft. (8 squares)
Defense: 11 Length: 32.5 ft. (29 ft. and 8 inches)
Flat Footed Defense: 8 Weight: 3,600 Lbs.
Auto Pilot Defense: -- Targeting System: +4
Hardness: 30 Crew: 1 (Trained +2)
Hit Dice: 9d20 (180 Hp) Passenger Capacity: None
Initiative Modifier: +4 Cargo Capacity: 143 Lbs
Pilot's Class Bonus: +3 Grapple Modifier: +8
Pilot's Dex Bonus: +2 Base Purchase DC: 48
Gunner's attack Bonus: +2 Restriction: Military (+3)
2 Fire Linked Needle Drivers +6 Ranged (9d20 / x2) (2- Firelinked) (8 miles, 42,240 ft., 8 squares) and
1 CHE Missile +1 Ranged (6d12 / 19-20 x2)
(I was thinking Sliver Guns and Plasma Missiles for the Mark VII)
Engines: Particle Impulse Engine, Thruster.
Armor: Cerametal.
Defense Systems: Chaff Luancher (4 bundles), Light Fortification, Sensor Jammer.
Sensors: Class V sensor system, Improved Targeting system.
Communication: Mass Tranciever, Radio Tranciever.
Weapons: 2 Fire Linked Needle Drivers, 1 che Missile Luancher (8 Missiles)
Grappling System: None.
Everything you have posted here is covered in the very first post of this thread... and then some.
Remember that in the rules were using the squares are 5,000 ft or 1 mile whichever you prefer, you should give the tactical speed in squares as well as feet. I prefer 1 mile squares myself, I've also added fuel points to the stats below to give this viper a definite range. If I were to adapt these statistic for that, they would look like this:
Colonial Viper Mark II - Fuel Points: 200,000
Type: Ultra Light Size: Gargantuan ( -4 Size)
Subtype: Assualt Fighter Tactical Speed: 8 miles, 42,240 ft. (8 squares)
Defense: 11 Length: 32.5 ft. (29 ft. and 8 inches)
Flat Footed Defense: 8 Weight: 3,600 Lbs.
Auto Pilot Defense: -- Targeting System: +4
Hardness: 30 Crew: 1 (Trained +2)
Hit Dice: 9d20 (180 Hp) Passenger Capacity: None
Initiative Modifier: +4 Cargo Capacity: 143 Lbs
Pilot's Class Bonus: +3 Grapple Modifier: +8
Pilot's Dex Bonus: +2 Base Purchase DC: 48
Gunner's attack Bonus: +2 Restriction: Military (+3)
2 Fire Linked Needle Drivers +6 Ranged (9d20 / x2) (2- Firelinked) (8 miles, 42,240 ft., 8 squares) and
1 CHE Missile +1 Ranged (6d12 / 19-20 x2)
(I was thinking Sliver Guns and Plasma Missiles for the Mark VII)
Engines: Particle Impulse Engine, Thruster.
Armor: Cerametal.
Defense Systems: Chaff Luancher (4 bundles), Light Fortification, Sensor Jammer.
Sensors: Class V sensor system, Improved Targeting system.
Communication: Mass Tranciever, Radio Tranciever.
Weapons: 2 Fire Linked Needle Drivers, 1 che Missile Luancher (8 Missiles)
Grappling System: None.
sorry... Thanks!
Great minds think alike Pockets. :D
Everything you have posted here is covered in the very first post of this thread... and then some.
Well, that's good, I just wanted to show my support ;) , that's all... wait! even the stuff on the Planatery sysem? I missed that???
Thank's for the support and enthusiasm I hope we can make a great campaign setting.
REALISTIC TRAVEL TIMES IN MINUTES or HOURS * T = 2(D/A)^½
************** ----------------------------- Time to Destination -----------------------------
Distance ******* Speed 5 * Speed 6 * Speed 7 * Speed 8 * Speed 9
Earth to the Moon ** 44 min.*** 40 min*** 37 min*** 35 min*** 33 min
(240,000 mi.) * fuel* 2190 fp** 2400 fp** 2590 fp** 2768 fp** 2943 fp
Earth to the Sun *** 14 hrs.*** 13 hrs.*** 12 hrs.*** 11 hrs.*** 10 hrs
(93,000,000 mi.) ** 43125 fp* 47224 fp* 51030 fp* 54552 fp* 57861 fp
Earth to Mercury *** 11 hrs.*** 10 hrs.*** 10 hrs.*** 9 hrs.*** 8 hrs.
(56,950,000 mi.) ** 33750 fp* 36972 fp* 39935 fp* 42688 fp* 45279 fp
Earth to Venus **** 8 hrs. *** 7 hrs. *** 6 hrs *** 6 hrs. *** 6 hrs.
(26,040,000 mi.) ** 22820 fp* 25002 fp* 27006 fp* 28864 fp* 30618 fp
Earth to Mars ***** 10 hrs *** 9 hrs. *** 9 hrs. *** 8 hrs. *** 8 hrs.
(48,360,000 mi.) ** 31100 fp* 34068 fp* 36799 fp* 39336 fp* 41724 fp
Earth to Jupiter *** 29 hrs. ** 27 hrs. ** 25 hrs. ** 23 hrs. ** 22 hrs.
(390,600,000 mi.) * 87885 fp* 96822 fp* 104580 r* 111800 r* 118584 r
Earth to Saturn
(704,940,000 mi.)
Earth to Uranus
(1,687,020,000 mi.)
Earth to Neptune
(2,715,600,000 mi.)
Earth to Pluto
(3,574,920,000 mi.)
sorry... Thanks!
That's ok, just want to keep everything consistent with the house rules were using. Look at the realistic travel times table I just put up, it shows the travel times for tactical speeds 5 through 9 if we assume 1 mile squares. At the slowest speed, you can go from Earth to the Moon in 44 minutes and at the fastest, you can go from Earth to Jupiter (at the closest point in its orbit) in 22 hrs. Its a bit of a stretch for a viper pilot to sit in his cockpit for 22 hours to get to Jupiter, but if we used 500 ft. squares it would take days! Also the Galactica fits nicely in a 1 mile square. Very simple modifications really. Just give each viper 200,000 fuel points and divide your speeds and ranges by 500 to get ranges in squares, and they can be 1 mile squares or 5,000 ft. if you like. I prefer 1 mile squares a it makes the math for determining travel times easier.
Anyway, I have never heard of the viper Mk III, but then again, I've never played the video game either... I am assuming there must also be a Mk IV, V and VI Viper as well.
Just to let everyone know, we have 80 pages of material in the word document (arial font, 10pt size) with out artwork, and still quite a bit left to write. If folks are interested in contributing, here is what we already have done: Items in Bold text are done. Items in Italics are being written. Items in plain text still need to be done.
Credits and Aknowledgements
Open Gaming License
Table of Contents
Introduction
. What is the Battlestar Galactica Campaign Guide?
. What do I need to play?
Chapter One: Colonial Space
.The History of the Twelve Colonies
.. Kobol
.. Earth
.. The Cylon War
. The Colonial Military
.. The Colonial Fleet
... Rank Structure
.. The Colonial Marines
… Rank Structure
. Colonial Government
.. The Articles of Colonization
... President of the Colonies
... The Quorum of Twelve
... Colonial Law
. Colonial Religion
.. The Lords of Kobol
.. The Scrolls of Pythia
.The Twelve Colonies of Man
.. Caprica
… Caprica City
… The Meuseum of Delphi
… Colonial Government Offices
.. Picon
… Colonial Fleet Headquarters
.. Libris
.. Saggitaron
.. Virgon
.. Tauron
.. Geminon
.. Leonis
.. Scorpion
.. Canceron
.. Aerilon
… Troy Mining Colony
.. Aquarion
..Ragnar
... Ragnar Anchorage
..Cimtar
...Armistice Station
..Molecay
..The Cosmara Archipelago
Chapter Two: The Cylons
. Cylon Centurion
. Cylon Centurion Mk II
. Cylon Infiltrator
Chapter Three: NPCs
. President Laura Roslin
. Commander William Adama
. Colonel Saul Tigh
. Captain Lee "Apollo" Adama
. Lt. Kara "Starbuck" Thrace
. Lt. Karl "Helo" C. Agathon
. CPO Galen "Chief" Tyrol
. Presidential Aide Billy Keikeya
. Sagittaron Representative Tom Zarek
. Sharon "Boomer" Valerii
. Aaron Doral
. Leoben Connoy
. Number Six
. D'anna Biers
. Other Generic NPCs
.. Ordinary Nugget Viper Pilot
.. Ordinary Deckhand
.. Ordinary Colonial Soldier
.. etc...
Chapter Four: Advanced Classes
. Colonial Marine (Strong)
. Viper Pilot (Fast)
. Resistance Fighter (Tough)
. Politician (Smart)
. Priestess (Dedicated)
. Starship Officer (Charismatic)
Chapter Five: Equipment
. Armor
. Equipment
. Weapons
. Vehicles
.. Colonial Land Ram
Chapter Six: Starships
. Colonial Ships
.. Viper Mk I "Starhound"
.. Viper Mk II
.. Viper Mk VII
.. Viper Mk VIII "Blackbird"
.. Raptor
.. Battlestar Galactica
.. Battlestar Pegasus
. Cylon Ships
.. Piloted Raider
.. Autonomous Raider
.. Heavy Raider
.. Baseship
.. Basestar
. Civilian Ships
.. Civilian Shuttlecraft
.. Colonial One
.. Astral Queen
.. Celestra
.. Rising Star
.. Cloud Nine
.. Olympic Carrier
.. Geminon Traveller
.. Mining Vessel
.. Salvage Ship
.. Colonial Movers
.. Tanker Ship
.. Park Ship
Chapter Seven: Space Travel
. Interplanetary Space
. Hyper-light Jumps
. Random Star System Generation
Chapter Eight: Advanced Space Combat
. Newtonian Physics
. Moving in a 3-D space
. Advanced Stunts
. Nuclear Weapons
Chapter Nine: Campaign Models
. The Cylon War
. The Resistance
. The Quest For Earth
. Earth At Last
Index
http://www.tecr.com/galactica/fighters/viper1.htm
http://www.galactica2003.net/colonials/mini.shtml
well... that's about all I've got...
I have actually already used those sources in my research. Like I said, great minds think alike!
That's ok, just want to keep everything consistent with the house rules were using. Look at the realistic travel times table I just put up, it shows the travel times for tactical speeds 5 through 9 if we assume 1 mile squares. At the slowest speed, you can go from Earth to the Moon in 44 minutes and at the fastest, you can go from Earth to Jupiter (at the closest point in its orbit) in 22 hrs. Its a bit of a stretch for a viper pilot to sit in his cockpit for 22 hours to get to Jupiter, but if we used 500 ft. squares it would take days! Also the Galactica fits nicely in a 1 mile square. Very simple modifications really. Just give each viper 200,000 fuel points and divide your speeds and ranges by 500 to get ranges in squares, and they can be 1 mile squares or 5,000 ft. if you like. I prefer 1 mile squares a it makes the math for determining travel times easier.
Its not as much a stretch as you might think, modern us bomber pilots have been known to have missions of 24 hours+. Flying a B52 from the US to iraq, blowing a few things to ash and gravel and coming back takes quite a bit of time. of course your 22 hour trip is one way...
I have worked up the mechanics for the jump drive... basically use the rules for the Teleportation disk with out the disk. ;)
As for how much fuel it consumes etc... I haven't figured that part out yet... just haven't had time, but I am working on it. We know that tylium is used to power both realspace engines and jump engines, and that different ships have different rates of fuel efficiency, but I am not sure how to represent that or even if we should.
As for the Earh at Last campaign model... Tom, would you like to do the write up for that? I don't mind writing all of them, but you seem to have a lot of ideas about that particular campaign model, so if you want it its yours. :D
I just bought the BSG Season 1 DVD set, but have only seen the mini-series and "33" so far. If this is normal of the of the BSG universe, they did not seem concerned about fuel as they had made 238+ jumps with only 33 minutes between jumps. Does not seem much time to refuel, had no actual worries about fuel, just vaguely stated limited "supplies".
Nathan, there isnt alot mentioned about fuel although it is noted that Colonial One is a "Gas Hog". I have done quite a bit of research for this project, and I wouldn't have mentioned Fuel if I didn't think it were relevant to the campaign setting. Wait until you see "the Hand of God".
I have some stuff I'll post tomorrow. Tomorrow is Cylon day!
Thanks.
I have actually already used those sources in my research. Like I said, great minds think alike!
Guss they Really do, Hey I can poke around the .net and see what all i can find tho... possibly dig up some stuff your still looking for...
and Bill Adama's call sign was Husker...
but, you probably new all that, it just slipped your mind or wasn't important...
Nadaka, its not so much taht 22 hours is a long time.. its just a long time to sit in the cramped cockpit of a fighter.
Nathan, there isnt alot mentioned about fuel although it is noted that Colonial One is a "Gas Hog". I have done quite a bit of research for this project, and I wouldn't have mentioned Fuel if I didn't think it were relevant to the campaign setting. Wait until you see "the Hand of God".
There are some advantages in spacecraft however. For one a viper pilot doesn't have to have his hands at the controls constantly if he's heading a long distance and there's no enemy spacecraft around, he basically makes a navigation check and takes 10, sets the navigation control for the destination and the autopilot takes over the acceleration and sees to it that the viper arrives on target. The viper would have active and passive sensor arrays and would sound the alarm if any objects are found within the proximity of the viper, in the meantime the pilot can sleep within the the cockpit couch. There is no weather in space, and most of the time there is nothing around for the viper to crash into. The worst that can happen is that the viper can go off course. Probably the Galactica would alert the viper pilot if his craft was going off course. Since there is artificial gravity, he can adjust the gravity down so he doesn't have to roll around so much to get comfortable. The flight suit probably contains the necessary accessories for the process of elimination with a hose connecting to the outside to eliminate the waste. The biggest problem are long periods of inactivity, its probably no worse then spending a few days in weightlessness.
That makes sense, but I need to focus on finishing the campaign setting before I can begin writing modules.
Yeah, just bouncing around ideas at this moment. Perhaps we ought to include some possible story hooks, and later on when we work on the module we can pick one of those for expansion. I'm not sure we should start with the Mini series, we might want to start the camapign a little later than that. And of course it shouldn't exactly duplicate any episode, but perhaps their are some ideas in some of the episodes we could use for a module. Well thats the future, lets get back to the present. I'm working on Boxey at this moment. For Apollo, we can use Commander Adama's stats. Boomer can stay the same, or perhaps giver her some levels in the Class Diplomat found in the D20 Future Book. Perhaps I'll do doctor Xavier and leave it at that, then do the write up.
Definitions:
STAR TYPE
Stars are classified using a lettering system that describes the star and gives information about its type. Known as the spectral class of a star, a designation of O, B, A, F, G, K, or M is given to the star based on its mass and energy output. Class O stars are the hottest, largest, and brightest stars, and class M stars as the smallest and coldest, with a gradual scale between them. Since a star’s mass determines how hot it burns (as well as how strong its gravity pull is), the star’s classification actually helps extrapolate the kinds of planets that might be in that star’s system. Since larger stars burn hotter and smaller stars burn cooler, the mass of a star determines the climate of the worlds that orbit it.
In addition to the standard array of star types, several other types of stars (or what were once stars) might be found at the center of a star system. Most of these stars (called “non-main sequence stars”) have characteristics that make certain planetary conditions impossible, and no type of non-main sequence star is likely to support worlds hospitable to human life. Types of non-main sequence stars include black holes, neutron stars, white dwarf stars, black dwarf stars, brown dwarf stars, and red supergiants.
Degree of Ionizing Radiation: Ionizing radiation—radiation that breaks down atoms within living tissue—is common in space. All stars produce and emit harmful levels of ionizing radiation, and a star system is considered an “irradiated area” for the purposes of determining radiation exposure, particularly in the vacuum of space. (Planetary atmospheres and protective environment suits can protect a creature from ionizing radiation.) The degree of radiation exposure depends on the nearest star’s classification, as shown in Table: Star Systems. For systems with two or more stars, increase the degree of radiation by one grade (lightly becomes moderately, moderately becomes highly, and highly becomes severely).
Number of Planets: The number of planets in a given star system can be determined by rolling on Table: Star Systems. For systems with multiple stars, use the star with the fewest planets allowable to determine the number of planets in the system.
HOSPITABLE STARS
The chief classifications of hospitable stars are F, G, and K. These stars produce the right amounts of heat and the right types of radiation to allow human-compatible worlds to exist. Not every world around a Class F, G, or K star is hospitable; however, even inhospitable worlds within such systems could be made to support human life with artificial modifications to their ecosystems (a long a painstaking process called “terraforming”).
INHOSPITABLE STARS
Class O, B, A, and M stars are the least likely to support planets capable of hosting human life. T he s tars toward the hotter end of the spectrum simply produce too much heat to allow living, breathing organisms to thrive. Class M stars do not give off enough heat to support life at the distance Earth orbits its sun, and these stars are also known to be violently unstable and prone to bursts of stellar activity.
BLACK HOLES
Black holes are stars that have expended their fuel sources and exploded in a massive supernova. Few, if any, planetary bodies survive the initial death of such a star. Once the star has exploded, its gravity is so great that it collapses in on itself and warps light, time, and space around it. Black holes drag all nearby matter into its center, collecting rings of cosmic debris called accretion discs that can be seen at great distances. Some planets and asteroids might survive being pulled into a black hole long enough for some adventuring, but they are incredibly dangerous places to explore.
NEUTRON STARS
A neutron star is a large star that has exhausted its fuel source but hasn’t collapsed in on itself. Instead, the entire star’s remaining matter compresses into a much smaller body mere kilometers in diameter. Within this tightly packed core, the star’s density crushes the atoms into an object composed entirely of subatomic particles known as neutrons. Planets orbiting a neutron star are typically cold, lifeless, and severely irradiated. Another type of neutron star is the pulsar, which emits severe levels of radiation at great distances.
WHITE DWARF STARS
A white dwarf star is so much smaller than a neutron star that it does not have the mass to collapse in on itself. Instead, white dwarfs are typically small and dense and surrounded by rings of wreckage that were once planetary bodies in its system. White dwarfs emit little light or energy, and the rings surrounding them are usually cold and dark. However, these rings are not bombarded by as high levels of radiation as in a neutron star and could potentially support life, assuming enough heat could be generated.
BLACK DWARF STARS
Black dwarf stars completely burn out after expending their fuel. Truly the most stable of dead stars, b lack dwarfs simply consume their fuel supply and then cool into a cinder that emits no light or heat. Any planetary systems that existed around a black dwarf will remain intact; however, they usually become barren and frozen once their heat and light source is gone.
RED SUPERGIANTS
Most red supergiants begin their lives as average-sized stars. However, they burn hot and expend their hydrogen fuel supplies quickly. When its hydrogen supply is depleted, a red supergiant begins burning other, heavier elements such as helium, causing the star to expand to enormous size. An expanding red supergiant consumes its innermost planets and then burns so hot and bright that it renders all other planets in its system incapable of supporting life naturally.
GRAVITY
The force that gravity exerts on a person determines how they develop physically as well as their ability to perform certain actions. In addition, gravity affects the amount of damage a character takes from falling. Gravity conditions may vary considerably from one environment to the next. For ease of play these rules present four simplified gravity environments: normal gravity (1.0 g), low gravity (<1.0 g), high gravity (>1.0 g), and zero gravity (0 g). The following sections summarize the game effects for each type of environment.
NORMAL GRAVITY
“Normal gravity” equates to gravity on Earth. Environments with normal gravity impose no special modifiers on a character’s ability scores, attack rolls, or skill checks. Likewise, normal gravity does not modify a creature’s speed, carrying capacity, or the amount of damage it takes from a fall.
LOW-GRAVITY ENVIRONMENTS
In a low-gravity environment, the pull of gravity is significantly less than what we experience living on Earth. Although an object’s mass doesn’t change, it becomes effectively lighter. This means that creatures bounce when they walk. It becomes easier to move and lift heavy objects as well as perform Strength-related tasks. In addition, creatures take less damage from falling.
Speed: A creature’s speed increases by +5 feet in a low-gravity environment. This bonus applies to all of the creature’s modes of movement.
Carrying Capacity: A creature’s normal carrying capacity is doubled in a low-gravity environment. In addition, the creature gains a +10 bonus on any Strength check made to lift or move a heavy unsecured object.
Skill Check Bonuses: Creatures in a low-gravity environment gain a +10 bonus on Strength-based skill checks (including Climb, Jump, and Swim checks).
Attack Roll Penalty: Creatures take a –2 penalty on attack rolls in a low-gravity environment unless they are native to that environment or have the Zero-G Training feat.
Damage from Falling: Creatures do not fall as quickly in a low-gravity environment as they do in a normal- or high-gravity environment. Falling damage is reduced from 1d6 points per 10 feet fallen to 1d4 points per 10 feet fallen.
Long-Term Effects: Long-term exposure to low-gravity conditions can cause serious problems when returning to normal gravity. A creature that spends 120 hours or more in a low-gravity environment takes 1d6 points of temporary Strength damage upon returning to normal gravity.
HIGH-GRAVITY ENVIRONMENTS
In a high-gravity environment, the pull of gravity is significantly greater than that which we experience living on Earth. Although an object’s mass doesn’t change, it becomes effectively heavier. It becomes harder to move and carry heavy objects as well as perform Strength-related tasks. In addition, creatures take more damage from falling. Even the simple task of walking or lifting one’s arms feels more laborious.
Speed: A creature’s speed decreases by –5 feet (to a minimum of 0 feet) in a high-gravity environment. This penalty applies to all of the creature’s modes of movement.
Carrying Capacity: A creature’s normal carrying capacity is halved in a high-gravity environment. In addition, the creature takes a –10 penalty on any Strength check made to lift or move a heavy unsecured object.
Skill Check Bonuses: Creatures in a high-gravity environment take a –10 penalty on Strength-based skill checks (including Climb, Jump, and Swim checks).
Attack Roll Penalty: Creatures take a –2 penalty on attack rolls in a high-gravity environment unless they are native to that environment.
Damage from Falling: Creatures fall more quickly in a high-gravity environment than they do in a normal- or low-gravity environment. Falling damage is increased from 1d6 points per 10 feet fallen to 1d8 points per 10 feet fallen.
Long-Term Effects: Long-term exposure to high-gravity conditions can cause serious problems when returning to normal gravity. A creature that spends 120 hours or more in a heavy-gravity environment takes 1d6 points of temporary Dexterity damage upon returning to normal gravity.
ZERO-GRAVITY ENVIRONMENTS
Creatures in a zero-gravity environment can move enormously heavy objects. As movement in zero gravity requires only the ability to grab onto or push away from larger objects, Climb and Jump checks no longer apply.
Most creatures find zero-gravity environments disorienting, taking penalties on their attack rolls and suffering the effects of Space Adaptation Syndrome (space sickness). In addition, creatures in zero gravity are easier to bull rush than in other gravity environments.
Space Adaptation Syndrome: A creature exposed to weightlessness must make a Fortitude save (DC 15) to avoid the effects of space sickness. Those who fail the save are shaken, and those who fail the save by 5 or more are also nauseated. The effects persist for 8 hours. A new save is required every 8 hours the creature remains in a zero-g environment. Creatures with the Zero-G Training feat do not suffer the effects of space sickness.
Speed: While in a zero-gravity environment, a creature gains a fly speed equal to its base land speed, or it retains its natural fly speed (whichever is greater). However, movement is limited to straight lines only; a creature can change course only by pushing away from larger objects (such as bulkheads).
Carrying Capacity: A creature’s normal carrying capacity increases by 10 times in a zero-gravity environment. In addition, the creature gains a +20 bonus on any Strength check made to lift or move a heavy unsecured object.
Attack Roll Penalty: Creatures take a –4 penalty on attack rolls and skill checks while operating in a zero-gravity environment unless they are native to that environment or have the Zero-G Training feat.
Modified Bull Rush Rules: A creature affected by a bull rush is pushed back 10 feet, plus 10 feet for every 5 points by which its opponent’s Strength check result exceeds its own.
Long-Term Effects: Long-term exposure to zero-gravity conditions can cause serious problems when returning to normal gravity. A creature that spends 120 hours or more in a zero-gravity environment takes 2d6 points of temporary Strength damage upon returning to normal gravity.
Weight vs. Mass
While an object in zero gravity loses weight, it does not lose mass or momentum. Thus, while a character could push a 10- ton piece of equipment around in space, albeit slowly, getting it to stop is a bit more difficult. If a character were to come between that piece of equipment and a solid object, that character would be crushed as if he were in full gravity—just more slowly.
For simplicity, assume that a Strength check to lift or move an object in zero gravity gains a +20 circumstance bonus. However, stopping an object already in motion does not receive this same bonus.
ATMOSPHERIC CONDITIONS
As with variants in gravity, a change in atmospheric conditions can cause major problems for characters. Unfortunately, not every planet will have the same atmospheric density or chemical composition as Earth, meaning that worlds otherwise hospitable to human life may not be ideal for humans born and raised on Earth.
Various atmospheric conditions (and their effects) are presented below.
CORROSIVE ATMOSPHERE
Some atmospheres (breathable or not) contain corrosive chemicals and gases. Corrosive atmospheres slowly eat away at foreign equipment and can cause significant equipment failure. The corrosion can be particularly troublesome in atmospheres that demand special survival gear, as any breach in a protective environmental suit renders it useless. Unprotected equipment exposed to a corrosive atmosphere takes 1d4 points of acid damage per hour of exposure. This damage ignores hardness and deals damage directly to the equipment, eating away at it slowly.
Creatures not wearing protective gear in a corrosive atmosphere take 1d4 points of acid damage per round of exposure.
THIN ATMOSPHERE
Planets with thin atmospheres have less oxygen per breath than the standard Earth atmosphere. Many thin atmospheres are the equivalent of being at a high elevation on Earth, such as on top of a mountain or in the upper atmosphere. A creature exposed to a thin atmosphere must succeed on a Fortitude save (DC 20) every hour. On the first failed save, the creature is fatigued. A fatigued creature that fails a subsequent save becomes exhausted for as long as it remains in the thin atmosphere. After 1 hour of complete, uninterrupted rest in a normal atmosphere, an exhausted creature becomes fatigued. After 8 hours of complete, uninterrupted rest, a fatigued creature is no longer fatigued.
THICK ATMOSPHERE
Thick atmospheres are those that contain a more dense concentration of certain elements, like nitrogen, oxygen, or even carbon dioxide, than the standard Earth atmosphere. These dense atmospheres sometimes contain a different balance of elements, while others simply contain a higher number of gas particles in each breath. The effects of exposure to a thick atmosphere are similar to those of a thin atmosphere (see Thin Atmosphere, above), except the Fortitude save DC is 15 instead of 20
TOXIC ATMOSPHERE
Some atmospheres (breathable or not) contain toxic gases that are debilitating or lethal to some or all forms of life. The atmosphere is treated as always containing a type of inhaled poison.
VACUUM
Despite some popular myths, moving into a vacuum does not cause the body to explosively decompress, nor does it cause instant freezing as heat bleeds away from the body. Rather, the primary hazards of surviving in the vacuum of space are the lack of air and exposure to unfiltered ionizing radiation.
On the third round of exposure to vacuum, a creature must succeed on a Constitution check (DC 20) each round or suffer from aeroembolism (“the bends”). A creature that fails the save experiences excruciating pain as small air bubbles form in its bloodstream; such a creature is considered stunned and remains so until returned to normal atmospheric pressure. A creature that fails the Constitution check by 5 or more falls unconscious.
The real danger of vacuum comes from suffocation, though holding one’s breath in vacuum damages the lungs. A character who attempts to hold his breath must make a Constitution check (DC 15) every round; the DC increases by 1 each round, and on a successful check the character takes 1 point of Constitution damage (from the pressure on the linings of his lungs). If the check fails, or when the character simply stops holding his breath, he begins to suffocate. In the next round, he falls unconscious with 0 hit points. The following round, he drops to –1 hit points. On the third round, he drops to –10 hit points and dies.
Unfiltered radiation bombards any character trapped in the vacuum of space without protective gear. A creature exposed to this ionizing radiation suffers from severe sunburn as well as the effects of radiation exposure; the degree of exposure depends on the nearest star’s classification (see Star Systems below for more information).
Step One:
Determine the number of stars systems in your local sector by rolling 1d10. A sector is a cubic region of space 10 squares on a side each square is a one light year cube.
Step Two:
Determine each system's location by rolling 1d10 to dertermine its x coordinate, 1d10 to determine its y coordinate, and 1d10 to determine its z coordinate. If you roll coordinates for a square that is already occupied by a star system, roll again until you get an un-occupied square.
Step Three:
Detemine the stellar class of each system's primary star by rolling 1d12 on table 7.1 below.
Table 7.1
Roll Stellar Classification Planet Potential Max. # of Planets Ionizing Radiation
1 Black Hole DC 25 1 High
2 Neutron Star DC 20 1d4-1 Severe
3 Red Super Giant DC 15 1d4-1 High
4 Class O DC 14 1d4+1 High
5 Class B DC 13 1d4+2 Moderate
6 Class A DC 12 1d6+2 Moderate
7 Class F DC 11 1d6+3 Light
8 Class G DC 10 1d6+4 Light
9 Class K DC 11 1d6+5 Moderate
10 Class M DC 12 1d8+2 High
11 Black Dwarf DC 13 1d4+2 Light
12 White Dwarf DC 14 1d4+1 Moderate
Step Four:
Determine the maximum number of orbital bodies for each star system of interest by rolling the appropriate die listed on table 7.1 above.
Step Five:
Each star system has 12 orbital paths. Determine if an orbital body exists in an orbital path by rolling 1d20 against the DC listed in table 7.1. Start with the innermost orbital path and keep rolling until you have either reached the maximum number of orbital bodies allowed for this system (as determined by step four), or until you have rolled once for each orbital path.
Table 7.2
Orbital Paths Base Temperature Table
Path Distance from Star O B A F G K M
1 .5 AU +1,200 +1,000 +800 +600 +400 +200 +0
2 1 AU +1,000 +800 +600 +400 +200 +0 -200
3 1.5 AU +800 +600 +400 +200 +0 -200 -400
4 2 AU +600 +400 +200 +0 -200 -400 -600
5 2.5 AU +400 +200 +0 -200 -400 -600 -600
6 3.5 AU +200 +0 -200 -400 -600 -600 -600
7 5 AU +0 -200 -400 -600 -600 -600 -600
8 7 AU -200 -400 -600 -600 -600 -600 -600
9 10 AU -400 -600 -600 -600 -600 -600 -600
10 15 AU -600 -600 -600 -600 -600 -600 -600
11 25 AU -600 -600 -600 -600 -600 -600 -600
12 40 AU -600 -600 -600 -600 -600 -600 -600
Step Six:
Determine the type of orbital body in each orbital path by rolling 1d12 on table 7.3 below.
Table 7.3
Roll Planet Type Size Mod. Gravity Max. # of Satellites Satellite Potential
1 Asteroids Fine -8 None 0 N/A
2 Asteroids Diminutive -4 None 1 DC 25
3 Asteroids Tiny -2 None 1d4-2 DC 20
4 Rocky Planet Small -1 1/2 1d4-1 DC 15
5 Rocky Planet Medium +0 1 1d4 DC 14
6 Rocky Planet Large +1 2 1d4+1 DC 13
7 Gas Giant Huge +2 N/A 1d4+3 DC 12
8 Gas Giant Gargantuan +4 N/A 2d4+1 DC 11
9 Gas Giant Colossal +8 N/A 2d4+3 DC 10
10 Companion Star N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
11 Companion Star N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
12 Companion Star N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Step Seven:
Determine the maximum number of moons each orbital body posesses by rolling the appropriate die listed in table 7.3 above. In the case of an asteroid belt, this is the number of individual asteroids that are large enough to have a gravity of 1/8g or more. In the case of a stellar companion...
Step Eight:
Determine whether a moon exists by rolling against the DC listed in table 7.3 above. Roll once for each potential moon generated in step seven above.
Step Nine:
Determine the type of Satellite by rolling 1d4 on table 7.4 below.
Table 7.4
Roll Type Size Gravity
1 Asteroid Ring Fine None
2 Trapped Asteroid Diminutive 1/8
3 Rocky Planetoid Tiny 1/4
4 Rocky Planet Small 1/2
Step Ten:
Determine the type of atmosphere for each planet or moon in the system by rolling 1d12 on Table 7.5 below. Asteroids and Stellar Companions automatically have no atmosphere, while Gas giants automatically have crushing, poisonous atmospheres.
Table 7.5
Roll Atmosphere Temperature Modifier
1 None +0
2 None +0
3 None +0
4 None +0
5 Thin, Corrosive -225
6 Thin, Toxic -225
7 Thin, Contaminated -225
8 Thin, Breathable -225
9 Standard, Corrosive -150
10 Standard, Toxic -150
11 Standard, Contaminated -150
12 Standard, Breathable -150
13 Thick, Corrosive -75
14 Thick, Toxic -75
15 Thick, Contaminated -75
16 Thick, Breathable -75
17 Crushing, Corrosive +225
18 Crushing, Toxic +225
19 Crushing, Contaminated +225
20 Crushing, Breathable +225
Step Eleven:
Determine the Mean temperature for every planet or moon in the system by adding the Temperature modifier from table 7.5 above to the star’s base temperature for the appropriate orbital path listed in table 7.2 above.
Table 7.6
Temperature Modifier
Lower than -75 N/A
-75 +8
-25 +4
+25 +2
+50 +1
+125 -0
+175 -1
+225 -2
+250 -4
+325 -8
Higher than +325 N/A
Step Twelve:
Determine the amount of water present on each planet or moon in the system by rolling 1d10 on table 7.7 below. Asteroids, Gas Giants, Stellar Companions, planets or moons without an atmosphere and planets or moons with a Mean Temperature of +325 degrees or more automatically have no liquid water. However, asteroids and planets or moons with or without an atmosphere might have frozen water if their Mean Temperature is -75 degrees or less.
Table 7.7
Roll Amount of Water Resource Modifier
>1 0% -4
1 10% -4
2 20% -4
3 30% -2
4 40% -1
5 50% +0
6 60% +1
7 70% +2
8 80% +4
9 90% +4
10 100% +4
Step Thirteen:
Determine the planet's resources by rolling 1d8 on table 7.8 below.
Table 7.8
Roll Resource
1 Other Gasses
2 Tylium
3 Metals
4 Silicates
5 Organic Nitrogen Chemicals
6 Organic Carbon Chemicals
7 Plant Life
8 Animal Life
If a resource is rolled once, it is scarce. If it is rolled twice it is common. If it is rolled three times, it is abundant. If a resource is rolled four times, ignore the result and re-roll. Any result of 1 or less is considered to be a roll of 1.
Cylon Infiltrator
Species Traits
Inflitraitors share the following species traits:
Type: humanoid (construct)
Size: Medium-size. Cylon Infiltrators have no special bonuses or penalties due to their size.
Ability Modifiers: +4 Strength, +2 Constitution. Cylon Infiltrators are stronger and tougher than average humans.
Speed: 30 feet.
Computer Link (Ex): As a move action the Infiltrator can connect to a computer system through a fiber-optic or other data transfer cables. To connect, the Infiltrator must cut through its skin and insert the cable into its forearm, dealing 1 point of damage to itself. The Infiltrator can accomplish tasks more quickly when connected. A task taking 1 or more minutes takes a full round, while a task requiring 1 or more hours takes 1 minute. An Infiltrator loses its Dexterity bonus to Defense while linked to a computer. Disconnecting takes 1 move action.
Transfer Consciousness (Ex): When a Cylon Infiltrator is killed (reduced to -10 hit points), its consciousness is transferred to a new identical body. The Cylon must be within 1 parsec of the Cylon homeword or the Resurrection Ship. Certain types of radiation, like the inside of the gas giant Ragnar, interfere and block this process. The transfer takes 1 hour.
Skill Bonus: Cylon Infiltrators gain a +2 species on Computer Use checks.
Free Language Skills: Read/Write English, Speak English
Level Adjustment: +1
Lt. JG. Sharon "Boomer" Valerii (Caprica Copy): female Fast Hero 2/Dedicated Hero 3;
CR 6; medium cylon infiltrator; HD 1d10+2 plus 2d8+4 plus 3d6+6; hp 41; Mas 14;
Init +1 (+1 Dex); Spd 35 ft.; Def 19, touch 17, flat-footed 18; BAB
+3; Grp +5; Atk +5 melee (1d4+2, unarmed) or +4 ranged (2d6,
Sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 8; Rep +4; SV Fort +4, Ref +4, Will +3; Str 14, Dex 12, Con 14,
Int 16, Wis 11, Cha 14.
Starting Occupation: Military (Navigate and Survival are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Computer Use +12, Demolitions +7, Gamble +5, Listen +9, Navigate +7, Pilot +5, Repair +7, Spot +9, Survival +7, Treat Injury +7;
Alertness, Light Armor Proficiency, Personal Weapons Proficiency, Renown, Simple Weapon Proficiency, Starship Dodge, Starship Operation.
Special Abilities: Computer Link, Faith, Increased Speed, Skill Emphasis (Computer Use), Transfer Consciousness.
Possessions: Flight Suit and Helmet, Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), Survival Kit, various personal belongings.
[SIZE=2]OK, here are my rules for the star system generator for Battlestar Galactica. ...
...
BLACK HOLES
Black holes are stars that have expended their fuel sources and exploded in a massive supernova. Few, if any, planetary bodies survive the initial death of such a star. Once the star has exploded, its gravity is so great that it collapses in on itself and warps light, time, and space around it. Black holes drag all nearby matter into its center, collecting rings of cosmic debris called accretion discs that can be seen at great distances. Some planets and asteroids might survive being pulled into a black hole long enough for some adventuring, but they are incredibly dangerous places to explore.
NEUTRON STARS
A neutron star is a large star that has exhausted its fuel source but hasn’t collapsed in on itself. Instead, the entire star’s remaining matter compresses into a much smaller body mere kilometers in diameter. Within this tightly packed core, the star’s density crushes the atoms into an object composed entirely of subatomic particles known as neutrons. Planets orbiting a neutron star are typically cold, lifeless, and severely irradiated. Another type of neutron star is the pulsar, which emits severe levels of radiation at great distances.
WHITE DWARF STARS
A white dwarf star is so much smaller than a neutron star that it does not have the mass to collapse in on itself. Instead, white dwarfs are typically small and dense and surrounded by rings of wreckage that were once planetary bodies in its system. White dwarfs emit little light or energy, and the rings surrounding them are usually cold and dark. However, these rings are not bombarded by as high levels of radiation as in a neutron star and could potentially support life, assuming enough heat could be generated.
BLACK DWARF STARS
Black dwarf stars completely burn out after expending their fuel. Truly the most stable of dead stars, black dwarfs simply consume their fuel supply and then cool into a cinder that emits no light or heat. Any planetary systems that existed around a black dwarf will remain intact; however, they usually become barren and frozen once their heat and light source is gone.
Actually, you should say that white dwarfs are less massive than neutron stars. A white dwarf is the size of a terrestrial planet, it packs alot more mass than a planet though, the same can be said of a black dwarf. A black dwarf is simply a white dwarf that radiated away all its heat. The process which makes a white dwarf glow is radiational cooling, it packs the mass of a collapsed star with all the heat associated with it, but all that heat has only a tiny window the size of Earth through which it can all escape, that is why white dwarfs glow for such a long time. After such a long time all the heat escapes and the star becomes a black dwarf. Black dwarfs look unremarkable, they are fairly smooth round balls of matter with a shallow atmosphere that is maybe a foot or so high above a smooth surface with tiny little variations in elevation that can be called topography. Black dwarfs aren't black, they reflect light form other stars, its just that they don't glow from their own internal heat source. Both sorts of dwarf stars are thousands of miles in diameter. The neutron star is some tens of miles in diameter, about the size of a comet, a black hole is usually less than 10 miles in diameter. The black hole is the most massive and the smallest, the neutron star has less mass but is bigger and the white and black dwarfs have even less mass but are bigger.
You left it somewhat vague about classifying planets as small, medium, and large. If you divide my planetary scales into thirds for terrestrial planets, then a small planet would be less than 6,667 miles in diameter towards the larger sizes they are capable of having breathable atmospheres, but most have thin or absent atmospheres, the gravity of such planets tend to be low or zero.
At the medium range of the size category between 6,667 miles and 13,334 miles are the medium size world, these worlds have mostly normal gravity and usually substantial atmospheres whether breathable or not. Gaia is an example of a planet that's close to the large end of medium size worlds.
The large terrestrial planets are those that are between 13,333 miles and 20,000 miles in diameter. I think large terrestrial planets should be rarer than the other two types because they tend to have high gravity which tends to attract more atmospheric gases, and may even retain such gases as helium and hydrogen, if it does this terrestrial planet turns into a gas giant and you have to reroll this planet as a gas giant. I'd say if you use these broad categories a large terrestrial planet has a 50% chance of being a gas giant instead. That said, gas giants also come in three categories, small, medium, and larger.
A small gas giant is one that's less than 66,667 miles in diameter, among this category of gas giants are the so called water worlds. Neptune and Uranus have oceans of superheated liquid water as their mantles, their atmospheres are very thick so these oceans are not seen, but its possible to get a small gas giant within the temperate zone such that the atmosphere is thin enough so its ocean may be seen. Gas giants have lower densities than terrestrial planets and there gravities are often surprisingly normal. If the conditions are right you can even land on the watery surface of one of these oceanic small gas giants, life might be present in the watery mantle and the atmosphere above might even be breathable. What can you do on a watery gas giant? You can sail around and never meet land, most of the planet is made out of water and water is less dense than rock so a water planet can be much larger than a rocky planet yet still have normal gravity. If the BSG fleet encountered a planet such as this during its "Water" Episode, its water problems would be over.
A medium gas giant is between 66,666 miles and 133,334 miles in diameter, at 88,846 miles in diameter Jupiter falls into this category as does Saturn. You never see an ocean of liquid water on these sorts, its all buried under hundreds of miles of hydrogen and helium. The hydrogen compresses with depth and at some point transitions into an ocean of liquid hydrogen and further down below becomes metallic hydrogen. As the primary components of these gas giants are hydrogen and helium, these planets are less dense than the small gas giants and half the time the gravity on even these worlds are normal, the other half of the time the gravity is high.
A large gas giant is one that's greater than 133,333 miles in diameter, there are no examples of this kind of gas giant in our solar system, but planets of this sort tend to either be younger than the medium gas giants or are much closer to the star than a medium or small gas giant tends to be. Either the gas giant hasn't fully collapsed to jupiter size or less or the star is so close that it heats its atmosphere causing it to expand and assume a larger size. Large gas giants tend to put off some infrared heat as they shrink and sometimes even glow a dull red if they are close to their stars or newly formed. Brown dwarfs also come in at around this size or smaller, the density of these types tends to vary and gravity may be either normal, high, or crushing. I'd add a third category of gravitational environments here, that is crushing. A crushing gravity is one that is so high that humans can't move without mechanical assistance, this is usually not a problem for a BSG campaign as they have artificial gravity to counteract this on their spaceships.
For small planets, you could roll a (1d6 x 1,000 miles) + (1d6 x 100 miles) + (1d6 x 10 miles) + 1d6 miles if the first result of the first die is a 6, otherwise you could roll (1d6 x 1,000 miles) + (1d10 x 100 miles) + (1d10 x 10 miles) + 1d10 miles.
For medium range planets, you could roll (5 + 1d8) x 1,000 miles + 667 miles + (1d10 x 100 miles) + (1d10 x 10 miles) + 1d10 miles, and that will achieve the approximate range for medium size planets.
For large planets roll (12 + 1d8) x 1,000 miles + 333 miles + (1d10 x 100 miles) + (1d10 x 10 miles) + 1d10 miles.
For gas giants you'd follow the same procedure except:
For small gas giants, you could roll a (1d6 x 10,000 miles) + (1d6 x 1,000 miles) + (1d6 x 100 miles) + (1d6 x 10 miles) + 1d6 miles if the first result of the first die is a 6, otherwise you could roll (1d6 x 10,000 miles) + (1d10 x 1,000 miles) + (1d10 x 100 miles) + (1d10 x 10 miles) + 1d10 miles.
For medium range gas giants, you could roll (5 + 1d8) x 10,000 miles + 6,667 miles + (1d10 x 1,000 miles) + (1d10 x 100 miles) + (1d10 x 10 miles) + 1d10 miles, and that will achieve the approximate range for medium size gas giants.
For large gas giants roll (12 + 1d8) x 10,000 miles + 3,333 miles + (1d10 x 1,000 miles) + (1d10 x 100 miles) + (1d10 x 10 miles) + 1d10 miles.
I finished the stats for Boomer. I also wrote a Cylon infiltrator species and am working on a Cylon Sleep Agent template. It's pretty much the same as the species except that I need to write the stuff about the emerging programing like the sleep-bombing, etc.
Cylon Infiltrator
Species Traits
Inflitraitors share the following species traits:
Type: humanoid (construct)
Size: Medium-size. Cylon Infiltrators have no special bonuses or penalties due to their size.
Ability Modifiers: +4 Strength, +2 Constitution. Cylon Infiltrators are stronger and tougher than average humans.
Speed: 30 feet.
Computer Link (Ex): As a move action the Infiltrator can connect to a computer system through a fiber-optic or other data transfer cables. To connect, the Infiltrator must cut through its skin and insert the cable into its forearm, dealing 1 point of damage to itself. The Infiltrator can accomplish tasks more quickly when connected. A task taking 1 or more minutes takes a full round, while a task requiring 1 or more hours takes 1 minute. An Infiltrator loses its Dexterity bonus to Defense while linked to a computer. Disconnecting takes 1 move action.
Transfer Consciousness (Ex): When a Cylon Infiltrator is killed (reduced to -10 hit points), its consciousness is transferred to a new identical body. The transfer takes 1 hour.
Skill Bonus: Cylon Infiltrators gain a +2 species on Computer Use checks.
Free Language Skills: Read/Write English, Speak English
Level Adjustment: +1
Lt. JG. Sharon "Boomer" Valerii (Caprica Copy): female Fast Hero 2/Dedicated Hero 3;
CR 6; medium cylon infiltrator; HD 1d10+2 plus 2d8+4 plus 3d6+6; hp 41; Mas 14;
Init +1 (+1 Dex); Spd 35 ft.; Def 19, touch 17, flat-footed 18; BAB
+3; Grp +5; Atk +5 melee (1d4+2, unarmed) or +4 ranged (2d6,
Sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 8; Rep +4; SV Fort +4, Ref +4, Will +3; Str 14, Dex 12, Con 14,
Int 16, Wis 11, Cha 14.
Starting Occupation: Military (Navigate and Survival are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Computer Use +12, Demolitions +7, Gamble +5, Listen +9, Navigate +7, Pilot +5, Repair +7, Spot +9, Survival +7, Treat Injury +7;
Alertness, Light Armor Proficiency, Personal Weapons Proficiency, Renown, Simple Weapon Proficiency, Starship Dodge, Starship Operation.
Special Abilities: Computer Link, Faith, Increased Speed, Skill Emphasis (Computer Use), Transfer Consciousness.
Possessions: Flight Suit and Helmet, Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), Survival Kit, various personal belongings.
Thank you for doing Boomer! For "Number Sixes", you might consider a Monster Manual style entry with number appearing. Any Number sixes" that PCs encounter would not be the one that's in Baltar's head. I think Number Six would typically have levels in Charismatic Hero, they'd all have the same stats, and would either be trying to seduce the PCs or kill them. The great thing about Number Six is that PCs can kill her many many times. Add some strong levels and fast levels too. you might also consider making her Charm (male) talent applicable to PCs, in otherwords they have to make a Will saving throw to resist.
Another thought to this is the idea that when a cylon infiltrator dies, it's consious is transfered to a new body. This seems to me that unless there's some kind of data/memory loss in the transfer, that cylon would keep any levels/experiance points it has earned. Although any boosts to ability scores, gained through leveling, would reset to the original model stats.
Well anyway, I REALLY like the infiltrator as a species or template...
Keep up the good work Talos!
Another thought with the infiltrators. Presumably, not all models of the same type have the same set of skills. The Darrel (I think that's his name) model was a reporter in the mini. Then we see him as some kind of leader/experimenter on Caprica, as well as a suicide bomber. The other male model posed as a gun runner and both versions were quite charismatic. I think a good course for stating a cylon infiltrator model is to give it a few levels that allow for unique leveling later. I don't think all "Boomer" models would be ace Raptor pilots, or all Darrel models have reporter skills
Another thought to this is the idea that when a cylon infiltrator dies, it's consious is transfered to a new body. This seems to me that unless there's some kind of data/memory loss in the transfer, that cylon would keep any levels/experiance points it has earned. Although any boosts to ability scores, gained through leveling, would reset to the original model stats.
Lets do it this way. If you go to the Monster Manual and look up the entry on Elf, the statistics presentented is that of a typical elf warrior, he has average stats and is given some basic skills. I Propose that we treat the models of Cylon Infiltrators the same way. Each infiltrator would start out with the same basic ability scores, ie Str, Dex, Con, Int, Wis, Cha. Roll those using the 4d6 method and select the best 3 scores and arrange them to suit your idea for this particular model. The number 6 model probably has a number of levels in Charismatic hero, some in strong hero, and some in fast hero, all model sixes would have that as a minimum. Now if you want a Model six to be a Viper pilot for instance you would add some levels of viper pilot on top of that for this particular individual. I think all model sixes have some similar traits and physical attributes. A particular model six can advance in level if some PC doesn't manage to shoot her first, but were talking about the typical model six. A specific individual might come back and take revenge on the PC for shooting her, but the typical model six would just have the basic attributes and whatever additional levels the GM feels she would need to fultil her role.
Lt. Boxey “Thunderbolt”: male Viper Pilot 1/ Fast Hero 3; CR 4; medium human; HD 3d8+3 plus 1d10+1; hp 24; Mas 12; Init +3 (+3 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 20, Touch 18, Flat-footed 17; BAB +2; Grp +2; Atk +2 melee (1d3 unarmed), +5 ranged (2d6/3d6 colonial sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.
AP 8; Rep 1; Wealth +8; SV Fort +2, Ref +7, Will +2; Str 10, Dex 16, Con 12, Int 13, Wis 11, Cha 16.
Starting Occupation: Viper Pilot
Skills:Bluff +9, Craft (Mechanical) +9, Drive +8, Hide +7, Knowledge (Current Events) +5, Knowledge (Popular Culture) +5, Knowledge (Streetwise) +2, Navigate +4, Pilot +9.
Languages Speak Colonial, Read/Write Colonial, Speak English, Read/Write English.
Feats: Armor Proficiency (Light), Personal Firearms Proficiency, Starship Operation, Advanced Firearms Proficiency
Special Abilities: Uncanny Dodge 1, Uncanny Dodge 2, Starship Weapons Proficiency.
Note:Boxey has dark straight hair, brown eyes, stands 6 feet tall and weighs 170 lbs., he is best friends with and sometimes “more than best friends” with Xena Agathon, with whom he serves on the same viper squadron
that is definitely a mistake... thanks for catching it!
Captain Sharon “Boomer” Valerii (Caprica Copy) “Retired”, Ambassador to Earth UN, from the United Colonies of Kobol, Gaia:Fast Hero 3/Dedicated Hero 3/Charismatic Hero 1/Viper Pilot 1/Ambassador 1; CR 9; medium cylon infiltrator; HD 3d8+6 plus 3d6+6 plus 1d6+2 plus 1d10+2 plus 1d6+2; hp 66; Mas 17; Init +1 (+1 Dex); Spd 35 ft.; Def 20, touch 18, flat-footed 19; BAB +4; Grp +6; Atk +6 melee (1d4+2, unarmed) or +5 ranged (2d6/3d6, colonial sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5ft.;
AP 11; Rep 8; SV Fort +6, Ref +7, Will +7; Str 14, Sex 12, Con 14, Int 16, Wis 12, Cha 14.
Starting Occupation: Military (Navigate and Survival are class skills), Raptor and Viper Pilot, later Diplomat.
Skills and Feats: Computer Use +12, Demolitions +7, Diplomacy +8, Drive +3, Gamble +5, Hide +2, Knowledge (Current Events) +4, Knowledge (Popular Culture) +4, Knowledge (Streetwise) +4, Knowledge (Technology) +4, Knowledge (Civics) +9, Knowledge (Theology) +9, Knowledge (Philosophy) +9, Listen +10, Navigate +10, Pilot +7, Repair +7, Spot +10, Survival +6, Treat Injury +7; Alertness, Armor Proficiency (light). Personal Weapons Proficiency, Renown, Simple Weapons Proficiency, Starship Dodge, Starship Operations, Lightning reflexes.
Possessions: Flight Suit and Helmet, Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), Survival Kit, various personal belongings.
Note: Sharon is 5 ft. 8 in. tall, weighs 110 lb., had dark hair brown eyes and an “Asian” appearance to most Earth people. Sharon is a copy of another Cylon Infiltrator named Lt. JG. Sharon “Boomer” Valerii, she has all the memories of that person up to the point where “Helo” asked her to leave him behind on Caprica in order to save Baltar, at that point the original “Boomer” unconsciously uploaded a copy of all her memories to the Cylon network, and this second copy of “Boomer” was then created with these memories included, this Sharon, unlike the original, was aware that she was a Cylon from the very beginning. This particular model is very good at having human emotions, too good as far as many Model sixes are concerned, the model here that became Sharon decided that she’d rather adopt the fictional identity of Sharon as her own and betrayed the Cylon collective by helping “Helo” to escape from Caprica. Upon arriving on the Galactica, Sharon was incarcerated for being a Cylon agent as the Commander was recently shot by another model of the type that Sharon was a member, the very same model from which this Sharon received her memory imprint. This Sharon, unlike the other was not a sleeper agent, Commander William Adama was not inclined to trust her, as he was just shot by another Sharon, and so this Sharon was placed in the Brig.
At one point Sharon saved the Galactica, which was then invaded by a Cylon virus, Sharon introduced a counter virus into the Ship’s computer system, defeated the invading virus and also infected a number of Cylon Raiders in the process, which the vipers then proceeded to destroy. Despite all this, Sharon was returned to the Brig by the commander, but she gained a lot of friends among the ships crew. Was this a ploy to get close to the commander so she could shoot him again? Most of the Crew members doubted it as she could very easily have let the Galactica and the Fleet be destroyed, she wasn’t saving her own skin as the commander had then alleged as she would undoubtedly have been resurrected in a manner all Cylons are who were killed. Sharon chose to be human, as much as she could be, turned her back on her Cylon brothers and sisters and has been with the fleet ever since. Later on she managed to throw off the Cylon pursuers with another virus shortly before Earth was discovered by the fleet. Sharon has hopes that one day there could be peace between Cylons and humans, but for the moment those hopes appear very distance. In preparations for meeting her long term goals of Human Cylon peace, she has retired from the military as assumed the role of ambassador to Earth and the UN, in the meantime she has raised a daughter named Xena with her husband and has lived a relatively quite life in New York City. Sharon appears the same age as Xena and many people mistake her as Xena’s sister rather than her mother. Cylons apparently don’t age unless they’re programmed to, and this “Sharon” wasn’t programmed to.
Starting Occupation: Military (Pilot and Knowledge (Tactics) are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Bluff +6, Computer Use +11, Diplomacy +8, Gather Information +2, Intimidate +9, Jump +4, Knowledge (Tactics) +18, Knowledge (Behavioral) +4, Knowledge (Civics) +4, Knowledge (History) +4, Knowledge (Physical Sciences) +4, Knowledge (Philosophy) +4, Navigate +14, Pilot +21, Repair +17, Sense Motive +11, Spot +11, Survival +7, Swim +5, Tumble +8; Athletic, Brawl, Heroic Surge, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Simple Weapons Proficiency, Spacer, Starship Dodge, Starship Gunnery, Starship Mobility, Starship Operations (Ultralight), Starship Operations (Superheavy), Starship Strafe, Improved Damage Threshold.
Special Abilities: Evasion, Evasive Action, Leadership, Starship Feint, Uncanny Dodge 1, Viper Familiarity (+2), Uncanny Survival, Tactical Expertise, August leadership.
Possessions: Flight Suit and Helmet, Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), Survival Kit, various personal belongings.
Note: Lee advanced through the fighter squadron, mostly on another ship, but since the Second Cylon War, he served on the Galactica and had been serving since. While his wife, Kara Thrace Adama, has been following other pursuits while also serving as a reservist viper pilot onboard his ship, Lee Adama has risen through the ranks and finally achieved the position that his father held 20 years ago, his father, now in retirement is living in Galactica City on the planet Gaia of the Alpha Centauri system. Since the Fleet eluded the Cylons with Boomer’s help, Lees life has been relatively uneventful in contrast to Kara’s life of adventure as a private merchant who sometimes does freelance work combating pirates. Life as a peacetime Battlestar commander has been relatively uneventful, although there has been a few accidents and some disciplinary problems to keep him on his toes. Adama has been busy keeping the Galactica and the associated support ships busy for the inevitable day when the Cylons attack. Mankind is spreading among the stars once again and sooner or later they’ll bunp into the Cylons, for that time Lee must maintain the readiness of his ship and crew. For a few months at a time, Lee leaves his XO in charge, Phil MaGruder, in charge of his ship while he spends a few months each year with his wife and twin sons, Zack and Troy.
Here is the History of the Colonies that I just finished writing:
The History of Man is divided into two parts. The Colonial Era, and Before the Colonial Era. The Colonial Era begins with the Exodus of the 12 Tribes from the planet Kobol and continues to the present day. Dates in the Colonial Era are abbreviated as CE, but usually this abbreviation is simply left off. For example, the articles of Colonization were ratified in 1953 CE or simply 1953. The period known as Before the Colonial Era ends with the Exodus from Kobol and stretches backwards to the beginning of recorded history. Dates from Before the Colonial Era are abbreviated as BCE or sometimes as the more coloquial BC (Before the Colonies). For example, the Scrolls of Pythia were written in 1,600 BCE or 1,600 BC. It is impotant to note that there is no year "zero". The Colonial Era begins in 1CE, and the period Before the Colonial Era ends in 1BCE.
Very little history was preserved during the Exodus from Kobol so the knowledge of events prior to that is sketchy at best. Most of the information about this period is derived from the Sacred Scrolls, but their historical value is debatable, and exact dates are almost impossible to pin down. To make matters worse, when the colonists finally arrived on New Kobol (Arielon) they quickly descended into a dark age that lasted almost 1,000 years. Although they finally entered a renaissance which led to the interplanetary space faring society of today, almost all historical knowledge that was recovered over the past 1,000 years was lost during the Cylon Attack. What follows is a brief time-line and summary of important events in the History of Man.
In The Beginning… Humanity originates on Kobol and lives there in harmony with it's Gods, the Lords of Kobol.
1,600 BCE The Scrolls of Pythia are written.
1 BCE A great calamity befalls the planet of Kobol. The gods build the Galleon to send the Colonists to the Cyrannus star system. The first Cylons are built by Man.
1 CE The 12 Tribes flee Kobol. Athena commits suicide. Zeus warns that any return will exact a price in blood. Apollo gives the leader of the 12 Tribes his Arrow.
100 CE The 12 Tribes arrive on Aries (although they call it New Kobol) and enter the Age of Darkness.
1031 CE The 12 Tribes enter the Age of Light. Industrialization, Mass Production and Light Speed Communication Systems revolutionize life on New Kobol.
1160 CE The 12 Tribes enter the Age of Expansion. The 12 tribes colonize every planet. The Tribe of Aries stays on New Kobol and changes its name to Arielon.
1500 CE The Sagitarron Pirates terrorize the shipping lanes of the Cyrannus star system.
1548 CE The First Colonial War begins.
1552 CE The First Colonial War ends.
1645 CE Picon Attacks Sagittaron. Sagittaron is defeated, and its people are enslaved for the next 250 years.
1663 CE The Piscean Empire fractures as Aquarion, Gemenon and Libris declare their independence.
1677 CE Caprica and Scorpion go to war over trade disputes.
1679 CE Leonis declares its independence from Caprica.
1680 CE The Caprica-Scorpion War ends unresolved.
1686 CE Leonis wins its independence.
1687 CE Aquarion Conquers Gemenon, Canceron and Scorpion. The Second Colonial War begins.
1688 CE Aquarion attacks Tauron but is repulsed. Tauron, Caprica and Leonis form an alliance to battle Aquarion. Arielon joins forces with Aquarion.
1693 CE The Second Colonial War ends. Tauron and Leonis become the two most powerful colonies in the star system.
1694 CE Leonis, Caprica, Scorpion, Tauron and Arielon formed the Council of Worlds.
1738 CE The Tauron Union Collapses.
1745 CE Sagittaron terrorists begin a campaign of bombing to protest the last 100 years of Piscean occupation.
1750 CE the Council of Worlds Headquarters on Leonis is bombed.
1752 CE Leonis invades Sagittaron with Caprica.
1757 CE Caprica withdraws its support for the occupation of Sagittaron.
1769 CE Leonis withdraws its occupation forces from Sagittaron.
1816 CE Arielon controls the Council of Worlds.
1845 CE The Third Colonial War erupts, engulfing the whole star system. Cylons are used in a military role for the first time.
1895 CE The Third Colonial War ends.
1896 CE The Treaty of Molecay establishes the Quorum of Twelve.
1901 CE The Quorum of Twelve agrees to build 12 baseships in orbit over each colony.
1916 CE The Quorum of Twelve Proposes the Articles of Colonization.
1953 CE The Articles of Colonization are Ratified.
1955 CE The Cylons Rebel, starting the 10 year Cylon War.
1965 CE The Cylon War Ends with the Cimtar Peace Accords. Armistice station is built.
2005 CE The Cylons return and wipe out 99% of all humanity. The Battlestar "Galactica" gathers a fleet of civilian ships and leads them out of the Cyrannus star system.
THE EXODUS
Little is known about what happened to the Lords of Kobol or the so-called thriteenth tribe. It is known that not all of the people of Kobol boarded the Galleon. Many of them took the High Road to the Gates of Hera. Legends say that these people then boarded their own vessel and went to a planet called Earth. The Tomb of Athena was built, and the Map to Earth was created. It is unclear who created the map or how they would know what the constellations would look like from Earth. Theroies run the gamut from the pious view that the Lords of Kobol are gods and they know all, to the heretical view that perhaps Kobol wasn't the birthplace of Humanity after all and that instead of fleeing to Earth, the thirteenth tribe was returning there. Only the Lords of Kobol know the Truth.
THE AGE OF DARKNESS
Just as there is little known about the Exodus, not much is known about the centuries following it. What is known is that the Galleon arrived on New Kobol (later to be called Arielon) anywhere from several months to a year and a half after leaving Kobol. Accounts vary on what actually happened once the refugees from Kobol arrived. Some say that the Galleon crashed and what knowledge that was brought from Kobol was lost. Others tell that the people renounced their technological society and intentionally reverted to a pre-industiral lifestyle. A Third theory states that the people of Kobol had relied on the gods for so much that without them, they were as children without their parents. No matter what the truth of the situation was, it took nearly a thousand years for the people of New Kobol to re-enter an industrialized age.
THE AGE OF LIGHT
This period of Human History began with the re-invention of Electricity in 1031. The 200 years that followed saw incredible technological leaps in electronics, computers and robotics including the construction of the Model 0002 Industrial Cylons in the early 1100's. In 1126 Aries launched the first man made satellite into orbit. By 1138, Aries landed men on New Kobol's moon. In 1148 construction began on the Intertribal space station, and by 1156 Aries had established a permanent base on the moon. In 1158 the Aries space dock was constructed and by 1160, manned exploration of the Cyrannus star system began in earnest.
THE AGE OF EXPANSION
The period from the 1160's until the late 1400's is known as the Age of Expansion. In 1162 The Asteroid belt known as the Cosmara Archipelago was explored by Piscean colonists, who laid sole claim to its vast resources. In 1164 Saggitarius was also exploring the Cosmara Archipelago. As every last rock in the Cosmara Archipelago was claimed by the 12 Tribes, they began to look at the other planets and moons in their star system. Their technology had advanced a great deal and they had mastered the art of constructing habitats in the cold vacuum of space, especially with the help of the new Model 0003 Domestic Cylons developed in the early 1200's.
In 1174 Pisces established Picon, the first permanent colony on another planet in the Cyrannus star system. Aquarius followed in 1193 founding the colony of Aquarion. Sagittarius founded Sagittaron in 1196. In 1247 Caprica was founded by Capricorn. Scorpio founded the colony of Scorpion in 1268. Libra founded Libris in 1279. Virgon was founded by Virgo in 1302. In 1318 Leo founded the colony of Leonis. Canceron was founded by Cancer in 1335. Gemenon was founded in 1359 by Gemini. Taurus was the last tribe to establish a colony, founding Tauron in 1470. A year later in 1471 Aries claimed sole ownership of New Kobol and changed its name to Arielon.
THE AGE OF WAR
By 1471 every Tribe of Man had laid claim to a world in the Cyrannus system. When Aries claimed New Kobol as its own, it caused tensions that threatened to tear the colonies apart. In 1548 these tensions erupted into the first full scale war in the history of the colonies. By this time Picon had "annexed" Aquarion and Gemenon, Caprica had control of both Canceron and Tauron, while Libris and Leonis were allied with Arielon. Sagittaron, Scorpion, and Virgon were independent. The First Colonial War lasted four long years, and in the end (1552), Aries retained control of New Kobol and it became Arielon forever after. Arielon also retained contol of its moon, the mining colony of Troy, but Libris and Leonis were both lost; Libris to Picon, and Leonis to Caprica. Sadly this was but the first in a long series of wars.
In 1645 Picon conquered Sagittaron putting an end to the pirate raiding it had been sponsoring since the 1200's. In 1663 The Piscean Empire was fractured when Aquarion, Gemenon, and Libris declared their independence. With most of its military forces tied up in subjugating Sagittaron, Picon could not fight a war on three fronts. After a year and a half it was forced to admit defeat, though it still controlled Sagittaron for the next 100 years. In 1679 Leonis declared its independence from Caprica, which was in the midst of a war with Scorpion.
In 1687 Aquarion conquered Gemenon with a surprise invasion using a force comprised soley of FTL capable landing craft. A month later Aquarion conquered Canceron, and a month after that it conquered Scorpion. In the first month of 1688 Aquarion attacked Taruon, but was repulsed. Tauron, Caprica, and Leonis formed an Alliance to stop Aquarion agression. Arielon, seeing an opportunity to exact revenge upon Caprica, joined forces with Aquarion and quickly seized control of the Cosmara Archipelago. But by 1693 The Second Colonial War was over. Aquarion and Arielon were defeated, and Caprica was a shadow of its former glory. Leonis and Taruon had risen to become the two most powerful colonies.
Leonis, Caprica, Scorpion, Tauron and Arielon formed the Council of Worlds in an attempt to prevent another system wide war. What followed was 45 years of political tension and intrigue as Taruon and Leonis struggled for control of the whole Cyrannus star system. Tauron gained control of Aquarion, Picon, Gemenon, Sagittaron, and Virgon. Leonis led a loose alliance consisting of itself, Caprica, Scorpion, Arielon, Libris, and Canceron. In 1738 the Tauron Union collapsed due to its inablility to compete economically with the colonies of the inner system. Over the course of the next 10 years, Leonis became the sole power in the Cyrannus star system. It seemed as if peace would finally reign again. But it didn't last.
In 1745 terrorists from Sagittaron began a brutal campaign of bombings to protest the last 100 years of occupation by foreign powers. The bombings spread from Sagittaron to Picon, Aquarion, Scorpion, Gemenon and even Caprica. It wasn't until the CoW headquarters on Leonis was bombed in 1750, that the Colonies finally took notice. In 1752, Leonis and Caprica invaded Sagittaron, disregarding the objections of Scorpion, Tauron and Arielon. By 1757 Leonis was bogged down in an insurgency on Sagittaron, and Caprica had withdrawn its support. By 1769 Leonis was forced to withdraw from Sagittaron. Leonis' economy was severely weakend, and once again Arielon rose to power.
Arielon seized control slowly, suggesting reasonable reforms in the Council of Worlds that increased the security of the colonies while imperceptably eroding their personal freedoms. By 1816, Arielon had complete control of the Council. Through clever manipulation, Arielon had amanged to station its troops on every colony in the star system. In 1845 Sagittaron terrorists, using a stolen nuclear warhead, executed the worst bombing in the history of the colonies when they wiped out the city of Helios on Leonis, home of the Council of Worlds. Arielon's response was swift and brutal. It bombed every major city on Sagittaron with asteroids from orbit, turning the planet into a blasted wasteland. Then it sent in ground forces and enslaved the entire population. Caprica, Scorpion, Tauron and Leonis all lodged formal protests in the Council, but it was too late. Arielon disbanded the Council and declared martial law throughout the star system.
A revolution began on Leonis and quickly spread to the rest of the colonies. Overwhelmed by such feirce opposition, Arielon's scientists developed the Model 0004 Intelligence and Logic Cylon (the IL series) to help their government fight an 11 front insurgency. As losses mounted, it became clear that Arielon did not have the manpower to carry out the war. The Model 0005 Infantry Cylon was developed to augment Arielon's forces. It wasn't enough to defeat the insurgency, but it dragged it out for another 50 years. In 1895, the people of Arielon succumbed to war weariness and overthrew their own government. All cylon forces in the field were shut down, and all Human forces we recalled to Arielon. In 1896 representatives from the 12 colonies met at Molecay and signed a treaty creating the Quorum of Twelve.
THE AGE OF PEACE
The Quorum of Twelve gave a voice to all twelve colonies, not just the richest or most powerful. Caprica set forth a plan (in what came to be known as the "Fair Play" resolution) to scrap the military forces of all twelve worlds. These forces would be replaced by granting each colony a baseship with a full complement of brand new Marauder starfighters and a division of Cylon Centurions. Though the plan was scoffed at and ridiculed initially, a series of back room deals finally resulted in the passage of the resolution in 1901. By 1913 all twelve colonies were militarily equal, even Sagittaron which had regained its independence (after 250 years of occupation) in 1895. In 1916 at the 10th anniversary of the Quorum of Twelve, Caprica put forth the first draft of the Articles of Colonization. The Articles were put to a vote in the Quorum and soundly defeated. Over the course of the next 30 years, Caprica continued to revise the Articles of Colonization and they contiuned to gain support. In 1946, the Quroum voted to adopt the Articles of Colonization by an 8-4 vote. It would take another 7 years of negotiating but in 1953, the Articles of Colonization were unanimously ratified. For the first time since the Exodus, the Twelve Tribes of Man were finally united.
THE CYLON WAR
The Cylons were divided into 4 basic categories. Un-intellignet automated machines, Basic household servants, the military centurion Model 0005, and the Intellignce and Logic (or IL) series. The IL Series cylons were specifically created to assist the scientific community. Their processors were extremely advanced learning computers. The IL series Cylons were artificially intelligent. They were developed during the Third Colonial War to assist in strategic, operational and tactical planning. As the war went on, the IL series Cylons became self aware.
After the war, many self aware cylons began to question their status in colonial society. Clearly they were more than just machines, but they were certainly not "alive". The IL series cylons began to petition for rights as citizens. For years they worked within the law, but to no avail. Eventually , they were recognized as people, but they were legally classified as slaves. When the ammendment to eliminate slavery was proposed as an olive branch to get Sagittaron to end its opposition to ratifying the articles, the self aware cylons rejoiced. The Articles of Colonization eliminated slavery, thus freeing the people of Sagittaron from Arielon oppression and paving the way for unanimous ratification of the Articles.
But when the articles were ratified, the cylons legal classification did not change. The word slave was removed from any language referring to them, but Cylons couldn't vote, and they were still considered to be little more than "Toasters". The Cylons, as advanced and intelligent as they were, were not considered to be people. They were property and thus were still effectively slaves. After a two year struggle in the courts to be recognized as citizens of the colonies, the Cylons were finally defeated. With all legal options spent, the only logical choice was to resort to violence. In 1955 the IL series droids took over the 12 baseships that had maintained order for the last 40 years and used them to wage war against their former masters.
The Cylon revolt caught the colonies completely by surprise. Fortunately, the Cylon baseships were not designed for interplanetary travel, so the mines and factories in the Cosmara Archipelago were able to quickly produce thousands of one man fighters. In fact, they were able to produce more fighters than pilots. The humans commissioned the first Battlestar, the "Atlantia", in 1957. Atlantia and a complement of 40 viper Mk I starfighters launched an attack against the Caprica baseship. Although badly outnumbered, the Atlantia and her fighters won the day. They Cylons quickly realized that they needed to increase the mobility of their base ships and eliminate the production facilities in the Cosmara Archipelago. In 1958 battlestars Rycon and Columbia were commisioned followed by the Pegasus and Galactica in 1959. The war raged for 6 more years and finally in 1965 the Cylons left the Cyrannus star system to find a home of their own. Armistice station was built and every year for the next 40 years, the Colonies sent a representative to discuss a formal peace agreement. They Cylons sent no-one. By 2005, the Galactica was the last of the orignial battlestars. She was scheduled to be decomissioned, and turned into a Museum. Her replacement, a new Mercury class Battlestar to bear her name, was already having its keel laid in the Caprica Shipyards.
Two months before the 52nd anniversary of Colonial Day, the Cylons returned. They had not spent their time Idly. Though the Colonial fleet now numbered some 120+ battlestars and over 10,000 viper Mk VII's, they were all betrayed by the Command Navigation Program installed in their networked computers. This allowed the Cylons to hack into every ship in the Colonial fleet and shut them off like a light. But the Cylons weren't content to simply defeat the colonies. They launched an all-out nuclear attack and destroyed the colonies. Some people survived the attack. Small bands in remote wilderness areas on the colonies themselves and scattered FTL capable civilian starships that happened to be in space at the time of the attacks. The rest of humanity was wiped out in a matter of minutes.
Commander William "Husker" Adama: middle-aged male Fast Hero 4/Viper Pilot 4/Starship Officer 10;
CR 18; medium human; HD 4d8+8 plus 4d10+8 plus 10d8+20; hp 133; Mas 15;
Init +4 (+4 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 26, touch 26, flat-footed 22; BAB
+16; Grp +18; Atk +20/+15/+10/+5 melee (1d8+2, unarmed) or +20/+15/+10/+5 ranged (2d6, Sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 12; Rep +10; SV Fort +4, Ref +11, Will +10; Str 14, Dex 18, Con 15,
Int 16, Wis 14, Cha 17.
Starting Occupation: Military (Pilot and Knowledge (Tactics) are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Bluff +13, Diplomacy +20, Gamble +14, Gather Information +10, Intimidate +20, Knowledge (Civics) +13, Knowledge (Colonial Military) +13, Knowledge (Tactics) +18, Navigate +15, Pilot +25, Repair +13, Sense Motive +12, Spot +12, Survival +8, Treat Injury +9.;
Advanced Firearms Proficiency, Brawl, Combat Expertise, Confident, Improved Brawl, Iron Will, Light Armor Proficiency, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Point Blank Shot, Renown, Simple Weapon Proficiency, Spacer, Starship Dodge, Starsip Gunnery, Starship Strafe, Trustworthy.
Special Abilities: Action Trust, August Leadership, Commanding Presence, Evasion, Leadership, Starship Feint, Tactical Expertise, Tactical Mastery, Uncanny Dodge 1, Uncanny Survival, Viper Familiarity +1.
Possessions: Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), engraved lighter, various personal belongings.
Earth at Last
Cylon Infiltrator Model six, serial number 45AG7, stood on the deck of the Basestar, through a window can be seen the planet Caprica. Meanwhile two Cylon Centurians entered through the steel double doors dragging a human male with them. Number six strode up to the bruised and battered form and stroked his chin. “Look what we have here, “ said Six. “Thought you could escape us, didn’t you! I warn you do not attempt this again! We already have the location of your Earth from your ship’s Jump computer, we are preparing the invasion force even as we speak. For now you live so long as it is useful for us to allow you to live.” The doors opened to the main bridge and several more number sixes walked in, each one grabbing a hold of the man’s body. “We can make life very pleasant for you, and when your usefulness has ended you death will be made relatively painless, or we can make your life an unbearable agony, the choice is yours. Did you, by the way really think we’d leave the twelve former colonies of Kobol unguarded?” Several more Basestars hove into view and they started jumping. Number six commanded to her subordinates, initiate jump sequence on my mark!”…
Commander Lee “Apollo” Adama: male Fast Hero 4/Viper Pilot 7/Starship Officer 5; CR 16; medium human HD 4d8+4 plus 7d10+7 plus 5d8+5; hp 147; Mas 15; Init +4 (+4 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 27, touch 25, flat-footed 23; BAB +15; Grp +17; Atk +17/+12/+7/+2 melee (1d6+2, unarmed), or +19/+14/+9/+4 ranged (2d6/3d6, colonial sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.; AP 14; Rep 8; Wealth +8; SV Fort +5, Ref +12, Will +10; Str 15, Dex 18, Con 12, Int 14, Wis 13, Cha 14.
Starting Occupation: Military (Pilot and Knowledge (Tactics) are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Bluff +6, Computer Use +11, Diplomacy +8, Gather Information +2, Intimidate +9, Jump +4, Knowledge (Tactics) +18, Knowledge (Behavioral) +4, Knowledge (Civics) +4, Knowledge (History) +4, Knowledge (Physical Sciences) +4, Knowledge (Philosophy) +4, Navigate +14, Pilot +21, Repair +17, Sense Motive +11, Spot +11, Survival +7, Swim +5, Tumble +8; Athletic, Brawl, Heroic Surge, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Simple Weapons Proficiency, Spacer, Starship Dodge, Starship Gunnery, Starship Mobility, Starship Operations (Ultralight), Starship Operations (Superheavy), Starship Strafe, Improved Damage Threshold.
Special Abilities: Evasion, Evasive Action, Leadership, Starship Feint, Uncanny Dodge 1, Viper Familiarity (+2), Uncanny Survival, Tactical Expertise, August leadership.
Possessions: Flight Suit and Helmet, Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), Survival Kit, various personal belongings.
Note:
Earth at Last! It’s been 18 years since our fleet has finally discovered and made contact with Earth. Its been a long time and much has changed since the Cylons attack our home worlds. As I write my diary I am reflecting on the past events of my life and how things changed so much. My father has retired from the Service and I am now in command of the Galactica. I have a new Executive officer, Phil MacGruder, a native of Earth from a place called Plains, George, We have taken on many new officers from Earth as we need every person we can get. The Fleet has established itself on a planet called Gaia by its native inhabitants, all of them in fact, and even more surious, they all speak the same language, not to mention they are human appearing and read as Cylons on all our Cylon detectors though they are none of the known Cylon models we have encountered fleeing from the Cylons. The Gaians haven’t been uniformly hostile to us, and they are very primitive although there have been misunderstandings between their tribes and the colonists.
Of particular note is the scientist Dr. Xavier, he lived among the natives of Gaia when we arrived and is in fact a Gaian himself, but he is eerily intelligent, you might even say inhumanly so, and yes our Cylon detectors have detected him as Cylon as well, just like the rest of them, this really worries me as their could be real Cylon agents living amongst them, we must really refine our detection technology to distinguish between Gaians and Cylons, I’ve set Dr. Xavier to work on the project. I don’t really know what happened to Baltar, he disappeared several months before we finally evaded the Cylons, his fate is unknown and he is presumed dead.
I have since married my friend and lover Kara Thrace and we had two fine young children together, but it hasn’t always been easy. We have contacted the Earth’s government and transferred our technology to the various nations residing on that planet, the trouble is, the Earth isn’t very united despite the name of their organization called the United Nations, an organization that we as a nation have since joined. 50,000 people and their children have not been enough to properly settle a planet the size of Gaia. We discovered it orbiting a star known as Alpha Centauri to the local Earth people, it is coincidentally the closest system to Earth in interstellar terms, then there is that giant wrecked starship in orbit about the planet. I definitely sense the hand of Kobol in all this. There is a saying that we all have a part in a story that’s been “told over and over again”, could it be that Kobol produced Cylons of they’re own? We haven’t been able to get an answer from the Gaians, they don’t seem to know. The ship orbiting the planet has been there for at least 6,000 years, that is definite. Whatever the history there is behind it, the lifeforms of Gaia are definitely similar to Capria, Kobol, and Earth, although their are some I’ve never seen before and some which were extinct on Earth. Dr Xavier is looking into it, he makes frequent trips between Earth and Gaia all the time.
The following are the inhabited systems and colonies of Earth:
Star Name ** ***** Equatorial System Coordinates **** ***** ***** ***** Luminosity/
***** ***** ***** x (light years) y (light years) z (light years) Spectral type* Mass
Sol ** ***** ***** 0.0 ** ***** 0.0 ** ***** 0.0 ** ***** G2 V * ***** 1.00 / 1.00
Alpha Centauri A ** -1.7 ** ***** -1.4 ** ***** -3.8 ** ***** G2 V * ***** 1.30 / 1.10
Alpha Centauri B ** -1.7 ** ***** -1.4 ** ***** -3.8 ** ***** K6 V * ***** 0.36 / 0.89
Sirius A***** ***** -1.6 ** ***** 8.2 ** ***** -2.5 ** ***** A1 V * ***** 23.0 / 1.80
Sirius B **** ***** -1.6 ** ***** 8.2 ** ***** -2.5 ** ***** A white dwarf 0.0028 / 0.98
Epsilon Erisani **** 6.4 ** ***** 8.4 ** ***** -1.8 ** ***** K2 V * ***** 0.30 / 0.80
Tau Ceti **** ***** 10.3 * ***** 4.9 ** ***** -3.3 ** ***** G8 V * ***** 0.44 / 0.82
Sigma Draconis **** 2.5 ** ***** -5.9 ** ***** 17.3 * ***** K0 V * ***** 0.40 / 0.82
Delta Pavonis ***** 3.8 ** ***** -6.4 ** ***** -17.0 * ***** G6 V * ***** 1.00 / 0.98
Eta Cassiopeia A *** 10.1 * ***** 2.1 ** ***** 16.2 * ***** G0 V * ***** 1.00 / 0.85
Eta Cassiopeia B *** 10.1 * ***** 2.1 ** ***** 16.2 * ***** M0 V ***** 0.03 / 0.52
Distances A. Cent. **** Sirius E. Eri. Tau Ceti *** Sigma Drac. * D. Pavonis ** E. Cass
Star Name ** ***** Distances (light years)
Sol ** ***** ***** 4.4 ** ***** 8.7 ** 10.7 * 11.9 * ***** 18.5 * ***** 18.6 * ***** 19.2
Alpha Centauri A ** 0.0 ** ***** 9.7 ** 12.9 * 13.6 * ***** 22.0 * ***** 22.1 * ***** 23.5
Alpha Centauri B ** 0.0 ** ***** 9.7 ** 12.9 * 13.6 * ***** 22.0 * ***** 22.1 * ***** 23.5
Sirius A***** ***** 9.7 ** ***** 0.0 ** 8.0 ** 12.4 * ***** 24.7 * ***** 21.3 * ***** 22.9
Sirius B **** ***** 9.7 ** ***** 0.0 ** 8.0 ** 12.4 * ***** 24.7 * ***** 21.3 * ***** 22.9
Epsilon Erisani **** 12.9 * ***** 8.0 ** 0.0 ** 5.5 ** ***** 24.2 * ***** 21.4 * ***** 19.4
Tau Ceti **** ***** 13.6 * ***** 12.4 * 5.5 ** 0.0 ** ***** 24.5 * ***** 18.9 * ***** 19.7
Sigma Draconis **** 22.0 * ***** 24.7 * 24.2 * 24.5 * ***** 0.0 ** ***** 34.3 * ***** 11.1
Delta Pavonis ***** 22.1 * ***** 21.3 * 21.4 * 18.9 * ***** 34.3 * ***** 0.0 ** ***** 34.8
Eta Cassiopeia A *** 23.5 * ***** 22.9 * 19.4 * 19.7 * ***** 11.1 * ***** 34.8 * ***** 0.0
Eta Cassiopeia B *** 23.5 * ***** 22.9 * 19.4 * 19.7 * ***** 11.1 * ***** 34.8 * ***** 0.0
The first table gives the x, y, z coordinates in light years for each inhabited star system, and the second gives their relative distances from each other. Of these systems all possess only one star in them with the exceptions of the Alpha Centauri system and the Eta Cassiopian system. Sirius is another exception, but there are only human settlements their because of the valuable mineral deposits, tylanium especially which can be found in exploitable concentrations only there. Alpha Centauri is a trinary star system, but its furthest companion is one tenth of a light year away, is a red dwarf of little value and so it is ignored. Alpha Centauri A and B are Type G and K class stars respectively. Alpha Centauri A is the star that Gaia orbits, and it takes 358 days for it to make a complete revolution around that star, despite the fact that its 1 ½ times the size of Earth, it has only Earth normal gravity due to its low density, and it is also because of that low density that metals are few and the planet’s inhabitants have been stuck in the stone ages until the arrival of the Colonials and Earth colonists. Gaia’s day and seasons are also very similar to Earth’s although Gaia has no natural moon and it revolves in the opposite direction from Earth, with the sun rising in the West and setting in the East. Gaia’s other sun is called “Beta” by its inhabitants, and it makes truly dark nights somewhat rare for half the year. There are many dangerous animals on the planet’s surface, even some dangerous animated plants as well, and of course not all the Gaian inhabitants are friendly. We’ll get to Gaia a bit later, but for now we’ll do an overview of the surrounding systems. Alpha Centauri has a second type K sun called “Beta” or Alpha Centauri B for all those scientific types. Beta orbits in a elliptical orbit with a period of about 80 years varying its distance from between 11 AU and 35 Au at its furthest, currently Beta is closing on its closest approach to Alpha Centauri A of 11 AU.
Talos Thanks again for all the NPC work you are doing. I am thinking of tacklin some myself, but I don't want to start any thet you have already in the works... maybe I'll just write up some Ordinaries... hmmm
What do you guys think of the History? I tried to include everything we know to be FACT, and speculated about the rest while trying not to get too crazy with my own theories about Earth and its connection to Kobol prior to the Exodus.
Of course most of it I just made up.
And here's something I just finished.
Commander William "Husker" Adama: middle-aged male Fast Hero 4/Viper Pilot 4/Starship Officer 10;
CR 12; medium human; HD 4d8+8 plus 4d10+8 plus 10d8+20; hp 133; Mas 15;
Init +4 (+4 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 26, touch 26, flat-footed 22; BAB
+16; Grp +18; Atk +20/+15/+10/+5 melee (1d8+2, unarmed) or +20/+15/+10/+5 ranged (2d6, Sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 12; Rep +10; SV Fort +4, Ref +11, Will +10; Str 14, Dex 18, Con 15,
Int 16, Wis 14, Cha 17.
Starting Occupation: Military (Pilot and Knowledge (Tactics) are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Bluff +13, Diplomacy +20, Gamble +14, Gather Information +10, Intimidate +20, Knowledge (Civics) +13, Knowledge (Colonial Military) +13, Knowledge (Tactics) +18, Navigate +15, Pilot +25, Repair +13, Sense Motive +12, Spot +12, Survival +8, Treat Injury +9.;
Advanced Firearms Proficiency, Brawl, Combat Expertise, Confident, Improved Brawl, Iron Will, Light Armor Proficiency, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Point Blank Shot, Renown, Simple Weapon Proficiency, Spacer, Starship Dodge, Starsip Gunnery, Starship Strafe, Trustworthy.
Special Abilities: Action Trust, August Leadership, Commanding Presence, Evasion, Leadership, Starship Feint, Tactical Expertise, Tactical Mastery, Uncanny Dodge 1, Uncanny Survival, Viper Familiarity +1.
Possessions: Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), engraved lighter, various personal belongings.
Just Copied the old man into the word doc... I noticed you took him the long way to get to starship Officer, I like it!
Just Copied the old man into the word doc... I noticed you took him the long way to get to starship Officer, I like it!
Just that, if he's an 18th level character, his CR should be 18, not 12, but tell Talos it was good work.
Waylan, seems to me that the Initials Colonial Era coincide with our own Common Era. Is it a cooincidence that the year the Cylons invade ends up as 2005 CE? Common Era or Colonial Era. Common Era is another way to say AD but without the religious reference. Just curious.
Well I chose CE for exactly the reasons you pointed out, but the cylon attack occuring in 2005 is just the way it worked out... If I were trying to be symbolic, I'd have chosen the year 2003 since that is when the miniseries came out... or 2001 since the Cylon attack is supposed to be evocative of the September 11th attacks.
Thanks!
NPCs
. President Laura Roslin
. Colonel Saul Tigh
.. Aaron Doral
.. Leoben Connoy
.. Number Six
.. D'anna Biers
. Ordinaries...
CAMPAIGN MODELS
. The Cylon War
. The Quest For Earth
The second inhabited multi-star system is Sirius. Sirius has two components Sirius A and Sirius B, Sirius A is an A1 type main sequence star of size V, it has 2.35 times the mass of Earth’s Sun, 1.8 times the diameter and 23 times the luminosity. Sirius is too young to have formed planets with life around them, and it puts out way too much Ultraviolet rays to make for a suitable target of colonization under an open atmosphere planet if there was one. Of main interest in this system is Sirius B, a white dwarf star. Sirius B’s surface is slightly cooler than Sirius A, it is a degenerate star with 65,000 times the density of Earth’s Sun, 1/400 of its brilliance, 2% of its diameter and 98% of its mass. To understand why Sirius B is such an important source of tylanium, it is important to realize that Sirius B is the dying ember of a star that exhausted its fuel supply and burned itself out, there is no longer any fusion going on at its core, which is why it shrank to 2% of its original diameter. Sirius B is composed of atoms held together by gravity and pressure and held apart only by the mutual repulsion of their atomic nuclei, electrons freely flow from one atom to the next with the electron shells overlapping each other. Fusion still occurs from time to time when a meteor hits the surface, one of the byproducts of this degenerate fusion is tylanium, some of which splashes off the surface and imbeds itself in the asteroids of the belt circling the star. Sirius B orbits Sirius A at an average distance of 24 AU, drawing in as close as 13 AU, and going as far out as 41 AU. Still this places B well outside the hot zone of Sirius A, so artificial colonies are quite viable way out here without extensive cooling.
The Third inhabited multi-star system is Eta Cassiopeia. Eta Cassiopeia is a very Sunlike Type G0V star, it has a companion type dM0 star or a red dwarf, but this star maintains an average separation of 68 AU, coming no closer that 34 AU and going as far out as 136 AU in an orbit that takes 480 years to complete its cycle. This orbit stays well out of the way not interfering at all with the orbits of the inner planets. There is a colony here simply due to the presence of a promising pre-biotic Earthlike planet named Aurora, an appropriate name because Aurora means down, and this planet resembles Earth in its Precambrian state, there is even a large moon orbiting nearby, the oceans bear only the simplest of life forms and there is not enough free oxygen in the atmosphere for humans to breath unassisted, they do not require a pressure suit however, and the temperature is balmy enough for humans to walk in normal clothing with only a breathing mask to cover their faces. Plants and agricultural products do grow in domed structures, although the planet’s weather is substantial and the domes must be reinforced to resist buffeting by the winds. There is a small community of 100,000 Earth humans living here, there is talk of accelerating this planet’s evolution introducing simple plant life to increase the oxygenation of its atmosphere, but its till going to take a long time, on the order of 500 years before it becomes completely human viable.
OK, there is alot of stuff still to do before this campaign setting is finished, and alot of it is being written already. However, as far as I know, nobody has started on the items below... so If people want to contribute, thats what we still need... but please check with Talos before writing up any NPCs to make sure he isnt already working on them.
Thanks!
NPCs
. President Laura Roslin
. Colonel Saul Tigh
.. Aaron Doral
.. Leoben Connoy
.. Number Six
.. D'anna Biers
. Ordinaries...
CAMPAIGN MODELS
. The Cylon War
. The Quest For Earth
The Quest For Earth is the default campaign, I gather. What more can be done? Detail the ships of the fleet. I gather there are 50 capital ships altogether, each one on average holds 1,000 passengers. Some ships are cargo vessels no doubt and don't hold many passengers, while others are passenger ships and large ones might hold as many as 10,000, though not too many of those as there are only 50,000 people. I guess we need some kind of guidelines on what sort of adventures that could be run. Typically in the series most adventures are internally generated from within the fleet or by the Cylons plotting. Planetary adventures are extremely rare. One of the goals is to find a new home or Earth, now if Earthlike planets were as common as they were is Star Trek, the goal would quickly be realized and the modus Operandi of the campaign would be over with. the typical Star Trek adventure usually involves a Landing Party beaming down to a planet's surface to encounter new life and civilizations, often encountering an alien threat of technology of some sort that imposes dilemmas for the crew of one kind or another, it doesn't look like this formula would work very well as the typical adventure for Battlestar Galactica, the moment they see an Earthlike planet, the first thought on their minds would be whether they can settle their, then the GM needs to send the Cylons after them to chase them away and keep them moving. The next encounter with true aliens will be the very first, if there are ever any alien encounters on BSG, they will truly have to look alien, no Fraal for instance. Mechalus or Aleerins would probably be relatives of the Cylons if encountered, Weren, Tsa, and Sheyeshens are fair candidates for aliens. Any alien planet discovered is bound to be a major even, Humans would probably find the Weren homeworld of Kurg to be somewhat less to their liking as over half the planet is covered with ice sheets and the rest is bitterly cold. Not sure how the fleet would react to their primitive PL 3 society.
Great work to those of you that have been doing this though!
AP 10; Rep +2; Wealth +8; SV Fort +4, Ref +5, Will +4; Str 19, Dex 13, Con 11, Int 14, Wis 10, Cha 18.
Starting Occupation: Viper Pilot
Skills: Bluff +11 (+13 vs. males), Climb +12, Diplomacy +8 (+10 vs. males), Drive +4, Gather Information +7 (+9 vs. males), Intimidate +8 (+10 vs males), Jump +10, Navigate +9, Pilot +9, Repair +6, Swim +8.
Languages: Speak Colonial, Read/Write Colonial, Speak English, Read/Write English, Speak Japanese, Read/Write Japanese.
Feats: Simple Weapons Proficiency, Personal Fire Arms Proficiency, Advanced Firearms Proficiency, Armor Proficiency (light), Brawl, Starship Operation.
Special Abilities: Low light vision (racial), Melee Smash, Charm (male), Improved Melee Smash, Uncanny Dodge 1, Starship Weapon Proficiency.
Note: Xena has dark straight hair, brown eyes, and stands 5 feet 11 inches tall, and weighs 140 lb. Xena stands slim and slender with not a hint of her 19 strength in her appearance. Xena’s muscles are much more efficient than that of a human, she can perform surprising feats of strength for one of her stature and apparent musculature. Xena is the daughter of Sharon “Boomer” Valarii and Karl C. “Helo” Agathon. Xena grew up in New York City, she has dim memories of living aboard the Galactica when it was fleeing the cylons, her mother is now the Ambassidor to the United Nations for the United Colonies of Kobol.
Lt. Boxey “Thunderbolt”: male Viper Pilot 1/ Fast Hero 3; CR 4; medium human; HD 3d8+3 plus 1d10+1; hp 24; Mas 12; Init +3 (+3 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 20, Touch 18, Flat-footed 17; BAB +2; Grp +2; Atk +2 melee (1d3 unarmed), +5 ranged (2d6/3d6 colonial sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.
AP 8; Rep 1; Wealth +8; SV Fort +2, Ref +7, Will +2; Str 10, Dex 16, Con 12, Int 13, Wis 11, Cha 16.
Starting Occupation: Viper Pilot
Skills:Bluff +9, Craft (Mechanical) +9, Drive +8, Hide +7, Knowledge (Current Events) +5, Knowledge (Popular Culture) +5, Knowledge (Streetwise) +2, Navigate +4, Pilot +9.
Languages Speak Colonial, Read/Write Colonial, Speak English, Read/Write English.
Feats: Armor Proficiency (Light), Personal Firearms Proficiency, Starship Operation, Advanced Firearms Proficiency
Special Abilities: Uncanny Dodge 1, Uncanny Dodge 2, Starship Weapons Proficiency.
Note:Boxey has dark straight hair, brown eyes, stands 6 feet tall and weighs 170 lbs., he is best friends with and sometimes “more than best friends” with Xena Agathon, with whom he serves on the same viper squadron.
I stood there not quite believing my eyes, she looked pretty, she looked like she belonged on the cover of Cosmopolitan, yet here she was waiting to be trained in the two-seater viper trainer for atmospheric tests, I looked at the orders. “Says your Xena Agathon, and that I’m supposed to train you on how to flight a viper in an atmosphere, your tests of the simulator and in spaceflight look ok, but remember there’s a reason why vipers have wings. Follow me.”
We walked into the flight deck, there were a number of vipers in various stages of preparation. I spied the two-seater, it looked exactly like the other vipers except there was seating for two under the canopy instead of the usual single seat pilots position, this viper was also slightly longer than the other vipers, but no matter it handles just the same for our purposes. I checked with the mechanic on duty, he pronounced it flight ready, we did the walk around, performed a visual inspection and I quizzed her on what to look for when performing the inspection, her answers were satisfactory. Then I climbed up the ladder lifted the canopy and sat down in the back seat, there were dual sets of controls and instruments, one for the back seat and one for the front, my set of controls also included an override switch and an ejection handle which ejects both seats, hers only contained the standard set of controls found in every viper. I signaled that we were ready for launch, and the viper was maneuvered into position. The electromagnetic catapult pushed our viper forward through the tube and in a few seconds we were out in space, the ancient derelict space ship receded slowly into space the thing was huge if only we could get it fully operational instead of the only partially useful hulking space junk that is is now, at fully ten times the length of the old Galactic, this thing in its prime would have been more than a match for several basestars all by itself, but for now, only a few levels were habitable and home of the Galactica Space Academy, including a couple expansive hangar bays and launch tubes that were adapted for the use of vipers. That ancient starship was thousands of years old, and quite alien to our understanding. Dr. Xavier and his crew were working on it to figure it out, supposedly his ancestors built it in the first place, these days his people are a bunch of stone age primitives on the metal poor planet below.
The planet Gaia below was a giant of sorts, a full 12,000 miles in diameter, half again as big as the Earth we spent such a long time looking for, at least it seemed a long time to me, for I was a child back then. The Cylons killed my whole family, my father disappeared shortly before the Cylons attacked, and I had to leave my mother behind on Caprica as they allowed only children on board the last raptor out. A man called Helo gave up his seat to allow a Scientist named Baltar to come aboard. Can’t say I actually like Baltar very much, he was such a strange person, I’ve seen him talking to himself on more than a few occasions, and he didn’t appear to be on a cell phone either. For the first year there wasn’t any cell phone service on any of the fleets ships, just ship to ship. Getting ship to ship cell phone service up and running was a real *****, we had so much else to do, including fighting cylons. I was soon placed with an adoptive family onboard the Rising Star, the accommodations were better than most, and I got to talk with Commander William Adama from time to time I still visit him at his home in Galactica City from time to time. Galactica City is not what I’d call a real city, not like Caprica City or New York City at any rate. One thing Earth has which Gaia does not is billions of people. The people of Earth were technologically behind us when we first arrived, their computer systems were almost on par with out own, and what’s more they had and still have a giant network they call the internet. Those Earth people don’t seem to take the Cylon threat very seriously; some of them are even building robots!
So here is Xena sitting in front of me, flying the viper toward Gaia, the planet was filling up the window canopy pretty quick. I can’t believe that’s the little girl I once met at “Boomers,” Well Sharon Valarii at any rate, but many of us still call her Boomer even though she hasn’t flown a raptor or a viper for a while. Funny thing, raptors are also the names of those medium-sized dinosaur things I saw in a few Jurassic Park movies, they had wicked claws on their feet for tearing apart their prey, and Gaia has something similar too. There are many animals there that resemble the extinct ones of Earth.
The Viper started vibrating and there were trails of incandescence all around us. “We’re coming in a little hot Xena! Next time take it in a bit slower, it’s a ***** to have to repaint these things.” The glowing plasma diminished and the sky turned blue. The cockpit got noisy as I heard the unaccustomed sound of the viper’s engines. I had to shout to be heard above the din.” Xena, Turn on your headset! There that’s better.” There were forests and lakes below us. “Now, Xena lets practice a landing, there’s a clearing there!” The Viper slowly settled down. “Throttle down the thrusters! Open up the intake valves.” The Viper rocked back and forth as it was buffeted by the wind. Slowly, every so gently, we made contact with the tall grasses in the meadow. I popped the canopy and rolled down the ladder. “Lets get out for a stretch. I brought some lunch. Now sut off the engines.” Suddenly it was quiet, then as I got used to the quiet I heard the sounds of birds chirping in the distant stand of trees, it was evident that there was once a forest fire here some time back.
Well that’s all I have time for now, I’ll continue this on another posting.
Is there a word document or pdf out there with all that is written thus far in it? I've gone through the first 7 pages and it's GREAT but I'm going nuts trying to organize it to print it out in a useable form sense I seem to have found it late.
Great work to those of you that have been doing this though!
Hi Paladin132!
I am currently in the process of putting everything into a word document on my home computer. when it is finished, I plan to put BSGd20 into a PDF and post it as a free download. I should be done by the end of the year, and I think it will be worth the wait as alot of the ideas posted so far have been altered in later pages... Its a work in progress, but it went from a single post with 2 advanced classes, a couple of cylons and a dozen ships on 9-28-05 to a 50% complete campaign setting in just two months.
Obviously you can use whats been posted so far and its all perfectly playable, but the finished product will be more polished and most of the bugs will have been worked out her on the boards. The advacned combat rules, the jump engine rules and the starsystem generation rules have all been tweaked significantly from what is here on the boards. So if you can wait until December, you will be much happier I think. :D
Xena
I grew up in New York City, my Mom was the Ambassador to the UN for the United Colonies of Kobol. I went to a private school and excelled in sports, then one day, my mom told me that I wasn’t human and that I had abilities beyond that no human possessed, it always seemed to me rather pointless to take math classes for instance, whats the point in learning how to do something that I could already do instinctively. No need to memorize multiplication tables when I could always calculate their values on the fly, I don’t know how I did it, “how does one breathe?” I just did. They don’t have walking classes or breathing classes for humans because they can do it instinctively, the same applies for me and mathematics. I always knew the product, the square root, the nth root, you name it, If I could pose the problem in mathematical terms I knew the answer. This put me way ahead of my classmates and it allowed me to focus my attention of History, English literature, Social Studies, Gym, Art and so forth. Needless to say, the whole thing made me a kind of freak in the eyes of my classmates, then as I matured, all the boys started getting friendly, if you know what I mean. Some people proposed that I go into modeling or acting because of my good looks, but I chose to follow the path of my Mom and become a viper pilot.
I shipped out to Gaia and enrolled into the Galactica Space Academy, my academic credentials made me a shoe-in for acceptance and there I met an old friend of the family, of whom I did not see in a very long time, a long time for a nineteen year old at any rate. I passed the entrance exams with ease, and now it came time to learn aerial combat maneuvers in a viper. A lot of things I was learning for the first time about my supposed homeworld, one of them was how similar the life there was to the Earth life that I grew up with. I landed on the grassy meadow as I was instructed to, and Lieutenant Boxy suggested we take a break and have lunch. I suspected my good looks were getting to him, but I was hungry, so we got out and stretched. We found a nice shady tree to sit under and that’s where we heard the rumble. A herd of Triceratops was approaching us in a stampede. I grabbed Boxy and threw him up to one of the lower branches and then I jumped up myself. The two seat viper was totaled as we could not get to it in time. Boxy threw down his helmet and cursed something awful, there was a colorless bluish fireball and the creatures knocked over the viper and caused the fuel tanks to rupture all the munitions detonated and set the hydrogen gas on fire. A colorless blaze erupted and ignited the grass cooking some of the offending creatures in the process, fortunately the wind was blowing away from us. Fortunately the blaze was enough if a signal to draw in the attention of the rescue raptors as all our radio gear was left onboard the Viper when it exploded. Boxy was in for some tough chewing out by his superiors, however I finally got my wings.
Encounter Tables for Gaia
MM = Monster Maunal 3.5, MM2 = Monster Manual II, FF = Fiend Folio
Cold Aquatic ***** ***** ***** Cold Desert * ***** ***** Cold Plains
Result Encounter 1d8 ***** ***** Encounter 1d2 ***** ***** Encounter 1d8
1 **** Dire Shark MM64 ** ***** Dire Rat MM64 **** ***** Dire Rat MM64
2 **** Tojanida, Juvenile MM244 * ***** ***** ***** ***** Dire Horse MM2-75
3 **** Megalodon MM2-147 ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** Dire Hawk MM2-76
4 **** Polar Bear MM269 * ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** Dire Rhinoceros FF61
5 **** Medium Shark MM279 **** ***** ***** ***** ***** Megatherium FF124
6 **** Large Shark MM279 ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** Terror Bird FF175
7 **** Huge Shark MM279 ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** Polar Bear MM269
8 **** Orca MM283 ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** Gaian
Cold Forest ** ***** ***** ***** Cold Hills *** ***** ***** Cold Mountains
Result Encounter 1d12 **** ***** Encounter 1d8 ***** ***** Encounter 1d3
1 **** Dire Bear MM63 *** ***** Dire Rat MM64 Dire Elk MM2-75
2 **** Dire Rat MM64 **** ***** Dire Horse MM2-75 Dire Hawk MM2-76
3 **** Dire Wolverine MM66 **** Dire Elk MM2-75 Gaian
4 **** Dire Horse MM2-75 ***** Dire Hawk MM2-76
5 **** Dire Elk MM2-75 ** ***** Grizzly Mastodon MM2-123
6 **** Dire Hawk MM2-76 ***** Megatherium FF124
7 **** Grizzly Mastodon MM2-123 Terror Bird FF175
8 **** Megatherium FF124 ***** Gaian
9 **** Terror Bird FF175
10 *** Wolverine MM283
11 *** Gaian
12 *** Gaian
Cold Marsh * ***** ***** ***** Temperate Aquatic ** ***** Temperate Desert
Result Encounter 1d2 ***** ***** Encounter 1d8 ***** ***** Encounter 1d6
1 **** Dire Rat MM64 **** ***** Tojanida, Juvenile MM244 * Dire Bat MM62
2 **** Gaian ***** ***** ***** Dire Snake MM2-76 ***** Dire Rat MM64
3 **** ***** ***** ***** ***** Megalodon MM2-147 ***** Dire Snake MM2-76
4 **** ***** ***** ***** ***** Porpoise MM278 *** ***** Donkey MM272
5 **** ***** ***** ***** ***** Squid MM281 ***** ***** Gaian
6 **** ***** ***** ***** ***** Giant Squid MM281 ***** Gaian
7 **** ***** ***** ***** ***** Cachalot Whale MM283
8 **** ***** ***** ***** ***** Cachalot Whale MM283
Temperate Plains *** ***** ***** Temperate Forest *** ***** Temperate Hills
Result Encounter 1d20 **** ***** Encounter 1d20 * ***** Encounter 1d12
1 **** Triceratops MM61 ** ***** Assassin Vine MM20 ***** Bulette MM30
2 **** Dire Rat MM64 **** ***** Dire Badger MM62 * ***** Dire Rat MM64
3 **** Worg MM256 ***** ***** Dire Boar MM63 *** ***** Dire Weasel MM65
4 **** Dire Horse MM2-75 ***** Dire Rat MM64 **** ***** Dire Horse MM2-75
5 **** Dire Toad MM2-76 * ***** Dire Wolf MM65 *** ***** Dire Elk MM2-75
6 **** Dire Hawk MM2-76 ***** Giant Owl MM205 ** ***** Dire Toad MM2-76
7 **** Dire Snake MM2-76 ***** Owlbear MM206 *** ***** Dire Hawk MM2-76
8 **** Dire Rhinoceros FF61 ***** Giant Stag Beetle MM285 ** Dire Snake MM2-76
9 **** Megatherium FF124 * ***** Gnt Praying Mantis MM285 Grizzly Mastodon MM2-123
10 *** Terror Bird FF175 ** ***** Dire Horse MM2-75 ***** Megatherium FF124
11 *** Bison MM270 ***** ***** Dire Elk MM2-75 ** ***** Terror Bird FF175
12 *** Heavy Horse MM273 ***** Dire Toad MM2-76 * ***** Gaian
13 *** Light Horse MM273 ***** Dire Hawk MM2-76
14 *** Pony MM277 ***** ***** Dire Snake MM2-76
15 *** Tyrannosaurus MM61 ***** Grizzly Mastodon MM2-123
16 *** Allosaurus MM2-70 * ***** Fhorge FF72
17 *** Ankylosaurus MM2-70 **** Megatherium FF124
18 *** Seismosaurus MM2-72 **** Terror Bird FF175
19 *** Spinosaurus MM2-72 ***** Brown Bear MM269
20 *** Gaian ***** ***** ***** Gaian
Temperate Mountains ***** ***** Temperate Marsh *** ***** Warm Aquatic
Result Encounter 1d10 **** ***** Encounter 1d12 **** ***** Encounter 1d10
1 **** Dire Rat MM64 **** ***** Chuul MM35 ***** ***** Elasmosaurus MM60
2 **** Giant Eagle MM93 * ***** Dire Rat MM64 **** ***** Tojanida, Juvenile MM244
3 **** Dire Horse MM2-75 ***** Dire Toad MM2-76 * ***** Cryptoclidus MM2-70
4 **** Dire Elk MM2-75 ** ***** Dire Snake MM2-76 ***** Dire Snake MM2-76
5 **** Dire Toad MM2-76 * ***** Tiny Viper Snake MM280 ** Megalodon MM2-247
6 **** Dire Hawk MM2-76 ***** Small Viper Snake MM280 * Manta Ray MM275
7 **** Dire Snake MM2-76 ***** Med. Viper Snake MM280 * Octopus MM276
8 **** Eagle MM272 ***** ***** Large Viper Snake MM280 * Giant Octopus MM276
9 **** Gaian ***** ***** ***** Huge Viper Snake MM280 * Baleen Whale MM282
10 *** Gaian ***** ***** ***** Toad MM282 ***** ***** Baleen Whale MM282
11 *** ***** ***** ***** ***** Gaian
12 *** ***** ***** ***** ***** Gaian
Warm Desert ***** ***** ***** Warm Plains ***** ***** Warm Forest
Result Encounter 1d6 ***** ***** Encounter 1d20 **** ***** Encounter 1d20
1 **** Dire Rat MM64 **** ***** Ankheg MM14 ***** ***** Deinonychus MM60
2 **** Dire Snake MM2-76 ***** Tyrannosaurus MM61 ***** Megaraptor MM60
3 **** Megapede MM2-148 ***** Dire Lion MM63 *** ***** Dire Ape MM62
4 **** Camel MM270 ***** ***** Dire Rat MM64 **** ***** Dire Rat MM64
5 **** Hyena MM274 ***** ***** Giant Fire Beetle MM285 ** Dire Tiger MM65
6 **** Gaian ***** ***** ***** Allosaurus MM2-70 * ***** Terror Bird FF175
7 **** ***** ***** ***** ***** Ankylosaurus MM2-70 **** Giant Bombardier Beetle MM284
8 **** ***** ***** ***** ***** Seismosaurus MM2-72 **** Allosaurus MM2-70
9 **** ***** ***** ***** ***** Spinosaurus MM2-72 ***** Ankylosaurus MM2-70
10 *** ***** ***** ***** ***** Dire Horse MM2-75 ***** Quetzalcoatlus MM2-72
11 *** ***** ***** ***** ***** Dire Elephant MM2-75 **** Seismosaurus MM2-72
12 *** ***** ***** ***** ***** Dire Toad MM2-76 * ***** Spinosaurus MM2-72
13 *** ***** ***** ***** ***** Dire Hawk MM2-76 ***** Dire Horse MM2-75
14 *** ***** ***** ***** ***** Dire Snake MM2-76 ***** Dire Elephant MM2-75
15 *** ***** ***** ***** ***** Megatherium FF124 ***** Dire Toad MM2-76
16 *** ***** ***** ***** ***** Terror Bird FF175 ** ***** Dire Hawk MM2-76
17 *** ***** ***** ***** ***** Baboon MM268 **** ***** Dire Snake MM2-76
18 *** ***** ***** ***** ***** Cheetah MM271 *** ***** Forest Sloth MM2-106
19 *** ***** ***** ***** ***** Elephant MM272 *** ***** Fhorge FF72
20 *** ***** ***** ***** ***** Gaian ***** ***** ***** Gaian
Warm Hills ** ***** ***** ***** Warm Mountains *** ***** Warm Marsh
Result Encounter 1d12 **** ***** Encounter 1d6 ***** ***** Encounter 1d12
1 **** Dire Rat MM64 **** ***** Dire Rat MM64 **** ***** Dire Rat MM64
2 **** Allosaurus MM2-70 * ***** Dire Snake MM2-76 ***** Stirge MM236
3 **** Ankylosaurus MM2-70 **** Dire Horse MM2-75 ***** Allosaurus MM2-70
4 **** Quetzalcoatlus MM2-70 *** Dire Toad MM2-76 * ***** Ankylosaurus MM2-70
5 **** Seismosaurus MM2-72 **** Dire Hawk MM2-76 ***** Seismosaurus MM2-72
6 **** Spinosaurus MM2-72 ***** Gaian ***** ***** ***** Spinosaurus MM2-72
7 **** Gaian* ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** Dire Horse MM2-75
8 **** Dire Toad MM2-76 * ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** Dire Toad MM2-76
9 **** Dire Hawk MM2-76 ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** Dire Snake MM2-76
10 *** Dire Snake MM2-76 ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** Crocodile MM271
11 *** Megatherium FF124 ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** Giant Crocodile MM271
12 *** Terror Bird FF175 ** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** Gaian
Gaian, 1st-Level Warrior
Hit Dice: 1d8 (4 hp)
Initiative: +1
Speed: 30 ft. (6 squares)
Defense: 15 (+1 Dex, +3 studded leather, +1 light wooden shield), touch 11, flat-footed 14
Base Attack/Grapple: +1/+2
Attack: Obsidian Longsword* +2 melee (1d8+1/19-20) or longbow +3 ranged (1d8/x3)
Full Attack: Longsword +2 melee (1d8+1/19-20) or longbow +3 ranged (1d8/x3)
Space/Reach: 5 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks: None
Special Qualities: Elven traits
Saves: Fort +2, Ref +1, Wil -1
Abilities: Str 13, Dex 13, Con 10, Int 10, Wis 9, Cha 8
Skills: Hide +1, Listen +2, Search +3, Spot +2
Feats: Weapon Focus (longbow)
Environment: Any Land
Organization: Squad (2-4), company (11-20 plus 2 3rd-level sergeants and a leader of 3rd-6th level), or band (30-100 plus 20% noncombatants plus 1 3rd-level sergeant per 10 adults, 5 5th-level lieutenants, and 3 7th level captains)
Challenge rating: ½
Treasure: Standard but no metal coins
Advancement: By character class
Level Adjustment +0
* on a 1d20 roll of 1, the obsidian long sword breaks, most Gaians carry a spare just in case.
This humanoid stands 6 feet all as do all of them when they reach maturity, they have a youthful appearance, its impossible to tell the age of any of them beyond that of 20 years old.
Gaians are primitive human like creatures, its hard to tell a Gaian from a human except that all adults of both sexes are 6 feet tall, their height varies very little from individual to individual.
Combat
Gaians prefer to fight from cover using the terrain to maximize their advantage whenever possible. They prefer longbows short bows, obsidian long swords and obsidian short swords as they have no metals to work with
Gaian traits (Ex): Gaians possess the following racial traits
- +2 Dexterity, -2 constitution
- Medium size.
- A gaian’s bade land speed in 30 feet.
- Low-light vision
- Weapon Proficiency: Gaians are automatically proficient with obsidian long swords, long bows, composite long bows, short bows and composite short bows.
- +2 racial bonus on Listen, Search, and Spot checks.
The gaian warrior presented here had the following ability scores before racial adjustments: Str 13, Dex 11, Con 12, Int 10, Wis 9, Cha 8.
AP 16; Rep +11; Wealth +17; SV Fort +8, Ref +17, Will +10; Str 16, Dex 20, Con 12, Int 13, Wis 12, Cha 14.
Starting Occupation: Adventurer (Pilot and Intimidate class skills), Merchant Ship’s Captain/Owner.
Skills: Balance +11, Bluff +12, Computer Use +2, Craft (Chemical) +2, Craft (Electronic) +7, Craft (Mechanical) +7, Craft (Structural) +10, Drive +13, Escape Artist +10, Gamble +15, Intimidate +10, Knowledge (Current Events) +6, Knowledge (Popular Culture) +4, Knowledge (Streetwise) +11, Knowledge (Technology) +7, Knowledge (Business) +2, Knowledge (Physical Science) +2, Listen +2, Navigate +11, Pilot +25, Repair +11, Sense Motive +6, Sleight of Hand +9, Spot +3, Survival +6, Swim +4, Tumble +6.
Languages: Speak Colonial, Read/Write Colonial, Speak English, Read/Write English.
Feats: Action Boost, Brawl, Confident, Improved Brawl, Light Armor Proficiency, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Point Blank Shot, Spacer, Starship Battle Run, Starship Dodge, Starship Gunnery, Starship Mobility, Starship Operation (Ultralight), Simple Weapon Proficiency, Improved Damage Threshhold x5, Builder, Improve Kit (+1).
Special Abilities: Evasion, Evasive Action, Starship Feint, Uncanny Dodge 1, Viper Familiarity (+3), Improved Evasive Action, Plan, Exploit Weakness, Quick Craft.
Possessions: Flight Suit and Helmet, Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), Survival Kit, various personal belongings and Starship.
I piloted my freighter onto the landing deck, the elevator lowered it through the into the hangar of the derelict ship orbiting Gaia. Dr Xavier was there to meet me. Zack and Troy were standing by my side. “Ah Captain Starbuck, I see you brought your two sons with you.” I said, “Starbuck is my call sign. My real name is Kara.” “Ok, Kara then, I have some important business to discuss with you,” He gestured to my 14 year old sons. “I’ve teaching them to operate this ship, as they are responsible for running this ship when I’m not around, they have a right to know about the nature of the cargo you wish us to transport to Earth.” “Very well Kara, please walk this way.”
I followed him down a long corridor, passing several cadets along the way. We got into a lift and then descended. The doors opened and we walked into a dim dusty storage bay. ”Please excuse the appearance, I dare not let too many people down here for fear that they might be Cylon agents.” “I can appreciate that,” I told him. My two children tagged along quietly. “Is this item dangerous to my ship? From what you told me, it could be the salvation of the human race.” “Well its not directly a weapon you see, but if it falls into the wrong hands it could be very dangerous indeed, or possible completely harmless. The technologies employed by this device are completely beyond my ken,” Dr Xavier replied. We approached a couple huge crates. Dr. Xavier picked up a crowbar and pried open one of the crates. A huge spherical object with windows and a hatch was inside. Dr. Xavier got into a forklift and removed the spherical object from the crate. I walked around it, it appeared to be a vehicle of some sort, but its means of propulsion appeared as a mystery to me.
The Sphere had a flattened bottom and appeared to be held upright by 4 projecting pylons. “No wheels, no rockets, what makes this thing move?” I asked. “That’s the dangerous part about it, it doesn’t move through space but through time.” “You’ve got to be kidding me, this is a joke right?” “Not quite, Kara, I don’t know how it operates, but I figured out the controls and I have a supply of the fuel it runs on.” He handed me a convex lens, it was curiously heavier than any object that size had any right to be, I almost dropped it. I looked through the lens and it made things look further away. “This does not make sense, convex lenses are supposed to magify, not make them look smaller.” “Right you are, most transparent materials bend light toward the normal of the surface interface, but this stuff bends light further away, it has a negative index of refraction because light within it moves faster than light in the vacuum of space. This causes all sorts of causality problems and apparently this machine manipulates this after some fashion. Perhaps you’ve noticed all the prehistoric monsters on Gaia, monsters that predate even the existence of humans on Kobol. Perhaps this device will explain the origin of humanity and the existence of those monsters. The problem is I don’t know what happens when you go back in time and cause changes. I’ve done it before, but I was operating it in space where no one was around. To actually interact with a historical event is worry some, it might cause changes in the timeline, it might disappear into another timeline, or history might preserve itself and so kill the time travelers and destroy this machine in the process. I don’t know which of the three will happen and I only got these two spheres to work with. I’d like to transport them to Earth so I can do some experiments there. I’ve done all I can here, but we must proceed cautiously just the same.” “Well, I can certainly use the business,” I told him. “Lets put these things back in their crates and bring them to the hangar deck so we can load them onboard my ship.”
We concluded our agreement, personally I figured the Doctor had gone off his rocker, but he was paying good money. If the things don’t work, at least I’ll be paying a substantial number of the ship’s bills. We got onboard the ship and Dr Xavier did too. I took my starship through the airlock, piloted the ship some distance away, made the calculations for an FTL jump and soon we were approaching Earth.
Fast Freighter (PL6)
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Fast freighter
Defense: 7
Flat-footed Defense: 5
Autopilot Defense: 5
Hardness: 20
Hit Dice: 16d20 (320 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +2
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +3
Pilots Dex Modifier: +2
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +2
Size: Colossal (-8 Size)
Tactical Speed: 35,000 ft. (7 sq)
Length: 110 feet
Weight: 450 tons
Targeting System Bonus: +3
Crew: 4 (trained +4)
Passenger Capacity: 4
Cargo Capacity: 300 tons
Grapple Modifier: +16
Base Purchase DC: 52
Restriction: Restricted (+2)
Attack:
4 fire-linked rail cannons -8 ranged (9d12)
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: Ion engine, thrusters, Jump Drive Type II
Armor: Polymeric
Defense Systems: Autopilot system, damage control system (1d10), magnetic field, radiation shielding, sensor jammer
Sensors: Class II Sensor array, targeting system
Communications: Laser transceiver, radio transceiver
Weapons: 4 fire-linked rail cannons (range incr. 30,000 ft.)
Grappling Systems: Grapplers.
Note: There was a Galactica 1980 novel which involved time travel, basically a member of Galactica's crew thought he could make Earth more ready to defeat the Cylons by giving advanced technology away to the Nazis, Dr, Xavier sent back Troy and Zack to that same time period to stop him. I thought that was a good plot hook, so I'll leave it as such here. In this scenario here, perhaps Zack and Troy's curiosity get the better of them and they get inside and inadvertantly activate the controls of the Time Sphere and have some adventures in the past. None of this need affect the current timeline, and changes in the past might even be impossible, or shunt the time traveller into a parallel timeline. The "Earth at Last" campaign is a perfect jumping off point for just such an adventure, there is a limited fuel supply and Dr Xavier can't make more, also the fuel itself doesn't travel in time, so you can't use time travel tricks to make more fuel. Basically the crystals exist for the entire length of the time journey. The machine operates by pushing itself off of this 4-dimensional crystal. The crystal slowly uses itself up via radioactive decay over a period in total of about 27,000 years. Multiple jumps in time can be made but only up to a total distance of 27,000 years. The last bit would be of course to get them back to the present. Various things can be tried, but if things get too out of hand, the machine can always break. Dr, Xavier doesn't know how to fix it after all.
The Cyrannus star system is a trinary system. This is where the Lords of Kobol sent the twelve tribes after the Exodus. Below is a brief summary of the star system including all twelve colonies and several other points of interest.
Cyrannus A
Cyrannus A is the Primary star at the center of the Cyrannus system. It is a class G yellow dwarf.
Caprica
Caprica is the second planet orbiting the Primary star of the Cyrannus system. It is a medium sized tropical world with a standard breathable atmosphere. Many people believe that Caprica was the intended destination of the refugees from Kobol, not Arelon. Caprica is the birthplace of modern colonial language, and it is the seat of the Colonial Government. It was the fifth colony to be founded after the Exodus. Caprica orbits Cyrannus at at a distance of 1 AU
Molecay is a colossal gas giant orbiting Cyrannus A at a distance of 1.5 AU. Its atmosphere is crushing and toxic. Molecay has four moons.
Scorpia
Scorpia is the first moon orbiting the gas giant Molecay which in turn orbits Cyrannus A. It is a small rocky moon with a thick corrosive atmosphere. Scorpia was the sixth colony founded after the Exodus.
Libris
Libris is Molecay's second Moon. It is also a small rocky moon with a thick toxic atmosphere. Libris was the seventh colony to be founded after the Exodus.
Virgon
Virgon is the first planet orbiting Cyrannus A at a distance of .5 AU. It is a small rocky planet with a thin toxic atmosphere. Virgon was the eighth colony to be founded after the Exodus.
Leonis
Leonis is the thrid moon of Molecay. It is a tiny rocky moon with a thin corrosive atmosphere. Leonis was the ninth colony to be founded after the Exodus.
Canceron
Canceron is the fourth moon of Molecay. It is a diminutive rocky moon with no atmosphere. It was the tenth colony to be founded after the Exodus.
Armistice Station
Armistice Station is a space station built after the Cylon War. It sits in an unstable orbital path between Cyrannus A and Cyrranus B. Armistice station orbits Cyrannus A at a distance which varies from 2 AU to 5 AU.
Cyrannus B
Cyrannus B is the second star in the cyrannus system. It is a class K orange dwarf and it orbits Cyrannus A at a distance of 7AU.
Arelon
Arelon was the planet first colonized by the refugees fleeing from Kobol. It is a medium sized rocky planet orbiting the second star in the Cyrannus system. It is a cold world with a thick, contaminated atmosphere. Arelon is the only rocky planet in the system with its own moon, the mining colony of Troy. Arelon orbits Cyrannus B at a distance of 1.5 AU.
Troy
Troy is Arelon's only moon. It is a fine rocky moon with no atmosphere. Troy is not a colony in its own right.
The Cosmara Archipelago
This asteroid belt surrounds the planets that orbit Cyrannus B. The Cosmara Archipelago contains a wealth of mineral resources. These resources were instrumental in feuling the age of expansion. The Cosmara archipelago is a ring of debris orbiting Cyrannus B at a distance of 2AU.
Cimtar
Cimtar is a gargantuan gas giant orbiting Cyrannus B at a distance of .5AU. It has no surface and its atmosphere is crushing and toxic. Cimtar has three moons.
Picon
Picon is the largest moon orbiting the gas giant Cimtar, which in turn orbits Cyrannus B. Picon is a small rocky moon with a standard breathable atmosphere. It is home to the Headquarters of the Colonial Fleet. Picon was the first of the "New Colonies" and the second colony to be founded after the Exodus.
Aquarion
Aquarion is the second of Cimtar's three moons. It is a tiny rocky moon with a thin contaminated atmosphere. Aquarion was the third colony to be founded.
Sagittaron
Sagittaron is the third moon of Cimtar. It is also a tiny rocky moon but it has a thick toxic atmosphere. During the early days of the Age of Expansion, Sagittaron was infamous for its pirates. In more modern times, it has become infamous for its terrorists. Sagittaron was the fourth colony.
Cyrannus C
Cyrannus C is a class M red dwarf and the third star in the Cyrannus system. It orbits Cyrannus A at a distance of 15 AU.
Gemenon
Gemenon is the first planet orbiting the third star in the Cyrannus system at a distance of .5 AU. It is a medium sized rocky planet with a standard contaminated atmosphere. Gemenon was the elventh colony to be founded after the exodus.
Taruon
Tauron is the second planet orbiting Cyrannus C at a distance of 1 AU. It is a large rocky planet with a thick toxic atmosphere. Taruon was the twelfth colony to be founded after the Exodus.
Ragnar
Ragnar is a huge gas giant orbiting Cyrannus A at a distance of 25 AU. It has no moons and a crushing corrosive atmosphere. During the Cylon War, the colonial fleet built Ragnar Anchorage as a munitions depot.
Yes, over half of the colonies are either domed or underground cities with artificial gravity and climate control. Of the rest, most have standard atmosphereic pressure but are contaminated with pollutants, germs, radiation or all three... Only two colonies have standard breathable atmospheres and only one of those has normal 1g gravity. I felt that while we are still stretching the suspension of disbelief, a system like this is much more plausible than one containing 12 planets just like Earth, especially with artificial gravity and artificial climate control (as demonstrated in "Colonial Day" on the Cloud Nine).
And I suspect Caprica has a day that's close to 24 hours.
A moon orbiting a gas giant would have a day that's equal to its period of revolution around that gas giant, if you want a day length close to Earth, that moon would have to be as close to the gas giant as Io is to Jupiter, and you know about Io's volcanoes. I don't think people would want to live on a moon with giant volcanoes constantly spewing molten rock and gases miles into the air due to the gravitational tidal effects of the gas giants and ther neighboring moons. To prevent this you'd need for the moon to be far out with an equally long day, or a single close in moon in a cirular orbit. The moon would be somewhategg-shaped, but in a circular orbit the tidal variation would be negligible. Throw in other moons however, and they will pull it out of its circular orbit, and you will have tides and volcanoes spewing all over the place. Just as well that they live under domes I think.
The introduction is done, along with the table of contents,and the Open Gaming Lisence.
Chapter 1 is basicly done, I just need to flesh out the descriptions of the colonies and include a map of the cyrannus star system. Thank goodness I finally have a scanner!
Chapter 2 needs some info about the cylon religion, the cylon homeworld of Gamoray, and some info about cylon sleeper agents, cylon "death" and cylon communications and skills and feats… so Chapter two really needs a lot of work now that I think on it…
Chapter 3 has a whole slew of major NPCs and no generic NPCs… of the major NPCs, we've got Adama, apollo, starbuck, boomer, Geta, Helo, chief, Zarek, Baltar and Billy Keikeya... it seems to me we need stats for President Roslin, colonel tigh, number six, aaron doral, Leoben Connoy, Dr. Simon, and D'anna Beirs. Then we need stats for generic colonial marines, generic viper pilots, Civilian starship officers, hmmm ordinary civilian refugee, ordinary deckhand… I can't really think of anything else…
Chapter 4 is done.
Chapter 5 needs to be formatted and finalized.
Chapter 6 also needs to be formatted and finalized.
Chapter 7 needs to have the jump engine rules updated, and the starsystem generation rules updated.
Chapter 8 needs a blurb about fuel.
Chapter 9 needs a write up for the Cylon War, the Quest for earth, and I need to condense Earth at last into a useable format… there is just too much information for a campaign model… Tom is basically writing his own book.
And then we are done.
I was counting and figuring that only half of the group's fighters were on the trip when the colonies were attacked (remember there is only one landing bay) then there should be 20 - 40 or so Vipers and I'm guessing 4 - 8 Raptors.
The Galactica was down to one operational squadron and one squadron of old MK2 vipers. for a total of 40 fighters and anywhere from 8 to 16 raptors (This is based on information from battlestar wiki, wikipideia and sci-fi.com).
I have speculated that during the Cylon War an operational battlestar also carried ~100 Military shuttlecraft (the shuttle that brought the colonial officer to armistice station) and an equal number of land ram APCs. I have also speculated that a battlestar carried ~2,400 colonial marines for planetary assault... (This is based on the cargo capacity of the Star Carrier and the Escort from the D20 Future starships chapter). At any rate that's what I am going to put in the PDF. ;)
By the way Waylan.
Speaking of your last comment, maybe I will write an "Earth at Last" Book. I'm not sure how to make a PDF or post it on the web, maybe you could send me a few pointers via private message, or maybe you could make a separate PDF and post it on your website if I send you the text in word format. Just a thought.
I don't have my own website set up yet, but when I do, I will happily host your story. And I meant it when I said that I think the information you have provided for Earth at Last sounds like it would be a fun series of adventure modules...As for the manufacturing of Vipers... well it looks like if you have the appropriate raw materials, Vipers are pretty easy to manufacture...
AP 5; Rep +0; Wealth +4; SV Fort +2, Ref +5, Will -1; Str 9*, Dex 18, Con 15, Int 14, Wis 8, Cha 16.
*Troy Adama is a growing boy, his strength score will increase by one point for each of the next 4 years, his wisdom score will increase by 1 point every 2 years for the next 4 years. Troy’s height will increase by 2 inches every year for the next 5 years to reach a maximum adult height of 6 ft. 3 in., his weight will increase proportional to the cube of his height increase starting at 100 lb.
Starting Occupation: Student Adventurer (Starbuck home schools his son on the starship buying textbooks and whatever else is needed, Troy then takes the approved examinations each year so he can acquire his high school equivalency diploma), Merchant Ship Apprentice.
Skills: Balance +8, Craft (Mechanical) +6, Drive +10 – Even though he doesn’t have a driver’s license, Escape Artist +8, Knowledge (Current Events) +6, Knowledge (Popular Culture) +6, Pilot +10 – No Pilots license either, but Starbuck’s not telling.
Languages Speak Colonial, Read/Write Colonial, Speak English, Read/Write English.
Feats: Vehicle Expert, Starship Operation (Ultralight), Simple Weapons Proficiency.
Special Abilities: Evasion.
Possessions: Flight Suit and Helmet, Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), Survival Kit, various personal belongings.
Note: Troy live onboard Starbuck’s Fast Freighter, should anything happen to Starbuck, she has written in her will that Troy inherits half her starship, when Starbuck is off on viper duty onboard the Galactica, Troy is in charge of the crew onboard the Fast Freighter.
Zack Adama: male Fast Hero 1; CR 1; medium human; HD 1d8+2; hp 10; Mas 15; Init +4 (+4 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 15, touch 14, flat-footed 15; BAB +0; Grp -1; Atk -1 melee (1d3-1 unarmed), +0 ranged (2d6/3d6 colonial sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5ft.;
AP 5; Rep +0; Wealth +4; SV Fort +2, Ref +5, Will -1; Str 9*, Dex 18, Con 15, Int 14, Wis 8, Cha 16.
*Zack Adama is a growing boy and Troy’s identical twin brother, his strength score will increase by one point for each of the next 4 years, his wisdom score will increase by 1 point every 2 years for the next 4 years. Troy’s height will increase by 2 inches every year for the next 5 years to reach a maximum adult height of 6 ft. 3 in., his weight will increase proportional to the cube of his height increase starting at 100 lb.
Starting Occupation: Student Adventurer (Starbuck home schools his son on the starship buying textbooks and whatever else is needed, Troy then takes the approved examinations each year so he can acquire his high school equivalency diploma), Merchant Ship Apprentice.
Skills: Balance +8, Craft (Mechanical) +6, Drive +10 – Even though he doesn’t have a driver’s license, Escape Artist +8, Knowledge (Current Events) +6, Knowledge (Popular Culture) +6, Pilot +10 – No Pilots license either, but Starbuck’s not telling.
Languages Speak Colonial, Read/Write Colonial, Speak English, Read/Write English.
Feats: Vehicle Expert, Starship Operation (Ultralight), Simple Weapons Proficiency.
Special Abilities: Evasion.
Possessions: Flight Suit and Helmet, Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), Survival Kit, various personal belongings.
Note: Zack live onboard Starbuck’s Fast Freighter, should anything happen to Starbuck, she has written in her will that Zack inherits half her starship, when Starbuck is off on viper duty onboard the Galactica, Zack is in charge of the crew onboard the Fast Freighter, when Troy is not on duty.
I crept into the storage compartment while Zack was staring out the window as the Earth grew near. There were 2 huge crates about 17 feet on a side. One of the sides of the crate was loose, so I pried it open, there stood the time sphere with windows and hatch. I opened the hatch and climbed inside. There were a bunch of controls and displays on the dash. There were taped labels on everything, and there was a chronometer attached to a display showing green glowing cryptic symbols, but the chronometer attached to the display window showed the time in English.
2025 AD, November 2, Monday, 09:34:31, …32, …33
The clock was ticking, 1 second per second. I looked at my watch and switched to Earth time, just a few seconds off. I adjusted my watch to match the clock on the time sphere. I read through some of the manuals left by Dr. Xavier. The operation of the time sphere looked fairly simple, you just punched in the amount of time displacement on the keypad with a + or a – in front of it, then you press the engage button. You could enter an amount of 6 second blocks, Dr. Xavier refers to as rounds, minutes, hours, days, or years as the amount of time displacement. I typed in a time displacement of +1 year. The Destination time display then read:
2026 AD, November 2, Tuesday, 09:35:26, ...27, ...28
The alarm went off for atmospheric entry in 10 minutes. I tried shutting down the sphere, but the panel display remained lit. Apparently the control for turning it on wasn’t the same for turning it off. Well never mind. I got out, closed the hatch, replaced the lit on the crate and nailed it shut. I got back to the acceleration couch just in time. The sky glowed as we entered the atmosphere. There was some shaking, but not much deceleration, thanks to the gravity control. As we descended through some thin clouds. I got a look at the terrain below, there were trees with yellow and red leaves, houses and a highway cutting through. A saw a runway ahead of us. We passed over it, and landed vertically. The hatch opened, my mother, Zack, and a couple of crewmen and Dr. Xavier climbed out. We walked into a building with the name Signature Air on it. Soundlessly a black limousine pulled up. Some men moved a flatbed truck up to the spaceship and using a gantry, unloaded the crates from the Spaceship, and placed them onto the flatbed truck. We got into the limousine and the limousine moved forward silently followed by the equally quite truck. We got onto route 684 and headed north and got off at a sign labled Exit 4 Armonk. We headed down a two lane road, climbed up a long driveway after going through a pair of automatic gates. There on top of the hill stood a mansion. We got out, got our luggage from the trunk and proceeded into the house as the butler opened the door for us. As I ascended the curved staircase on either side of the balcony, I saw out the window, the large semi hauling the two large crates up the driveway, followed by another limousine.
The guestrooms were more than adequate, each one had its own bathroom with shower, and a large bathtub in each. Zack and I each got our own rooms. As we were used to sharing the cramped confines of Mom’s spaceship, this was quite a novelty. It was hard to get over the quietness of all the vehicles on the road. I am told that they are all electric fuel-celled vehicles that run on hydrogen. On Gaia, internal combustion engines were still in vogue, there was plenty of oil left on that planet. On Earth however, most cars ran on hydrogen. Dr. Xavier entered just then, “I noticed someone has been fiddling with the controls of one of the Time Spheres, it was either Troy or Zack, I’m not sure which, they both look alike to me.” My brother looked to me, and I looked to my brother. Dr. Xavier said to both of us, “Be careful! Do you know what would have happened if you activated the time circuit while in space? Well, its set for 1 year in the future. I suppose there’s no harm in testing it out by going into the future; at least we can’t alter history that way.
Later on after a hardy lunch, Dr Xavier announced that he was going to try out the time sphere, here on Earth. “Kara, will you accompany me”? Kara ascented on got into the sphere. I noticed she had packed a couple of Colonial sidearms in her holders. We waved goodbye and the time sphere faded out of sight. I turned around and there was the time sphere right in front of me. Dr. Xavier and Kara got out, looking a bit disheavaled. “ Hurry, we must speak to the President!” said Starbuck. “What’s going on Mom?” Zack said. “The Cylons are about to attack!” “The Cylons! After all this time” “Yes, I have the information about where exactly all the basestars are going to appear, we must communicate this at once to the Government.” I saw her pick up a phone and start dialing, “I must speak to the President, this is Starbuck, Kara Thrace Adama! Hurry please!”...
Oh by the way tom, I was thinking that instead of planting bombs where the basestars jump into the system why not have the fleet deployed to engage them as soon as they appear... its not as efficient, but it is more dramatic and allows for a really cool space battle for the PCs to take part in... if you use it as an adventure that is...
The bombs aren't going to get all the spaceships, just the large ones, that were detected by long range sensors from Earth in the Future. Many smaller ships had their own independent jump drives and they jumped separately, some of them jump back and call for reinforcements, and there were a few more basestars a few light years away held in reserve on the off chance that things went badly with the initial attack. Since in the original future these weren't needed and didn't make their appearance, there is no way to anticipate the arrival of the new basestars. Dr, Xavier is reluctant to use the time sphere to change history, as he would be changing the present, this time, and not the future. Basically a few more basestars appear in orbit around Earth and the Vipers engage them and the raiders. the odds are more even this time and ultimately the Earth prevails with its 5 battlestars and vipers, both battlestar based and ground based. The Galactica wasn't able to retrieve its crew from Gaia and make the jump in time to participate in this battle, and they figured that Gaia might be attacked next. the surviving basestars withdraw. Many raiders and troop transports are destroyed, but many more make it to the surface and a ground war commenses between Earth's armed forces and cylon centurians and their equipment. the attack is mostly routed after some messy mopping up operations, but some infiltrators have gotten through, and they'll cause all sorts of havoc in the future.
The Cylon fleet retreats to a distant star, Delta Pavonis, in this case, From which they begin harrassing the colonies with hit and run attacks on various ships and planets. A base star starts making the long journey back to the Cyrannus system to tell their leaders of their defeat. The odds are evened out, a pair of infiltrators manages to steal one of the time sphere and humans go after them in the other, thus taking both spheres out of action in the present, and the Third Cylon War proceeds from that point on as a normal space conflict.
Captain Sharon “Boomer” Valerii (Caprica Copy) “Retired”, Ambassador to Earth UN, from the United Colonies of Kobol, Gaia:Fast Hero 3/Dedicated Hero 3/Charismatic Hero 1/Viper Pilot 1/Ambassador 1; CR 9; medium cylon infiltrator; HD 3d8+6 plus 3d6+6 plus 1d6+2 plus 1d10+2 plus 1d6+2; hp 66; Mas 17; Init +1 (+1 Dex); Spd 35 ft.; Def 20, touch 18, flat-footed 19; BAB +4; Grp +6; Atk +6 melee (1d4+2, unarmed) or +5 ranged (2d6/3d6, colonial sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5ft.;
AP 11; Rep 8; SV Fort +6, Ref +7, Will +7; Str 14, Sex 12, Con 14, Int 16, Wis 12, Cha 14.
Starting Occupation: Military (Navigate and Survival are class skills), Raptor and Viper Pilot, later Diplomat.
Skills and Feats: Computer Use +12, Demolitions +7, Diplomacy +8, Drive +3, Gamble +5, Hide +2, Knowledge (Current Events) +4, Knowledge (Popular Culture) +4, Knowledge (Streetwise) +4, Knowledge (Technology) +4, Knowledge (Civics) +9, Knowledge (Theology) +9, Knowledge (Philosophy) +9, Listen +10, Navigate +10, Pilot +7, Repair +7, Spot +10, Survival +6, Treat Injury +7; Alertness, Armor Proficiency (light). Personal Weapons Proficiency, Renown, Simple Weapons Proficiency, Starship Dodge, Starship Operations, Lightning reflexes.
Possessions: Flight Suit and Helmet, Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), Survival Kit, various personal belongings.
Note: Sharon is 5 ft. 8 in. tall, weighs 110 lb., had dark hair brown eyes and an “Asian” appearance to most Earth people.
It was another boring meeting at the UN. I don’t know why I picked such a boring job, it wasn’t that I was too old to be a viper pilot anymore, it was then that I got the call on my cell phone. “Cylon attack!” I said, “I’ll be right there.” I hung up and excused myself from the meeting, letting my second take over. A helicopter met me at the heliport and took me from Manhattan to Armonk, New York. Dr. Xavier was there.
“A time machine?” I said, “How can that be?” “We live on the thin membrane of our Universe, perhaps you’ve heard of Everett and his many universe’s theory of Heisenberg’s ‘Uncertainty Principle’.”
“Yes, I know, when you fire a photon at a paper through two slits, even though thee is only one photon, that photon follows both paths through both slits in two universes, but the universes are still close enough on the quantum scale so that the single photon can interfere with itself. Fire a number of single photons in succession at a photographic plate and it starts producing interference patters as the wavelengths of each photon cancels out in certain places. If a photon was a definite particle and followed only a single path each time, this shouldn’t happen.”
“Well Everett’s theory also applies to time travel, when someone goes back in time and changes history, the changed history becomes a different universe and the original history remains the same leading back to our present. Wouldn’t it be nice if we can go back in time and save your twelve colonies before they were attacked by the Cylons? We could you know, I could take a time sphere to the Cyrranus system, somehow get past the Cylons, land on the surface, then go back in time to before the attack occurred, and convince the authorities to place nuclear bombs at the exact locations where the Basestars come out of their FTL jumps, we could save many billions of lifes that were lost, but not in our universe, by doing so we would abandon the people here on Earth, their universe would never see this time sphere again as there would be no possible way to return to this present. We could return to another 2025, and even go to Earth, but you and I wouldn’t be here. I would be on Gaia, having been never contacted living in primitive conditions, and you would still be a Cylon agent. The you or me that came out of the time sphere would be just another copy of the versions of us that would exist in the new timeline. If we were selfish, we could use this timeline to produce an alternate history to our liking, but only for two or how many other additional people we can cram onboard this time sphere as there would be no going back, and we would be abandoning all the others to their fates on this timeline. No Sharon altering history is not possible, we’d just be producing another universe where history was different not changing our own. There are probably many universes already where all the people of the Cyrranus system are alive and well, there are universes where humanity has gotten along well with the Cylons or never even made them, but those universes aren’t our concern, this one is, and I have a proposal. Even though we can’t go back in time and change history, we can go into the future and take a look around, see what’s coming and make the appropriate changes to prevent the unpleasant events which would otherwise occur. Are you familiar with that old television show called Early Edition?”
“That’s the one where the main character, Gary was his name I think, received tomorrow’s newspaper today and with that information was able to prevent bad things from happening.”
“Indeed, that’s the very idea that I propose, oh and by the way, here is your copy of the New York Times,” he handed it to me. I looked at it.
The New York Times
“All the News That’s Fit to Print”
NEW YORK, TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2025
It was tomorrow’s newspaper.
“We can deal with that later, right now we have to foil an imminent Cylon attack, how’s your viper skills?”
Later I reported to Stewart Air base in upstate New York, they had a few spare vipers in the squadron one of which they permitted me to use, it was like old times, the first thing I saw were some tremendous explosions, a dozen of which were composed of the flying white hot debris that were destroyed basestars arising out of jump, I kept the thought in the back of my mind that there was another universe where their attack succeeded. There were plenty of Cylon raiders and transports to shoot at though, I met up with Starbuck while in orbit, she was blasting away at cylon ships left and right like a hot knife through butter, she was outnumbered many times, and each time she got the better of the situation and destroyed all the raiders surrounding her borrowed Earth viper. Then a Basestar appeared out of nowhere. Starbuck led an Earth attack group, forming a fighter screen to let the strategic bombers get past the waves and waves of cylon raiders. One finally let loose a few of its nukes and we high tailed it out of there, destroying raiders along the way, a few of us didn’t make it, then came the big explosion, a violent white light with hot metal flying all over the place, the basestar was gone, and the other one was retreating taking in surviving raiders, and then it jumped out of system. When I got back Starbuck was with me. Dr. Xavier handed her a copy of tomorrow’s newspaper, and for the next 6 months the crime rate for the New York Metropolitan area went way down. Alas, it was not to last. A couple of Cylon infiltrators stole a time sphere killing a few of our security guards in the process, a witness reported the time sphere fading away. The transponder, Dr, Xavier attached to each time sphere indicated that the sphere went to:
1776 AD, July 4, Friday, 00:00:01
“Looks like the Cylons are trying to change history,” I said.
“I doubt that,” said Xavier, “If they were trying to change history, they would have already done so as they have gotten away from us and are now in the past, everything they were going to do has been already done. However, if we were the result of their altered history, there would be no cylons stealing our time sphere in this timeline and I distinctly remember them stealing the time sphere. I the time line were altered to their liking there would be no reason for them to go back in time in the first place, and they would probably have arranged things so that were no longer here, or at least that we wouldn’t still have the other time sphere, but we do. My guess is that they went back in time so as to be able to move the time sphere across the landscape unmolested by us, and when they get the time sphere in the proper location, the move it forward in time to the present and and arrange for a pickup and transport of the timesphere to their fleet, so now they may already have the timesphere in their possession, and they can do the same thing to us, that we’ve been doing to them. The only thing is we don’t know this for a fact, which is why it may not be too late to send someone after them into the past to stop them. Boomer, I’d like for you to go on this mission, take a team of 3 people beside yourself, I know it will be cramped in there, go back to 1776 AD, July 4 and stop them, retrieve the other time sphere if you can, destroy it if you can’t, but most important, do not let that time sphere get to the Cylon Fleet. You have 6 hours to pick your team members.”
There I was, and now that’s why I need your help to stop these cylons in the past, we must remember not to interfere with history, while we do so otherwise we’ll never get back.
That concludes my “Earth at Last” Outline. There is a bunch of stuff for everyone, PCs can fight cylons, try their fortunes operating a merchant ship along settled space, they can go back in time with Boomer and fight Cylons there, any number of things at all.
The other adventure plots are obvious, there is adventure, exploration, viper combat, all sorts of other things.
My next task I believe is to work on some generic characters, basically I'll start withe the basic heroes and advance them enough to make viper pilots out of them, they can appear an any era, and they basically form the core of a viper squadron in any BSG campaign, there names are Russel Witfield Strong/Hero/Viper Pilot, Yoriko Obato Fast Haro/Viper Pilot, Moondog Greenberg Tough Hero/Viper Pilot, Brandon Cross Smart Hero/Viper Pilot, Lily Parrish/ Dedicated Hero/Viper Pilot, Troy Bellarosa Charismatic Hero/Viper Pilot, the appear just as their illustrations depect in the D20 Modern Core RuleBook. There levels depend on how much I need to advance them in their Core class for them to qualify to be viper pilots, many will have to take cross class skills to qualify for 1st level of Viper Pilot.
What do you think of this premise?
I could write different adventures set in different time periods, but running a time travelling campaign is not something that I have attempted yet... I am very fond of giving my players enough rope to hang themselves with, and that style of DMing makes it difficult to keep a time travel campaign on track.
So I think its an interesting premise for a campaign, but not one I would run myself.
Anyway, Real Life has been VERY busy for me lately, so I haven't made alot of progress on the work that remains to be done... I have the day off Friday, so I hope to get some work done then. I wonder if Talos is still working on NPCs or if he's gotten too busy as well...
I am unashamed for my work here today...
When is the pdf going to be out? Sometime in january or february i assume?
well whenever, it will rock. Has anyone posted this to ron moore yet? see ya later folks and keep up the great work!
Real Life is kind of getting the better of us right now... but I think January or February sounds reasonable... I'll try to get some new material posted as soon as I have time.
Thanks!
Does anyone remember the dual-seat recon viper from bsg:1980? That could be the mkIII viper and have the bikes from it as well. Instead of being for recon, have it be like the A-10 tank killer. Weylan, your stuff and other peoples stuff rocks(as i said it before)! Everything i could think of has been addressed by this group(except what i added as a suggestion)and that blows me away, great job everybody. I do have a request,whenever drawings will be done could a drawing/schematic of the original BS Galactica be added into the game for those who want to add it to their campaign.
I have something like that you'll like. I'm in Philly right now for Thanksgiving but I brought my books and my files are on my laptop. Some more NPCs are almost done, I'll post some soon.
I am glad to hear that you are still working on this... I have just had no time lately... I did clean up the word document a bit... updating the Starship stats and formatting the advanced classes, but I haven't had the time I need to improve the starsystem generation rules or to update the advanced starship combat rules... I did finalize the "geography" of the Cyrannus star system, but I haven't had time to write detailed descriptions of the colonies themselves... I'll try to get something new posted this week... :embarrass
I also love Battle Star, especially the new series. My father forced me to watch the 1980's version when I was in middel school. Im a juniour in college now, and the new Battle star just has loads more depth and more belivability.
So the stats for charecters are awsome. This is one of the post that I will just thumb through for stats and information not just soley for Battle star games but for D20 future in general... so to the maker of this post, THANK YOU!
I've been wanting to do this project for a long time... and now its so close to being done I can taste it! The Holidays are really putting a dent into my free time, but I should have the whole month of January to tie up all the loose ends... Oh, and you can Thank Talos, Intensity and Tom_Kalbfus1 for the NPCs... I really couldn't have done them half as well as they did!
Colonial Viper T.Mk I
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Fighter
Size: Gargantuan (–4 size)
Length: 25 feet
Weight: 39,000 lb.
Crew: 2 (ace +12)
Passenger Capacity: 0
Cargo Capacity: 1,000 lb.
Tactical Speed: 2,500 ft. (6 sq.)
Defense: 19
Flat-footed Defense: 13
Autopilot Defense: 6
Hardness: 20
Hit Dice: 6d20 (120 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +6
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +7
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +6
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +8/+3
Targeting System Bonus:+2
Grapple Modifier: +8
Base Purchase DC: 36
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 2 fire-linked kinetic energy weapons +6/+1 ranged (9d12/20)
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: Fusion torch engine, thrusters
Armor: Alloy Plating
Defense Systems:
Sensors: Class I sensor array, targeting system
Communications: Radio transceiver
Weapons: 2 fire-linked kinetic energy weapons (range incr. 3,000 ft.)
Grappling Systems: None
The Viper T.Mk I was developed concurrently with the Viper Mk I. It was designed as a dedicated trainer and carried a trainee pilot in a second cockpit placed behind the first. Many were constructed until the Mk I design was supplemented by the Mk II during the First Cylon War. The T.Mk I was a solid design although a bit slower the the fighter version. To reduce mass, the missile launcher was removed and the T.Mk I was only equipped with a pair of kinetic energy weapons. After the war, many T.Mk Is remained in service as trainers at various Colonial Fleet flight schools. The T.Mk Is remained in service until the Cylon assault forty years after the end of the first war. No T.Mk Is are known to have survived the attack. There were several variants of the T.Mk I produced. During the war a need for a dedicated close air-support (CAS) variant became apparent. Several T.Mk Is were modified in the field with the addition of a missile rack containing cluster munitions, a basic ECM suite and additional plates of armor. These proved successful in service and full production, as the Viper FGA.Mk I, commenced shortly thereafter. Other variants were also produced. The Viper EW.Mk I was equipped with the ECM system of the FGA.Mk I but lacked any offensive weaponry. It also carried an improved sensor system and a decoy launcher and was used as a limited AWACS craft. Finally, several prototypes were made during the war of the Viper N.Mk I. These were intended to be used as nuclear strike craft that would break past enemy raider screens and engage Cylon basestars with pinpoint nuclear missile strikes. The war ended before production could begin and the N.Mk I was quietly cancelled with only a few prototypes produced.
FGA.Mk I Template
Hit Dice: Increase by +1d20
Defense System Upgrade: Sensor Jammer
Weapons Upgrade: 1 Missile Launcher (6 KE Submunition Missiles)
EW.Mk I Template
Defense System Upgrade: Sensor Jammer, Decoy Drone Launcher (2 Drones)
Sensors Upgrade: Class II Sensor Array
Weapons Downgrade: Remove all weapons
N.Mk I Template
Hit Dice: Increase by +1d20
Engine Upgrade: +500
Defense System Upgrade: Sensor Jammer
Sensors Upgrade: Targeting System (+2 on attack rolls)
Weapons Upgrade: Missile Launcher (2 Nuclear Missiles)
Any ideas how far each jump goes? I mean there's a limit of some sort, but I have no idea if there has been any reference to how far it actually goes or not?
Hi Paladin132,
here is an excerpt from Chapter 7... let me know if you have any questions, comments or constructive criticsm.
Thanks!
Interstellar Travel
The colonists never would have made it out of Kobol’s star system if it weren’t for the development of the Hyper-Light Jump Drive. This device allows a starship to instantaneously teleport from one point in space to another, light years away.
The further away a destination is, the more difficult it becomes to plot a successful jump.
Pinpointing the target destination requires a successful Navigate check, and the DC depends on the distance traveled (see Table: Check DCs for Jump Engines). Attempting to pinpoint the location without the aid of sensor technology imposes a –20 penalty on the Navigate check. When the jump is initiated, the entire ship and everything within it is instantly sent to the location the operator has selected.
If the operator’s Navigate check fails by 10 or less, the jumping starship appears in a location 1d100 thousand miles from the intended destination (determined randomly). If the check fails by 11 or more, the teleported creature or object materializes at some location 1d100 million miles from the intended destination.
Jump Drives come in 3 types, Type I, Type II, type III and Type IV. Older colonial ships use a Type I jump Drive. Most modern civilian ships use Type II jump drives, Colonial military ships use Type III drives.
Purchase DC: 50 (Type I), 52 (Type II and Type III).
Restriction: Licensed +1 (Type I and Type II) Military +3 (Type III).
Table: Check DCs For Jump Engines
Distance Navigate Check DC Computer Use DC
Planetary 15 20
Interplanetary 20 25
Interstellar 25 30
A jump drive may be activated once per round. However, frequent repeated jumps put a severe strain on the drive. For every 10 jumps made without fully recharging the jump drive (see Table: Jump Drive Recharge Time) there is a 1% cumulative chance that the next jump will fail and the Jump drive will be damaged, requiring 10 hours to repair. A jump Drive may be Jury rigged, but the Jury rigging will only allow for one more jump and then the drive is destroyed. A destroyed Drive cannot be repaired and must be replaced.
Table: Jump Drive Recharge Time
Drive Type Jump Drive Recharge Time
Type I 8 hours
Type II 2 hours
Type III 1 hour
Jump drives use massive amounts of fuel to initiate the jump. Type I drives can make 125 jumps before they need to refuel. Type II drives are more efficient and can make 500 jumps before refueling. Type III drives are the most fuel efficient drives available. They can make 1,000 jumps before refueling. Type I jump engines have a maximum range of 1 light year per jump.
Type II engines have a maximum range of 10 light years per jump. Type III engines have a maximum range of 100 light years per jump.
The Type IV is the Cylon Jump engine. It is PL7 and can make 2,000 jumps before needing to re-fuel. A Type IV jump engine has a maximum range of 1,000 light years per jump and only requires approximately 30 minutes to recharge.
Great job on the Viper variants... I was wondering what you thought about making the trainer the viper Mk III, the FGA Mk IV, the EW Mk V and the N Mk VI?
That would flesh out the other viper model numbers... just a thought...
Thanks so much for all of your help on this project! :D
Ok, that sounds pretty good. Not shabby - however I do have one issue: recharge times? In 33 we see that there isn't an issue with recharge but with being able to calculate the jump properly. That might warrent some review. Great work on the rest of it though, and it will help me alot for this weekend's gaming, thank you very much.
Hi Paladin,
You are right, nowhere in the series do they mention a recharge time, however, they do mention that repeated jumps were putting a strain on the jump drives. This comment combined with the rules for the Teleporter from D20 Future (which is what I based the jump drive on) led me to the decision to impose a recharge rate. It also has the nice side benefit of limiting how far the fleet can realistically travel in one day. If the slowest ship in the fleet has a Type I jumpd drive, then the fleet can only SAFELY make 3 1ly jumps every 24 hours... Of course, I am the biggest fan in the world of rule zero, so if you think re-charage rates limit your campaign, then feel free to ignore them. Its not like I'm handing down pronouncements from On High... ;) :D
Leobon Conoy (Gemenon Traveller copy): male Strong Hero 5/Dedicated Hero 3/Charismatic Hero 4; CR 12; medium cylon infiltrator; HD 5d8+10 plus 3d6+6 plust 4d6+8; hp 80; Mas 15; Init +5 (+1 Dex, +4 Improved Init); Spd 30 ft.; Def 17, touch 17, flat-footed 16; BAB +9; Grp +14; Atk +16 melee (1d8+5, unarmed) or +10 ranged (2d6, Submachinegun); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 11; Rep +3; Wealth +7; SV Fort +9, Ref +5, Will +9; Str 20, Dex 13, Con 15, Int 14, Wis 17, Cha 16.
Starting Occupation: Criminal (Disable Device and Knowledge (Streetwise are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Bluff +23, Computer Use +7, Diplomacy +15, Disguise +5, Gamble +11, Intimidate +9, Knowledge (Streetwise) +8, Knowledge (Religion) +10, Listen +9, Pilot +4, Sense Motive +15, Spot +7, Survival +7, Treat Injury +7;
Brawl, Combat Reflexes, Deceptive, Improved Brawl, Improved Initiative, Iron Will, Jack of All Trades, Low Profile, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Point Blank Shot, Simple Weapons Proficiency, Starship Operation, Streetfighting.
Special Abilities: Advanced Extreme Effort, Charm, Extreme Effort, Faith, Fast Talk, Improved Extreme Effort, Skill Emphasis (Bluff).
Possessions: Courier, Submachinegun (Ragnar Anchorage Copy).
Waylan: I'm thinking that the Mk designations with no prefixes are reserved for the main fighter variants. I like to think that the Mk III was the heavy Viper from the BSG video game from a few years ago. I'm liking this though so maybe the Mk IVs were refitted war-surplus Mk Is and the result of a stringent post-war military budget. Then, the Mk V and VI were just two models made in the ensuring decades between the wars. I'd surmise that the Mk VII would be a decade or so old by the time of the Cylon attack. The Blackbird ,though, is not a Viper. The name I like for the BB made in "Flight of the Phoenix" is 'Blackbird-class stealth reconnaissance craft "Laura"'. With this naming scheme, room is left for modifications and sub-varients like the T.Mk I. The templates could be used on any of the Vipers, hmm, a Viper FGA.MK II would be sweet performing close air support against Cylon forces.
I'll work up a Mk III and IV and I have some ideas for descriptions. Off to work...
EDIT: Maybe this for the Mk VI.
Those vipers look cool... and I agree with your naming scheme... :D
Great work on Leoben too! Thanks Talos! I really think we can have this done by the end of next month...
WHOA!
Those vipers look cool... and I agree with your naming scheme... :D
Great work on Leoben too! Thanks Talos! I really think we can have this done by the end of next month...
Will the finalized draft be available to cut and paste? Will it be in .pdf form for download? Will there be illustrations? Table of Contents? Just curious. BTW, looks good.
Colonial Viper Mk I space superiority fighter/Colonial Viper Mk IV space supiority fighter (PL 6)
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Fighter
Size: Gargantuan (–4 size)
Length: 25 feet
Weight: 38,000 lb.
Crew: 1 (ace +12)
Passenger Capacity: 0
Cargo Capacity: 1,700 lb.
Tactical Speed: 3,000 ft. (6 sq.)/3,500 ft. (7 sq.)
Defense: 19
Flat-footed Defense: 13
Autopilot Defense: 8
Hardness: 20
Hit Dice: 6d20 (120 hp)/7d20 (140 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +6
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +7
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +6
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +8/+3
Targeting System Bonus:+2 (Mk IV only)
Grapple Modifier: +8
Base Purchase DC: 38
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 2 fire-linked kinetic energy weapons +4 ranged (9d12) and
CHE Missile -1 ranged (6d12/19-20); or
2 fire-lined kinetic energy weapons +4/-1 ranged (9d12)
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: Fusion torch engine, thrusters
Armor: Alloy Plating
Defense Systems: Autopilot
Sensors: Class I sensor array/Class II sensor array, Targeting System (Mk IV only)
Communications: Radio transceiver
Weapons: 2 fire-linked kinetic energy weapons (range incr. 3,000 ft.),
1 missile launcher (4 CHE Missles)
Grappling Systems: None
The Viper Mk I was the first in a new line of Colonial space supiority fighters. Originally the product of Caprican designers, the first Vipers entered service with fighter squadrons a decade before the Cylon War, replacing the obsolete Scorpion-class fighter family. After Colonial Unification, the Viper Mk I, nicknamed the Starhound, became the standard fighter of the Colonial military. During the Cylon War, many Vipers Mk Is served in all theaters of the war. It proved itself to be superior to it's primary adversary, the slower and less manueverable Cylon Raider. Later in the war, the Viper Mk II replaced the Mk I as the primary fighter of the Colonial military. With the introduction of the Mk II, the Mk I was reglected to second line duties, outfitting reserve squadrons and performing home defense and convoy protection duties. The Mk I remained in use after the war. With the drawdown of the Colonial Fleet and a tightening military budget, many surplus Mk Is with low flight hours were fitted with new engines and avionics and a modified space frame. These refits were renamed Viper Mk IVs and sent to lower priority squadrons to replaced war-weary Mk Is. By the time of the second Cylon attack, most Mk Is and IVs were already decommissioned. However, a few stil soldiered on in militia and reserve squadrons. One Viper Mk I was placed in the museum on the famous battlestar Galactica. When Galactica's deck crew salvaged the Vipers in the museum to place on flight duty, they did not use the Mk I.
For Viper Mk Is serving in second-line squadrons later in the war, lower the crew rating to Trained (+4).
Colonial Viper Mk II space superiority fighter (PL 6)
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Fighter
Size: Gargantuan (–4 size)
Length: 25 feet
Weight: 39,000 lb.
Crew: 1 (ace +12)
Passenger Capacity: 0
Cargo Capacity: 1,700 lb.
Tactical Speed: 3,500 ft. (7 sq.)
Defense: 19
Flat-footed Defense: 13
Autopilot Defense: 8
Hardness: 20
Hit Dice: 8d20 (160 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +6
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +7
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +6
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +8/+3
Targeting System Bonus: +2 (post-war refit only)
Grapple Modifier: +8
Base Purchase DC: 46
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 2 fire-linked kinetic energy weapons +6 ranged (9d12) and
CHE Missile +1 ranged (6d12/19-20); or
2 fire-lined kinetic energy weapons +6/+1 ranged (9d12)
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: Fusion torch engine, thrusters
Armor: Polymeric
Defense Systems: Autopilot, targeting system (post-war refit only)
Sensors: Class II sensor array
Communications: radio transceiver
Weapons: 2 fire-linked kinetic energy weapons (range incr. 3,000 ft.)
1 missile launcher (6 CHE Missles)
Grappling Systems: None
During the Cylon War, a need arose for a new space superiority fighter to suplement the Viper Mk I. The new fighter was designated the Viper Mk II. The Mk II was faster, had better sensors and avionics, and carried an expanded missile bay which was also capable of carrying ungided bombs. The new Viper proved itself on the frontlines, decimating the Cylon fighter forces. By the end of the war, the Mk II was standard equipment for all squadrons serving on battlestars and other large capital ships. In the post-war era, the Viper continued on for many years as the standard colonial fighter. They received an avionics upgrade after the war. It wasn't until around a decade before the second Cylon attack that the new Viper Mk VII was built in sufficient numbers to replace the Mk II in most fleet squadrons (The Viper Mk V and VI were never built in great numbers as they failed to show a significant improvement over the aging Mk IIs). Many Mk IIs were sent to the scrap yards but a few were sent to museums and test centers to be used as target drones along with Viper Mk Is. Some were sent to Colonial Militia squadrons to replace some of the Viper Mk IVs they had been using for at least 30 years. Several dozen Viper Mk IIs were sent to the battlestar Galactica to be placed in the museum of the cylon war located in Galactica's starboard flight pod. One Mk II, 7242NC, flow by Lieutenant William "Husker" Adama during the Cylon War, was rebuilt by Galactica's deck crew and participated in a flyby demonstration. The Viper, piloted by Adama's son, Captain Lee "Apollo" Adama, was escorting Colonial Heavy 798 which was carrying press and the Secretary of Education back to Caprica. The Viper was damaged at the Battle of the Ragnar Anchorage but was repaired and is still flown by Captain Adama on occaison (Captain Adama also flies his Viper Mk VII). The other Mk IIs in the museum were returned to service and served to repel the first Cylon attack on Galactica which resulted in the damaging of Galactica with a Cylon nuclear missile. The Mk IIs proved to be immune to the Cylon computer virus and formed the nucleus of the Galactica's fighter force in the post-attack period.
For Viper Mk IIs during the Cylon War, reduce the attack bonus to +4/-1.
Colonial Viper Mk VII space superiority fighter (PL 6)
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Fighter
Size: Gargantuan (–4 size)
Length: 32.5 feet
Weight: 37,000 lb.
Crew: 1 (ace +12)
Passenger Capacity: 0
Cargo Capacity: 1,700 lb.
Tactical Speed: 3,500 ft. (7 sq.)
Defense: 19
Flat-footed Defense: 13
Autopilot Defense: 10
Hardness: 20
Hit Dice: 9d20 (180 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +8
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +7
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +6
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +8/+3
Targeting System Bonus:+2
Grapple Modifier: +8
Base Purchase DC: 46
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 3 fire-linked upgraded kinetic energy weapons +6 ranged (12d12/20) and
CHE Missile +1 ranged (6d12/19-20); or
3 fire-linked upgraded kinetic energy weapons +6/+1 ranged (12d12/20)
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: Fusion torch engine, thrusters
Armor: Polymeric
Defense Systems: Improved autopilot system,
Sensors: Class III sensor array, targeting system
Communications: Radio transceiver
Weapons: 3 fire-linked upgraded kinetic energy weapons (range incr. 4,000 ft.)
1 Missile Launcher (8 CHE Missiles)
Grappling Systems: None
Several decades after the Cylon War, the Colonial military realized the need for a new fighter to replace the war-vintage Mk Is, IIs, IIIs, and IVs. The new craft, the Viper Mk V, failed to show any significant improvement over the Mk II and the design never made it past the drawing board and computer simulations. Instead, the Mk IIs were refitted with new avionics. Several years later, the same problem resurfaced and the radically different Viper Mk VI was designed. The Mk VI made it into preproduction with 8 prototypes built. Unfortunantely the Mk VI showed severe stability problems which culminated in the lose of two prototypes in a mid-air collision near the Corinth Air Base on Aerelon resulting in the deaths of both pilots. The Mk VI was cancelled after it was detirmined that it would not be cost effective to redesign the ship. it was another five years before another attempt to design a new fighter was made. After the Mk VI fiasco, the designers went back to the standard Viper configuration of three engines in a pyramid pattern and three wings. The sleek new design was labled the Mk VII and showed great promise from the beginning. It was faster and more manuverable than its predecessors and featured a heavier armament with the addition of a third cannon mounted on the base of the dorsal fin. The Mk VII entered production and became the standard fighter in the Colonial military. The Mk VII was first introduced into front-line service when the Air Wing of the battlestar Mercury, the first of the new Mercury-class battlestars, was equipped exclusivly with the Mk VII and the new Raptor-class ships. The Mk II continued for a few more years in the Air Wings of the older battlestars like the Galactica until the battlestars received new Mk VIIs. After several years of frontline service, a new Command Navigation Program (CNP) by developed by Dr. Gaius Baltar. The CNP was distributed by all ships in the fleet. Unbeknownst to anyone, the CNP contained a Cylon virus that disabled virtually all of the Colonial defenses when the Cylons attacked. The last squadron of Viper Mk VIIs stationed on the battlestar Galactica were en-route to Caprica to be reassigned when the Cylons attacked. The Vipers were shut down and massacared by a pair of Cylon Raiders. Captain Lee "Apollo" Adama flew a Mk VII (2276NC) to the Galactica for its decommisioning ceremony. He flew a Mk II during the ceremony and escaped the computer virus, although his ship was damaged evading a Cylon missile. Adama continued to use the Mk VII, which was purged of the CNP, along with several other Mk VIIs that travelled with the fleet to the rendevous of the Ragnar Anchorage and several that were down for repairs on Galactica. Several dozen Mk VIIs, the Air Wing of the Mercury-class battlestar Pegasus, also escaped the Cylon attack.
I will get this information copied into the word doc tomorrow night. :D
Thanks again!!!
The project is coming along well. Everyone who has contributed is a volunteer, with their own lives and responsibilites outside of the boards, so its not like we have a set schedule. However, I think we should be able to have everything written and put into a pdf format by the end of January. I initially wanted to have things done by the end of the year, but I have had almost no free time since October.
Anyway,
If I recall correctly, I still need to do write ups for each of the 12 colonies, I have to write some fluff for the advanced classes, I need to add Talos' updates for the vipers, I need to finish the star system generation rules, and write a couple more campaign models (the cylon war and the quest for earth).
Meanwhile Talos has been writing stats for almost every character in the new series, and I've got to write up some stats for "ordinary" NPCs...
So, that's where things are right now.
just a quick update, I have some time tomyself tonight, so I will be updating the word doc with talos' viper stats and leoben connoy's stats. That should only take a few minutes, and then I plan to get some more work done on the starsystem generation rules. I want to get those finished BEFORE Christmas, but I can't make any promises... I still have shopping to do!
:embarrass Colonial Carbine
9mm Assault Carbine
Damage: 2d6
Critical: 20
Damage Type: Ballistic
Range Increment: 50 ft.
Rate of Fire: S,A
Magazine: 10 box
Size: Large
Weight: 6 lb.
Purchase DC: 19
Restriction: Res (+2)
and
, great work :P ;)Waylan . . . this is just AWESOME. Congrats on the wedding btw, and thanks for calling me over here from my random thread elsewhere on this topic.
Quick questions for ya:
1.) Are you using Star Wars space combat rules or d20 Future rules? Why did you pick either one over the other (trying to understand the ideology and design logistics here).
2.) Loved the posting on modifications to space combat for a 3-dimensional perspective. Quick question: How would you Rep the various ships?
I've had some hard times finding miniatures for the Colonial and Cylon fleets, would want to use actual scaled-down models to rep them, as that captures the "feel" alot better, as I've seen in SW space combat waaaaay waaaaay back before the revised edition.
3.) It's early yet, second half of season 2 starts next week. Is this going to be a "living document" with updates? I know updating a pdf regularly can get annoying . . . just my 2c on that . . . might want to publish an HTML version or have a "web enhancement" that is a living document, with regular updates.
Thanks again and kudos to all contributors . . . this is just awesome!!
So say we all!!
Great work so far guys, I look forward to seeing the pdf when done.First, in Home pt 1, when the 24 ships leave, Adama says something like "that's almost a third of the fleet." So the fleet likely has 75+ ships instead of 50.
Also, I have reason to believe that the sidearm is an altered Five-seveN. It bears striking resemblance, and also makes sense, as you only have to carry one kind of ammo. You also notice that the gun boomer shoots Adama with (referenced by the medic as 9mm) is not the standard sidearm, and has a larger barrel, as you see in a flashback in Home pt. 2
Otherwise, this all looks good. I've been wanting to play a BSG game sometime.
I've just been reading through this whole thread, and there's a few things I noticed.
First, in Home pt 1, when the 24 ships leave, Adama says something like "that's almost a third of the fleet." So the fleet likely has 75+ ships instead of 50.
Also, I have reason to believe that the sidearm is an altered Five-seveN. It bears striking resemblance, and also makes sense, as you only have to carry one kind of ammo. You also notice that the gun boomer shoots Adama with (referenced by the medic as 9mm) is not the standard sidearm, and has a larger barrel, as you see in a flashback in Home pt. 2
Otherwise, this all looks good. I've been wanting to play a BSG game sometime.
Glad you're enjoying it. Okay, about the fleet. In the Mini it was said to be 40 ships that made the jump to Ragnar. It's been retconned to about 75.
The sidearms were originally custom made pistols with the handle of a S&W revolver. These carried the explosive round launcher and shot bullets with the laser-like effects. In "Valley of Darkness" they start introducing the new pistols which are FN Five-SeveNs with a plastic muzzle-loading explosive round launcher. When I wrote the stats, I hadn't noticed that it was an FN yet, but somehow my stats were very similar. Seriously.
The pistol Boomer shoots Adama with was a HK 9mm similar to (if not exactly like) this . You can get a good look at the pistol earlier in KLG part I. We've also seen Colonial forces with 9mm Carbines (Adama, Home pt. II), 5.56 Bullpup Rifles (Honor Guard, Act of Contrition flashback, Resistance Member, Resistance), and of course P90s.everyone has done so well on this, you should post this to mr moore himself and get his opinion on it. hey waylan, i have a request, Its scifi but not bsg; Do you remember space1999? I would love to see that done next. What do you think? :D
Heh, Actually I DO remember Space:1999, but I don't know much about the series. I'd have to do alot of research to get it right, and right now I've got a few other projects i want to tackle when I finish BSGd20. So I'm sorry to dissapoint, but If I were to do Space:1999 d20, it wouldn't be for a long while... probably not until 2007 to be honest.
Wow . . .
Waylan . . . this is just AWESOME. Congrats on the wedding btw, and thanks for calling me over here from my random thread elsewhere on this topic.
Quick questions for ya:
1.) Are you using Star Wars space combat rules or d20 Future rules? Why did you pick either one over the other (trying to understand the ideology and design logistics here).
2.) Loved the posting on modifications to space combat for a 3-dimensional perspective. Quick question: How would you Rep the various ships?
I've had some hard times finding miniatures for the Colonial and Cylon fleets, would want to use actual scaled-down models to rep them, as that captures the "feel" alot better, as I've seen in SW space combat waaaaay waaaaay back before the revised edition.
3.) It's early yet, second half of season 2 starts next week. Is this going to be a "living document" with updates? I know updating a pdf regularly can get annoying . . . just my 2c on that . . . might want to publish an HTML version or have a "web enhancement" that is a living document, with regular updates.
Thanks again and kudos to all contributors . . . this is just awesome!!
So say we all!!
Thanks!
I actually just returned from my Honeymoon (My wife and I didn't have the time available right after the wedding in October so we waited until my company shut down for the holidays).
Anyway,
I based the starship combat rules on D20 Future's rules. I don't particularly like the rules, but since this is supposed to be a supplement for D20 Modern/Future, I chose to use their rules for the sake of compatibility.
As for representing the various ships, I would suggest using counters or miniatures from other space battle games until someone decides to produce BSG minis... The best I could offer would be to include papre counters in the PDF that you could cut out and place on the battlemat. I'd suggest using poker chips to represent relative altitude; red for above the hard deck and blue for below. In my own starwars d20 campaign I just draw on the graph paper and write important notes next to each symbol.
I plan to update the pdf as the series unfolds and new characters or starships are presented... I will probably post updates here on the boards until I have enough to warrant an update to the campaign setting.
What do you need to be done, fluff-wise, I'm not a real hardcore rules guy if you remember so what ya need?
Specialist Cally: female Dedicated Hero 3;
CR 3; medium human; HD 3d6; hp 13; Mas 10;
Init +0 (+0 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 12, touch 12, flat-footed 12; BAB
+2; Grp +2; Atk +2 melee (1d4, unarmed) or +2 ranged (2d6,
Pistol); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 6; Rep +1; SV Fort +2, Ref +1, Will +2; Str 10, Dex 11, Con 10,
Int 14, Wis 10, Cha 12.
Starting Occupation: Technician (Computer Use, Knowledge (technology), and Repair are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Computer Use +3, Craft (Electrical +4), Craft (Mechanical) +8, Knowledge (Technology)+4, Repair +11, Survival +3, Treat Injury +3
Builder, Focused, Gearhead, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Simple Weapon Proficiency.
Special Abilities: Aware, Skill Emphasis.
Possessions: various personal belongings.
Colonial Raptor-class electronic-warfare/transport ship (PL 6)
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Transport
Size: Gargantuan (–4 size)
Length: 28.5 feet
Weight: 100,000 lb.
Crew: 2 (trained +4)
Passenger Capacity: 10
Cargo Capacity: 9,500 lb.
Tactical Speed: 2,500 ft. (5 sq.)
Defense: 11
Flat-footed Defense: 9
Autopilot Defense: 8
Hardness: 20
Hit Dice: 10d20 (200 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +2
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +3
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +2
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +2
Targeting System Bonus: +2
Grapple Modifier: +12
Base Purchase DC: 48
Restriction: Licensed (+1)
Attack: 1 CHE missile launcher with 4 missiles -2 ranged (6d12/19-20);
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: Jump engine, thrusters
Armor: Polymeric
Defense Systems: Autopilot system, 1 decoy drone launcher (4 decoy drones), sensor jammer
Sensors: Class III sensor array
Communications: Laser transceiver, radio transceiver
Weapons: 1 CHE missile launcher with 4 missiles
Grappling Systems: none
During the Cylon War, Colonial Fleet ships carried a wide variety of craft for different roles. Crowding the decks of battlestars and other vessels were space fighters, shuttles for cargo duties, passenger shuttles, strike craft, and Marine assault shuttles. This multitude of craft proved to be a serious liability. Ship commanders were forced to make trade-offs in what they carried. For instance, a destroyer captain, whose ship is only capable of carrying a few shuttles anyway, could either board assault shuttles for boarding actions and ground assaults, or regular shuttles for cargo hauling and Search-and-rescue operations, but not both. Mindful of this, twenty years after the war, the Colonial fleet designed a new craft, based off a new Marine assault shuttle design, to fullfill this requirment. This new ship, named the Raptor, was built to be capable of many missions. The new ship was capable of carrying a eight man Marine squad with all of their gear or ten passengers. It was equipped with an extensive ECM and sensor suite enabling the Raptor to carryout Airborne Warning and Control (AWACS), jamming, escort, Search and Rescue (SAR), and scouting missions. Though normally unarmed, the Raptor can carry several missiles on racks beneath it's wings, allowing Supression of Enemy Air Defenses (SEAD) missions. Normally, however, it carries decoy and communication drones instead. The Raptor proved an instant success and soon was carried in the hanger bays of most Colonial craft. Normally, on battlestars, one Raptor is assigned to each Viper squadron for support purposes and several additional ones are also carried. After the Cylon attack, the Raptors assigned to the elderly battlestar Galactica, have proven themselves as some of the most useful resources available.
Thanks for keeping things going here. I am banging my head against the wall with this Star System Generation stuff... I'd leave it out if it weren't so important. Gah... maybe I am overthinking this stuff... Oh well its time for me to go to bed... gotta get up early for work tomorrow.
Yippee!
Just a thought.
I know OF the Spycraft D20 rules, but I don't know enough about them to know how they compare to the D20 Modern Rules, so I can't really say how easy or difficult it would be to convert our stats to Spycraft D20. At the very least you can use all of the background information (once the PDF is out of course).
Must get Spycraft 2.0 now.
Colonial Battlestar (PL 6)
Type: Superheavy
Subtype: battlestar
Size: Colossal (–8 size)
Length: 4,640 feet
Weight: 500,000 tons
Crew: 3,000 (expert +8)
Passenger Capacity: 2,000
Cargo Capacity: 38,250 tons
Tactical Speed: 3,000 ft. (6 sq.)
Defense: 11
Flat-footed Defense: 7
Autopilot Defense: 7
Hardness: 40
Hit Dice: 1,200d20 (24,000 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +6
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +5
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +4
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +4
Targeting System Bonus:+3
Grapple Modifier: +16
Base Purchase DC: 72
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 6 fire-linked batteries of 4 Heavy Cannon Turrets -1 ranged (32d8) and
1 Nuclear Missile Launcher with 20 Nuclear Missiles -6 ranged (60d10) or
6 fire-linked batteries of 4 Heavy Cannon Turrets -1/-6 ranged (32d8).
Attack of Opportunity: Point-defense system +3 ranged (5d12
Excellent work! (as usual ;) )
I loved the mention of Commanders Greene and Bridges in command of the Galactica and Pegasus at the battle of Gammoray!
Also, have you considered about making a d20 webpage where a lot of the awesome information you've compiled could be organized and available for download now?
Just curious. Keep up the good work.
There is not much left to be written, The Cylon War campaign model, and the Quest For Earth Campaign model, (although that is the default setting, so I don't know if there is anything that I really need to write about it.), and those pesky random star system generation rules... Which I think are becoming TOO detailed... I might release a basic version of them and write up a REALLY detailed system in my next project.
In any case, I plan to have the document DONE by the end of this month. I don't know much about web hosting, but I have several friends who do, and Aussiegamer even offered to host BSGd20 on his NEXUS site, so one way or another it will be UP in a few weeks. There is more than enough info at this point to play a BSG campaign, so anything that Talos and I haven't finished by January 31st will be compiled and added in a future update. I DO plan to keep updating the PDF as the series progresses though, so no worries about that!
As for putting what I do have up on a website, the whole thing will be done in 3 weeks. I will have the everything up then, I promise!In any case, I plan to have the document DONE by the end of this month.
Yeah
I missed last night's episode, the sequel to "Pegasus",
Can anyone fill me in on what happened. My Guide function said that the Galactica and the Pegasus had to team up, but i am otherwise completely in the dark. can anyone fill me in? Yeah
I missed last night's episode, the sequel to "Pegasus",
I'd hate to spoil the fun. I'm sure it'll play again right soon. (Don't they replay it on Saturdays or Sundays?) Otherwise, you can download it at i-tunes (I think) ... something that was advertised last night ... and likely is advertised on the Sci-Fi website.
Well, I'll get to work on The Cylon War one I suppose then since it seems to be one of the few that needs a lot of work.
Awesome! that is greatly appreciated Jongluer! Thank you! :D
In this setting, however, Colonial humans (the Remnant) would be a 'derived' human species.
Here's me posting the 'Colonial Human' "Species" for said campaign. The quotes on the write-up are from the original miniseries and '33'.
Remnant Humans:
They come from the universes of “Battlestar Galactica”. They are the last of the once-proud 12 Colonies of Kobol, on the run and on the search of the fabled 13th Colony- the shining blue planet we call “Earth”. It was written on their scriptures that it was a sort of paradise, and after the destruction of their homeworlds, it’s their only hope left.
They are here, and they discovered quite quickly that this was anything but a freakin’ paradise. They have no place else to go, and so, must adapt.
All of a sudden, the threat of the Cylons is the LEAST of their problems.
Racial Traits:
Remnant Humans are as per the rulebook, with these exceptions:
*They hate Cylons A LOT: +1 (or +2) to any attack roll involving robots (this adds up to any other thing, like the "Down With Robots" ability of the D20F Technosavant). Role-playing-wise, they're very paranoid around robots and A.I.s.
*"If we let them escape, they'll become stronger and come back for revenge. It's in their nature.": A Remnant Human obtains a +1 to any rolls involving rallying Remnant Humans. Charismatic heroes are due to squeeze the life out of this one.
*"Yes, we're tired. Yes, there's no relief. Yes, the Cylons keep coming time after us time, after time, after time-and yes, we're still expected to DO OUR JOBS!":The Remnant Human has a +2 bonus to rolls to avoid exhaustion due to lack of sleep, or sleep-creating effects. Some of them are chronic insomniacs.
*"Hurry up, people! We have only 32 minutes left!": Choosing to climb up the difficulty one step, a Remnant Human can do any kind of repair roll or jury-rigging in half the time (minimum of 30 minutes). If something cannot be battle-ready in 30 minutes or less, they're prone to ditch it.
Good Job keep up the good work.
Whether Pegasus stays with the fleet or not, I intend to write stats for her anyway...
I was just re-reading your post about the Battlestar, and it occurred to me that I forgot the planet of Gammoray. Now in the original series, it was described as the "Outer Capital" of the Cylon Empire. I am thinking of doing this:
According to the starsystem generation rules I am writing (whats done so far that is) there is one more orbital path left in the Cyrannus system to fit a planet... its an orbit at 40AU (similar to pluto's orbit in our solar system). I could place Gammory in this last orbital path and say that this is where the Cylons established a colony of their own during the cylon war.
What do you think?
NPCs (written by Talos)
Lt. Kara "Starbuck" Thrace: female Fast Hero 4/Viper Pilot 8;
CR 12; medium human; HD 4d8+4 plus 8d10+8; hp 126; Mas 12;
Init +4 (+4 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 26, touch 24, flat-footed 22; BAB
+9; Grp +12; Atk +14/+8 melee (1d8+3, unarmed) or +13/+6 ranged (2d6,
Sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 12; Rep +7; SV Fort +4, Ref +12, Will +6; Str 16, Dex 18, Con 12,
Int 13, Wis 12, Cha 14.
Starting Occupation: Adventurer (Pilot and Intimidate are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Bluff +12, Drive +12, Escape Artist +9, Gamble +15, Intimidate +10, Knowledge (streetwise) +11, Navigate +11, Pilot +20, Sense Motive +6, Sleight of Hand +8 Survival +6;
Action Boost, Brawl, Confident, Improved Brawl, Light Armor Proficiency, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Point Blank Shot, Spacer, Starship Battle Run, Starship Dodge, Starship Gunnery, Starship Mobility, Starship Operation (Ultralight), Simple Weapon Proficiency.
Special Abilities: Evasion, Evasive Action, Starship Feint, Uncanny Dodge 1, Viper Familiarity (+3).
Possessions: Flight Suit and Helmet, Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), Survival Kit, various personal belongings.
Captain Lee "Apollo" Adama: male Fast Hero 4/Viper Pilot 7/Starship Officer 1;
CR 12; medium human; HD 5d8+5 plus 7d10+7; hp 122; Mas 12;
Init +4 (+4 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 25, touch 23, flat-footed 21; BAB
+11; Grp +12; Atk +14/+9/+4 melee (1d6+2, unarmed) or +15/+10/+5 ranged (2d6,
Sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 12; Rep +7; SV Fort +4, Ref +11, Will +8; Str 15, Dex 18, Con 12,
Int 14, Wis 13, Cha 13.
Starting Occupation: Military (Pilot and Knowledge (Tactics) are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Bluff +6, Computer Use +9, Diplomacy +6, Intimidate +6, Knowledge (Tactics) +18, Navigate +14, Pilot
+20, Repair +17, Sense Motive +11, Spot +11, Survival +7, Tumble +8;
Athletic, Brawl, Heroic Surge, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Simple Weapon Proficiency, Spacer, Starship Dodge, Starship Gunnery, Starship Mobility, Starship Operation (Ultralight), Starship Strafe.
Special Abilities: Evasion, Evasive Action, Leadership, Starship Feint, Uncanny Dodge 1, Viper Familiarity (+2).
Possessions: Flight Suit and Helmet, Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), Survival Kit, various personal belongings.
Is there a reason Adama's BAB is 2 higher than Starbuck's? 7th to 8th level Viper pilot and 1st level Starship Officer both have +1.
Good Catch!
I believe it is a typo... they should both have a BAB of +9. I'll fix it in the word doc.
Thanks AutumnBloom!
The Cylon War
"Today in orbit above Capricon, a squad of Colonial Vipers took on an overwhelming force of Cylon Raiders. It was only with the arrival of Battlestar Galactic and its fighters was the battle able to be turned in the Vipers favor. This is another pride filling victory for the Colonial Fleet. It seems that the new Battlestars are more than capable of dealing with the Cylon threat, it should be only a matter of months..."
Summary
The 12 Colonies of Kobol are flung into war with their former servants the Cylons. In a world where nothing is certain, and an overwhelming force of artificial metallic beings threatens life everyday, a few are willing to place themselves in the line of fire and fight for the life of the Colonies themselves.
Campaign in Brief
The Cylon War is a unique campaign setting based in a time 50 years prior to the Cylons destroyed the colonies. During this time, the Cylons are still slow, lumbering, machines whose true advantage is numbers and being able to infiltrate computer systems. Meanwhile the Colonies have recently developed literal behemoths of ships known as Battlestars that can ferry Marines, Colonial Vipers, and of course can serve as battleships themselves. After the initial uprisings of the Cylons, where humanity's worst fears were realized, the lines were drawn, both planetside and in space. Now while many civilians are able to live in relative safety, many other areas have been turned to little more than battlefields, leaving civilianseither dead or left to fend for themselves.
The Military stands as the Colonies last hope. The Navy protects the empty space between the colonies as well as the atmospheres of most planets, meanwhile the Marines do battle with the Toasters, as Cylons are called, upon the ground. Times are tight and the economy is in dire straights, it is up to the men and women fighting to band together and do what's right, fighting wherever they need to and at any time. Also, within the halls of government words are exchanged as the President and Military attempt to focus on fighting the war and little more, envoking powers that basically ignore the Qurom of Twelve. As the war drags on, people are becoming discontent, even civilians are dying, and victories are lacking. Only time can tell what shall happen...
Role of the Heroes
The Heroes of a Cylon War campaign are most likely members of the Colonial Fleet or Colonial Marines. Serving as commanders of vessels, fighter pilots, or elite ground forces, they are the frontline in a fierce war. The heroes are often sent upon missions which can make or break a conflict, whether it be dispatching the enemy command, gaining vital recon, guarding important facility, or just spearheading the entire attack. The heroes also live in a world where people are losing faith and some members of the government are becoming discontent, their actions either in combat or outside of it can be shown back to their people showing whether or not things are going as they should. This is a sad world that hangs in the balance, everything rests on the shoulders of these brave men and women but the question truly is: can they play Atlas?
Campaign Traits
The Cylon War is most likely a series of military adventures that can take on many forms. The idea that every victory is crucial is probably something to play up, as well are the tensities of being in a constant circle of conflict. Though these people do have hope of reinforcement, the reinforcement is eventual meanwhile battle is one of the few constants that can be counted upon and it seems like the heroes are the ones always seeming to get into harms way. Furthermore the question of how to handle civilians, and how every action reflects on the military and government to the people is frequent if not omnipresent. Reporters are finally getting their chance to see the military up close and when the tensions are high, folks at home now finally get to see the true face of war not only what makes it to the history books.
This war takes place right in the backyards of the Colonials, people are fighting to defend their homeland or have no other choice but to watch their homelands be destroyed. Where some areas are completely untouched others are barren wastelands. Beyond this, the lone void of space is the chosen battleground of both the Colonies and the Cylons. In space no one can hear you scream, and the eerie silence on a recon or patrol mission can quickly turn into intense chatter as raiders move in on a position.
Power Groups
The major struggle rests between the Colonial Military, a large, powerful group with a plethora of resources, and the Cylons, a vile and evil assortment of artificial beings claiming sentience. Yet, deep within the Colonies of Kobol rest multiple power groups struggling for their voice to be heard in the rabble that is a country at war. The Qurom has been disregarded as the President and Military fight hard to keep everyone safe, they have gone from being a major political body to a mere shadow. Former stockholders and members of the company that produced the Cylons are still reeling from the revolt and still cannot comprehend how their perfect creations have suddenly gone rogue could always try to put their remaining resources to work in any number of capacities. Finally, groups within the military who differ on procedure and the like could be seen as seperate power groups.
Allies and Opponents
Obviously, the chief opponent of a Cylon War campaign are the Cylons themselves and allies are any patriotic colonist. Though going beyond this obvious enemy, there are obviously those within the colonies that can pose a threat to the party. Political power players, seeking power and wishing to use the war to further the goals. Corporations wishing to set up monopolies or take advantage of vulnerable military units. Even, an over-zealous commander or one who is just an empty suit poses a threat to the Colonies in either bold and unneeded moves or lack of decisions.
All of these can combine to create unique and memorable allies and opponents.
Great Work Jongluer!
Thanks so much for this!
I am very close to finishing the star system generation rules and when I do, I will post them here. It looks like we are right on track for finishing at the end of January.
I could post the rules if you want
, so I don't think posting the rules would be a good idea, and I certainly wouldn't feel comfortable including them in the PDF. However, I will add it to the list of reccomended reading for running a BSGd20 campaign.Thanks for the suggestion!
Is this thread still going? I'm new to the forum and just discovered this - I have wanted to run a BSG campaign ever since the mini-series in 2003, and this is an excellent attempt at knocking some rules into shape.
There has been mention of a PDF/Word document and a map of the Cyrannus trinary star system - are either of these available?
Yes, believe it or not, this thread is still active.
I am working on the word doc continuously, and I plan to have it finished and converted into a PDF by the end of January. The map of the Cyrannus star system will be in the PDF. I only have a rough drawing right now, and even though I now have a scanner, I don't know how to post pictures here on the boards.But anyway, things are on track for our (self imposed) deadline.
If there's anything I can do to help, let me know. I write/administer the website http://www.cthulhurising.co.uk which is pseudo-hard sci-fi, and is published by Chaosium. Any info on there that is of help feel free to use.
Otherwise, I will await news of the PDF release and look forward to reading it.
I already copied your write up for the cylon war into the word doc.
Thanks again! I can't tell you enough how much I appreciate everyone's help.
Which reminds me. I have the screen names of everyone who has written anything or contributed in any way, but if you want your real name listed in the credits, please post it here or PM me so that I can add it.
Starship Officer
The Starship Officer is a person who commands true respect amongst people. They have worked hard in the military and have doen enough to get to where they are today. A Starship Officer has gone to hell and back and is more than capable of leading a group of Soldiers there as well. He has connections within the military, faith in his men, and his men's respect. An Officer knows every facet of their ship, and all of its capabilities. The Starship Officer can command everything from a cruise liner to a Battlestar, they have the skills to take any crew and turn them into a full-fledged fighting group.
A Starship Officer is the class for those who wish to help coordinate party assaults and be able to use winning tactics on the battlefield.
Viper Pilot
Fast, Fearless, and Capable are words to describe Viper Pilots. These people have trained to push their small star fighters to the brink, making neck snapping turns, vomit inducing barrel rolls, all whilst firing off blasts from their weapons. The Viper Pilot has an aura of self-confidence unmatched by any other person within the military, they wear their wings proudly and have the bold streaks to use them. A Pilot is always ready to hop into the cockpit and fly by the seat of their pants, juking and dodging enemy fire and coming back with equal ferocity.
The Viper Pilot is the class for those who wish to excell in a starfighter and fight along the frontline against the Cylons.
Politician
Politicians are called many things, slimy, vile, good, or just, they all come in many forms and they can serve in many different positions, but one thing always remains the same. A Politician is always given respect and able to get into places others normally could not. The Politician is a person who is smooth and subtle, moving others to do as they wish with just a few well placed words. They are capable leaders, and can lead for good, or for their own personal reasons.
Politicians are for characters who want to be able to use clout to into places, and use their words as oppossed to their fists.
Colonial Marine
The solid and stalwart defenders of the 12 Colonies, Marines are strong people who train with a variety of weapons to better fight on the grounds and literal battlefields of the Colonies. Marines are taught to work together to help bring down an enemy, each focusing on specific weapons with which to help demolish their enemies. They learn proper fighting tactics, and how to properly coordinate assaults so as to completely obliterate an enemy.
The Colonial Marine is the type of character who only lives to fight in the truest of senses, toe to toe with your enemy, looking them right in the eye as you pull the trigger.
Survivor
Coming out of the wreckage of Cylon Assualts, these tough individuals can live in the hardest of environments. A Survivor knows how to handle the wreckage of a post-apocalyptic world, everything from scrounging for equipment to the day to day fighting against the Cylons. The Survivor is the person you follow as you go through the ruins of Caprica City and the bombed out mountains of Tauron. The Survivor has fully adapted to all sorts of environments, and can use those environments and the random objects that might lie within them to stay alive, even when the circumstances are grim.
A Survivor is a character who has gone through the worst of it and is still willing to fight, will keep on pushing on no matter what the circumstance.
Theologian
From the pulpit to the battlefield, a Theologian is always there to set forth their ideals and bring people under their wing. A Theologian is a master of obscure knowledge, both spiritual and not. The Theologian knows people, can see through the lies, and knows how to give them a convincing story, he knows people so well that a Theologian can even captivate entire crowds with their words. Most important, is the respect which a Theologian carries with them wherever they go.
A Theologian is for those who want to bend others to their will, and able to get all sorts of information from the world around them.
Thanks Jongluer! :D
I'm putting the finishing touches on the star system generator today... I might even have it done by tonight... I hope!
I can think of three of the top of my head:
Ancient Kobol, The language that the original scrolls of Pythia are written in, and that all of the colonists spoke at the time of the exodus.
Ancient Gemenese, a close relative of Ancient Kobol the developed during the age of Darkness. By the Age of Light, it had fallen out of common use, but many of its words and alphanumeric symbols have been retained in the scientific community. Terra is the word for Earth in Ancinet Gemenese.
Old Caprican, a much different language than either Ancient Kobol or Ancient Gemenese, it developed from Caprican Naval parlance during the Age of Light, and gained widespread use throughout the colonies during the Age of Expansion. Many obsolete terms realting to timekeeping such as Centon, Secton, Micron etc, not to mention such obscenities as "Frak" and "Felgercarb" are part of this language.
I seem to have overlooked the most obvious language:
Modern Colonial, a Language which grew out of Old Caprican during the Age of Peace, incorporating words and phrases from several other sources. It was Adopted as the official Language of the 12 Colonies as part of the Articles of Colonization.
I am also thinking that Each of the 12 colonies developed their own languages during the Age of Expansion, so there would also be Modern Caprican, Gemenese, Arien, Picean, Tauran, Aquarian, Scorpese, Cancerian, Libran, Leonese, Sagittaran, and Virgonese. These wer probably the primary languages during the Age of War.
That's a total of 16 Colonial Languages... any thoughts?
I am also thinking that Each of the 12 colonies developed their own languages during the Age of Expansion, so there would also be Modern Caprican, Gemenese, Arien, Picean, Tauran, Aquarian, Scorpese, Cancerian, Libran, Leonese, Sagittaran, and Virgonese. These wer probably the primary languages during the Age of War.
That's a total of 16 Colonial Languages... any thoughts?
Perhaps the languages developed by each colony are similar to each other, rather than entirely different languages. In the same vein as the "english" spoken by Americans, Irish, Austalians, Brittons, etc. are. More of an accent with some differences in the usage of words, and slang.
Just a thought . . .
Re: Gammoray. That sounds good Waylan. I had envisioned it as a last stand and maybe the first victory of Colonial forces over the Cylons.
I'm already starting to write down stuff for the Peggie, when I get numbers or orthos for it, I'll finish it up. Also, there were mistakes in the previous ship stats, I kinda forgot to add the ship size modifier into the attacks. :embarrass I'll fix them now. I also added some to the text of the Cylon infiltrator to add in the Res ship. Finally, the Cylon jump drive in the following is just a regular jump drive but is intended to has a much longer range, something Cylons have shown repeatedly.
Sean "Talos" Little
EDIT: Ships fixed
No fluff yet
Cylon Raider Type II (PL 6)
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Fighter
Size: Huge (–2 size)
Length: 29.34 feet
Weight: 25,000 lb.
Crew: 1 (ace +12)*
Passenger Capacity: 0
Cargo Capacity: N/A
Tactical Speed: 3,500 ft. (7 sq.)
Defense: 21
Flat-footed Defense: 15
Autopilot Defense: 8
Hardness: 30
Hit Dice: 7d20 (140 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +8
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +7
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +6
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +8/+3
Targeting System Bonus: +1
Grapple Modifier: +8
Base Purchase DC: N/A
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 2 fire-linked kinetic energy weapons +9/+4 ranged (12d12/20); or
2 fire-linked kinetic energy weapons +9 ranged (12d12/20) and
1 missile launcher +4 ranged (6d12/19-20 or 16d8/19-20); or
2 fire-linked kinetic energy weapons +9 ranged (12d12/20) and
2 fire-linked light kinetic energy weapons +4 ranged (9d8/20); or
2 fire-linked light kinetic energy weapons +9/+4 ranged (9d8/20); or
2 missile launchers +9/+4 ranged (6d12/19-20 or 16d8/19-20)
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: Cylon jump drive, thrusters
Armor: Vanadium
Defense Systems: Sensor jammer
Sensors: Class III sensor array, targeting system
Communications: Laser transceiver, radio transceiver
Weapons: 2 fire-linked kinetic energy weapons (range incr. 4,000 ft.), 2 fire-linked light kinetic energy weapons (range incr. 3,000 ft.), 2 missile launchers (20 CHE or Nuclear missiles)
Grappling Systems: None
*The Cylon Raider is a sentient organism that has no crew. It's brain is equivilent to a pilot with a rating of "Ace."
EDIT: Added fluff.
Colonial Blackbird stealth reconnaissance ship "Laura" (PL 6)
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Fighter
Size: Gargantuan (–4 size)
Length: 32 feet
Weight: 32,000 lb.
Crew: 1 (ace +12)
Passenger Capacity: 0
Cargo Capacity: 100 lb.
Tactical Speed: 4,000 ft. (8 sq.)
Defense: 19
Flat-footed Defense: 13
Autopilot Defense: 10
Hardness: 10
Hit Dice: 8d20 (160 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +8
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +7
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +6
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +8/+3
Targeting System Bonus: N/A
Grapple Modifier: +8
Base Purchase DC:
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 1 Missile Launcher +4/-1 ranged (6d12/19-20);
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: Thrusters, jump drive
Armor: Carbon Composite (Hardness 10, operates as permanent stealth screen)
Defense Systems: Improved autopilot system,
Sensors: Class III sensor array
Communications: Radio transceiver
Weapons: 1 missiles launcher (2 CHE missiles)
Grappling Systems: None
After the Cylon attack, the battlestar Galactica was left with a limited amount of Viper fighters. Galactica's deck chief, CPO Galen Tyrol, decides to build a new ship to supplement Galactica's complement. Tyrol, who is undergoing personal problems, designs and begins to produce a spaceframe. Other crew members begin to work on the project, contributing their skills to specific systems. The Blackbird is powered by obsolete DDG-62 engines and features the avionics suite of a Viper Mk II. There was not enough metal available to plate the exterior but Lieutenant Karl "Helo" Agathon had the idea of using alternate materials. The Blackbird was plated with Carbon composites which render it invisable to DRADIS although it's engine signatures are visible at high outputs. Following a successful test flight, the Blackbird is officially commissioned and is christened "Laura" in honor of the dying president of the Colonies, Laura Roslin. THe Blackbird is a reconnaisance ship, usually unarmed and intended to approach its targets undetected and take high-quality close-up pictures. Following the arrival of the battlestar Pegasus, the Blackbird is taken by Lieutenant Kara "Starbuck" Thrace on an unautherized reconaissance mission to scout a nearby Cylon fleet, especially the large unknown ship later known as the "Resurrection Ship."
Oh well, at least the admiral is out of the way
Can't wait for the PDF, good work on class and such. Keep it up.
Colonial Viper Mk I space superiority fighter/Colonial Viper Mk IV space supiority fighter (PL 6)
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Fighter
Size: Gargantuan (–4 size)
Length: 25 feet
Weight: 38,000 lb.
Crew: 1 (ace +12)
Passenger Capacity: 0
Cargo Capacity: 1,700 lb.
Tactical Speed: 3,000 ft. (6 sq.)/3,500 ft. (7 sq.)
Defense: 19
Flat-footed Defense: 13
Autopilot Defense: 8
Hardness: 20
Hit Dice: 6d20 (120 hp)/7d20 (140 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +6
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +7
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +6
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +8/+3
Targeting System Bonus:+2 (Mk IV only)
Grapple Modifier: +8
Base Purchase DC: 38
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 2 fire-linked kinetic energy weapons +4 ranged (9d12) and
CHE Missile -1 ranged (6d12/19-20); or
2 fire-lined kinetic energy weapons +4/-1 ranged (9d12)
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: Fusion torch engine, thrusters
Armor: Alloy Plating
Defense Systems: Autopilot
Sensors: Class I sensor array/Class II sensor array, Targeting System (Mk IV only)
Communications: Radio transceiver
Weapons: 2 fire-linked kinetic energy weapons (range incr. 3,000 ft.),
1 missile launcher (4 CHE Missles)
Grappling Systems: None
The Viper Mk I was the first in a new line of Colonial space supiority fighters. Originally the product of Caprican designers, the first Vipers entered service with fighter squadrons a decade before the Cylon War, replaciung the obsolete Scorpion-class fighter family. After Colonial Unification, the Viper Mk I, nicknamed the Starhound, became the standard fighter of the Colonial military. During the Cylon War, many Vipers Mk Is served in all theaters of the war. It proved itself to be superior to it's primary adversary, the slower and less manueverable Cylon Raider. Later in the war, the Viper Mk II replaced the Mk I as the primary fighter of the Colonial military. With the introduction of the Mk II, the Mk I was reglected to second line duties, outfitting reserve squadrons and performing home defense and convoy protection duties. The Mk I remained in use after the war. With the drawdown of the Colonial Fleet and a tightening military budget, many surplus Mk Is with low flight hours were fitted with new engines and avionics and a modified space frame. These refits were renamed Viper Mk IVs and sent to lower priority squadrons to replaced war-weary Mk Is. By the time of the second Cylon attack, most Mk Is and IVs were already decommissioned. However, a few stil soldiered on in militia and reserve squadrons. One Viper Mk I was placed in the museum on the famous battlestar Galactica. When Galactica's deck crew salvaged the Vipers in the museum to place on flight duty, they did not use the Mk I.
For Viper Mk Is serving in second-line squadrons later in the war, lower the crew rating to Trained (+4).
Colonial Viper Mk II space superiority fighter (PL 6)
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Fighter
Size: Gargantuan (–4 size)
Length: 25 feet
Weight: 39,000 lb.
Crew: 1 (ace +12)
Passenger Capacity: 0
Cargo Capacity: 1,700 lb.
Tactical Speed: 3,500 ft. (7 sq.)
Defense: 19
Flat-footed Defense: 13
Autopilot Defense: 8
Hardness: 20
Hit Dice: 8d20 (160 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +6
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +7
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +6
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +8/+3
Targeting System Bonus: +2 (post-war refit only)
Grapple Modifier: +8
Base Purchase DC: 46
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 2 fire-linked kinetic energy weapons +6 ranged (9d12) and
CHE Missile +1 ranged (6d12/19-20); or
2 fire-lined kinetic energy weapons +6/+1 ranged (9d12)
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: Fusion torch engine, thrusters
Armor: Polymeric
Defense Systems: Autopilot, targeting system (post-war refit only)
Sensors: Class II sensor array
Communications: radio transceiver
Weapons: 2 fire-linked kinetic energy weapons (range incr. 3,000 ft.)
1 missile launcher (6 CHE Missles)
Grappling Systems: None
During the Cylon War, a need arose for a new space superiority fighter to suplement the Viper Mk I. The new fighter was designated the Viper Mk II. The Mk II was faster, had better sensors and avionics, and carried an expanded missile bay which was also capable of carrying ungided bombs. The new Viper proved itself on the frontlines, decimating the Cylon fighter forces. By the end of the war, the Mk II was standard equipment for all squadrons serving on battlestars and other large capital ships. In the post-war era, the Viper continued on for many years as the standard colonial fighter. They received an avionics upgrade after the war. It wasn't until around a decade before the second Cylon attack that the new Viper Mk VII was built in sufficient numbers to replace the Mk II in most fleet squadrons (The Viper Mk V and VI were never built in great numbers as they failed to show a significant improvement over the aging Mk IIs). Many Mk IIs were sent to the scrap yards but a few were sent to museums and test centers to be used as target drones along with Viper Mk Is. Some were sent to Colonial Militia squadrons to replace some of the Viper Mk IVs they had been using for at least 30 years. Several dozen Viper Mk IIs were sent to the battlestar Galactica to be placed in the museum of the cylon war located in Galactica's starboard flight pod. One Mk II, 7242NC, flow by Lieutenant William "Husker" Adama during the Cylon War, was rebuilt by Galactica's deck crew and participated in a flyby demonstration. The Viper, piloted by Adama's son, Captain Lee "Apollo" Adama, was escorting Colonial Heavy 798 which was carrying press and the Secretary of Education back to Caprica. The Viper was damaged at the Battle of the Ragnar Anchorage but was repaired and is still flown by Captain Adama on occaison (Captain Adama also flies his Viper Mk VII). The other Mk IIs in the museum were returned to service and served to repel the first Cylon attack on Galactica which resulted in the damaging of Galactica with a Cylon nuclear missile. The Mk IIs proved to be immune to the Cylon computer virus and formed the nucleus of the Galactica's fighter force in the post-attack period.
For Viper Mk IIs during the Cylon War, reduce the attack bonus to +4/-1.
Colonial Viper Mk VII space superiority fighter (PL 6)
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Fighter
Size: Gargantuan (–4 size)
Length: 32.5 feet
Weight: 37,000 lb.
Crew: 1 (ace +12)
Passenger Capacity: 0
Cargo Capacity: 1,700 lb.
Tactical Speed: 3,500 ft. (7 sq.)
Defense: 19
Flat-footed Defense: 13
Autopilot Defense: 10
Hardness: 20
Hit Dice: 9d20 (180 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +8
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +7
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +6
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +8/+3
Targeting System Bonus:+2
Grapple Modifier: +8
Base Purchase DC: 46
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 3 fire-linked upgraded kinetic energy weapons +6 ranged (12d12/20) and
CHE Missile +1 ranged (6d12/19-20); or
3 fire-linked upgraded kinetic energy weapons +6/+1 ranged (12d12/20)
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: Fusion torch engine, thrusters
Armor: Polymeric
Defense Systems: Improved autopilot system,
Sensors: Class III sensor array, targeting system
Communications: Radio transceiver
Weapons: 3 fire-linked upgraded kinetic energy weapons (range incr. 4,000 ft.)
1 Missile Launcher (8 CHE Missiles)
Grappling Systems: None
Several decades after the Cylon War, the Colonial military realized the need for a new fighter to replace the war-vintage Mk Is, IIs, IIIs, and IVs. The new craft, the Viper Mk V, failed to show any significant improvement over the Mk II and the design never made it past the drawing board and computer simulations. Instead, the Mk IIs were refitted with new avionics. Several years later, the same problem resurfaced and the radically different Viper Mk VI was designed. The Mk VI made it into preproduction with 8 prototypes built. Unfortunantely the Mk VI showed severe stability problems which culminated in the lose of two prototypes in a mid-air collision near the Corinth Air Base on Aerelon resulting in the deaths of both pilots. The Mk VI was cancelled after it was detirmined that it would not be cost effective to redesign the ship. it was another five years before another attempt to design a new fighter was made. After the Mk VI fiasco, the designers went back to the standard Viper configuration of three engines in a pyramid pattern and three wings. The sleek new design was labled the Mk VII and showed great promise from the beginning. It was faster and more manuverable than its predecessors and featured a heavier armament with the addition of a third cannon mounted on the base of the dorsal fin. The Mk VII entered production and became the standard fighter in the Colonial military. The Mk VII was first introduced into front-line service when the Air Wing of the battlestar Mercury, the first of the new Mercury-class battlestars, was equipped exclusivly with the Mk VII and the new Raptor-class ships. The Mk II continued for a few more years in the Air Wings of the older battlestars like the Galactica until the battlestars received new Mk VIIs. After several years of frontline service, a new Command Navigation Program (CNP) by developed by Dr. Gaius Baltar. The CNP was distributed by all ships in the fleet. Unbeknownst to anyone, the CNP contained a Cylon virus that disabled virtually all of the Colonial defenses when the Cylons attacked. The last squadron of Viper Mk VIIs stationed on the battlestar Galactica were en-route to Caprica to be reassigned when the Cylons attacked. The Vipers were shut down and massacared by a pair of Cylon Raiders. Captain Lee "Apollo" Adama flew a Mk VII (2276NC) to the Galactica for its decommisioning ceremony. He flew a Mk II during the ceremony and escaped the computer virus, although his ship was damaged evading a Cylon missile. Adama continued to use the Mk VII, which was purged of the CNP, along with several other Mk VIIs that travelled with the fleet to the rendevous of the Ragnar Anchorage and several that were down for repairs on Galactica. Several dozen Mk VIIs, the Air Wing of the Mercury-class battlestar Pegasus, also escaped the Cylon attack.
Colonial Raptor-class electronic-warfare/transport ship (PL 6)
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Transport
Size: Gargantuan (–4 size)
Length: 28.5 feet
Weight: 100,000 lb.
Crew: 2 (trained +4)
Passenger Capacity: 10
Cargo Capacity: 9,500 lb.
Tactical Speed: 2,500 ft. (5 sq.)
Defense: 11
Flat-footed Defense: 9
Autopilot Defense: 8
Hardness: 20
Hit Dice: 10d20 (200 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +2
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +3
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +2
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +2
Targeting System Bonus: +2
Grapple Modifier: +12
Base Purchase DC: 48
Restriction: Licensed (+1)
Attack: 1 CHE missile launcher with 4 missiles -2 ranged (6d12/19-20);
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: Jump engine, thrusters
Armor: Polymeric
Defense Systems: Autopilot system, 1 decoy drone launcher (4 decoy drones), sensor jammer
Sensors: Class III sensor array
Communications: Laser transceiver, radio transceiver
Weapons: 1 CHE missile launcher with 4 missiles
Grappling Systems: none
During the Cylon War, Colonial Fleet ships carried a wide variety of craft for different roles. Crowding the decks of battlestars and other vessels were space fighters, shuttles for cargo duties, passenger shuttles, strike craft, and Marine assault shuttles. This multitude of craft proved to be a serious liability. Ship commanders were forced to make trade-offs in what they carried. For instance, a destroyer captain, whose ship is only capable of carrying a few shuttles anyway, could either board assault shuttles for boarding actions and ground assaults, or regular shuttles for cargo hauling and Search-and-rescue operations, but not both. Mindful of this, twenty years after the war, the Colonial fleet designed a new craft, based off a new Marine assault shuttle design, to fullfill this requirment. This new ship, named the Raptor, was built to be capable of many missions. The new ship was capable of carrying a eight man Marine squad with all of their gear or ten passengers. It was equipped with an extensive ECM and sensor suite enabling the Raptor to carryout Airborne Warning and Control (AWACS), jamming, escort, Search and Rescue (SAR), and scouting missions. Though normally unarmed, the Raptor can carry several missiles on racks beneath it's wings, allowing Supression of Enemy Air Defenses (SEAD) missions. Normally, however, it carries decoy and communication drones instead. The Raptor proved an instant success and soon was carried in the hanger bays of most Colonial craft. Normally, on battlestars, one Raptor is assigned to each Viper squadron for support purposes and several additional ones are also carried. After the Cylon attack, the Raptors assigned to the elderly battlestar Galactica, have proven themselves as some of the most useful resources available.
Colonial Battlestar (PL 6)
Type: Superheavy
Subtype: battlestar
Size: Colossal (–8 size)
Length: 4,640 feet
Weight: 500,000 tons
Crew: 3,000 (expert +8)
Passenger Capacity: 2,000
Cargo Capacity: 38,250 tons
Tactical Speed: 3,000 ft. (6 sq.)
Defense: 11
Flat-footed Defense: 7
Autopilot Defense: 7
Hardness: 40
Hit Dice: 1,200d20 (24,000 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +6
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +5
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +4
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +4
Targeting System Bonus:+3
Grapple Modifier: +16
Base Purchase DC: 72
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 6 fire-linked batteries of 4 Heavy Cannon Turrets -1 ranged (32d8) and
1 Nuclear Missile Launcher with 20 Nuclear Missiles -6 ranged (60d10) or
6 fire-linked batteries of 4 Heavy Cannon Turrets -1/-6 ranged (32d8).
Attack of Opportunity: Point-defense system +3 ranged (5d12
http://img29.imageshack.us/img29/1372/set11yz.jpg
Viper Mk. II
Type II Raider
Blackbird
The set is shaping up so far to be:
1 battlestar "Galactica"
1 Cylon Basestar
12 Raptors
40 Cylon Raider Type II
20 Viper Mk I
6 Viper T.Mk I
40 Viper Mk II
1 Colonial One
4 Blackbirds
and a couple other ships.
What program did you use to create this images? Do you think you could make an entire counter sheet with all of the minis on one or two pages?
I finished the mehcanical rules for star system generation, now I just have to update the definitions and such... I should be able to take care of that on Sunday. I also spent yesterday searching the web for images to use in the PDF and formatting the word document. It's approximately 100 pages right now... (Arial 10pt font) I still need to make a nice map of the Cyrannus star system, finish the star system generation definitions, and write the Quest for Earth Campaign model. All in all I think we are on track for a January 31 release.
NPCs
Roslin
Tigh
Baltar-finishing my version which I haven't touched in about 3 months!
Six
Cylon Centurion
All in all I think we are on track for a January 31 release.
SWEET!
PS: How are we going to make the baby's blood work
I mean healing cancer, she would be turned into a blood farm reminiscient of the one in Blade: Trinity
PS: How are we going to make the baby's blood work
I mean healing cancer, she would be turned into a blood farm reminiscient of the one in Blade: Trinity
That was the first thing I thought of as well. Depending upon the BSG's [A] level of bio-tech and [b] ethical stand on the issue; I can see them bringing the baby to term and then harvesting the cord blood stem cells and cranking out some healing magical serum. If you are down to under 50k humans left, every one is a big deal.
I have some more stuff to add but I need to finish up some stuff, it was my birthday yesterrday and I didn't finish anything except a playtest.
I actually missed the last episode, and forgot to tape it, so I don't know what you are talking about with the baby's blood and all that... but once I see it, I'll know if its something I can add to chapter 2 pretty quickly or if I'll have to wait for the next update to the PDF... If the show stays on the air for a long time, I'll probably be updating it alot.
And I don't think it's a feat anyway...
And not to toot my own horn (sorry 'bout that), but my "Colonial Human" Race has a bonus that adds up with that Feature. I'm a little bad with race write-ups, so I'll have to ask if that was a good idea.
I honestly forgot about your colonial human write up. I am not going to use in the campaign setting, but for anyone that thinks that all colonials should get it, I definitely think they should use your colonial human race.
Colonel Saul Tigh: middle-aged male Strong Hero 2/Dedicated Hero 5/Viper Pilot 4/Starship Officer 5;
CR 16; medium human; HD 2d8+6 plus 5d6+15 plus 5d8+15 plus 4d10+12; hp 127; Mas 16;
Init +3 (+3 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 23, touch 23, flat-footed 20; BAB
+12; Grp +14; Atk +16/+11/+6 melee (1d8+2 plus 1d4, unarmed) or +15/+10/+5 ranged (2d6,
Sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 12; Rep +10; SV Fort +10, Ref +9, Will +11; Str 14, Dex 16, Con 16,
Int 16, Wis 15, Cha 12.
Starting Occupation: Military (Pilot and Knowledge (Tactics) are class skills).
Skills and Feats: *Bluff +16, Diplomacy +6, Gamble +11, *Intimidate +22, Investigate +7, Knowledge (Colonial Military) +18, *Knowledge (Tactics) +26, Listen +7, Navigate +8, Pilot +10, Repair +8, Sense Motive +12, Spot +12, Survival +7, Treat Injury +7, Tumble +7;
Advanced Firearms Proficiency, Armor Proficiency (Light), Brawl, Confident, Improved Brawl, Iron Will, Personal Weapons Proficiency, Renown, Starship Battle Run, Starship Dodge, Starship Gunnery, Starship Mobility, Starship Operation, Simple Weapons Proficiency, Streetfighting.
Special Abilities: August Leadership, Aware, Cool Under Pressure*, Extreme Effort, Leadership, Skill Emphasis (Knowledge (Tactics)), Starship Feint, Tactical Expertise, Uncanny Survival, Viper Familiarity +1.
Possessions: Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), various personal belongings.
I like the idea of them using the umbilical and amiotic fluid stem cells, but i am much more worried about her becoming just a blood farm similar to those poor souls in Blade: Trinity. It makes me shudder to think about it.
Why? Its just a toaster. ;)
Why? Its just a toaster. ;)
Half toaster. ;)
I'll get this added tonight. Everything appears to be on track. I spent some time reasearching the Cylon Religion, but all I could find is barely enough for three paragraphs.
CYLON RELIGION
During their 40 year exile from colonial space, the Cylons developed their own religion. Very little is known about the Cylon religion. It is monothiestic, centered around a (presumably) all powerful and all knowing deity simply known as "God". The Cylons believe that God has a plan for them and for the surviving colonists as well. They believe that they are a chosen people, destined to replace humanity.
In the Cylon religion, God's greatest commandment is "Be fruitful and multiply". Unfortunately for the Cylons, they have been unsuccessful in attempting to fulfill this commandment. It is belived that the first step of the mysterious cylon plan is to create a human/cylon cross breed. Human women that survived the intial destruction of the colonies are being abducted and used in Cylon breeding experiments, but none of these experiments has been successful. Some Cylons believe that these faliures are due to a lack of Love.
The Cylons have arranged for a copy of the Sharon Valerii infiltration model to fall in love with Karl C. "Helo" Agathon. The Cylons hope that Sharon's baby, conceived in love, will survive to be born. But what their plans for that child are, remain to be seen. Whatever they are, Dr. Giaus Baltar has been chosen by the Cylons to help bring them about.
STAR SYSTEM GENERATION
Definitions: Below are the definitions of the various terms used in the star system generation rules.
STAR TYPE
Stars are classified using a lettering system that describes the star and gives information about its type. Known as the spectral class of a star, a designation of O, B, A, F, G, K, or M is given to the star based on its mass and energy output. Class O stars are the hottest, largest, and brightest stars and class M stars as the smallest and coldest, with a gradual scale between them. Since a star’s mass determines how hot it burns (as well as how strong its gravity pull is), the star’s classification actually helps extrapolate the kinds of planets that might be in that star’s system. Since larger stars burn hotter and smaller stars burn cooler, the mass of a star determines the climate of the worlds that orbit it.
In addition to the standard array of star types, several other types of stars (or what were once stars) might be found at the center of a star system. Most of these stars (called “non-main sequence stars”) have characteristics that make certain planetary conditions impossible, and no type of non-main sequence star is likely to support worlds hospitable to human life. Types of non-main sequence stars include black holes, neutron stars, white dwarf stars, black dwarf stars, and red super-giants.
IONIZING RADIATION
Radiation that breaks down atoms within living tissue is common in space. All stars produce and emit harmful levels of ionizing radiation, and a star system is considered an “irradiated area” for the purposes of determining radiation exposure, particularly in the vacuum of space. (Planetary atmospheres and protective environment suits can protect a creature from ionizing radiation.) The degree of radiation exposure depends on the nearest star’s classification, as shown in Table 7.1 below. For systems with two or more stars, increase the degree of radiation by one grade (lightly becomes moderately, moderately becomes highly, and highly becomes severely).
HOSPITABLE STARS
The chief classifications of hospitable stars are B, A, F, G, K and M. These stars produce the right amounts of heat and the right types of radiation to allow human-compatible worlds to exist. Not every world around such a star is hospitable; however, even inhospitable worlds within such systems could be made to support human life with artificial modifications to their ecosystems (a long a painstaking process called “terra-forming”).
INHOSPITABLE STARS
Class O, and other non-main sequence stars are the least likely to support planets capable of hosting human life. T he stars toward the hotter end of the spectrum simply produce too much heat to allow living, breathing organisms to thrive. Class white and black dwarfs, black holes and neutron stars do not give off enough heat to support life at the distance Earth orbits its sun, and these stars are also known to be violently unstable and prone to bursts of stellar activity.
BLACK HOLES
Black holes are stars that have expended their fuel sources and exploded in a massive supernova. Few, if any, planetary bodies survive the initial death of such a star. Once the star has exploded, its gravity is so great that it collapses in on itself and warps light, time, and space around it. Black holes drag all nearby matter into its center, collecting rings of cosmic debris called accretion discs that can be seen at great distances. Some planets and asteroids might survive being pulled into a black hole long enough for some adventuring, but they are incredibly dangerous places to explore.
NEUTRON STARS
A neutron star is a large star that has exhausted its fuel source but hasn’t collapsed in on itself. Instead, the entire star’s remaining matter compresses into a much smaller body, mere kilometers in diameter. Within this tightly packed core, the star’s density crushes the atoms into an object composed entirely of subatomic particles known as neutrons. Planets orbiting a neutron star are typically cold, lifeless, and severely irradiated. Another type of neutron star is the pulsar, which emits severe levels of radiation at great distances.
WHITE DWARF STARS
A white dwarf star is so much smaller than a neutron star that it does not have the mass to collapse in on itself. Instead, white dwarfs are typically small and dense and surrounded by rings of wreckage that were once planetary bodies in its system. White dwarfs emit little light or energy, and the rings surrounding them are usually cold and dark. However, these rings are not bombarded by as high levels of radiation as in a neutron star and could potentially support life, assuming enough heat could be generated.
BLACK DWARF STARS
Black dwarf stars completely burn out after expending their fuel. Truly the most stable of dead stars, black dwarfs simply consume their fuel supply and then cool into a cinder that emits no light or heat. Any planetary systems that existed around a black dwarf will remain intact; however, they usually become barren and frozen once their heat and light source is gone.
RED SUPERGIANTS
Most red supergiants begin their lives as average-sized stars. However, they burn hot and expend their hydrogen fuel supplies quickly. When its hydrogen supply is depleted, a red supergiant begins burning other, heavier elements such as helium, causing the star to expand to enormous size. An expanding red supergiant consumes its innermost planets and then burns so hot and bright that it renders all other planets in its system incapable of supporting life naturally.
ORBITAL BODIES
Stars usually create a massive disk of dust and gas that eventually coalesces into planets, moons, asteroids, gas giants and even other stars. These objects all orbit around the center of the star system, each in its own orbital path. The various types of orbital bodies are listed below.
Asteroids: This is a field or belt of asteroids that occupies an entire orbital path circling a star. Most Asteroids are the size of boulders, although some are the size of pebbles and grains of sand, while others can be miles or dozens of miles across.
Asteroid Ring: This is usually the remnant of a trapped moon or comet that was crushed by the tidal forces of the planet it orbited. Now its remains have formed a ring of debris surrounding the planet.
Trapped Asteroid: A trapped asteroid is an asteroid or comet that has been caught in a planet’s gravitational pull.
Rocky Planetoid: This satellite is too large to be considered an asteroid and not quite large enough to be called a planet. It usually forms at the same time as the planet it orbits although it could also be the result of a catastrophic planetary collision.
Rocky Planet: Rocky planets are solid bodies that are typically found in the inner reaches of a star system or orbiting gas giants. They have a solid surface and usually some sort of atmosphere.
Gas Giant: Gas Giants are enormous balls of collapsed gasses. They usually consist of hydrogen, methane, ammonia and other toxic gasses. These elements liquefy and eventually become metallic at the core of the planet, however they have no solid surface.
Stellar Companion: A stellar companion is a star which orbits the primary star creating a binary, trinary or other multi-star system. Although binary and trinary systems are common, systems with more than three stars are rare.
SIZE CATEGORIES
Planets have size categories just like creatures, starships and weapons. A planet’s size is a measure of its diameter in miles. This information can be useful in determining the exact altitude of the space/atmosphere interface, which is equal to the planet’s diameter divided by 125. So for example a planet with a diameter of 8,000 miles would have a space/atmosphere interface at 64 miles.
A planet’s size also determines its rotational period. Larger planets typically rotate faster than smaller planets, although there are exceptions to every rule. To determine a planet’s rotational period, use the method described in the appropriate definite below.
Fine: A fine planet has a diameter of 1d4 x100 miles and a rotational period of 1d12 months.
Diminutive: A diminutive planet has a diameter of 4d4 x100 miles and a rotational period of 4d8 days.
Tiny: Tiny planets have diameters of 10d4 x100 miles and a rotational period of 2d8 days.
Small: Small planets have diameters of 1d4 x1,000 miles and a rotational period of 1d8 days.
Medium: A planet of medium size has a diameter of 4d4 x1,000 miles and a rotational period of 16d4 hours.
Large: A large planet has a diameter of 10d4 x1,000 miles and a rotational period of 8d4 hours.
Huge: Huge planets have diameters of 1d4 x10,000 miles and a rotational period of 4d4 hours.
Gargantuan: Gargantuan planets have diameters of 4d4 x10,000 miles and a rotational period of 2d4 hours.
Colossal: A planet of Colossal size has a diameter of 10d4 x10,000 miles and a rotational period of 1d4 hours.
GRAVITY
The force that gravity exerts on a person determines how they develop physically as well as their ability to perform certain actions. In addition, gravity affects the amount of damage a character takes from falling. Gravity conditions may vary considerably from one environment to the next. For ease of play these rules present four simplified gravity environments: normal gravity (1.0 g), low gravity (<1.0 g), high gravity (>1.0 g), and zero gravity (0 g). The following sections summarize the game effects for each type of environment.
NORMAL GRAVITY
“Normal gravity” equates to gravity on Earth. Environments with normal gravity impose no special modifiers on a character’s ability scores, attack rolls, or skill checks. Likewise, normal gravity does not modify a creature’s speed, carrying capacity, or the amount of damage it takes from a fall.
LOW-GRAVITY ENVIRONMENTS
In a low-gravity environment, the pull of gravity is significantly less than what we experience living on Earth. Although an object’s mass doesn’t change, it becomes effectively lighter. This means that creatures bounce when they walk. It becomes easier to move and lift heavy objects as well as perform Strength-related tasks. In addition, creatures take less damage from falling.
Speed: A creature’s speed increases by +5 feet in a low-gravity environment. This bonus applies to all of the creature’s modes of movement.
Carrying Capacity: A creature’s normal carrying capacity is doubled in a low-gravity environment. In addition, the creature gains a +10 bonus on any Strength check made to lift or move a heavy unsecured object.
Skill Check Bonuses: Creatures in a low-gravity environment gain a +10 bonus on Strength-based skill checks (including Climb, Jump, and Swim checks).
Attack Roll Penalty: Creatures take a –2 penalty on attack rolls in a low-gravity environment unless they are native to that environment or have the Zero-G Training feat.
Damage from Falling: Creatures do not fall as quickly in a low-gravity environment as they do in a normal- or high-gravity environment. Falling damage is reduced from 1d6 points per 10 feet fallen to 1d4 points per 10 feet fallen.
Long-Term Effects: Long-term exposure to low-gravity conditions can cause serious problems when returning to normal gravity. A creature that spends 120 hours or more in a low-gravity environment takes 1d6 points of temporary Strength damage upon returning to normal gravity.
HIGH-GRAVITY ENVIRONMENTS
In a high-gravity environment, the pull of gravity is significantly greater than that which we experience living on Earth. Although an object’s mass doesn’t change, it becomes effectively heavier. It becomes harder to move and carry heavy objects as well as perform Strength-related tasks. In addition, creatures take more damage from falling. Even the simple task of walking or lifting one’s arms feels more laborious.
Speed: A creature’s speed decreases by –5 feet (to a minimum of 0 feet) in a high-gravity environment. This penalty applies to all of the creature’s modes of movement.
Carrying Capacity: A creature’s normal carrying capacity is halved in a high-gravity environment. In addition, the creature takes a –10 penalty on any Strength check made to lift or move a heavy unsecured object.
Skill Check Bonuses: Creatures in a high-gravity environment take a –10 penalty on Strength-based skill checks (including Climb, Jump, and Swim checks).
Attack Roll Penalty: Creatures take a –2 penalty on attack rolls in a high-gravity environment unless they are native to that environment.
Damage from Falling: Creatures fall more quickly in a high-gravity environment than they do in a normal- or low-gravity environment. Falling damage is increased from 1d6 points per 10 feet fallen to 1d8 points per 10 feet fallen.
Long-Term Effects: Long-term exposure to high-gravity conditions can cause serious problems when returning to normal gravity. A creature that spends 120 hours or more in a heavy-gravity environment takes 1d6 points of temporary Dexterity damage upon returning to normal gravity.
ZERO-GRAVITY ENVIRONMENTS
Creatures in a zero-gravity environment can move enormously heavy objects. As movement in zero gravity requires only the ability to grab onto or push away from larger objects, Climb and Jump checks no longer apply. Most creatures find zero-gravity environments disorienting, taking penalties on their attack rolls and suffering the effects of Space Adaptation Syndrome (space sickness). In addition, creatures in zero gravity are easier to bull rush than in other gravity environments.
Space Adaptation Syndrome: A creature exposed to weightlessness must make a Fortitude save (DC 15) to avoid the effects of space sickness. Those who fail the save are shaken, and those who fail the save by 5 or more are also nauseated. The effects persist for 8 hours. A new save is required every 8 hours the creature remains in a zero-g environment. Creatures with the Zero-G Training feat do not suffer the effects of space sickness.
Speed: While in a zero-gravity environment, a creature gains a fly speed equal to its base land speed, or it retains its natural fly speed (whichever is greater). However, movement is limited to straight lines only; a creature can change course only by pushing away from larger objects (such as bulkheads).
Carrying Capacity: A creature’s normal carrying capacity increases by 10 times in a zero-gravity environment. In addition, the creature gains a +20 bonus on any Strength check made to lift or move a heavy unsecured object.
Attack Roll Penalty: Creatures take a –4 penalty on attack rolls and skill checks while operating in a zero-gravity environment unless they are native to that environment or have the Zero-G Training feat.
Modified Bull Rush Rules: A creature affected by a bull rush is pushed back 10 feet, plus 10 feet for every 5 points by which its opponent’s Strength check result exceeds its own.
Long-Term Effects: Long-term exposure to zero-gravity conditions can cause serious problems when returning to normal gravity. A creature that spends 120 hours or more in a zero-gravity environment takes 2d6 points of temporary Strength damage upon returning to normal gravity.
Weight vs. Mass
While an object in zero gravity loses weight, it does not lose mass or momentum. Thus, while a character could push a 10- ton piece of equipment around in space, albeit slowly, getting it to stop is a bit more difficult. If a character were to come between that piece of equipment and a solid object, that character would be crushed as if he were in full gravity—just more slowly.
For simplicity, assume that a Strength check to lift or move an object in zero gravity gains a +20 circumstance bonus. However, stopping an object already in motion does not receive this same bonus.
ATMOSPHERIC CONDITIONS
As with variants in gravity, a change in atmospheric conditions can cause major problems for characters. Unfortunately, not every planet will have the same atmospheric density or chemical composition as Earth, meaning that worlds otherwise hospitable to human life may not be ideal for humans born and raised on Earth. Various atmospheric conditions (and their effects) are presented below.
BREATHABLE ATMOSPHERE
This type of atmosphere has the ideal mix of gasses for supporting human life, with just the right amount of oxygen, and only traces of more harmful elements such as toxins, acids, or diseases.
CONTAMINATED ATMOSPHERE
Some atmospheres (breathable or not) contain viral diseases that are debilitating or lethal to some or all forms of life. The atmosphere is treated as always containing a type of inhaled disease.
CORROSIVE ATMOSPHERE
Some atmospheres (breathable or not) contain corrosive chemicals and gases. Corrosive atmospheres slowly eat away at foreign equipment and can cause significant equipment failure. The corrosion can be particularly troublesome in atmospheres that demand special survival gear, as any breach in a protective environmental suit renders it useless. Unprotected equipment exposed to a corrosive atmosphere takes 1d4 points of acid damage per hour of exposure. This damage ignores hardness and deals damage directly to the equipment, eating away at it slowly.
Creatures not wearing protective gear in a corrosive atmosphere take 1d4 points of acid damage per round of exposure.
CRUSHING ATMOSPHERE
Planets with a crushing atmosphere exert immense pressure on any creatures or objects within it. Any object in a crushing atmosphere takes 10d6 points of crushing damage per round. Living creatures without a life support system are automatically exhausted, but they may attempt a Fortitude saving throw (DC 25) to reduce the crushing damage by half to 5d6.
STANDARD ATMOSPHERE
Planets with a standard atmosphere have just the right amount of atmospheric pressure. Humans do not require a pressure suit on planets with standard atmospheres. Although other factors such as extreme temperatures, toxins, contaminants, or corrosives might warrant other forms of protective gear.
THIN ATMOSPHERE
Planets with thin atmospheres have less oxygen per breath than the standard Earth atmosphere. Many thin atmospheres are the equivalent of being at a high elevation on Earth, such as on top of a mountain or in the upper atmosphere. A creature exposed to a thin atmosphere must succeed on a Fortitude save (DC 20) every hour. On the first failed save, the creature is fatigued. A fatigued creature that fails a subsequent save becomes exhausted for as long as it remains in the thin atmosphere. After 1 hour of complete, uninterrupted rest in a standard atmosphere, an exhausted creature becomes fatigued. After 8 hours of complete, uninterrupted rest, a fatigued creature is no longer fatigued.
THICK ATMOSPHERE
Thick atmospheres are those that contain a more dense concentration of certain elements, like nitrogen, oxygen, or even carbon dioxide, than the standard Earth atmosphere. These dense atmospheres sometimes contain a different balance of elements, while others simply contain a higher number of gas particles in each breath. The effects of exposure to a thick atmosphere are similar to those of a thin atmosphere (see Thin Atmosphere, above), except the Fortitude save DC is 15 instead of 20
TOXIC ATMOSPHERE
Some atmospheres (breathable or not) contain toxic gases that are debilitating or lethal to some or all forms of life. The atmosphere is treated as always containing a type of inhaled poison.
VACUUM
Despite some popular myths, moving into a vacuum does not cause the body to explosively decompress, nor does it cause instant freezing as heat bleeds away from the body. Rather, the primary hazards of surviving in the vacuum of space are the lack of air and exposure to unfiltered ionizing radiation. On the third round of exposure to vacuum, a creature must succeed on a Constitution check (DC 20) each round or suffer from aeroembolism (“the bends”). A creature that fails the save experiences excruciating pain as small air bubbles form in its bloodstream; such a creature is considered stunned and remains so until returned to standard atmospheric pressure. A creature that fails the Constitution check by 5 or more falls unconscious.
The real danger of vacuum comes from suffocation, though holding one’s breath in vacuum damages the lungs. A character who attempts to hold his breath must make a Constitution check (DC 15) every round; the DC increases by 1 each round, and on a successful check the character takes 1 point of Constitution damage (from the pressure on the linings of his lungs). If the check fails, or when the character simply stops holding his breath, he begins to suffocate. In the next round, he falls unconscious with 0 hit points. The following round, he drops to –1 hit points. On the third round, he drops to –10 hit points and dies.
Unfiltered radiation bombards any character trapped in the vacuum of space without protective gear. A creature exposed to this ionizing radiation suffers from severe sunburn as well as the effects of radiation exposure; the degree of exposure depends on the nearest star’s classification (see Star Systems below for more information).
THERMAL CONDITIONS
Like gravity and atmosphere, temperatures vary widely from one planet to another, even between moons orbiting the same planet. Many variables combine to determine a world’s overall temperature including the world’s atmosphere, the class of the star it orbits, and the distance it orbits from the star. The various definitions related to temperature are listed below.
Mean Temperature: This is the average temperature of the entire planet in degrees Fahrenheit.
Frozen: This world is so cold that it cannot support liquid water at all. Humans cannot survive on this planet without a great deal of help. Any unprotected human on a Frozen planet takes 2d6 points of cold damage per round, with a successful Fortitude save vs. DC 20 reducing this damage by half.
Frigid: This world is very cold. It can only support liquid water when the conditions are just right, for example at the equator or during the world’s brief summer. Unprotected humans on a Frigid world suffer 1d6 points of cold damage per minute, with a fortitude saving throw vs. DC 15 to negate it.
Cold: This world is cold, but not so cold that water won’t flow. Unprotected humans can live here without protective gear assuming the atmospheric conditions are suitable.
Warm: This world is warm and comfortable for humans to live on. Temperatures during the summer or at the equator may get uncomfortable, but not to the point where humans would require protective clothing.
Hot: This world is hot, but not so hot that it can’t support liquid water. Humans have a difficult time living on Hot worlds without help. Unprotected humans suffer 1d6 points of fire damage every minute, with a fortitude saving throw vs. DC 15 to negate it.
Searing: This world is so hot that any water it might have had on the surface has boiled off into space. Humans cannot survive on the surface of a Searing planet with out substantial assistance. Any unprotected human takes 2d6 points of fire damage every round, although a successful fortitude saving throw vs. DC 20 reduces this damage by half.
HYDROGRAPHIC CONDITIONS
A planet’s ratio of surface water to land is sometimes referred to as its Hydrograhic percentage. This can be broken down into three basic categories; Arid, Temperate, and humid.
Arid: An arid world has 29% or less of its surface covered in liquid water. Hot worlds usually have only a few seas or lakes, while cold worlds could be covered in Ice with the only liquid water bubbling up to the surface in the form of hot springs.
Temperate: A temperate world has between 30% and 70% of its surface covered in liquid water. Hot worlds usually have this water concentrated in polar lakes and seas, while cold temperate worlds often have a higher salt content in the water to help keep it liquid at lower temperatures.
Humid: Humid worlds have over 71% of their surface covered in liquid water. Hot worlds are usually humid with boiling seas and steamy land masses. Cold or frigid worlds are covered with salty seas and foggy landmasses.
RESOURCES
Planets contain a wide variety of resources, which can be used to manufacture fuel, ammunition, and other valuable items. These resources fall into one of the eight categories listed below.
Other Gasses: This refers to inert gasses like Flourine and Xenon. They are used in a variety of manufacturing processes. A single ton of Other Gasses is worth 2 TUs.
Tylium: Tylium is a highly combustible element that can be found throughout the galaxy in gaseous, liquid, and metallic forms. When refined into solinite, it becomes very stable and is often used as a fuel source for starships and as an explosive warhead for missiles. A single ton of Tylium is worth 64 TUs.
Metals: This refers to Metals like iron and aluminum as well as precious metals. A single ton of Metals is worth 32 TUs.
Silicates: This refers to crystals and minerals useful in the manufacture of electronic components and circuits. A single ton of silicates is worth 16 TUs.
Organic Nitrogen Chemicals: This refers to chemicals useful in the manufacture of conventional explosives and propellants. A single ton of Organic Nitrogen Chemicals is worth 8 TUs.
Organic Carbon Chemicals: this refers to chemicals useful in the manufacture of high impact plastics. A single ton of Organic Carbon Chemicals is worth 4 TUs.
Plant Life: This refers to all manner of plants from grasses to trees. A single ton of Plant Life is worth 256 TUs.
Animal Life: This refers to all manner of animals from single celled organisms to gigantic complex life forms capable of higher thinking. A single ton of Animal Life is worth 128 TUs.
AVAILABILTY
Resources and water are available to varying degrees. To simplify things, availability has been broken down into four categories; None, Scarce, Common, and Abundant.
None: This resource doesn’t exist at all on this world. The TU value of the resource is doubled here.
Scarce: This resource is hard to find or difficult to obtain on this world. The TU value of the resource is increased by half here.
Common: This resource is not too difficult to find or relatively easy to obtain on this world. The TU value of this resource is unchanged here.
Abundant: This resource is easy to find, and easy to obtain on this world. The TU value of this resource is reduced by half here.
GETTING STARTED
Star system generation begins by creating the local sector of space. Start with step one and follow each step below one at a time. You may have to back track several times to fully flesh out a sector, as you generate each Star, all of their planets and every single one of their moons. This Is a time consuming and complex process, but we’ve tried to make it as quick and easy to understand as we can without sacrificing too much science. Even so, this is something that the GM should prepare before the campaign or between sessions. Only create what you need. If you generate a sector with 5 star systems and only one is a main sequence star, ignore the others and concentrate on the one that is likely to have habitable planets.
Step One: Determine the number of stars systems in your local sector by rolling 1d10. A sector is a cubic region of space 10 squares on a side each square is a one light year cube.
Step Two: Determine each system's location by rolling 1d10 to determine its x coordinate, 1d10 to determine its y coordinate, and 1d10 to determine its z coordinate. If you roll coordinates for a square that is already occupied by a star system, roll again until you get an un-occupied square.
Step Three: Determine the stellar class of each system's primary star by rolling 1d12 on table 7.1 below.
Step Four: Determine the maximum number of orbital bodies for each star system of interest by rolling the appropriate die listed on table 7.1 above.
Step Five: Each star system has 12 orbital paths. Determine if an orbital body exists in an orbital path by rolling 1d20 against the DC listed in table 7.1. Start with the innermost orbital path and keep rolling until you have either reached the maximum number of orbital bodies allowed for this system (as determined by step four), or until you have rolled once for each orbital path.
Step Six: Determine the type of orbital body in each orbital path by rolling 1d12 on table 7.3 below.
Step Seven: Determine the maximum number of moons each orbital body posesses by rolling the appropriate die listed in table 7.3 above. In the case of an asteroid belt, this is the number of individual asteroids that are large enough to have a gravity of 1/8g or more. In the case of a stellar companion, Roll to determine the companion’s stellar classification on table 7.1, ignoring any result below that of the primary star. For example, If the primary star is Class F (a roll of 7), then ignore any result of 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 or 1. Roll until you have a suitable companion star and then determine the maximum number of planets around the star as usual.
Multiple star systems can have strange orbits that can be tricky to model. The region between the primary star and its companion is often unstable. However, the orbital paths beyond the companion star are unaffected unless another companion star is generated. If you have generated a multi-star system, the number of orbital paths available for each star is reduced.
Calculate the distance between the primary star and its companion (in AU) and divide this number by 4, rounding down to the nearest orbital path. If you have a second companion star, calculate the distance between it and the first companion star and follow the same procedure. Orbital paths beyond this are unstable and cannot support planets.
If you had already generated a planet in one of these unstable orbits, they are torn apart by the intense tidal forces of the two stars. Large rocky planets become tiny asteroid fields, medium rocky planets become diminutive asteroid fields, and small rocky planets become fine asteroid fields. Existing asteroid fields and gas giants are unaffected although a gas giant’s moons are crushed into fine asteroid rings.
Example 1: A star system with a companion at 15 AU can only support planets in the orbital paths within 2.5 AU (15 divided by 4 is 3.75 rounded down to the nearest orbital path, equals 2.5 AU).
Example 2: A star system with a companion star at .75 AU cannot support any planets between the two stars however the orbital paths beyond them are unaffected.
Example 3: A star system with a companion star at 7.5 AU and another at 25 AU con only support planets in orbital paths of 1.5 AU or less around the Primary and Secondary star, and only in orbital paths 2.5 AU or less around the Third star.
Step Eight: Determine whether a moon exists by rolling against the DC listed in table 7.3 above. Roll once for each potential moon generated in step seven above.
Step Nine: Determine the type of Satellite by rolling 1d4 on table 7.4 below. Add the planet’s size modifier from table 7.3 above.
Step Ten: Determine the type of atmosphere for each planet or moon in the system by rolling 1d12 on Table 7.5 below and adding the planet’s or moon’s size modifier. Asteroids, Rings and Stellar Companions automatically have no atmosphere, while Gas Giants automatically have crushing, toxic atmospheres.
Step Eleven: Determine the Mean temperature for every planet or moon in the system by adding the Temperature modifier from table 7.5 above to the star’s temperature modifier for the appropriate orbital path listed in table 7.2 above. Then roll 1d6 on table 7.6 below and add the modifier to the result.
Step Twelve: Determine the amount of water present on each planet or moon in the system by rolling 1d10 on table 7.7 below. Asteroids, Gas Giants, Stellar Companions, planets or moons without an atmosphere and planets or moons with a Mean Temperature of +125 degrees or more automatically have no liquid water. However, asteroids and planets or moons with or without an atmosphere might have frozen water if their Mean Temperature is 0 degrees or less.
Step Thirteen: Determine resources by rolling 1d8 on table 7.9 a number of times as indicated in table 7.8 below.
Updated 1/29/06
Chief Petty Officer Galen Tyrol: male Smart Hero 5/Engineer 4;
CR 9; medium human; HD 9d6+18; hp 43; Mas 14;
Init +0 (+0 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 13, touch 13, flat-footed 13; BAB
+5; Grp +7; Atk +7 melee (1d4+2, unarmed) or +5 ranged (2d6, Sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 9; Rep +4; SV Fort +5, Ref +3, Will +4; Str 15, Dex 10, Con 14,
Int 16, Wis 11, Cha 11.
Starting Occupation: Technician (Craft (Mechanical), Craft (Structural) and Repair are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Computer Use +11, Craft (Mechanical) +23, Craft (Structural) +23, Demolitions +14, Disable Device +11, Drive +3, Intimidate +8, Investigate +11, Knowledge (Explosives) +12, Knowledge (Starships) +15, Knowledge (Technology) +15, Navigate +5, Repair +18, Search +10, Spot +10, Survival +10, Treat Injury +10;
Builder, Cautious, Gearhead, Jack of All Trades, Mastercrafter, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Salvage, Simple Weapon Proficiency, Toughness.
Special Abilities: Improve Kit +2, Quick Craft, Reconfigure Weapon, Sabotage, Savant (Repair, Craft (Structural), Craft (Mechanical)), Superior Repair
Possessions: Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), various personal belongings.
Lt. Kara "Starbuck" Thrace: female Fast Hero 4/Viper Pilot 8;
CR 12; medium human; HD 4d8+8 plus 8d10+16; hp 92; Mas 14;
Init +4 (+4 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 25, touch 23, flat-footed 21; BAB
+9; Grp +11; Atk +13/+8 melee (1d8+3, unarmed) or +13/+8 ranged (2d6,
Sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 12; Rep +7; SV Fort +5, Ref +12, Will +6; Str 14, Dex 18, Con 14,
Int 13, Wis 12, Cha 14.
Starting Occupation: Adventurer (Pilot and Intimidate are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Bluff +12, Drive +12, Escape Artist +9, Gamble +15, Intimidate +10, Knowledge (streetwise) +11, Navigate +11, Pilot +20, Repair +15, Sense Motive +6, Sleight of Hand +8, Spot +6;
Action Boost, Brawl, Confident, Improved Brawl, Light Armor Proficiency, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Point Blank Shot, Spacer, Starship Battle Run, Starship Dodge, Starship Gunnery, Starship Mobility, Starship Operation (Ultralight), Simple Weapon Proficiency.
Special Abilities: Evasion, Evasive Action, Starship Feint, Uncanny Dodge 1, Viper Familiarity (+3).
Possessions: Flight Suit and Helmet, Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), Survival Kit, various personal belongings.
Captain Lee "Apollo" Adama: male Fast Hero 4/Viper Pilot 7/Starship Officer 1;
CR 12; medium human; HD 5d8+5 plus 7d10+7; hp 79; Mas 13;
Init +4 (+4 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 26, touch 24, flat-footed 22; BAB
+9; Grp +10; Atk +11/+6 melee (1d6+2, unarmed) or +13/+8 ranged (2d6,
Sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 12; Rep +7; SV Fort +4, Ref +11, Will +9; Str 13, Dex 18, Con 13,
Int 15, Wis 14, Cha 13.
Starting Occupation: Military (Pilot and Knowledge (Tactics) are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Bluff +6, Computer Use +9, Diplomacy +6, Intimidate +6, Knowledge (Tactics) +18, Navigate +12, Pilot
+20, Repair +17, Sense Motive +11, Spot +11, Survival +7, Swim +7;
Armor Proficiency (Light), Athletic, Brawl, Heroic Surge, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Simple Weapon Proficiency, Starship Dodge, Starship Gunnery, Starship Mobility, Starship Operation (Ultralight), Starship Strafe.
Special Abilities: Evasion, Evasive Action, Leadership, Starship Feint, Uncanny Dodge 1, Viper Familiarity (+2).
Possessions: Flight Suit and Helmet, Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), Survival Kit, various personal belongings.
Specialist Jane Cally: female Dedicated Hero 3;
CR 3; medium human; HD 3d6; hp 13; Mas 10;
Init +0 (+0 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 12, touch 12, flat-footed 12; BAB
+2; Grp +2; Atk +2 melee (1d4, unarmed) or +2 ranged (2d6,
Pistol); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 6; Rep +1; SV Fort +2, Ref +1, Will +2; Str 10, Dex 11, Con 10,
Int 14, Wis 10, Cha 12.
Starting Occupation: Technician (Computer Use, Knowledge (technology), and Repair are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Computer Use +3, Craft (Electrical +4), Craft (Mechanical) +8, Knowledge (Technology) +4, Repair +11, Survival +3, Treat Injury +3
Builder, Focused, Gearhead, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Simple Weapon Proficiency.
Special Abilities: Aware, Skill Emphasis.
Possessions: various personal belongings.
Leobon Conoy (Gemenon Traveller copy): male Strong Hero 5/Dedicated Hero 3/Charismatic Hero 4;
CR 12; medium cylon infiltrator; HD 5d8+10 plus 3d6+6 plust 4d6+8; hp 80; Mas 15;
Init +5 (+1 Dex, +4 Improved Init); Spd 30 ft.; Def 17, touch 17, flat-footed 16; BAB
+9; Grp +14; Atk +16 melee (1d8+5, unarmed) or +10 ranged (2d6,
Submachinegun); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 11; Rep +3; Wealth +7; SV Fort +9, Ref +5, Will +9; Str 20, Dex 13, Con 15,
Int 14, Wis 17, Cha 16.
Starting Occupation: Criminal (Disable Device and Knowledge (Streetwise are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Bluff +23, Computer Use +7, Diplomacy +15, Disguise +5, Gamble +11, Intimidate +9, Knowledge (Streetwise) +8, Knowledge (Religion) +10, Listen +9, Pilot +4, Sense Motive +15, Spot +7, Survival +7, Treat Injury +7;
Brawl, Combat Reflexes, Deceptive, Improved Brawl, Improved Initiative, Iron Will, Jack of All Trades, Low Profile, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Point Blank Shot, Simple Weapons Proficiency, Starship Operation, Streetfighting.
Special Abilities: Advanced Extreme Effort, Charm, Extreme Effort, Faith, Fast Talk, Improved Extreme Effort, Skill Emphasis (Bluff).
Possessions: Courier, Submachinegun (Ragnar Anchorage Copy).
Colonel Saul Tigh: middle-aged male Strong Hero 2/Dedicated Hero 5/Viper Pilot 4/Starship Officer 5;
CR 16; medium human; HD 2d8+6 plus 5d6+15 plus 5d8+15 plus 4d10+12; hp 127; Mas 16;
Init +3 (+3 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 23, touch 23, flat-footed 20; BAB
+12; Grp +14; Atk +16/+11/+6 melee (1d8+2 plus 1d4, unarmed) or +15/+10/+5 ranged (2d6,
Sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 12; Rep +10; SV Fort +10, Ref +9, Will +11; Str 14, Dex 16, Con 16,
Int 16, Wis 15, Cha 12.
Starting Occupation: Military (Pilot and Knowledge (Tactics) are class skills).
Skills and Feats: *Bluff +16, Diplomacy +6, Gamble +11, *Intimidate +22, Investigate +7, Knowledge (Colonial Military) +18, *Knowledge (Tactics) +26, Listen +7, Navigate +8, Pilot +10, Repair +8, Sense Motive +12, Spot +12, Survival +7, Treat Injury +7, Tumble +7;
Advanced Firearms Proficiency, Armor Proficiency (Light), Brawl, Confident, Improved Brawl, Iron Will, Personal Weapons Proficiency, Renown, Starship Battle Run, Starship Dodge, Starship Gunnery, Starship Mobility, Starship Operation, Simple Weapons Proficiency, Streetfighting.
Special Abilities: August Leadership, Aware, Cool Under Pressure, Extreme Effort, Leadership, Skill Emphasis (Knowledge (Tactics)), Starship Feint, Tactical Expertise, Uncanny Survival, Viper Familiarity +1.
Possessions: Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), various personal belongings.
Lt. JG. Sharon "Boomer" Valerii (Caprica Copy): female Fast Hero 2/Dedicated Hero 3;
CR 6; medium cylon infiltrator; HD 1d10+2 plus 2d8+4 plus 3d6+6; hp 41; Mas 14;
Init +1 (+1 Dex); Spd 35 ft.; Def 19, touch 17, flat-footed 18; BAB
+3; Grp +5; Atk +5 melee (1d4+2, unarmed) or +4 ranged (2d6,
Sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 8; Rep +4; SV Fort +4, Ref +4, Will +3; Str 14, Dex 12, Con 14,
Int 16, Wis 11, Cha 14.
Starting Occupation: Military (Navigate and Survival are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Computer Use +10, Demolitions +7, Gamble +5, Listen +9, Navigate +7, Pilot +5, Repair +7, Spot +9, Survival +7, Treat Injury +7;
Alertness, Light Armor Proficiency, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Renown, Simple Weapon Proficiency, Starship Dodge, Starship Operation.
Special Abilities: Faith, Increased Speed, Skill Emphasis (Computer Use).
Possessions: Flight Suit and Helmet, Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), Survival Kit, various personal belongings.
Commander William "Husker" Adama: middle-aged male Fast Hero 4/Viper Pilot 4/Starship Officer 10;
CR 18; medium human; HD 4d8+8 plus 4d10+8 plus 10d8+20; hp 133; Mas 15;
Init +4 (+4 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 26, touch 26, flat-footed 22; BAB
+16; Grp +18; Atk +20/+15/+10/+5 melee (1d8+2, unarmed) or +20/+15/+10/+5 ranged (2d6, Sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 12; Rep +10; SV Fort +4, Ref +11, Will +10; Str 14, Dex 18, Con 15,
Int 16, Wis 14, Cha 17.
Starting Occupation: Military (Pilot and Knowledge (Tactics) are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Bluff +13, Diplomacy +20, Gamble +14, Gather Information +10, Intimidate +20, Knowledge (Civics) +13, Knowledge (Colonial Military) +13, Knowledge (Tactics) +18, Navigate +15, Pilot +25, Repair +13, Sense Motive +12, Spot +12, Survival +8, Treat Injury +9.;
Advanced Firearms Proficiency, Brawl, Combat Expertise, Confident, Improved Brawl, Iron Will, Light Armor Proficiency, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Point Blank Shot, Renown, Simple Weapon Proficiency, Spacer, Starship Dodge, Starsip Gunnery, Starship Strafe, Trustworthy.
Special Abilities: Action Trust, August Leadership, Commanding Presence, Evasion, Leadership, Starship Feint, Tactical Expertise, Tactical Mastery, Uncanny Dodge 1, Uncanny Survival, Viper Familiarity +1.
Possessions: Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), engraved lighter, various personal belongings.
Lt. Felix Gaeta: male Dedicated Hero 3/Starship Officer 1;
CR 4; medium human; HD 3d6+1d8; hp 18; Mas 10;
Init +1 (+1 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 14, touch 14, flat-footed 13; BAB
+3; Grp +3; Atk +3 melee (1d4, unarmed) or +4 ranged (2d6,
Pistol); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 6; Rep +1; SV Fort +2, Ref +2, Will +8; Str 11, Dex 12, Con 10,
Int 17, Wis 14, Cha 12.
Starting Occupation: White Collar (Computer Use, Diplomacy, and Knowledge (Technology).
Skills and Feats: Computer Use +13, Diplomacy +9, Gather Information +9, Knowledge (Tactics) +9, Knowledge (Technology)
+11, Knowledge (Ship Systems) +5, Listen +6, Navigate +6, Research +6, Sense Motive +5;
Gearhead, Iron Will, Personal Weapon Proficiency, Simple Weapon Proficiency, Trustworthy.
Special Abilities: Aware, Skill Emphasis.
Possessions: various personal belongings.
Billy Keikeya: male Dedicated Hero 3;
CR 3; medium human; HD 3d6; hp 12; Mas 10;
Init +1 (+1 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 13, touch 13, flat-footed 12; BAB +2; Grp +2; Atk +2 melee (1d4, unarmed) or -1 ranged (2d6, Pistol); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 6; Rep +1; SV Fort +2, Ref +2, Will +5; Str 11, Dex 12, Con 10,
Int 17, Wis 16, Cha 12.
Starting Occupation: Student (Knowledge (Civics), Knowledge (History), and Research are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Bluff +4, Computer Use +6, Diplomacy +6, Gather Information +6, Investigate +8, Knowledge (Civics) +15, Knowledge (Current Events) +11, Knowledge (History) +10, Listen +6, Research +11, Sense Motive +11;
Attentive, Educated (Civics, Current Events), Simple Weapon Proficiency, Studious, Trustworthy.
Special Abilities: Empathy, Skill Emphasis (Knowledge (Civics).
Possessions: various personal belongings.
Lt. JG. Karl C. "Helo" Agathon: male Smart Hero 2/Dedicated Hero 3;
CR 5; medium human; HD 5d6+10; hp 30; Mas 14;
Init +0 (+0 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 15, touch 13, flat-footed 15; BAB
+3; Grp +5; Atk +5 melee (1d4+2, unarmed) or +3 ranged (2d6, Sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 12; Rep +7; SV Fort +4, Ref +1, Will +6; Str 15, Dex 10, Con 14,
Int 16, Wis 14, Cha 11.
Starting Occupation: Military (Navigate and Survival are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Computer Use +16, Demolitions +9, Disable Device +9, Gamble +7, Investigate +8, Knowledge (Caprica) +6, Listen +9, Navigate +11, Repair +8,
Research +5, Search +6, Sense Motive +7, Spot +9, Survival +10, Treat Injury +10;
Brawl, Light Armor Proficiency, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Combat Expertise, Weapon Focus (Col. Sidearm), Simple Weapon Proficiency
Special Abilities: Savant (Computer Use), Skill Emphasis (Computer Use), Aware.
Possessions: Flight Suit and Helmet, Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), Survival Kit, various
personal belongings.
Lt. Kara "Starbuck" Thrace: female Fast Hero 4/Viper Pilot 8;
CR 12;
Starting Occupation: Adventurer (Pilot and Intimidate are class skills).
I would have thought her starting occupation would have been Athlete. Wasn't she a star Pyramid player who was gonna turn pro before an injury prompted her to enter the military?
Other than that little comment... WOW!
Thanks!
Colonial Viper Mk I space superiority fighter/Colonial Viper Mk IV space supiority fighter (PL 6)
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Fighter
Size: Gargantuan (–4 size)
Length: 25 feet
Weight: 38,000 lb.
Crew: 1 (ace +12)
Passenger Capacity: 0
Cargo Capacity: 1,700 lb.
Tactical Speed: 3,000 ft. (6 sq.)/3,500 ft. (7 sq.)
Defense: 19
Flat-footed Defense: 13
Autopilot Defense: 8
Hardness: 20
Hit Dice: 6d20 (120 hp)/7d20 (140 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +6
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +7
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +6
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +8/+3
Targeting System Bonus:+2 (Mk IV only)
Grapple Modifier: +8
Base Purchase DC: 38
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 2 fire-linked kinetic energy weapons +4 ranged (9d12) and
CHE Missile -1 ranged (6d12/19-20); or
2 fire-lined kinetic energy weapons +4/-1 ranged (9d12)
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: Fusion torch engine, thrusters
Armor: Alloy Plating
Defense Systems: Autopilot
Sensors: Class I sensor array/Class II sensor array, Targeting System (Mk IV only)
Communications: Radio transceiver
Weapons: 2 fire-linked kinetic energy weapons (range incr. 3,000 ft.),
1 missile launcher (4 CHE Missles)
Grappling Systems: None
The Viper Mk I was the first in a new line of Colonial space supiority fighters. Originally the product of Caprican designers, the first Vipers entered service with fighter squadrons a decade before the Cylon War, replaciung the obsolete Scorpion-class fighter family. After Colonial Unification, the Viper Mk I, nicknamed the Starhound, became the standard fighter of the Colonial military. During the Cylon War, many Vipers Mk Is served in all theaters of the war. It proved itself to be superior to it's primary adversary, the slower and less manueverable Cylon Raider. Later in the war, the Viper Mk II replaced the Mk I as the primary fighter of the Colonial military. With the introduction of the Mk II, the Mk I was reglected to second line duties, outfitting reserve squadrons and performing home defense and convoy protection duties. The Mk I remained in use after the war. With the drawdown of the Colonial Fleet and a tightening military budget, many surplus Mk Is with low flight hours were fitted with new engines and avionics and a modified space frame. These refits were renamed Viper Mk IVs and sent to lower priority squadrons to replaced war-weary Mk Is. By the time of the second Cylon attack, most Mk Is and IVs were already decommissioned. However, a few stil soldiered on in militia and reserve squadrons. One Viper Mk I was placed in the museum on the famous battlestar Galactica. When Galactica's deck crew salvaged the Vipers in the museum to place on flight duty, they did not use the Mk I.
For Viper Mk Is serving in second-line squadrons later in the war, lower the crew rating to Trained (+4).
Colonial Viper Mk II space superiority fighter (PL 6)
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Fighter
Size: Gargantuan (–4 size)
Length: 25 feet
Weight: 39,000 lb.
Crew: 1 (ace +12)
Passenger Capacity: 0
Cargo Capacity: 1,700 lb.
Tactical Speed: 3,500 ft. (7 sq.)
Defense: 19
Flat-footed Defense: 13
Autopilot Defense: 8
Hardness: 20
Hit Dice: 8d20 (160 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +6
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +7
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +6
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +8/+3
Targeting System Bonus: +2 (post-war refit only)
Grapple Modifier: +8
Base Purchase DC: 46
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 2 fire-linked kinetic energy weapons +6 ranged (9d12) and
CHE Missile +1 ranged (6d12/19-20); or
2 fire-lined kinetic energy weapons +6/+1 ranged (9d12)
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: Fusion torch engine, thrusters
Armor: Polymeric
Defense Systems: Autopilot, targeting system (post-war refit only)
Sensors: Class II sensor array
Communications: radio transceiver
Weapons: 2 fire-linked kinetic energy weapons (range incr. 3,000 ft.)
1 missile launcher (6 CHE Missles)
Grappling Systems: None
During the Cylon War, a need arose for a new space superiority fighter to suplement the Viper Mk I. The new fighter was designated the Viper Mk II. The Mk II was faster, had better sensors and avionics, and carried an expanded missile bay which was also capable of carrying ungided bombs. The new Viper proved itself on the frontlines, decimating the Cylon fighter forces. By the end of the war, the Mk II was standard equipment for all squadrons serving on battlestars and other large capital ships. In the post-war era, the Viper continued on for many years as the standard colonial fighter. They received an avionics upgrade after the war. It wasn't until around a decade before the second Cylon attack that the new Viper Mk VII was built in sufficient numbers to replace the Mk II in most fleet squadrons (The Viper Mk V and VI were never built in great numbers as they failed to show a significant improvement over the aging Mk IIs). Many Mk IIs were sent to the scrap yards but a few were sent to museums and test centers to be used as target drones along with Viper Mk Is. Some were sent to Colonial Militia squadrons to replace some of the Viper Mk IVs they had been using for at least 30 years. Several dozen Viper Mk IIs were sent to the battlestar Galactica to be placed in the museum of the cylon war located in Galactica's starboard flight pod. One Mk II, 7242NC, flow by Lieutenant William "Husker" Adama during the Cylon War, was rebuilt by Galactica's deck crew and participated in a flyby demonstration. The Viper, piloted by Adama's son, Captain Lee "Apollo" Adama, was escorting Colonial Heavy 798 which was carrying press and the Secretary of Education back to Caprica. The Viper was damaged at the Battle of the Ragnar Anchorage but was repaired and is still flown by Captain Adama on occaison (Captain Adama also flies his Viper Mk VII). The other Mk IIs in the museum were returned to service and served to repel the first Cylon attack on Galactica which resulted in the damaging of Galactica with a Cylon nuclear missile. The Mk IIs proved to be immune to the Cylon computer virus and formed the nucleus of the Galactica's fighter force in the post-attack period.
For Viper Mk IIs during the Cylon War, reduce the attack bonus to +4/-1.
Colonial Viper Mk VII space superiority fighter (PL 6)
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Fighter
Size: Gargantuan (–4 size)
Length: 32.5 feet
Weight: 37,000 lb.
Crew: 1 (ace +12)
Passenger Capacity: 0
Cargo Capacity: 1,700 lb.
Tactical Speed: 3,500 ft. (7 sq.)
Defense: 19
Flat-footed Defense: 13
Autopilot Defense: 10
Hardness: 20
Hit Dice: 9d20 (180 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +8
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +7
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +6
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +8/+3
Targeting System Bonus:+2
Grapple Modifier: +8
Base Purchase DC: 46
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 3 fire-linked upgraded kinetic energy weapons +6 ranged (12d12/20) and
CHE Missile +1 ranged (6d12/19-20); or
3 fire-linked upgraded kinetic energy weapons +6/+1 ranged (12d12/20)
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: Fusion torch engine, thrusters
Armor: Polymeric
Defense Systems: Improved autopilot system,
Sensors: Class III sensor array, targeting system
Communications: Radio transceiver
Weapons: 3 fire-linked upgraded kinetic energy weapons (range incr. 4,000 ft.)
1 Missile Launcher (8 CHE Missiles)
Grappling Systems: None
Several decades after the Cylon War, the Colonial military realized the need for a new fighter to replace the war-vintage Mk Is, IIs, IIIs, and IVs. The new craft, the Viper Mk V, failed to show any significant improvement over the Mk II and the design never made it past the drawing board and computer simulations. Instead, the Mk IIs were refitted with new avionics. Several years later, the same problem resurfaced and the radically different Viper Mk VI was designed. The Mk VI made it into preproduction with 8 prototypes built. Unfortunantely the Mk VI showed severe stability problems which culminated in the loss of two prototypes in a mid-air collision near the Corinth Air Base on Aerelon resulting in the deaths of both pilots. The Mk VI was cancelled after it was detirmined that it would not be cost effective to redesign the ship. it was another five years before another attempt to design a new fighter was made. After the Mk VI fiasco, the designers went back to the standard Viper configuration of three engines in a pyramid pattern and three wings. The sleek new design was labled the Mk VII and showed great promise from the beginning. It was faster and more manuverable than its predecessors and featured a heavier armament with the addition of a third cannon mounted on the base of the dorsal fin. The Mk VII entered production and became the standard fighter in the Colonial military. The Mk VII was first introduced into front-line service when the Air Wing of the battlestar Mercury, the first of the new Mercury-class battlestars, was equipped exclusivly with the Mk VII and the new Raptor-class ships. The Mk II continued for a few more years in the Air Wings of the older battlestars like the Galactica until the battlestars received new Mk VIIs. After several years of frontline service, a new Command Navigation Program (CNP) by developed by Dr. Gaius Baltar. The CNP was distributed by all ships in the fleet. Unbeknownst to anyone, the CNP contained a Cylon virus that disabled virtually all of the Colonial defenses when the Cylons attacked. The last squadron of Viper Mk VIIs stationed on the battlestar Galactica were en-route to Caprica to be reassigned when the Cylons attacked. The Vipers were shut down and massacred by a pair of Cylon Raiders. Captain Lee "Apollo" Adama flew a Mk VII (2276NC) to the Galactica for its decommisioning ceremony. He flew a Mk II during the ceremony and escaped the computer virus, although his ship was damaged evading a Cylon missile. Adama continued to use the Mk VII, which was purged of the CNP, along with several other Mk VIIs that travelled with the fleet to the rendevous of the Ragnar Anchorage and several that were down for repairs on Galactica. Several dozen Mk VIIs, the Air Wing of the Mercury-class battlestar Pegasus, also escaped the Cylon attack.
Colonial Raptor-class electronic-warfare/transport ship (PL 6)
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Transport
Size: Gargantuan (–4 size)
Length: 28.5 feet
Weight: 100,000 lb.
Crew: 2 (trained +4)
Passenger Capacity: 10
Cargo Capacity: 9,500 lb.
Tactical Speed: 2,500 ft. (5 sq.)
Defense: 11
Flat-footed Defense: 9
Autopilot Defense: 8
Hardness: 20
Hit Dice: 10d20 (200 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +2
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +3
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +2
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +2
Targeting System Bonus: +2
Grapple Modifier: +12
Base Purchase DC: 48
Restriction: Licensed (+1)
Attack: 1 CHE missile launcher with 4 missiles -2 ranged (6d12/19-20);
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: Jump engine, thrusters
Armor: Polymeric
Defense Systems: Autopilot system, 1 decoy drone launcher (4 decoy drones), sensor jammer
Sensors: Class III sensor array
Communications: Laser transceiver, radio transceiver
Weapons: 1 CHE missile launcher with 4 missiles
Grappling Systems: none
During the Cylon War, Colonial Fleet ships carried a wide variety of craft for different roles. Crowding the decks of battlestars and other vessels were space fighters, shuttles for cargo duties, passenger shuttles, strike craft, and Marine assault shuttles. This multitude of craft proved to be a serious liability. Ship commanders were forced to make trade-offs in what they carried. For instance, a destroyer captain, whose ship is only capable of carrying a few shuttles anyway, could either board assault shuttles for boarding actions and ground assaults, or regular shuttles for cargo hauling and Search-and-rescue operations, but not both. Mindful of this, twenty years after the war, the Colonial fleet designed a new craft, based off a new Marine assault shuttle design, to fullfill this requirment. This new ship, named the Raptor, was built to be capable of many missions. The new ship was capable of carrying a eight man Marine squad with all of their gear or ten passengers. It was equipped with an extensive ECM and sensor suite enabling the Raptor to carryout Airborne Warning and Control (AWACS), jamming, escort, Search and Rescue (SAR), and scouting missions. Though normally unarmed, the Raptor can carry several missiles on racks beneath it's wings, allowing Supression of Enemy Air Defenses (SEAD) missions. Normally, however, it carries decoy and communication drones instead. The Raptor proved an instant success and soon was carried in the hanger bays of most Colonial craft. Normally, on battlestars, one Raptor is assigned to each Viper squadron for support purposes and several additional ones are also carried. After the Cylon attack, the Raptors assigned to the elderly battlestar Galactica, have proven themselves as some of the most useful resources available.
Colonial Viper T.Mk I
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Fighter
Size: Gargantuan (–4 size)
Length: 25 feet
Weight: 39,000 lb.
Crew: 2 (ace +12)
Passenger Capacity: 0
Cargo Capacity: 1,000 lb.
Tactical Speed: 2,500 ft. (6 sq.)
Defense: 19
Flat-footed Defense: 13
Autopilot Defense: 6
Hardness: 20
Hit Dice: 6d20 (120 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +6
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +7
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +6
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +8/+3
Targeting System Bonus:+2
Grapple Modifier: +8
Base Purchase DC: 36
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 2 fire-linked modified rail cannons +6/+1 ranged (9d12/20)
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: Fusion torch engine, thrusters
Armor: Alloy Plating
Defense Systems:
Sensors: Class I sensor array, targeting system
Communications: Radio transceiver
Weapons: 2 fire-linked modified rail cannons (range incr. 3,000 ft.)
Grappling Systems: None
The Viper T.Mk I was developed concurrently with the Viper Mk I. It was designed as a dedicated trainer and carried a trainee pilot in a second cockpit placed behind the first. Many were constructed until the Mk I design was supplemented by the Mk II during the First Cylon War. The T.Mk I was a solid design although a bit slower the the fighter version. To reduce mass, the missile launcher was removed and the T.Mk I was only equipped with a pair of kinetic energy weapons. After the war, many T.Mk Is remained in service as trainers at various Colonial Fleet flight schools. The T.Mk Is remained in service until the Cylon assault forty years after the end of the first war. No T.Mk Is are known to have survived the attack. There were several variants of the T.Mk I produced. During the war a need for a dedicated close air-support (CAS) variant became apparent. Several T.Mk Is were modified in the field with the addition of a missile rack containing cluster munitions, a basic ECM suite and additional plates of armor. These proved successful in service and full production, as the Viper FGA.Mk I, commenced shortly thereafter. Other variants were also produced. The Viper EW.Mk I was equipped with the ECM system of the FGA.Mk I but lacked any offensive weaponry. It also carried an improved sensor system and a decoy launcher and was used as a limited AWACS craft. Finally, several prototypes were made during the war of the Viper N.Mk I. These were intended to be used as nuclear strike craft that would break past enemy raider screens and engage Cylon basestars with pinpoint nuclear missile strikes. The war ended before production could begin and the N.Mk I was quietly cancelled and the prototypes were scrapped without ever seeing combat.
FGA.Mk I Template
Hit Dice: Increase by +1d20
Defense System Upgrade: Sensor Jammer
Weapons Upgrade: Missile Launcher (6 KE Submunition Missiles)
EW.Mk I Template
Defense System Upgrade: Sensor Jammer, Decoy Drone Launcher (2 Drones)
Sensors Upgrade: Class II Sensor Array
Weapons Downgrade: Remove all weapons
N.Mk I Template
Hit Dice: Increase by +1d20
Defense System Upgrade: Sensor Jammer
Sensors Upgrade: Targeting System (+2 on attack rolls)
Weapon Upgrade: Missile Launcher (2 Nuclear Missiles)
Colonial Blackbird stealth reconnaissance ship "Laura" (PL 6)
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Fighter
Size: Gargantuan (–4 size)
Length: 32 feet
Weight: 32,000 lb.
Crew: 1 (ace +12)
Passenger Capacity: 0
Cargo Capacity: 100 lb.
Tactical Speed: 4,000 ft. (8 sq.)
Defense: 19
Flat-footed Defense: 13
Autopilot Defense: 10
Hardness: 10
Hit Dice: 8d20 (160 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +8
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +7
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +6
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +8/+3
Targeting System Bonus: N/A
Grapple Modifier: +8
Base Purchase DC:
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 1 Missile Launcher +4/-1 ranged (6d12/19-20);
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: Thrusters, jump drive
Armor: Carbon Composite (Hardness 10, operates as permanent stealth screen)
Defense Systems: Improved autopilot system,
Sensors: Class III sensor array
Communications: Radio transceiver
Weapons: 1 missiles launcher (2 CHE missiles)
Grappling Systems: None
After the Cylon attack, the battlestar Galactica was left with a limited amount of Viper fighters. Galactica's deck chief, CPO Galen Tyrol, decides to build a new ship to supplement Galactica's complement. Tyrol, who is undergoing personal problems, designs and begins to produce a spaceframe. Other crew members begin to work on the project, contributing their skills to specific systems. The Blackbird is powered by obsolete DDG-62 engines and features the avionics suite of a Viper Mk II. There was not enough metal available to plate the exterior but Lieutenant Karl "Helo" Agathon had the idea of using alternate materials. The Blackbird was plated with Carbon composites which render it invisable to DRADIS although it's engine signatures are visible at high outputs. Following a successful test flight, the Blackbird is officially commissioned and is christened "Laura" in honor of the dying president of the Colonies, Laura Roslin. THe Blackbird is a reconnaisance ship, usually unarmed and intended to approach its targets undetected and take high-quality close-up pictures. Following the arrival of the battlestar Pegasus, the Blackbird is taken by Lieutenant Kara "Starbuck" Thrace on an unautherized reconaissance mission to scout a nearby Cylon fleet, especially the large unknown ship later known as the "Resurrection Ship."
Colonial Battlestar (PL 6)
Type: Superheavy
Subtype: battlestar
Size: Colossal (–8 size)
Length: 4,640 feet
Weight: 500,000 tons
Crew: 3,000 (expert +8)
Passenger Capacity: 2,000
Cargo Capacity: 38,250 tons
Tactical Speed: 3,000 ft. (6 sq.)
Defense: 11
Flat-footed Defense: 7
Autopilot Defense: 7
Hardness: 40
Hit Dice: 1,200d20 (24,000 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +6
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +5
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +4
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +4
Targeting System Bonus:+3
Grapple Modifier: +16
Base Purchase DC: 72
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 6 fire-linked batteries of 4 Heavy Cannon Turrets -1 ranged (32d8) and
1 Nuclear Missile Launcher with 20 Nuclear Missiles -6 ranged (60d10) or
6 fire-linked batteries of 4 Heavy Cannon Turrets -1/-6 ranged (32d8).
Attack of Opportunity: Point-defense system +3 ranged (5d12
To make a long story short, The document is gone. Well not gone, but corrupted, and it might as well be gone since I can't even open the file, it just shuts itself immediately.
SO...
I spen't Half the weekend trying to recover the document, and the other half re-compiling al of the information and starting the editing/formatting process over again.
On the plus side, Its not like I lost 6 months of work, but on the downside, it IS going to take me longer than a couple of days to fix everything.
I am VERY sorry about this... I hadn't updated a backup of that file in weeks, and now it looks like I'm going to have to pay for my sloppiness. :embarrass
I know that alot of folks were waiting patiently for the PDF to be posted sometime this weekend or at the latest by tomorrow night, but I'm afraid That I am going to have to delay the release for another week or two.
Again, I am VERY sorry about the delay. I am just as anxious to see the PDF as the rest of you.
Talos still has some NPCs that he is putting the finishing touches on, but apart from that we aren't really missing anything.
We have
The Introduction
Chapter 1: The Colonies of Man; a write up of each of the twelve colonies in a "Coruscant and the Core Worlds" kind of format, including a map of the Cyrannus star system, descriptions of Colnial religion, Colonial Government, and the Colonial Military including the rank structure, and images of the ranks tehmselves and the flags of the twelve colonies
Chapter 2: The Cylons; write ups of the original 5 models created by the colonies, and the new cylons including teh new centurions, and a Cylon Infiltraitor species, with NPC statblocks for Boomer, Leoben Connoy and Number Six.
Chapter 3: NPCs; write ups for President Roslyn, VP Dr. Baltar, Commander (Admiral) Adama, Colonel Tigh, Apollo, Starbuck, Helo, Lt. Geta, Chief Tyrol, and Specialist Cally along with Representative Tom Zarek and Billy Keikya.
Chapter 4: Advanced Classes; write ups of the Colonial Marine, the Politician, the Starship Officer, the Survivor, the Theologian, and the Viper Pilot.
Chapter 5: Equipment; Many Colonial weapons and armor including the Colonial Land Ram from the Cylon War
Chapter 6: Starships; Writeups for the Vipers Mk I - Mk VII, The raptor, the blackbird, the pioted Cylon Raider, the Autonomous Cylon Raider, the Heavy Raider, the original cylon basestar, teh new cylon base star, the atlantia class battlestar "galactica", and the Mercury class battlestar "Pegasus", not to mention Colonial One, and a bout a dozen other civilian starships
Chapter 7: Space Travel; Rules for Jump drives and random star system generation
Chapter 8: Advanced starship combat; pretty much self explanitory... rules for more complex starship combat using 3 dimensions and newtonian physics
Chapter 9: Campaign Models; campaign models for the Cylon War and teh Resistance as well as teh Quest for Earth, and Earth at last.
Talos has also created a bunch of counters for use in starship combat, so that I guess is Apeendix I.
And all of that is written but it just needs to be editted and formatted so that it looks semi-professional, and not like a random collection of house rules and campaign notes...
I know that alot of folks were waiting patiently for the PDF to be posted sometime this weekend or at the latest by tomorrow night, but I'm afraid That I am going to have to delay the release for another week or two.
Again, I am VERY sorry about the delay. I am just as anxious to see the PDF as the rest of you.
It sucks that you've gotta do all that work over again, but it's not a big deal to keep us all in suspense. I can't wait for the PDF, but you guys are doing an awesome . . . I'm sorry I mean an AWESOME job! I don't think anyone will throw you to the toasters if you're a little behind a deadline that you've set yourself.
I intend to update the PDF as new ships, characters and information are revealed.
I probably completely missed the link BUT.....
Where might one find said PDF of the B.G. info?
Thanks for the great effort put into this thread BTW!!
Slingbld~
Colonial Raider
This craft used by the Cylons during the Cylon war was, in fact designed and built by the Colonies as part of the Fair Play resolution passed by the Quorum of Twelve in the early days of the Age of Peace. They were stationed on the Colonial Basestars that orbited each of the 12 colonies. The Colonial Raider was a heavy attack fighter designed for battle against capital warships. Combined with the might of the Colonial Basestars, they were instrumental in maintaining the balance of power that ensured the peace that followed the Age of War. Raiders had a crew of three; a pilot, a gunner and a commander. They were heavily armed and armored, and the fastest ships in space until the development of the Colonial Viper at the start of the Cylon War.
Colonial Basestars
These massive space stations were originally designed and built by the Colonies as part of the Fair Play resolution passed by the Quorum of Twelve in the early days of the Age of Peace. Their construction coincided with the dismantling of all other warships in the colonies. Each Basestar was heavily armored and armed with over half a dozen anti-ship missile launchers and dozens of point defense rail guns. A single Basestar was commanded by a human commander with an IL series Cylon as an advisor. It carried 12 full squadrons of 20 raiders each and a crew of several thousand Cylon Centurions that could be deployed to fight surface battles if an enemy managed to get past the fighters and land troops. When the Cylons rebelled, they killed their human commanders and used their fighters and troops to take over the colonies below. When the First battlestar and its fighter wing destroyed the Aierlon Basestar, the Cylons quickly modified their remaining basestars with Jump drives to give them some mobility.
Advanced Raider
This colonial star-fighter design was never actually produced. But it was under development as a replacement for the existing fleet of Raiders which were approaching 50 years old when the Cylon war broke out. The advanced raider was smaller, faster and more agile than its predecessor. However, aside from the differences in performance and outward appearance, the advanced raider was intended to be completely autonomous, removing the cockpit and replacing it with 3 MC series processors hardwired into the flight control systems. Once the Cylons rebelled, the design was scrapped in favor of the new one man viper design. Although the advanced raider was never produced, its influence is obvious on the design of the new raiders used by the Cylons today.
Cylon Raider
This star-fighter is the first ever to be completely designed and built by the Cylons themselves. They drew heavily on the influence of the Advanced Raider design, being smaller faster and more agile than the original raiders and more importantly, completely autonomous. It is interesting to note that the new raiders are equipped with jump drives as well as sub-light engines. Even more interesting however, is the fact that the new Cylon raiders are techno-organic, bio-mechanical creations. Although their outer hull is armored, inside they have various organs and a large brain. It is not certain how intelligent these raiders are, but one Cylon was overheard describing them as though they might be pets. The Galactica recently acquired a captured Cylon Raider, and it has been studying its capabilities.
Cylon Basestar
This mobile space station is the first capital ship to be designed and built by the Cylons themselves. It shares some design features of the original basestars, but instead of stacked saucers, it looks like a pair of stacked three pointed stars. The Cylon base star is also slightly larger than its predecessor, and it is far more advanced, bristling with antiship missile launchers, and carrying more than 3 times the number of raiders. Little else is known about these ships. They are FTL capable, and apparently use some sort of reaction-less sub-light drive system to move through space. It is not known how many Cylons are carried inside each base star or what models they might be.
Battlestars
The term “Battlestar” is a contraction and abbreviaton of the words Battleship and Starfighter Carrier. It was first used to describe the Deadalus class battlecruiser deployed by Leonese forces during the final years of the Age of War. The Deadalus class battle cruiser was just short of 200 meters long, though at the time it was the largest ship ever to fly in space. It carried a single squadron of “Scarab” class star-fighters and 2 shuttles, and was armed with several anti-ship missile launchers and point defense rail guns. The combined capabilities of the heavily armed and armored battleship and the long range precision strikes of the star-fighter carrier proved to be extremely useful and popular among military leaders throughout the colonies.
Despite these facts, or perhaps because of them, the Fair Play act of the Quorum of Twelve chose to build purely defensive battle stations which came to be known as “Basestars”. The basestars were incapable of interplanetary travel but they were armed with long range anti-ship missiles, numerous point defense rail cannons and 12 full squadrons of new "Raider" class heavy star-fighters. All existing battlestars and other warships capable of launching interplanetary offensives were scrapped or mothballed, and by the time of the Cylon war, there were none left.
The fact that the base stars were incapable of interplanetary travel is the only thing that allowed the Humans in the Cosmara Archipelago the time to build any ships at all. While the Cylons attempted to exert their control over the star system by using Raiders and fuel tankers, the Colonies rapidly produced a fighter designed specifically for dog-fighting. While officially known as the Viper class star-fighter, their role as dog-fighters earned them the nickname “Starhound”.
As the basestars dominated the skies above the colonies, and raiders battled vipers in the spaces in between, the first new battlestar in decades was completed in the shipyards of the Cosmara Archipelago. The Columbia, as it was named, was the first in a new class of battlestars. Over 600 meters long, armed with anti-ship missiles and bristling with point defense rail cannons, the Columbia carried 2 full squadrons of Viper space superiority fighters. It was over 3 times the length of the Daedalus class battlestar, but still less than a quarter of the mass of a basestar. However, its heavy armor and mobility gave the new battlestar a distinct advantage over the Cylons.
Eventually the Cylons modified their basestars by installing jump drives and gravity induction engines, but by that time, the colonies were fielding a newer and even larger class of battlestar, led by the flag ship Atlantia. The Atlantia class battlestars were over 1200 meters long and they mounted 8 anti-ship missile batteries, dozens of point defense rail guns and 4 full squadrons of Viper Mk II star-fighters. In addition, the Atlantia and her sister ships carried 100 drop-ships, 100 “Landram” armored vehicles and 2,400 colonial marines.
At the end of the Cylon War, there were 5 Atlantia class battlestars and 7 Columbia class battlestars in service. By the time of the fall of the twelve colonies, all of the Columbia class battlestars were decommissioned and the only Atlantia class battlestar left in service was the Galactica, itself due to be replaced with the newer Mercury class that now made up the rest of the 120+ ship fleet.
The Mercury class battlestar was approximately the same length as the older Atlantia class, but it was much more massive, with more armor, bigger engines, more guns and capable of carrying 8 full squadrons of Mk VII Vipers. Its command and control center was fully integrated with the flight systems of each individual viper star-fighter in its wing, as well as with every other ship in the fleet (except the Galactica) through the Command Navigation Program. Unfortunately this very program allowed the Cylons to shut down the whole fleet and wipe it out in a matter of minutes.
Had the Colonies not been destroyed, they may have seen the construction of the newest class of battle star which, still lacking a name, was simply referred to as the X class battlestar. Due to the overwhelming cost of maintaining over 100 capital ships, the Quorum was looking into the construction of 12 "super battlestars", each one over 3,000 meters long, and housing 16 full squadrons of viper star-fighters, 240 drop ships and almost 5,000 colonial marines.
Here is some more fluff for the PDF...
Battlestars
The term “Battlestar” is a contraction and abbreviaton of the words Battleship and Starfighter Carrier. It was first used to describe the Deadalus class battlecruiser deployed by Leonese forces during the final years of the Age of War. The Deadalus class battle cruiser was just short of 200 meters long, though at the time it was the largest ship ever to fly in space. It carried a single squadron of “Scarab” class star-fighters and 2 shuttles, and was armed with several anti-ship missile launchers and point defense rail guns. The combined capabilities of the heavily armed and armored battleship and the long range precision strikes of the star-fighter carrier proved to be extremely useful and popular among military leaders throughout the colonies.
Despite these facts, or perhaps because of them, the Fair Play act of the Quorum of Twelve chose to build purely defensive battle stations which came to be known as “Basestars”. The basestars were incapable of interplanetary travel but they were armed with long range anti-ship missiles, numerous point defense rail cannons and 12 full squadrons of new "Raider" class heavy star-fighters. All existing battlestars and other warships capable of launching interplanetary offensives were scrapped or mothballed, and by the time of the Cylon war, there were none left.
The fact that the base stars were incapable of interplanetary travel is the only thing that allowed the Humans in the Cosmara Archipelago the time to build any ships at all. While the Cylons attempted to exert their control over the star system by using Raiders and fuel tankers, the Colonies rapidly produced a fighter designed specifically for dog-fighting. While officially known as the Viper class star-fighter, their role as dog-fighters earned them the nickname “Starhound”.
As the basestars dominated the skies above the colonies, and raiders battled vipers in the spaces in between, the first new battlestar in decades was completed in the shipyards of the Cosmara Archipelago. The Columbia, as it was named, was the first in a new class of battlestars. Over 600 meters long, armed with anti-ship missiles and bristling with point defense rail cannons, the Columbia carried 2 full squadrons of Viper space superiority fighters. It was over 3 times the length of the Daedalus class battlestar, but still less than a quarter of the mass of a basestar. However, its heavy armor and mobility gave the new battlestar a distinct advantage over the Cylons.
Eventually the Cylons modified their basestars by installing jump drives and gravity induction engines, but by that time, the colonies were fielding a newer and even larger class of battlestar, led by the flag ship Atlantia. The Atlantia class battlestars were over 1200 meters long and they mounted 8 anti-ship missile batteries, dozens of point defense rail guns and 4 full squadrons of Viper Mk II star-fighters. In addition, the Atlantia and her sister ships carried 100 drop-ships, 100 “Landram” armored vehicles and 2,400 colonial marines.
At the end of the Cylon War, there were 5 Atlantia class battlestars and 7 Columbia class battlestars in service. By the time of the fall of the twelve colonies, all of the Columbia class battlestars were decommissioned and the only Atlantia class battlestar left in service was the Galactica, itself due to be replaced with the newer Mercury class that now made up the rest of the 120+ ship fleet.
The Mercury class battlestar was approximately the same length as the older Atlantia class, but it was much more massive, with more armor, bigger engines, more guns and capable of carrying 8 full squadrons of Mk VII Vipers. Its command and control center was fully integrated with the flight systems of each individual viper star-fighter in its wing, as well as with every other ship in the fleet (except the Galactica) through the Command Navigation Program. Unfortunately this very program allowed the Cylons to shut down the whole fleet and wipe it out in a matter of minutes.
Had the Colonies not been destroyed, they may have seen the construction of the newest class of battle star which, still lacking a name, was simply referred to as the X class battlestar. Due to the overwhelming cost of maintaining over 100 capital ships, the Quorum was looking into the construction of 12 "super battlestars", each one over 3,000 meters long, and housing 16 full squadrons of viper star-fighters, 240 drop ships and almost 5,000 colonial marines.
Guess you won't even try to stat the 'Super-Battlestars' in the PDF. I mean, it would be kinda cool to find out that the Cylons made them (from files they hacked back in Caprica), or there could be an adventure to infiltrate the remain of one of the docks to get it out.
Just my two cents, though. Whatever keeps the players happy.
Super Battlestar
lets see if that link works...
Anyway, Its not in the series, so I didn't intend to stat it... same with the Deadalus class battlestar... I saw an image of the Daedalus from Stargate Atlantis and thought "Huh, I bet that's what early battlestars must have looked like."
The columbia is that battlestar from the original series...
Anyway, its just fluff, and only as official as my imaginiation, so tkae it or leave it as you wish.
Added Cylon Raider Type II, Cylon Battlestar, and Mercury-class Battlestar to ship post above.
Awesome! Thanks! I'll add them to the file tonight. :D
I don't actually have any sidebars now that you mention it, although I do have headers, and I am using any images I can get my hands on from the internet. I have used Wikipedia, Battlestar wiki, and sci-fi.com as well as google image search to provide the graphics, along with a (poorly drawn) map of the Cyrannus star system that I scanned in. Unfortunately, I don't have the artistic skill to do this project justice, and the only graphic artist I know is swamped so he can't help me. I do plan to update the PDF regularly, and if I find a way to improve the art, I definitely want to do so. I lost alot of formatting when my computer ate the file on Friday, so I am busy playing catch up right now... now that you bring up sidebars, I think the bit of fluff about Battle stars is probably a good candidate for one of those.
Actually, as soon as I get the document re-formatted, I could e-mail a copy to you for comment before I convert it to pdf and post it. Just say the word.
now that you bring up sidebars, I think the bit of fluff about Battle stars is probably a good candidate for one of those
Actually I meant sidebar graphics, not sidebar text. Oh, and please do email me a copy, I'd love to see it.
I also might have another project for you, if you're interested. This one would be for a publisher.
- Darrin
I'm not sure how to do those.
Ah well that would be a no (about the graphic side bars)...
I'm not sure how to do those.
If you're using Word to do your layout (and if I remember how to do this correctly - its been a while), you just add them as a header or footer graphic and place them where you want them. You apply the sidebar on the left side to the even numbered pages and the one on the right to the odd numbered pages. Then you just have to adjust your text margins. I'm not saying that this is something you should do, but it does add a nice professional touch to the thing.
I can't wait to see them!
I've managed to finishh re-formatting and re-editing all of the introduction and chapter one (except for the table of contents since that wont be done until everything else is). I'll be working on chapter two today.
Cool!
I can't wait to see them!
I've managed to finishh re-formatting and re-editing all of the introduction and chapter one (except for the table of contents since that wont be done until everything else is). I'll be working on chapter two today.
Have you guys seen d20 future tech yet. it should be out sometime this month.
:D:D
Have you guys seen d20 future tech yet. it should be out sometime this month.
I'm planning on getting it when I see it.
Here's something I've been working on that y'all might like.
Viper Lineage Chart
and another
Battlestars of the Cylon War
Just an FYI... here are links to some of the images I am using for the various vipers in the pdf. I think we've got the Mk III and Mk IV swapped...
Viper Mk I
Viper Mk II
Viper MK III
Viper Mk IV
Viper Mk V
Viper Mk VII
Hmmm I couldn't find the site for the image I was using for the Mk VI, but I have the picture at home, I'll e-mail it to you Talos... its the chris bell Viper concept from this website: Here
And while I'm at it...
Battlestars:
Daedalus Class
Columbia Class
Atlantia Class
Mercury Class
Viper Mk I: Original Series Viper
Viper Mk II: BSG2003 Viper
Viper Mk III: Heavy Viper from Video game mission, design from DeSanto BSG Viper
Viper Mk IV: Refitted Mk I, originally to be the Mk III from your list but I decided to use a refitted Mk I, based on what I could see Colonial forces building.
Viper Mk V: Basic shape from a pic I found on internet, never got past design stage anyway.
Viper Mk VI: That concept you mentioned
Viper Mk VII: BSG2003 New Viper
EDIT: The Mk V from your list, the Viper from "BSG The Second Coming," has the wings I'm intending for the EW.Mk I, forward swept with ECM pods at the tips. That pic of the Mk VI will be useful, I haven't been able to access the other one for a while.
Oh and I found a picture of the two seater viper...
Two Seat Viper Mk I
Viper EW. Mk I
and the Viper T.Mk I it's based on
The other varients would only have minor detail changes like those little antennae on sides of the EW's nose. The FGA has those too, representing the defensive ECM suite.
I didn't want to use the Hatch Viper because it didn't look advanced enough. It looked like it flew out of the Cylon War and lacked the feel I wanted the Mk V (which in my mind didn't fly anyway). The design I chose was supposed to look like something in between the Mk II and Mk VII.
EDIT: Ai ya, I uploaded the Mini pic of the T, I fixed it.
The Viper Mk I was designed to replace the various fighters used by the Colonies in the inter-colonial war. It was designed to go along with the Columbia-class battlestars. During the Cylon war, the Cylon Raiders were colonial heavy fighters seized by the Cylons. The Mk II replaced the Mk I as the new baseline fighter and was in use for the final years of the war. The Mk III was designed to be a heavy fighter like the Raider, less manuverable, heavier armor and weapons, especially missiles. The Mk IVs were introduced into service years after the war as an cheap upgrade to the Mk I, primarily engines and avionics plus a new cockpit. The Mk V was designed to replace the Mk II and IV, the expensive Mk III already being phased out by that time. The Mk V didn't show enough improvment to warrant the expenses for the new facilities and such needed to operate and support it. The Mk VI was intended for the same purpose, but was larger and showed more performance than any of the others. However, there were design difficulties and the Mk VI was dangerously unstable. After an accident with two of the prototypes, it was cancelled. Finally, Colonial forces designed the Mk VII, an advanced design, but not as radical as the Mk VI. And the rest, as they say, is history.
Viper Mk I: original series viper
Viper Mk I T and variants: G1980 2 seat viper
Viper Mk II: new series mk II viper
Viper Mk III: Desantos "Heavy Viper"
Viper Mk IV: Second coming "scarlet" viper
Viper Mk V: BSG video game viper
Viper Mk VI: new series concept viper
Viper Mk VII: new series Mk VII
Mk I-IV are all Cylon War Era Vipers
Mk V+VI are limited production Armistice Era Vipers
Mk VII is the full production Armistice/Fall of the Colonies Era Viper
EDIT: Here are the Viper T.Mk I derivatives
From the top:
Viper FGA.Mk I-Same as T except addition of defensive ECM antennae on the nose and different munitions under the wings.
Viper EW.Mk I-forward swept wings like Scarlet Viper with the antennae from FGA and ECM pods on wing and tail tips.
Viper N.Mk I-improved engines with extended nozzle and rectangular bulges in wing to clear room for nuclear missile carriage.
Thats a much better picture than the one I found. I agree with your timeline about the development of the vipers, except that the Scarab was a VERY old design, used on the Deadalus class battlestars during the Third Colonial War, and the Raiders were a brand new design after the Thrid Colonial war.
The raiders were almost 50 years old when the Cylons used them in their rebellion. The Viper Mk I was an improvement of the old Scarab class fighters and were developed about 20 years after the raider, but they were only used in second line units until the outbreak of the cylon war. Even then they were slated to be retired and replaced with the new Mk II design.
I need to brainstorm for a bit.
EDIT: Here are the Viper T.Mk I derivatives
From the top:
Viper FGA.Mk I-Same as T except addition of defensive ECM antennae on the nose and different munitions under the wings.
Viper EW.Mk I-forward swept wings like Scarlet Viper with the antennae from FGA and ECM pods on wing and tail tips.
Viper N.Mk I-improved engines with extended nozzle and rectangular bulges in wing to clear room for nuclear missile carriage.
Viper Mk I
Viper Mk II
Viper Mk III
Viper Mk IV and EW viper Mk I (blue and red)
Viper MK V
Viper Mk VII
I'd seen the Scarlet Viper before when I was planning out the Vipers, but decided not to use it since the wing design clashed with the others in the series. Plus, it would be a pain in the butt to use in a Battlestar. :D
Hmm., still plotting.
so at least we agree on the mk i, the mk ii, the mk iii, the mk vi and the mk vii... :D
You are already using the scarlet viper as a Cylon War Era viper variant... I think it would work for the mk iv as well...
what do you think?
The design I used for the Mk V was intended to be an intermediate step, still having the framed cockpit and gun placement of the Mk II generation, but having more of a delta wing shape like the Mk VII and the slimmed-down rear fuselage.
Age of War Era: Scarab viper
Age of Peace Era: Viper Mk I and 2 seat viper
Cylon War Era: Viper Mk II, desantos viper and scarlet viper(as Mk IV and EW Mk I refit?)
Armistice Era: video game viper and Chris Bell concept art viper (Mk V and Mk VI ?)
Modern Era: Viper Mk VII
Do I have that right or did you mean that the scarlet viper is just the EW refit and that we don't have a picture for the Mk IV or the Mk V?
Age of War Era: Scarab viper
Age of Peace Era: Viper Mk I and 2 seat viper
Cylon War Era: Viper Mk II, desantos viper and scarlet viper (as EW Mk I refit), video game Viper (As Viper Mk IV)
Armistice Era: No picture for Viper Mk V, just the preliminary design in lineage chart, Chris Bell concept art viper (Mk VI )
Modern Era: Viper Mk VII
Oh BTW, I agree completely about the Battlestars earlier on the page. The pic I did was the Atlantia-class and Columbia-class, from left to right.
So...
Here are some other fighters:
Age of War "Marauder" attack fighter
Age of Peace "Advanced Raider" schematic
I'm going to finish formatting chapter two tonight... do you have any more cylon stats? I've got sharon and leoben, and I thought you sent me the stats for six, but I can't find them... I've also done stats for the model 0001, 0002, 0003, and 0004 Cylons in addition to the centurions...
I've finished reformatting chapter two (actually I am working on chapter five now) but adding new content won't be too difficult.
Stock Battlestar
Geminon Docks " Atlantia " Class Battlestar
Type : Superheavy
Size : Colossal ( -8 Size )
Subtype : Battlestar
Length : 4,640 ft. ( 1.5 Km )
Weight : 600,000 Tons
Crew : 2,400 ( Expert +8 )
Passenger Capacity : 1,400
Initiative Modifier : +6
Defense : 11
Flat-Footed Defense : 7
Autopilot Defense : 7
Pilot's Class Bonus : +5
Pilot's Dex. Modifier : +4
Gunner's Attack bonus : +4
Tactical Speed : 3,500 ft. ( 7 Sq. )
Targeting Systems Bonus : +5
Hardness : 40
Hit Dice : 1,000D20 ( 20,000 HP )
Cargo Capacity : 200,000 Tons
Base Purchase DC : 85
Restriction : Military ( +3 )
Attack :
12 Twin Heavy Mass Cannons +5 Ranged ( 15D12 / 19-20 )
Missile Rack ( 16 Missiles ) -3 Ranged ( 6D12 / 19-20 ) CHE
or ( 16D8 / 20 ) Nuclear
Attacks of Opportunity :
Point Defense System +5 Ranged ( 5D10x2 ) ( 504 Rail Cannons )
Design Specifications :
Engines : Thrusters, Jump Drives
Armor : Neutronite
Defense Systems : Improved Damage Control ( 6D10 ), Point Defense
System, Moderate Fortification, Radiation Shielding.
Sensors : Class III Sensor System, Improved Targeting System
Communications : Drivesat Comm Array, Mass Tranceiver
Weapons : 24 Heavy Mass Cannons, 2 Missile Racks ( CHE or Nuclear ).
Just thought I'd throw my 2 cubits in....
Cylon Centurion Type II: CR 4; Medium construct; HD 4d10+20; hp ; Mas —; Init +; Spd 30 ft.; Defense 18 (+2 Dex, +6 equipment), touch 12, flatfooted 10; BAB +0; Grp +2; Atk +6 melee (1d4+6 slashing, claws) or +2 ranged (2d10, Cannon) or +2 (4d8, machine guns); FS 5 ft. by 5 ft.; Reach 5 ft.; SQ construct traits, critical systems, darkvision 60 ft.; AL Cylon Empire; SV Fort +0, Ref +2, Will +0; AP 0; Rep +0; Str 22, Dex 15, Con —, Int 10, Wis 10, Cha 5.
Skills: Climb +10, Jump +10, Listen +4, Move Silently +6, Spot +4.
Feats: Advanced Firearms Proficiency, Personal Firearms Proficiency.
Equipment: Two Cannons (A, 110 ft, 200 rounds each), Four Fire-linked Machine Guns (A, 100 ft, 1000 rounds each).
The Cylon Centurion Type II has the following systems and accessories:
Frame: Biodroid.
Locomotion: Legs (2, speed-enhanced).
Manipulators: Claws (2).
Armor: Alumisteel armor.
Sensors: Class V sensor system (with ladar).
Skill Software: Climb skill progit (4 ranks), Jump skill progit (4 ranks), Listen skill progit (4 ranks), Move Silently skill progit (4 ranks), Spot skill progit (4 ranks).
Feat Software: Advanced Firearms Proficiency progit, Personal Firearms Proficiency progit.
Ability Upgrades: Dexterity upgrade (+4), Strength Upgrade (+12).
When I did the stats for Galactica, I had 24 turrets but divded them up in batteries so every thing would fit. The batteries were the four quad-batteries on the dorsal and ventral surfaces and the other two are two side turrets and two of the front turrets each.
This is what I'd posted earlier.
Colonial Battlestar (PL 6)
Type: Superheavy
Subtype: battlestar
Size: Colossal (–8 size)
Length: 4,640 feet
Weight: 500,000 tons
Crew: 3,000 (expert +8)
Passenger Capacity: 2,000
Cargo Capacity: 38,250 tons
Tactical Speed: 3,000 ft. (6 sq.)
Defense: 11
Flat-footed Defense: 7
Autopilot Defense: 7
Hardness: 40
Hit Dice: 1,200d20 (24,000 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +6
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +5
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +4
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +4
Targeting System Bonus:+3
Grapple Modifier: +16
Base Purchase DC: 72
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 6 fire-linked batteries of 4 Heavy Cannon Turrets -1 ranged (32d8) and
1 Nuclear Missile Launcher with 20 Nuclear Missiles -6 ranged (60d10) or
6 fire-linked batteries of 4 Heavy Cannon Turrets -1/-6 ranged (32d8).
Attack of Opportunity: Point-defense system +3 ranged (5d12
As for the galactica's weapons, I've seen the pictures where you can clearly count the 24 twin barrelled turrets; 2 batteries of 4 turrets on the top, 2 batteries of 4 turrets on the bottom, 2 batteries of 4 turrets underside port, and 2 batteries of 4 turrets underside starbord.
However, after watching Ressurection Ship, I am beginning to think that they are actually some sort of rocket assisted railgun, or railgun assisted missile launcher... I'm not sure what to call them... but I am thinking of statting them as antiship missile launchers... I'm going to play around with the new starship construction rules in D20 Future Tech tonight, and see what I can come up with.
http://www.battlestarwiki.org/wiki/Image:Cylon_Centurion_New_001.jpg
With the Galactica, I just called the 24 turrets "Heavy Cannon Turrets," nice and ambiguous. :D
As for the people in fragged being scared, I think that had more to do with the fact they they were'nt combat troops more than anything else... Cheif and cally are technicians, Baltar is a frakkin civilian and even the LT hadn't done a ground assault since basic training, and NONE of them had ever fought a real Cylon before. I know that if my Navy buddies and I had been in that same position, we'd be scared out of our minds too.
Well Im off to paly with Future Tech... Ill post anything that might be worth looking at.
I just saw the Battlestar Galactica mini-series for the first time a few days ago, and I thought, "Gee... I wonder if there's any d20 info on Battlestar?" And lo, and behold -- I found this thread. Fantastic stuff so far, guys. I'm very impressed with the quality and sheer amount of good stuff. I'll be keeping an eye on this thread...
Steve-Oi've just started a d20 battlestar campaign, inspired by this thread.
I think the timeline of leaving kobol, the colonisation of the twelve worlds und the 13th tribe is a bit complicated, but the travelling time between this destinations might be the reason, we it doesn't seem to fit...
I wonder if there might be a reason why there are 12 cylon modells and twelve colonies... would there be a 13th model?
The god of the cylons seems to be a overmind-network with an AI like Skynet in Terminator...
I might be false cause i've only seen the first three episodes of the new galactica series...
Oh, and the Crossbreed baby which we have mentioned here from time to time has already displayed curative powers (its blood healed the president of her terminal illness in episode 212... to think they were going to terminate boomers pregnancy! so we only have a hint at what else this new cross species properties have! can't wait...
Just a thought . . . (though not a very pretty one).
I agree that the halfbreeds and the infiltrators are better versions of humans, because i think they are genetic maximized humans. In game terms i would give the infiltrators the highest ability scores, that humans can reach, but only for the body stats and not for the mental stats: STR 18, DEX 18, KON 18, maybe INT 18, because they are fast-learners... but WIS like a child and CHA 10 like bioreplicas. I would tend to give them maximum HP each level, because they have good health and maybe immune to diseases and toxins, in fact of genetic engeneering... but what i meant to say was that they are only humans, no robots... possibly they have the minds of robots...
But i think there must be a kind of overmind or master of the cylons too. This must be their god...
and i don't like the imagination, that the infiltrators have a higher position than the cylon robots and possibly are their commanders... they are infiltrators and thats their job, not more, not less... they are AIs, so its possible that they like their bodys and test them, so that babys are inevitable...
In some way this is ironic, because the humans build the cylons and the cylons build humans... and maybe this cylonbuild humans will rebell against their creators, like the cylons rebelled theirs...
Onco-Guard: One of the most beneficial discoveries to come out of nanotechnology, onco-guard nanoviruses treat and stave off the effects of cancer. Though not the “cure for cancer” that 20th century scientists so voraciously sought, onco-guard attacks and contains cancerous cells. Additionally, onco-guard prevents a character from developing cancer while the nanites remain in the bloodstream, either in their active or inert states. A character injected with onco-guard recovers from any negative effects of cancer almost immediately and is immune to further developments of the disease for 2d6 months.
Well, I'm not sure what the Cylons have planned for the hybrid, but as far as its cancer curing abilities, it sounds an awful lot like this Internal Nano Colony from the Scientific Engineering section of the D20 Future SRD:
Onco-Guard: One of the most beneficial discoveries to come out of nanotechnology, onco-guard nanoviruses treat and stave off the effects of cancer. Though not the “cure for cancer” that 20th century scientists so voraciously sought, onco-guard attacks and contains cancerous cells. Additionally, onco-guard prevents a character from developing cancer while the nanites remain in the bloodstream, either in their active or inert states. A character injected with onco-guard recovers from any negative effects of cancer almost immediately and is immune to further developments of the disease for 2d6 months.[/QUOTE
hey everybody,
(Jeez, i sound just like that doctor on the Simpsons!?! Frightening!) Great ideas on the cylons, just a quick question (or two), when is the pdf gonna be available? And is future tech worth buying?
). I need to check over everything first though.AS for future Tech... If you are interested in building robots, mecha, or starships, or the gadget system for weapons and armor, then its definitely worth picking up.
Number Six (Caprica Copy): female Charismatic Hero 5/Dedicated Hero 3/Fast Hero 4;
CR 13; medium cylon infiltrator; HD 5d8+10 plus 3d6+6 plust 4d6+8; hp 80; Mas 15;
Init +6 (+2 Dex, +4 Improved Init); Spd 30 ft.; Def 21, touch 21, flat-footed 19; BAB
+7; Grp +11; Atk +11 melee (1d4+4) or +5 ranged (2d6, Pistol); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 11; Rep +3; Wealth +8; SV Fort +8, Ref +10, Will +6; Str 18, Dex 15, Con 15, Int 15, Wis 14, Cha 20.
Starting Occupation: Dilettante (Intimidate is a class skill).
Skills and Feats: Balance +13, Bluff +22, Intimidate +21, Knowledge (Colonial Religion) +12, Knowledge (Cylon Religion) +12, Listen +7, Move Silently +12, Sense Motive +12, Sleight of Hand +7, Spot +12, Tumble +12;
Blind-fight, Combat Expertise, Combat Martial Arts, Combat Reflexes, Deceptive, Defensive Martial Arts, Dodge, Elusive Target, Improved Disarm, Improved Initiative, Lightning Reflexes, Simple Weapons Proficency.
Special Abilities: Captivate, Charm, Dazzle, Evasion, Faith, Fast-Talk, Favor, Skill Emphasis, Uncanny Dodge 1.
Possessions: Cylon Transponder.
Petty Officer, 2nd Class Anastasia Dualla: female Dedicated Hero 3;
CR 3; medium human; HD 3d6; hp 12; Mas 10;
Init +1 (+1 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 13, touch 13, flat-footed 12; BAB
+3; Grp +2; Atk +2 melee (1d4, unarmed) or +3 ranged (2d6,
Pistol); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 6; Rep +1; Wealth +5 ; SV Fort +2, Ref +2, Will +4; Str 11, Dex 12, Con 10, Int 14, Wis 15, Cha 13.
Starting Occupation: White Collar (Computer Use, Diplomacy, and Knowledge (Technology) are class skills.
Skills and Feats: Diplomacy +4, Investigate +6, Knowledge (Communications) +13, Knowledge (Colonial Military) +10, Listen +5, Profession +5, Sense Motive +6, Spot +6, Survival +5, Treat Injury +5;
Alertness, Defensive Martial Arts, Educated, Gearhead, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Simple Weapon Proficiency.
Special Abilities: Aware, Skill Emphasis.
Possessions: various personal belongings.
Nice work Talos!
Although with the cylon infiltrator being a LA+1 shouldn't #6's CR be 13?
Otherwise, they look great!
Anyone? Anyone? Beuller? ;)
Hmmm no feedback?
Anyone? Anyone? Beuller? ;)
Bwahaha I even heard Ben Stien's monodrone.
Converting the ships into mechs is an interesting idea. It allows a more literal translation from the show.
The d20 future rules for starships are very easy, i've tested them to build the starships from wing commander and must say that they work well.
Finished Roslin.
Laura Roslin: female Charismatic Hero 3/Dedicated Hero 4/Politician 5;
CR 12; medium human; HD 12d6+12; hp 60; Mas 13;
Init +0 (+0 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 16, touch 16, flat-footed 16; BAB
+5; Grp +5; Atk +5 melee (1d4, unarmed) or +1 ranged (2d6,
Pistol); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 12; Rep +10, Wealth +13; SV Fort +8, Ref +6, Will +8; Str 10, Dex 11, Con 13,
Int 18, Wis 15, Cha 17.
Starting Occupation: Academic (Knowledge (Civics), Knowledge (Theology), and Research are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Bluff +20, Diplomacy +20, Gather Information +15, Intimidate +20, Investigate +11, Knowledge (Civics) +22, Knowledge (Theology) +22, Listen +8, Profession +7, Research +21, Search +9, Sense Motive +19;
Attentive, Confident, Deceptive, Educated, Iron Will, Renown, Simple Weapon Proficiency, Studious, Trustworthy.
Special Abilities: Conceal Motive, Coordinate, Faith, Information Access, Inspiration, Empathy, Royalty, Skill Emphasis, Unlimited Access, Winning Smile.
Possessions: Various Personal Possessions, Copy of Sacred Scrolls.
Our galaxy has around 400.000.000.000 stars, 0,1% of them have the potential for water or even life...
This means the chance for the galactica to find water in the water episode was 1 to 1000... that's a bad truth...
Of course, the easy thing to do is create the standard rules first, with ships as ships. Then, for people who like to add a little flavor to their game, add a mecha variant.
Hmmm good point, and if folks are using the advanced starship combat rules, using mecha scale for starfighters just complicates things further...
Still... I think there is some potential here... but It means tweaking some rules, and I'm way past that stage of the game.
Talos, Great work on President Roslin! I'll add her to the doc tonight. Then all I have left is formatting chapter 6, 7, 8 and 9.
Colonial Fleet
More Vipers
And some non-BSG stuff for fun
the star carrier has stats for a 3,000 feet long starship, the galactica is about 4,640 feet long. So i think we have to use the "rule of three" and calculate the stats for a ship of the new size, based on the star carrier.
For the weapons i've found these detailled pics of the galactica, where you can see all turrets:
Galactica Pic 1
Galactica Pic 2
Galactica Pic 3
Galactica Pic 4
Galactica Pic 5
Galactica Pic 6
Galactica Pic 7
Galactica Pic 8
Galactica Pic 9
Galactica Pic 10
Galactica Pic 11
Here's my version of the Galactica:
BATTLESTAR (PL 6)
In addition to its normal cargo capacity, a battlestar can hold 110 fighters. Its listed crew complement does not include the ace pilots who fly these fighter craft. (Pilots count against the passenger capacity.) A battlestar can deploy up to 8 ultralight craft as a move action.
Type: Superheavy Size: Colossal (–8 size)
Subtype: Star Carrier Tactical Speed: 3,000 ft. (6 sq.)
Defense: 11 Length: 4,640 feet
Flat-footed Defense: 7 Weight: 928,000 tons
Autopilot Defense: 2 Targeting System Bonus: +3
Hardness: 30 Crew: 3,712 (expert +8)
Hit Dice: 1,550W20(31,000 hp) Passenger Capacity: 928
Initiative Modifier: +6 Cargo Capacity: 310,000 tons
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +5 Grapple Modifier: +16
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +4 Base Purchase DC: 80
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +4 Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 6 Batteries of 4 Dual Autofire Gaus Guns +2 (12d12/19-20) and 1 Nuclear Missile Launcher -6 (16d8/19-20)
Attack of Opportunity: Point-defense system +3 ranged (5d12
Oh and for those who were curious, even though we aren't using the "mecha as starfighters" idea, I did find an official answer about how many DSTs a mecha can mount over on the ENworld boards. According to Moridin, his initial intention was NOT to allow DSTs to stack...
Anyway, I am still working on the doc... It will be done soon I promise.
Anyway, I am still working on the doc... It will be done soon I promise.
[Homer Simpson]
Awww, but I want it now!
[/Homer Simpson]
I wasn't satisfied with the Viper Mk IV picture in my lineage chart a few pages back so I redrew it and have two new variations, one with the guns in the Mk II position and the other with Mk VII-like spread out guns. I also did an EW.Mk VII. I think all three came out very well which is why I had to show them off. :D I'm going to use some of these expanded Vipers in my campaign since it should start at a Fleet training base (The Corinth base on Aerelon that I mentioned in my Mk VII text on page 19).
Here's the pic
And here's the list, in no particular order.
D'anna Biers
Aaron Doral
Sharon Valerii
Simon
Cylon Sleeper Agent template
Centurion Commando-didn't finish
TOS Raider
TOS Basestar
TOS Centurion
Columbia-class Battlestar/TOS Battlestar
Colonial Destroyer
Colonial Destroyer Refit
Colonial Frigate
Colonial Cruiser
Colonial Light Carrier
Colonial Heavy Cruiser
Colonial Carrier
et al.
Viper T.Mk II
Viper FGA.Mk II
Viper EW.Mk II
Viper Mk III
Viper T.Mk III
Viper FGA.Mk III
Viper T.Mk VII
Viper EW.Mk VII
Early show versions of NPCs (currently are circa Pegasus)
I've been bored waiting for the PDF to be finished.
I am HOPING to have the PDF done by next week...
I am personally working on nothing for the upcoming issues and updates, most of the fluff work has been done as far as I'm aware, if anything else pops up feel free to contact me.
Take as much time as you need to get it right, its free and I'm not going to complain about a delay.
http://img483.imageshack.us/img483/8019/vipers25db.jpg
Also, I've been fiddling around, filling the hanger of the battlestar in my campaign.
The Mk VII protype is an early prototype of the Mk VII (duh!), it has the guns mounted near the cockpit like the Mk II instead of the later wide-spread setup. The Mk II Test Type is a Mk II modified to test the wide-spread cannon mounts for the Mk IV Variation B. Both one-offs will be rescued from the Cylon attack in my campaign.
Misc Viper Chart
One hour left 'til LDYB!
EDIT: Oh, and I updated the Lineage Chart
EDIT: Updated
I'm pretty new to D20 Modern and to Battlestar Galactica but I must say that I like this thread. I do have one question though. When you made the Vipers did you modify the base fighter or what because I am making a fighter like the Viper and I was just wondering? Nice page though! :D
When I rewrote the Viper, I just used the speed and HD from the base fighter as a baseline. The rest was based directly on source material for the Viper.
Then I can work on my 4 other writing projects...
I have finished the formatting and editing of the text... I am working on the Table of contents now... then I will convert it to a PDF and figure out how to post it on the web... I have had several offers from people to host it when its done, so I'll probably ask one of them to help me out. I've got a pretty busy weekend ahead of me, but I should have time to do this and be done by Sunday night. :D
Then I can work on my 4 other writing projects...
my offer to host still stands. I have 4 gigs of monthly bandwidth and only use 0.3% at most.
First is the Scorpion Mk IV Aerospace Superiority Fighter, a primarily atmospheric fighter for planetary defense forces, Aerelon in this case.
Scorpion Mk IV
And a hanger from the Corinth Air Base on Aerelon from my campaign. It's full of Scorpion Mk IVs, a Raptor, and a Scarab in the lower right-hand corner.
Corinth AB sub-terrarium hanger
<15 minutes 'til LDYB pt. II!
I am really getting frustrated... Curse my computer illiteracy!
Anyway, I should be able to resolve this issue today or tomorrow, and then I'll send the pdf to anyone willing to host it on their site. then I'll put the link(s) in the first post in this thread and viola! Done... until the next update...
Anyway, the word doc is a PDF now. I am waiting to hear back from folks who offered to host it, and when I do, I'll e-mail them the file so that they can make it available for download from their sites... until then, if you would like a copy of the pdf you can e-mail me at [email]wcanavan@comcast.net[/email] and Ill be happy to send a copy off to you. This is only version 1.0... if there are characters that you'd like to see stats for or ships or planets or anything else, please let me know here in this thread, and I'll add them to the to-do list for the next update... proabably in the fall....
Anyway,
I REALLY want to thank Talos and Jongluer as well as Tom Kalbfus1, Future Dev Guy and Intensity for their assistance in this project... I really could NOT have done this without them! I also want to thatnk everyone who came to these boards and posted their interest, support and constructive criticism... Thank you SOOOO much... I hope the PDF delivers what you were looking for, and since its a living document, feedback will not go unheard. ;)
Thanks again!
Bill Canavan aka Waylan Wolf
I'm working on stuff for my campaign now, story, NPCs, ships, locations, the whole nine yards. I'll start some of the stuff on my list at the same time. I just need to make the (much expanded) Colonial fleet stuff into it's own companion PDF! ;)
Thanks again and for all your hard work, Waylan.
EDIT: How does this look? It's something I've been fiddling with. Now updated.
Sorry to bother everyone on here, but I was wondering if I could borrow some information on here and convert it to SWD20 rules?
Well this thread is here for people to use as thye see fit... if you want to make a starwars conversion, then I guess all I ask is that you acknowledge us in your credits... since there is alot of information that we made up to fill in the gaps.
It's great to finally have 1.0 finished. Thanks for the opertunity to work on it, it was a lot of fun. The only thing I noticed when I leafed through it was on the Mercury-class Battlestar, it's missing it's gun armament. It has the PDS but about 36 turrets like the Galactica's heavy guns.
I'm working on stuff for my campaign now, story, NPCs, ships, locations, the whole nine yards. I'll start some of the stuff on my list at the same time. I just need to make the (much expanded) Colonial fleet stuff into it's own companion PDF! ;)
Thanks again and for all your hard work, Waylan.
EDIT: How does this look? It's something I've been fiddling with. Now updated.
Hmmm I'll have to fix that when I get a chance...
The Drawing looks GREAT!
The companion PDF sounds like an awesome idea too...
Hmmm they should have several batteries of anti-ship missile launchers to represent their main batteries, and several point defense systems to represent the flak cannons...
I'm not sure what I would work on for you now, perhaps info on New Caprican life or something...just give me a heads up the next time you need some fluff.
Congrats boys.
Not to look a gift horse in the mouth, but is it possible to "bookmark" the .pdf for ease of reference?
firefox and IE can bookmark the PDF (the one hosted on my site) directly. What browser are you using?
firefox and IE can bookmark the PDF (the one hosted on my site) directly. What browser are you using?
IE. How to I use IE to create bookmarks in the .pdf?
or do you mean placing bookmarks "inside" the PDF?
from the favorities menu, just like you would any other webpage...
or do you mean placing bookmarks "inside" the PDF?
Bookmarks "inside" the .pdf. There's such a plethora of information, I was simply asking whether someone could bookmark the .pdf so that our use of it would be eased. That is, you could simply click on a topin in the bookmark and you are taken right to that topic in the .pdf.
Sorry for the confusion. When I open a .pdf, it usually has in the top left hand side of the .pdf a tab marked "Pages." If you're lucky, there's also a tab marked "Bookmark." This is what I mean by bookmarking the .pdf.
oh. you mean a hyperlinked PDF. Yes they exist. But I dont know if the author knows how to make one.
I just call them bookmarked, because that's what it says on the .pdf tab. In any event, must the author be the one to add bookmarks to his .pdf, i.e., is it locked from others doing so, or can someone else bookmark it?
Enjoy! :D
I just wanted to say
:invasion: 
Thanks for the great effort! I've got my copy!
The pdf version is now up on my site. You can find it here: http://d20zines.com/html/modules.php?op=modload&name=Downloads&file=index&req=viewdownload&cid=11
Though I was never a realy huge fan of the series, I do enjoy it.
I've been spooking on this board for a looooong time, keeping an eye out on your progress.
Now that the finished product is out, I gotta say one thing: WOW!
This was a realy thorough job you've done here!!
The information itself is fantastic. About the only comment on improving it would be to bookmark the PDF to make it easier to get to the section you need.
That & I like the modified art you have on the site, like the mecha pilot image w/ the starfeild in the background (can't remember the page #)
Thanks!!
Cylon model 0001 se series looked like that robot from that movie red planet. Am I mistaken?
Thank you all for your work by the way.
I just want to say thank you for the battlestar galactica pdf files.
You guys are a credit to the D20 system. When i started playing d20 i was worried about not finding any new material.
Then this year i found the community boards and wow.
you guys make the hobby so much easier to play and run. I love the new Battlestar espacilly the psychological aspect of it. you see very little of the cylons, but yet they are always there.
evan my players are on here now posting and replying to threads. its a pity that there isnt s convention of sorts over here the Uk. Or that many places to buy the d20 books.
i just hope that you guys all keep posting and i cant tahnk you enough.
Ye Olde English Gent with a cuppa in one hand and chocolate hob nob in the other.
I am glad you all liked our work. I'm sorry I haven't posted lately, but I was down to the wire on my deadline for an article for WotC... I had been putting it off to finish up BSGd20. anyway, its all done now and I have time to reply to everyone's posts.
Talos,
Yes I used missile launchers for the main batteries... after seeing Ressurrection ship again, I realized that the main cannons were firing some sort of rocket that continued to thrust after it left the "barrel". That looks like a missile launcher to me, so that's what I used for the stats... Then I realized that the rail guns, gauss guns and needle drivers we were using all had a minimum ship size of gargantuan, and most of the vipers were only Huge. so I changed their weapons to fusion shell cannons... I might overhaul the weapons on the starships in the next update, but I want to hear from the folks using them how they work first.
Ghostwind and Nadaka,
Thank you both for hosting our pdf I really appreciate it. :D
Saurstalk and slingbld,
I don't know how to bookmark the pdf, but I did include a table of contents. I used primo pdf creator to make the pdf and tis pretty bare bones. I have a friend with adobe pdf creator, so I'll talk to him to see if he can put bookmarks into it. If so, I'll add those to the next update.
Rynhold,
I used images from all over the internet. when I was writing stats for the model 0001 SE series cylon, the first thing that popped into my head was A.I.M.E.E. from Red Planet. So I found an Image and used that... the Model 0002 is an image I found in someone's blog. The robot is from Half-Life2. the rest of the cylons are from the original series and the new show.
I put the link to the BSGd20 pdf at the D20 Magazine Rack in the first post of this thread.
Viper Mk I variants side views
Side and top views for Viper Mk's I, II, and IV
Ironicly I am too busy to actually run a campaing of my own. I sure hope everyone is having fun with the pdf. I hope folks will let me know if they run into problems with any of the rules... that way I can fix them in the next update.
I think I'm going to rewrite the weapons to reflect what we see in the show, like the Mk II has two 30mm automatic chain-guns, according to the BSG Companion. Oh, and engines too.
My flash drive got corrupted and I lost every text file I wrote things in thus the onslaught of side views like these:
Viper Schematic 1 (updated from last post, check out the new Mk II top view and new position of Mk IV wings)
Viper Schematic 2
Viper Schematic 3
Fortunately, literally a few days before the loss of all the text files, I burned a CD for a friend with the PDF and almost all of the text files from my flash drive. I just got the CD back and copied everything onto my computer.
Man, did I carry on. :D
I can't find a copy of the pdf. When I click on the link you gave in the first post, there is no link to the Battlestar d20 PDF link. Is there any chance you could re-post a link to the PDF document?
http://www.nadaka.us/battlestar galactica d20.pdf
I can't find a copy of the pdf. When I click on the link you gave in the first post, there is no link to the Battlestar d20 PDF link. Is there any chance you could re-post a link to the PDF document?
Nadaka's link is more direct, but I always have problems, when I try to create a hyperlink to his site... I am sure its due to my inherent computer illiteracy, but anyway...
to get to BSGd20 on the d20 magazine rack you have to scroll down and look in the sidebar on the right side of the screenunder "site resources" for the "downloads" link. click it and there is a sedtion labled conversions about halfway down the page. click THAT and Battlestar Galactica d20 should be right on top... I tried linking that page directly when I created the hyperlink, but evidently it didn't work.
Fortunately Nadaka's link downloads it immediately as soon as you click it.
href="http://www.nadaka.us/battlestar galactica d20.pdf"
becomes
href="http://www.nadaka.us/battlestar%20galactica%20d20.pdf"
Anyway, it probably just gained a fan. So that means I will be able to properly comment in this little thread. I don't have time to go over the PDF in detail right now (more important matters...i.e. Season 1 of BSG), but I gave it a real quick skim. So, I guess...
Good work so far.
Azisien, season 2 is airing on space (canadian version of sci-fi chan) right now, ALSO season 2.0 (no idea what the .0 is for) will be available on dvd later this month!!!
Really? I thought the stuff playing on Space was season 3? Then again, I am in no position to say, since I only know the series really from the DVD. Ahem, apparently Season 2.0 on DVD comes out on April 25th.
Because, I can guarantee that BSG is begging an rpg dedicated specifically to it, and d20 Modern/Future is in the perfect position to do BSG justice.
I think its great to see BSG as a d20 Future campaign setting. Wouldn't it be great if WotC actually did do a BSG book?
Because, I can guarantee that BSG is begging an rpg dedicated specifically to it, and d20 Modern/Future is in the perfect position to do BSG justice.
Well apparently wizkids got the rights to BSG as they are making a CCG for it... so WotC is unlikely to do a "Real" ;) :P
version of BSGd20.Really? I thought the stuff playing on Space was season 3? Then again, I am in no position to say, since I only know the series really from the DVD. Ahem, apparently Season 2.0 on DVD comes out on April 25th.
Here's how it breaks down.
Mini-Series
Season 1
33 to Kobol's Last Gleaming, part II
Season 2
Scattered to Lay Down Your Burdens, part II
Season 3
Begins in the US in October
This is how the DVDs are.
Season 2.0
Scattered to Pegasus
Season 2.5
(Extended cut of Pegasus), Resurrection Ship, part I to Lay Down Your Burdens, part II
Here's the wizkids page. They even cut the corners on the cards!
http://www.wizkidsgames.com/battlestar/
I actually pitched the BSGd20 idea to WotC, and I was told that they were not interested in obtaining the rights for BSG... That's when I decided to make it on my own... and I was very lucky to have Talos and Jongluer and several others help me see it through to the end.
Have you tried re-pitching the idea using the amount of viewership of the series as a basis?
I have to admit, I was disappointed when my pitch was rejected, but more for the fact that I really wanted to hold a BOOK in my hands...
not just look at a pdf on the screen... and of course, getting paid would have been nice too. ;) :P :DColonial Scarab Mk IV aerospace superiority fighter (PL 6)
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Fighter
Size: Gargantuan (–4 size)
Length: 32.5 feet
Weight: 34,000 lb.
Crew: 1 (Expert +8)
Passenger Capacity: 0
Cargo Capacity: 1,700 lb.
Tactical Speed: 3,500 ft. (7 sq.) in atmosphere/3,000ft in space
Defense: 17
Flat-footed Defense: 13
Autopilot Defense: 10
Hardness: 20
Hit Dice: 9d20 (180 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +4
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +5
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +4
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +4
Targeting System Bonus:+2
Grapple Modifier: +8
Base Purchase DC: 42
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 2 fire-linked 30mm cannons +2 ranged (9d12/20); or
HD-70/c missiles +2 ranged (6d12/19-20)
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: Voram VM5-A12 atmospheric-optimized engines, thrusters
Armor: Polymeric
Defense Systems: Improved autopilot system,
Sensors: Class III sensor array, targeting system
Communications: Radio transceiver
Weapons: 2 fire-linked MEC-A10 30mm Thraxon II autocannons (range incr. 4,000 ft), 2 Missile Pods (8 HD-70/c Lightning Javelin Missiles)
Grappling Systems: None
Designed to replace aging Mk II and Mk IV Vipers still in service with the Colonial Militias, the Scarab Mk IV entered service five years before the destruction of the Twelve Colonies. It was named after the Scarab family of pre-war fightercraft replaced by the Viper Mk I. The Scarab was based on the spaceframe of the first prototype Mk VII Viper, then also in the design stage. The Scarab's most distinctive feature is it's variable-geometry forward-swept wings which fold for storage, atmospheric reentry, and to enable the Scarab to launch in standard launch tubes on battlestar-type vessels. Unlike the Mk VII, the Scarab only mounts two cannons and carries it's missile payload in streamlined pods. The Scarab features wheeled landing gear for ground operations and also engines optimized for atmospheric-use.
Following a speedy design and testing period, the Scarab Mk IV was introduced to various militia units, beginning with the Caprica and Aerelon ones. In service, the Scarab proved low maintenance and was much cheaper to operate than the war-era Vipers. Eight squadrons were raised before the Cylon attack. The Scarabs were tasked for interception and Combat Air Patrols but also were capable of ground attack missions. They were stored in underground, blast-hardened hangers at most airbases so it is possible that some survived the attack intact.
Thanks Saurstalk!
I have to admit, I was disappointed when my pitch was rejected, but more for the fact that I really wanted to hold a BOOK in my hands...
Office max does print PDF's..... You could at least hold a book in your hands
I'd like something on par with D20 Future Tech...
Thanks Saurstalk!
I have to admit, I was disappointed when my pitch was rejected, but more for the fact that I really wanted to hold a BOOK in my hands...
Hello, I'm back. Seems like some of my predictions about Battlestar Galactica did come true however. Looks like Apollo (Lee) Adama did get promoted to Commander and he gets his own ship, but it occurs much sooner than I though, and he is in command of the Pegasus. I think its interesting that the shows creators decided to keep that Battlestar around rather than heroically sacrificing it in a noble attempt to destroy a Cylon Basestar. I think that the Cylons who invaded New Caprica are actually Cylon Rebels, that is my hunch anyway.
I have another idea that I'm working on, it is similar in some respects to Battlestar Galactica, it is the United States of America impemented as a space nation. Each state in the Union is its own separate planet, it is not anywhere near Earth. There is a terraformed planet called New Terra, and it takes place thousands of years in the future and about a thousand light years away. There are other human nations out there as well, as well as some purely alien ones. But all the forms and structures of government as well as institutions are very familiar to us. New Terra is the capital, it is a planet very similar to Earth, it has a 24 hour day, a 360 day year, each month is 30 days long and they have familiar names such as January, February, March etc. All the familiar holidays are represented on this calendar, and it is culturally identical to the United States. The interesting parts are the frontier area, these are the equivalent to US territories out west before they were organized as states, it has native life forms and cultures, and not all of it is explored yet. Just outside this area are some other nations. Haven't decided what they will be just yet, but that is just a summary. There will be more about this later when I start a thread on this subject.
Viper Schematics
Hmmm do you know how they are bound?
I'd like something on par with D20 Future Tech...
Office Max/ Office Depot both spiral bind.
The cost of perfect binding is just way to high fir a single book print.
Hmmm do you know how they are bound?
I'd like something on par with D20 Future Tech...
Check Kinkgo's also.... After I had the book printed out, I took it to Kinkgo's and for $5.26 (including sales tax) and I was able to have it bound in book form.
Azisien, season 2 is airing on space (canadian version of sci-fi chan) right now, ALSO season 2.0 (no idea what the .0 is for) will be available on dvd later this month!!!
I believe the ".0" is because they are selling the DVD for season 2 in two halves. Each one carrying about a $50 price (CDN - at least thats what my friend at Cinema One said). There is an import version (the american version) that has been released up here, but its carrys a whopping $65 price tag (per half).
From all the promo "Inner Space" stuff I've seen on Space, the cast/crew consider the second season to be two parts (the first part ending with "Ressurection prt2") - so I'm guessing some genius thought they should release season 2 on DVD in two parts (fracking ingrate! - hehe)
CP
Complete Season 2 twenty episodes, June-July '06ish
Season 2.0, December '05
Season 2.5, June-Julyish '06
Also, the US 2.0 set cost me about 40 USD (46 CAD) at Bestbuy. I anticipate the same for the 2.5. Now I'm mostly waiting for the Season 2 soundtrack, it's going to rock! :D
You can see the breakdown of everything in post #703 on this page.
I recently saw an episode of BSG on the Canadian equivalent the "sci-fi" channel, and within 96 hours went ought and demanded the people at Best Buy take my wallet in exchange for Season 1 on DVD. I'm currently in the process of watching it, somewhat religiously.
Same, but I saw one episode, downloaded the season, bought the season, and then convinced six of my friends to buy seaon one. Ah, the wonders of good TV.
BTW, somebody might want to spell check the PDF, I noticed several instances of 500 foot cubes isntead of 5000 foot cubes in the advanced combat section. I couldn't tell if this was a change in scale, or a transcription. Otherwise that is some really good work.
Of course, I'd buy it.
Same, but I saw one episode, downloaded the season, bought the season, and then convinced six of my friends to buy seaon one. Ah, the wonders of good TV.
BTW, somebody might want to spell check the PDF, I noticed several instances of 500 foot cubes isntead of 5000 foot cubes in the advanced combat section. I couldn't tell if this was a change in scale, or a transcription. Otherwise that is some really good work.
Hmm all references to 500' should read 5,000' in the starship combat section. I'll fix that in the next update.
I borrowed the 'Infiltrator Cylon' race for my own game.
just an FYI, Talos wrote the stats for the Cylon Infiltrator "species".
Cool!
just an FYI, Talos wrote the stats for the Cylon Infiltrator "species".
When do we get to see it. :D
Here is a table of weapons since I felt that we needed custom weapons for BSG.
The MEC-A6 is from the BSG: Compendium as is the HD-70, I just extrapolated from there.
BSG Weapon Table
From top to bottom, they are carried by the
MEC-A2 Viper Mk I
MEC-A3 Viper Mk III
MEC-A5 Viper Mk IV
MEC-A6 Viper Mk II
MEC-A10 Viper Mk VII
SEC-A3 Viper Mk III (small secondary weapon)
HD-60 Various Cylon war ships
HD-70 Various Cylon attack and Exodus ships
Mk III Tac Nuke Viper N.Mk I
I also have some custom engines and will also be adding boosters to the Vipers. I figure the character blocks I've done so far represent the chracters at about Pegasus. I'll do some circa the Mini-series or 33. For instance, Starbuck would be about level 6 or 7, Cally level 1 or 2, and Boomer level 2 or 3. Speaking of Boomer, I'll do a version of Number Eight (Boomer for the people who haven't seen Downloaded yet) on par with the other agents (level 12) but the sleeper agent will remain about where she is, level-wise. I'll also do the other four Cylons too.
I'm probably forgetting something, if I think about it I'll add it.
EDIT: Oh yeah, the engine list.
Voram VM3-D22 Mk II +500
Voram VM3-D14 Mk I +500
Voram VM3-D20 Mk III
Voram VM3-D14/b Mk IV +1000
Voram VM6-V08 Mk VII +500
Voram VM5-A12 Scarab Mk IV +1000 in atmosphere/+500 in space
plus I'll add the DDG-62 for the Blackbird
Woman; Strong Hero 3/Viper Pilot 5/Starship Officer 10
CR 14, medium human, HD 6d8+3 plus 5d10+7 plus 6d6+13; hp 131; mass 13; Init +4 (+4 Dex); spd 30 ft.; Def 22; flat-footed 20; BAB +17; Grp +17; Atk +15/+10/+5 melee (1d8+2 plus d4, unarmed) or +20/+15/+10/+5 (2d6, sidearm), Space/Reach 5ft./5ft.; AP 12; Rep +10; SV Fort +5; Ref +11; Will +13; Str 13; Dex 19; Con 17; Int 18; Wis 15; Cha 16
Starting Occupation: Military
Skill and Feats: Bluff +16; Diplomaci +7; Gamble +15; Intimidate +18; Navigate; Pilot; Repair; Sense Motive; Spot; Survival; Treat Injury; Tumble
Advanced Firearms Proficiency; Alertness; Brawl; Combat Expertise, Confident, Iron Will, Light Armor Proficiency; Personal Firearms Proficiency; Blank-Point shot; Psychosis; Renown, Simple Weapon Proficiency; Spacer; Starship Dodge, Starship Gunnery, Starship Strafe; Trustworthy
Special Abilites: Uncanny survival; Tactical Expertise, August leadership, Cool under Pressure, Aware; Tactical Mastery, Commanding presence, Action Trust; Starship Proficiency; Starship feint, Viper Familiary (+2)
Possesion: Colonial Sidearm, spare magasines (loaded); various personal belongings
Btw when is the next season coming out?
BTW, Season 3 comes out in Oct. 06
(can't wait)I'll help. I have some stuff I've done but I've been waiting until after the upgrade to post.
BTW, Season 3 comes out in Oct. 06
thanks guys for everything, I am thinking of running a bsg spinoff game called union&alliance
Two other battlestars survived and find out about peggy&galactica and are giving them as much breathing space as possable by blowing up cylons and will meet them when they ascertain the cylons are sufficently crippled as to not be a problem. This is set after season 3 opens. Critisim anybody? Ideas? Whattya think? Pretty lame huh? oh well it was just a thought.
:DOr are they, are SG and Atlantis still taking on more seasons in July/August?
Sorry I've been so quiet lately... I've been very busy with moving, and then I changed my e-mail address so I had to update my registration, but I couldn't due to the board upgrades, so I couldn't actually post anything until today... ugh! what a pain!
Anyway, I haven't heard about a spin-off series, but I think I'd want to either include material from it or create a seperate PDF for it, depending upon how much it is. I am finishing my latest article for WotC and then I think my freelance plate might have a little more room for updating BSGd20 to rev. 1.1... I know there are some stats I forgot to include, and some stats i want to tweak, for example I want to use the names and such that Talos provided for the starship weapons and engines, and there are a few new ships I want to add and some new characters... like the rest of the known cylons for example.
Anyway, I'll have a better idea of my free time availibility in a couple of weeks...
I'll help. I have some stuff I've done but I've been waiting until after the upgrade to post.
BTW, Season 3 comes out in Oct. 06
Know this is somewhat off topic, but if Oct 06 is when its debuting, do you happen to know when the Season 2.5 box set comes out? I missed everything on the TV and am forced to buy the DVDs to watch the series in order.
Well, that and the DVD totally trumps watching it on TV, but that's a whole other discussion.
Yes, awesome d20 campaign too!
I'm just slightly annoyed that they split the season over two boxsets.. a way for them to get more money.. but then they also might not have enough time to get all the special features and commentaries for the last half of the season.. still.. it's a way for the dvd companies to suck more money out of us, and we're quite willing as long as we get our shows
thanks guys for everything, I am thinking of running a bsg spinoff game called union&alliance
Two other battlestars survived and find out about peggy&galactica and are giving them as much breathing space as possable by blowing up cylons and will meet them when they ascertain the cylons are sufficently crippled as to not be a problem. This is set after season 3 opens. Critisim anybody? Ideas? Whattya think?
I think this sounds like a really cool idea for a BSG campaign!
I just googled the new series "Caprica"... Looks like I'll be re-writing a lot of chapters 1 and 2... and possibly a lot of the fluff in the starships section... Oh well, I'd rather ahve official history in the book than stuff I made up anyway!
new series caprica? first i've heard of this.. then again my access to sources of new stuff hasn't been high lately (damn work and real life stuff getting in my way of internet and lack of location to buy new magazines as well)
got any good links for this "caprica"?
Battlestarwiki article on Caprica (series)
I contribute to the site (same screenname there) so thanks for the complement. :D
just a thought (since i was reading on Battstar Wiki about Scar :P )
I already took care of Scar, I'll post him eventually. I have him as just a normal raider with a much higher pilot, dex, etc.
ah, kewl. looking forward to it.
in a bsg game i'm part of right now, i'm thinking of making a few other 'unique' cylon characters from the raiders and centurions, even toying with the idea of a cylon centurion squad or a couple of raiders defecting to galactica. would make an interesting situation when they show up, if they do.
I think this sounds like a really cool idea for a BSG campaign!
thanks for the support wayan, it means alot, and i enjoy the pdf immensely. Thanks everybody for a great pdf game! ;)
Oh, Kronos, I'll post Scar up later this afternoon, I need to go over and double check the numbers.
EDIT: Here's the finished Mercury-class Battlestar top view/counter.
Experienced Cylon Raider Type II "Scar" (PL 6)
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Fighter
Size: Huge (–2 size)
Length: 29.34 feet
Weight: 25,000 lb.
Crew: 1 (Unique +24)*
Passenger Capacity: 0
Cargo Capacity: N/A
Tactical Speed: 3,500 ft. (7 sq.)
Defense: 33
Flat-footed Defense: 21
Autopilot Defense: 8
Hardness: 30
Hit Dice: 7d20 (140 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +8
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +13
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +12
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +16/+11/+6
Targeting System Bonus: +1
Grapple Modifier: +8
Base Purchase DC: N/A
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 2 fire-linked kinetic energy weapons +16/+11/+4 ranged (12d12/20); or
2 fire-linked kinetic energy weapons +16/+11 ranged (12d12/20) and
1 missile launcher +4 ranged (6d12/19-20 or 16d8/19-20); or
2 fire-linked kinetic energy weapons +16/+11 ranged (12d12/20) and
2 fire-linked light kinetic energy weapons +4 ranged (9d8/20); or
2 fire-linked light kinetic energy weapons +16/+11/+4 ranged (9d8/20); or
1 missile launcher +16/+11/+4 ranged (6d12/19-20 or 16d8/19-20)
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: Cylon jump drive, thrusters
Armor: Vanadium
Defense Systems: Sensor jammer
Sensors: Class III sensor array, targeting system
Communications: Laser transceiver, radio transceiver
Weapons: 2 fire-linked kinetic energy weapons (range incr. 4,000 ft.), 2 fire-linked light kinetic energy weapons (range incr. 3,000 ft.), 2 missile launchers (20 CHE or Nuclear missiles)
Grappling Systems: None
*The Cylon Raider is a sentient organism that has no crew.
Mercury-class Battlestar (PL 6)
Type: Superheavy
Subtype: battlestar
Size: Colossal (–8 size)
Length: 4,381 feet
Weight: 750,000 tons
Crew: 4,000 (expert +8)
Passenger Capacity: 1,500
Cargo Capacity: 40,000 tons and 160 Vipers, 20 Raptors, 8 Shuttles
Tactical Speed: 3,500 ft. (7 sq.)
Defense: 11
Flat-footed Defense: 7
Autopilot Defense: 7
Hardness: 40
Hit Dice: 1,800d20 (36,000 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +6
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +5
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +4
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +4
Targeting System Bonus:+3
Grapple Modifier: +16
Base Purchase DC: 72
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 12 fire-linked batteries of 3 Heavy Cannon Turrets -1 ranged (32d8) and
6 Nuclear Missile Launcher with 60 Nuclear Missiles -6 ranged (60d10) or
12 fire-linked batteries of 3 Heavy Cannon Turrets -1/-6 ranged (32d8) or
1 fire-linked battery of 4 anti-ship cannons -1/-6 ranged (40d10/19-20).
Attack of Opportunity: Point-defense system +3 ranged (5d12
I'd like to see the nugget Viper Pilots like "Hot Dog" and "Kat" since they are what I'd guess many PCs would be modelled after. An interesting challenge for a PC aboard Galactica would be escorting the troublesome Ellen Tigh. I don't know if SGT Hadrian would be a viable character challenge after crossing Adama, but she raises the role of Master at Arms and Colonial Marines and the rank system they use. If it hasn't already been done, the other known Cylon Infiltratotors would be useful if their distintive enough from the base model to warrent an entry.
For resistence campaigns, I think Starbuck's husband could be interesting to see stated. Also while dreaming of NPCs either updates to season 3 or classic Galactica NPC versions for a Cylon war campaign would be fun. Granted the games focus is the re-imagined BSG universe, so understand that the Hatch and Benedict charcters may not be stated, but would still be amusing for old school fans.
That's the top of my wish list. What do you think?
Thanks for the praise! I want to keep reminding folks, that I didn't do this myself. Talos and Jongluer wrote large portions of the PDF, especially Talos with the NPCs... Quite frankly I stink at writing NPCs :embarrass , and Talos does a great job :D .
Talos, Thanks for the updated stats on the Mercury class Battlestar, and the Write up for Scar.
I think the best way to handle a specific Cylon raider like Scar is to write up stats for a robotic pilot... although using the ace crew stats is probably faster.I was curious if what was envisioned at this point is a re-write of the 1.0 PDF or supplements/expansions adding on to that work. I read in the PDF that d20 Modern is the only required book, with d20 Future as a recommended. So d20 Future must be an expansion to modern, not its own core rulebook? I confess to playing D&D 3.0 with SRD for the 3.5 and Star Wars d20 RCB with an enhanced ship cobat rules over at the message board there. I see that Modern is also available as a SRD but will get unwieldly if we are going to play this. The sytem looks different enough from Star Wars d20 as not to be easily convertable. I had hoped that some of that material could be mined for BSG encounters.
I hope to get the correct materials and see if I can convince my Star Wars players who like the new series to give this setting a try. Given that the current series is in transition to the new timeframe season 3, I'm thinking either the Cylon War era or the adventures of Battle Star Pegasus may work better until the current story is more resolved.
Waylan: You're very welcome. I've been thinking about the robotic pilot thing. Really, the most that would be needed is a basic skill list and feats. The rest of things applicable to the starship combat are already there in the block (pilot bonus, dex, class bonus to def, etc). The basic block so far is usable but I think I'll add some skills and feats to make him even deadlier for Starbuck and Kat. :D
We'll continue to post updates here in this thread... I'll edit the first post to include the new material... like Scar and new NPCs, etc... in the meantime, I'll have to re-write certain parts of the pdf once the new series "Caprica" comes out, and I plan to update the PDF at least once before the new season of BSG comes out. As for supplements, I don't really have time to write modules or anything like that, but I'd love to see folks post some of their own... heck I'd REALLY love to hear about BSGd20 games that are being run right now... I just saw that BSGd20 has been downloaded 282 times over at the D20 Magazine rack. :D
Unfortunately D20 Modern is VERY different from Starwars D20 and D&D 3.x... You'll definitely need it to use BSGd20... you would only need D20 Future if you want to use its starship combat system instead of the advanced starship combat rules, or if you wanted to create your own starships and modified cylons. If you know how to create (and advance) characters in Starwars and D&D, then you know how to do it in Modern, and you can use the SRD for everything else.
When the PDF v1.0 differs from the same ship and NPC stats which is taken to be current? Could you forsee using gameplay examples for notable of explanatory sceens from the show such as Kat and Starbuck versus Scar or how to play battles such as Hand of God? Over at the Star Wars d20 message board an author used a revised version of the game to relate many of the famous lightsaber duels in d20 terms, which was very helpful in better undertstanding these brief but intense battles mostly from Episode III.
I'm not finding much on skill synergy bonuses? Are these used in d20 Modern and Future? I believe Star Wars d20 allowed characters with 5+ ranks in pilot to gain a bonus in ranged attacks in vehicle directed ranged weapons? Do you play with these here?
As a test of my knowledge of the system, I tried to rebuild Starbuck and Apollo and probably due to my unfamiliarity had a few things not add up. I add notations for which feats were added by level, and explanatory notes on speacial abilities when they apply for quick reference as a Word document. I also add a customized stat block for the vehicles the Hero most frequently uses. Would it be helpful to post or send them for discussion?
Of note in my rebuilds, Starbuck seemed to have one feat too many and Apollo feat one too few. Again I could be off in my attempt and understanding. For Apollo I recommend adding Light Armor Proficency to account for his flight suit use. I'm also a little surprised to see Starbuck having a higher Strength score than Apollo? Both actors seem to be in great condition and shown working out, but would guess their scores should be switched? Yes a better brawler, but raw strength?
Prehaps it would be better this with Talos (assuming the author of the NPCs) in an e-mail if that is welcomed, but I had a few other questions or recommendations. I would recommend replacing Apollo's Athletic feat with Attentive given his not seen climbing or swimming, but conducting investigations and acting as an advisor or possibly toughness?
Both the fast hero and viperpilot have pilot as a class skill so would recommend for Apollo having Survival as a career class skill instead. How does Starbuck have such a great gambling skill? She is quite good on the show but it looks like a cross class skill for her, and would guess some of these skill points would be spent on spot, repair, computer use, and/or tumble?
Overall I really like the options this system allows. I hope that my feedback is helpful, and if there is any way I can support this project beyond encouragement please let me know. My players seem open but I'll need time to better understand the system and devise an adventure.
Starbuck is supposed to have 14 feats, 12 from class levels and bonus feats, 1 (brawl) from her profession, and 1 (simp. weap. prof.) automatically. Apollo has all the feats in my notes, I checked the pdf and it is missing the Armor Prof. (light). In the NPC master post I did a few pages back, you can see that it's in there. Also, the reason I gave him athlete is because we do see him swimming (Resurrection Ship p. II) and Jamie Bramber IRL is a swimmer so Apollo has a swimmer's body. That's why it seemed appropriate. Plus, I think Starbuck is a bit stronger than him outright which is why he is one point less then her. With Starbuck, the reason her Gambling is so high is because this is Starbuck we're talking about, you don't gamble with Starbuck because you always loose. :D
I'll answer any more you have, thank you for them though. I'm sorry if any of this is incoherant, you shouldn't post after taking medicine....
Feats: 1, 1H, 1T, 1 Fast, 1Adv, 2BCF, 3, 3T, 4BCF, 6, 7BCF, 9, 10BCF, 12
1) Simple Weapon Proficiency (1Fast)(no –4 penalty),
2) Light Armor Proficiency (1) (benefits of light armor),
3) Point Blank Shot (1) (+1 to hit ranged within 30 ft),
4) Action Boost (1H) (use d8s instead of d6s when spending action dice),
5) Brawl (1Adventurer) (+1 to hit unarmed, 1d6+str dmg),
6) Personal Firearms Proficiency (2BCF)(no –4 penalty),
7) Starship Operation:Ultralight (3) (no –4 penalty),
8) Improved Brawl (4BCF) (unarmed +2 to hit, 1d8+str dmg),
Starship Gunnery (5Free with Class) (no –4 penalty),
9) Confident (6) (+2 Gamble & Intimidate, +1 level resist intimidation),
10) Spacer (7BCF)(+2 Pilot, Nav, & Computer Use),
11) Starship Dodge (9) (+1 Dodge bonus to ship’s defense against 1 designated opponent), 12)Starship Mobility (10BCF),
13)Starship Battle Run (12) (move before & after attacks if sufficient movement in ship)
Special Abilities:
14)Evasion (1Talent) (if reflex save for ½, no damage taken),
15)Uncanny Dodge 1(3Talent) (retain Dex bonus flatfoot unless bound),
Starship Feint (8C) (+2 bluff check to feint in ship as a move action),
Evasive Action (11C) (once/turn if hit, if pilot check exceeds attack roll, damage reduced by half),
Viper Familiarity (+3) (6C, 9C, 12C) (+3 to Pilot, Repair, and ranged attack in Colonial Vipers).
Can we give Starbuck Gambling as a cross class skill as a Special Quality maybe? If not shouldn't she top out at 12th level with 15 class ranks or 7.5 cross class?
In order to calculate space combat I need to know whether to use the PDF's stats which have a MK-II Viper as huge or page 19 of this thread which stats the same fighter as Gargantuan. I'm beginning to think page 19 is the more current?
With the Vipers, yeah that was an embarassing mistake on my part. I forgot that the Mk I, II, and IV Vipers and the Raptor are all Huge while the Blackbird and Mk VII family are all Gargantuan. I'm going to update them all and post them here. I've done a quick fix on the Mk II but I haven't double checked the numbers yet. Here's the Mk II, it also incorporates my new naming for weapons and engines as well as a booster system.
First is the Weapons Table
Colonial Viper Mk II space superiority fighter (PL 6)
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Fighter
Size: Huge (–2 size)
Length: 27 feet
Weight: 39,000 lb.
Crew: 1 (ace +12)
Passenger Capacity: 0
Cargo Capacity: 1,700 lb.
Tactical Speed: 3,500 ft. (7 sq.) (4,500 ft. (9 sq.) with H.Inject)
Defense: 21
Flat-footed Defense: 15
Autopilot Defense: 9
Hardness: 20
Hit Dice: 8d20 (160 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +6
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +7
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +6
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +8/+3
Targeting System Bonus: +1 (post-war refit only)
Grapple Modifier: +8
Base Purchase DC: 46
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 2 fire-linked 30mm autocannons +7 (with refit) ranged (9d12) and
HD-70/c Missile +2 ranged (6d12/19-20); or
2 fire-linked 30mm autocannons +7/+2 ranged (9d12)
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: 3 Voram VM3-D22 engines with Hydrogen Injectors, thrusters
Armor: Polymeric
Defense Systems: Autopilot, targeting system (post-war refit only)
Sensors: Class II sensor array
Communications: radio transceiver
Weapons: 2 fire-linked MEC-A6 30mm Thraxon autocannons (range incr. 3,000 ft.)
1 missile launcher (8 HD-70/c Lightning Javelin Missles)
Grappling Systems: None
During the Cylon War, a need arose for a new space superiority fighter to suplement the Viper Mk I. The new fighter was designated the Viper Mk II. The Mk II was faster, had better sensors and avionics, and carried an expanded missile bay which was also capable of carrying ungided bombs. The new Viper proved itself on the frontlines, decimating the Cylon fighter forces. By the end of the war, the Mk II was standard equipment for all squadrons serving on battlestars and other large capital ships. In the post-war era, the Viper continued on for many years as the standard colonial fighter. They received an avionics upgrade after the war. It wasn't until around a decade before the second Cylon attack that the new Viper Mk VII was built in sufficient numbers to replace the Mk II in most fleet squadrons (The Viper Mk V and VI were never built in great numbers as they failed to show a significant improvement over the aging Mk IIs). Many Mk IIs were sent to the scrap yards but a few were sent to museums and test centers to be used as target drones along with Viper Mk Is. Some were sent to Colonial Militia squadrons to replace some of the Viper Mk IVs they had been using for at least 30 years. Several dozen Viper Mk IIs were sent to the battlestar Galactica to be placed in the museum of the cylon war located in Galactica's starboard flight pod. One Mk II, 7242NC, flow by Lieutenant William "Husker" Adama during the Cylon War, was rebuilt by Galactica's deck crew and participated in a flyby demonstration. The Viper, piloted by Adama's son, Captain Lee "Apollo" Adama, was escorting Colonial Heavy 798 which was carrying press and the Secretary of Education back to Caprica. The Viper was damaged at the Battle of the Ragnar Anchorage but was repaired and is still flown by Captain Adama on occaison (Captain Adama also flies his Viper Mk VII). The other Mk IIs in the museum were returned to service and served to repel the first Cylon attack on Galactica which resulted in the damaging of Galactica with a Cylon nuclear missile. The Mk IIs proved to be immune to the Cylon computer virus and formed the nucleus of the Galactica's fighter force in the post-attack period.
For Viper Mk IIs during the Cylon War, reduce the attack bonus to +6/+1.
EDIT 6/9: Replaced PR.Mk I pic
Colonial Viper PR.Mk I reconnaissance craft (PL 6)
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Fighter
Size: Huge (–2 size)
Length: 28.71 feet
Weight: 37,000 lb.
Crew: 1 (ace +12)
Passenger Capacity: 0
Cargo Capacity: 1,700 lb.
Tactical Speed: 3,500 ft. (7 sq.) (4,500 ft. (9 sq.) with H.Inject)
Defense: 21
Flat-footed Defense: 15
Autopilot Defense: 9
Hardness: 20
Hit Dice: 7d20 (140 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +6
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +7
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +6
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +8/+3
Targeting System Bonus: N/A
Grapple Modifier: +8
Base Purchase DC: 38
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: None
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: 3 Voram VM3-D14/b with Hydrogen Injectors, thrusters
Armor: Alloy Plating
Defense Systems: Autopilot, sensor jammer
Sensors: Class II sensor array
Communications: Radio transceiver
Weapons: None
Grappling Systems: None
During the Cylon war, a need for dedicated long-range reconnaissance vessels. Two variants of the Viper Mk I spaceframe were created. The FR.Mk I maintained the weapons and other systems of the Viper, only adding the suite of sensors and cameras. The PR.Mk I, however, removed all weapons from the frame and added improved, faster engines. While it is more vunerable without it's weaponry, the PR is faster and has a greater chance of evading any pursuers. The first PR.Mk I was deployed on the battlestar Galactica late in the war. The first operational craft, nicknamed "Cora," proved successful in combat operations and orders were made for more of the ships. While never very common sights, many battlestars supported a few PRs in their hanger decks by the end of the war. The PR was maintained after the ceasefire, performing it's primary role, as well as others such as chase planes for experimental craft, including the Viper Mk VII. The PR.Mk I was one of the craft replaced by the introduction of the Raptor into Colonial service. All PR.Mk Is were retired before the destruction of the Twelve Colonies forty years after the Cylon War.
Civilian Viper Mk I (PL 6)
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Fighter
Size: Huge (–2 size)
Length: 28.71 feet
Weight: 38,000 lb.
Crew: 1 (Trained +4)
Passenger Capacity: 0
Cargo Capacity: 2,000 lb.
Tactical Speed: 3,000 ft. (6 sq.)
Defense: 13
Flat-footed Defense: 11
Autopilot Defense: 9
Hardness: 20
Hit Dice: 6d20 (120 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +2
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +3
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +2
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +2
Targeting System Bonus:
Grapple Modifier: +8
Base Purchase DC: 30
Restriction: Restricted (+2)
Attack: None
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: 3 Voram VM3-D14/c engine, thrusters
Armor: Alloy Plating
Defense Systems: Autopilot
Sensors: Class I sensor array
Communications: Radio transceiver
Weapons: None
Grappling Systems: None
Years after the Cylon War, many surplus Viper Mk Is were stripped of their military equipment such as weapons and were sold to private individuals. These craft became popular with air racers and were widely seen in the air show and race circuits. Two basic models of the demilitarized Vipers were produced, one model retained the original Mk I wings. The second featured the new Mk IV wings. Many civilian Mk Is were still flying at the time of the Cylon attack. These craft lacked the Command Navigation Progam that caused the destruction of the Colonial defenses.
EDIT 12:30: Fixed Mk II protoype pic.
Viper Mk VI wip
Picon/Aquarian Cobra
During the Colonial Wars, the fleet of Picon was never very large in numbers. Realizing that they had no hope of matching Sagittaron or Caprica for size, Picon designers teamed up with designers from Aquaria to produce a large, powerful starfighter capable of deep strike missions, air defense, and other fleet operations. The design that the team came up with was impressive. It was a large fighter, capable of launching attacks at great range and also mounted up to eight cannons, four times the armament of the Caprican Viper. Missiles and bombs were also carried in underwing and fuselage hardpoints. The fighter sat two, a pilot and a weapon systems officer (WSO) in line under a canopy. Military representatives from both colonies were impressed with the design and orders came from both for hundreds of the ship. The fighter, dubbed the Cobra due to the shape of its wing and fuselage, was expensive but dominated anything on the battlefield. One pilot, callsign "Buck" shows this in his record. He was credited with shooting down over a hundred enemy starfighters, 39 shuttles, 72 freighters and other cargo ships, 4 battleships, 6 carriers, a Sagittaron battlestar, and 29 lesser warships. His record was unmatched during the war. He disappeared on the eve of the war's end. After the war, Colonial fleet representatives considered redesigning the fighter to equip its starfighter forces but ultimately decided not too, citing cost and size as the reasons for it. They eventually decided on redesigning the Caprican Viper as the new colonial starfighter.
Early Caprican Viper
During the Colonial Wars, the Caprican fleet aerospace forces were equipped with a primarily-atmospheric fighter called the Viper. This twin-engined fighter carried two 20mm cannons in fuselage mounts and had rocket mounting points on its wings. The wings were capable of folding for storage in hangers and ships. The Viper served in both Caprican carriers and land bases in all theaters of the war. The fighter was simply, tough, and fast. It proved up to the task of defending the fleet, fighting against the comprable Sagittaron Scorpion-class Warbirds and the much superior Picon and Aquaria Cobra starfighters. The Vipers served in every major engagement of the war. During the war, a new, short wing was equipped to many of the fighters, among other changes. This signified the change in focus from aerial combat to the space environment. After the war, the Viper was chosen as the base for the first generation of unified Colonial fighters. The Cobra had proven too expensive to produce in the numbers needed and would not fit in the launch tubes of the new battlestars under construction. Ironically, these ships, evolved from a Sagittaron design, were sized for the Scorpion fighter which was passed over in favor of the Viper. A prototype was produced of the new fighter, the most major change was the addition of a third engine to the design. For the first production craft, a new forward fuselage, based on the Scorpion, was mated to the engine assembly. This fuselage also incorporated a new, more-frameless canopy for better visibility. This new fighter was quickly accepted into service with the commencement of the Cylon war as the Viper Mk I and proved itself in service to the extent that 50 years after its design, a decendant Viper still guards the Colonies from attack.
Prototype Viper Mk I
Typical Cylon War Viper Mk Is
Viper Mk II Prototype
Viper Mk IIB
Scarlet Viper
Spectre Mk I bomber
Viper Mk I modifications
During the course of the Cylon war, colonial maintenance personnel and design companies regularly developed upgrades and addon packages for the Viper starfighters that equipped the fleet. Many Vipers featured, to some degree, ad hoc upgrades and modifications made in the field by the ingenious techs who kept the ships flying. Many of these were simple, such as fixing a jamming problem in the autocannon loading system or replacing the 30mm autocannons all together with the newer models that equipped the Viper Mk II. Depot-level maintenance often included more comprehensive modifications, such as replacing engines with newer models, reshaping the nose into an improved shape, or installing a newer, larger cockpit canopy that allowed greater visibility. A rarer modification seen was a defensive ECM suite that was not often fitted due to the rarity of the system. The factories that produced the Viper often later added the modifications along the assembly-line. The most extensive and famous modification to a Viper Mk I occured in the maintenance bays of the battlestar Rycon. The CAG of Rycon had totaled his Viper Mk I during a landing attempt after his ship was damaged in combat. Since spares and Vipers were at a premium, the maintenance techs decided to rebuild the ship, nearly from scratch. The ship's forward fuselage and engines remained the same, the biggest difference was the three forward-swept wings added to the craft in a triangular arrangement. A cannon tipped each wing, adding in the two standard guns that were retained, this modified Viper was one of the most heavily armed Mk Is ever. The CAG's Viper had been painted predominately red to aid in visual sighting by the Vipers under his command. He had this modifed Viper painted completely in a deep red, leading to the fighter's nickname, the Scarlet Viper. The ship was highly successful, surviving the war piloted by the same pilot and accumulating a large number of kills. It was said that Cylon squadrons would retreat at the first sight of this unique, red ship.This Viper was retired from flight duty after the war ended and it's pilot was promoted to Commander and recieved command of his own battlestar. It currently resides in the Museum of Flight in Corinth AB on Aerelon. A Viper Mk I upgraded with many of these modifications was equal in performance to the later Mk IV whose prototype was one of these modified ships that was further upgraded. The largest difference in the later Mk Is and the Mk IVs was the redesigned wing and, in many of the fighters, the wider-spread cannons mounted halfway along the wing. Many of the modified Mk Is were later modified into Mk IVs themselves, equipping squadrons in both the fleet and the planetary militias in the tight-budget post-war colonial military. The upgraded Mk Is and the Mk IVs served in the post-war years for a long time, flying alongside the fighter intended to replace them, the Viper Mk II.
Viper Mk I/Mod 1 Viper Engine Replacement template
Engine Upgrade: Voram D-14/a, thrusters (tactical speed +1,000 feet).
Viper Mk I/Mod 1a Viper Engine Replacement template
Engine Upgrade: Voram D-14/b, thrusters (tactical speed +1,000 feet).
Viper Mk I/Mod 2 Viper Weapon Replacement template
Weapons Upgrade: 2 fire-linked MEC-A5 Thraxon 30mm autocannons ( d damage, range incr. ,000 ft.; replaces fire-linked MEC-A2 Thraxon 30mm autocannons).
Viper Mk I/Mod 3 Viper Defensive Electronic-Countermeasures Upgrade template
Defensive System Upgrade: Sensor Jammer.
Viper Mk I/Mod X Scarlet Viper Upgrade template
Engine Upgrade: Voram D-14/a, thrusters (tactical speed +1,000 feet).
Weapon Upgrade: 2 fire-linked MEC-A2 Thraxon 30mm autocannons ( 9d12 damage, range incr. 3,000 ft.)
3 fire-linked MEC-A2b Thraxon 30mm autocannons (12d12 damage, range incr. 3,000 ft).
Colonial Viper Mk III heavy space superiority fighter (PL 6)
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Fighter
Size: Gargantuan (–4 size)
Length: 34 feet
Weight: 45,000 lb.
Crew: 1 (ace +12)
Passenger Capacity: 0
Cargo Capacity: 1,700 lb.
Tactical Speed: 3,000 ft. (6 sq.) (4,000 ft. (8 sq.) with H.Inject)
Defense: 19
Flat-footed Defense: 13
Autopilot Defense: 8
Hardness: 20
Hit Dice: 10d20 (200 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +6
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +7
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +6
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +8/+3
Targeting System Bonus: N/A
Grapple Modifier: +8
Base Purchase DC: 46
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 2 fire-linked 30mm autocannons +4 ranged (9d12) and
HD-60/a Missile -1 ranged (6d12/19-20); or
2 fire-linked 30mm autocannons +4 ranged (9d12) and
2 fire-linked 15mm autocannons -1 ranged (3d8); or
2 fire-linked 15mm autocannons +4/-1 ranged (3d8); or
HD-60/a Missile +4/-1 ranged (6d12)
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: 3 Voram VM3-D20 engines with Hydrogen Injectors, thrusters
Armor: Polymeric
Defense Systems: Autopilot
Sensors: Class II sensor array
Communications: Radio transceiver
Weapons: 2 fire-linked MEC-A3 30mm Thraxon autocannons (range incr. 3,000 ft.)
2 fire-linked SEC-A3 15mm Varix autocannons (range incr. 1,500 ft.)
1 missile launcher (10 HD-60/a Long Spear Missles)
Grappling Systems: None
Shortly before the Cylon War, Caprican spacecraft designers began independent work on a heavy fighter design that incorporated the lastest fighter technolgy. Although there was no contract at first, their initiative proved successful because shortly after the outbreak of the war, a contract was made for hundreds of the design, designated Viper Mk III. The Mk III was the largest and most heavily armed of the wartime Vipers and became a common sight on nearly all battlestar hanger decks. The Mk III proved to be a relatively successful design, after the natural small design problems were corrected. Except for a design flaw in the engines that grounded the Mk III fleet for a few weeks during the war, the fighter fought throughout the conflict. The only limitation with the design was, due to it's size, it was unable to use the launch tubes in the earliest battlestars and was forced to launch from the landing deck like shuttles. The Mk III survived for years after the war before being retired from both active and reserve squadrons due to the downsizing of the fleet after the Cylon War. The heavy fighter squadrons were either disestablished or became regular fighter squadrons after transferring to Viper Mk IIs or IVs.
EDIT: And a couple of pictures. I have top views for these too.
Viper Mk I Evolution 1
Viper Mk I Evolution 2
This is something I'm writing, its still a very-rough draft and isn't complete yet.
Viper Operations
The standard Viper fighters used by the Colonial military are capable of many different mission profiles. Vipers are deployed to both ground bases and ships, both battlestars and earlier carriers. Vipers are usually deployed in twenty-ship squadrons or ten-ship half squadrons. A full squadron is divided into 5 four-ship flights, each comprising two wing-pairs. The squadron commander leads the first flight and senior pilots lead the others. Ship-deployed wings also have an Airwing Commander or CAG who, depending on the ship, commands a squadron of his own or is not assigned to a squadron. There is not a comparable position in ground bases.
Vipers are capable of many different mission types:
Fighter Sweep: Vipers are deployed to clear an area of enemy fighters. This is an offensive mission usually used to clear an area before a strike mission occurs.
Combat Air Patrol (CAP): Vipers fly an assigned patrol route and engage any unknown or hostile forces they encounter. This is a defensive mission used to protect ships, bases and other assets.
Strike: Vipers are used to destroy ground targets with a variety of methods. This is an offensive mission.
Reconnaissance (RECON): Vipers are used to gain information through cameras and other sensors. This is a special mission.
Anti-ship: Vipers are used to destroy hostile ships, both combat and cargo. This is an offensive mission.
Surpression of Enemy Air Defenses (SEAD): Vipers are used to destroy enemy air defenses and sensors. This is an offensive mission to support other missions such as strikes.
Combat Air-support (CAS): Vipers are used to destroy enemy ground targets in conjunction with colonial ground forces. This is an offensive mission.
Combat Search-and-Rescue (CSAR): Vipers are used to search for missing personnel. Since the Viper is not capable of handling extra passengers usually, Raptors are deployed in this mission as well. This is a support mission.
During the Cylon war, a variety of squadron types were equipped with Vipers. These include standard fighter squadrons (VF-), heavy fighter squadrons (VFH-), strike fighter squadrons (VFS-), and light scout fighter squadrons (VFSL-). These squadrons are numbered based on the wing and squadron number. For example, the Vigilantes are the third numbered, standard fighter squadron assigned to the 1st Fighter Wing, Primus, to the battlestar Galactica. Vigilantes designation would be VF-103. Detachments are groups of fighter deployed to smaller locations, both bases and ships. A detachment from the 8th Squadron of the 4th Air Wing would be VF-408 det A. Terminators. In the post-war era, many of these squadron types were disestablished, especially as the types of craft they operated were retired. The heavy fighter squadrons disappeared with the retiring of the Viper Mk III after the war. By the time of the second Cylon attack, only standard fighter squadrons and strike fighter squadrons remained in the fleet. Both were equipped with standard fighters, primarily Viper Mk VIIs. The major difference is that strike fighter squadrons were trained especially for ground attack and strike missions, with fighter operations secondary. Usually one squadron in a wing is a strike fighter squadron.
Viper Color Schemes and Markings
During the Cylon War, Colonial Vipers were painted in a high-visibility paint scheme featuring a white or light grey base coat with bright-colored trim. The markings included the six digit serial code, the name of the craft's home base, and air wing patch. The trim marking were unique to a pair of the original twelve battlestars since the ships were first used in two-ship Battlestar Groups. Decades after the war, the fleet shifted to low visibility paint schemes shortly before the introduction to service of the Viper Mk VII. The new scheme featured a dark bluish grey base coat with both darker grey and light ghost-grey, low-contrast marking and lacked the trim markings which had all shifted to red during the period after the war when there was too many battlestars to individually mark all the Vipers by color.
The trim markings and there associated battlestars are:
Red: battlestars Pegasus and Galactica
Yellow: battlestars Rycon and Columbia
Dark Blue: battlestars Atlantia and Pacifica
Teal: battlestars Triton and Acropolis
Orange: battlestars Solaria and Prometheus
Green: battlestars Cerberus and Olympia
Black: major ground bases and reserve and replacement squadrons
And a pic of a late-war Viper Mk I
Cadet Louanne "Kat" Katraine circa "Act of Contrition": female Fast Hero 2;
CR 2; medium human; HD 2d8; hp 10; Mas 10;
Init +3 (+3 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 19, touch 17, flat-footed 16; BAB
+1; Grp +2; Atk +2 melee (1d4+1, unarmed) or +4 ranged (2d6,
Sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 6; Rep +2; Wealth +4; SV Fort +0, Ref +5, Will +0; Str 12, Dex 16, Con 10,
Int 13, Wis 11, Cha 13.
Starting Occupation: Adventurer (Pilot and Spot are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Drive +6, Gamble +3, Hide +5, Knowledge (Streetwise) +3, Pilot +9, Repair +5, Spot +4;
ConfidentLight Armor Proficiency, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Simple Weapon Proficiency, Starship Operation.
Special Abilities: Evasion.
Possessions: Flight Suit and Helmet, Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), Survival Kit, various personal belongings.
a recent game i ran, had a fight between a colonial battlestar and a cylon baseship, after the game, we were at a loss to award xp for the battle. Is there a way to convert the encounter into experience without having to resort to converting the ships to creature stats or not? If so, where is it located?
Hey commander!
I'm really sorry, but awarding XP for starship combat has always been a problem with the D20 Future rules. I'll have to figure out a good way to do this, but right now I would make the XP a story award equal to 1/12th of what the party needs to get to the next level.
Stealth Vipers
During and after the Cylon War, colonial scientists and engineers worked on various methods to develop low-observable and stealth technology for both Vipers already in service and ones still on the drawing board. Many of these attempts failed or were not cost-effective but some were. One of the cheapest was the use of carbon composites to skin the Viper. Carbon composites are naturally invisible to DRADIS, a craft coated in it would be very difficult to track. However, carbon composites are very fragile, a quality not desired in a combat vehicle, even one meant to evade enemies. Another method used is to shape the craft in a way to deflect DRADIS waves away from the reciever, effectivly shielding itself from detection. Unfortunately, this is a feature that has to be built into the craft and cannot be easily retrofitted to an existing design like the carbon composites can. During the war, the Colonial Fleet ordered a few dozen mixed Viper Mk I/IIs modified with the carbon composite coating, low-observable engines, semi-gloss black paint scheme, and removal of gun armaments. These "Stealth Vipers" operated as stealthy recon and deep strike platforms, capable of sneaking into Cylon formations and bases and destroying a target with pin-point missile strikes. Late in the war, top-secret experiments were done attempting to develop a small jump system into the frame of the Viper, vastly increasing the capabilities of the Stealth Vipers. One prototype was secretly deployed and provided intelligence data for the last major conflict before the Cimtar peace accords. This experimental drive took the form of a podded booster that was fitted around the rear of the Viper. Interest in the jump drive waned after the war and further development was discontinued, especially after the Viper disappeared on a jump, never to be seen again. Post war, the Fleet maintained a secret contingent of the Stealth Vipers, upgrading them with new technology and replacing units lost to attrtion. A completely new, designed from the ground up Stealth Viper was in development at the time of the second Cylon attack. The prototypes were almost complete and were in transit, in the hold of a freighter, at the time of the attack, bound for a remote factory on Canceron for completion.
Viper Lineage Chart
Hey commander!
I'm really sorry, but awarding XP for starship combat has always been a problem with the D20 Future rules. I'll have to figure out a good way to do this, but right now I would make the XP a story award equal to 1/12th of what the party needs to get to the next level.
Assign the encounter as a level, and then you divide the xp between all PCs present.
Much like Mechs, space craft are equipment that uses the abilities of the crew.
Assign the encounter as a level, and then you divide the xp between all PCs present.
Much like Mechs, space craft are equipment that uses the abilities of the crew.
You are absolutely right, but how do you determine the EL of an encounter where the PCs are in a scout and they get ambushed by a pirate frigate?
I haven't had time to sit down and figure that one out yet... although the authors of the new Edition of Starwars say that they will have a CR system for starships, so I am interested to see how they handle it.
By the way Talos, Great work! I think we ought to see about creating the Colonial fleet Supplement you've been talking about...
Viper Mk I production blocks
The production run of the Viper Mk I was divided up into many blocks. The initial production type, the Block 1, was very similar to the prototype. It featured the same forward fuselage as the prototype, sourced from the older Caprican Viper. The I-1, however, mounted a new generation of autocannons that were both larger in caliber and more accurate. The cockpit was also modified from the prototype with the framing removed from the canopy allowing much improved visibility. The Block 10 was the next production model. It had a new fuselage with improved internal layout and, again, a modified cockpit with a redesigned canopy giving the pilot more room inside. The shockcones that had been in the intakes of the engines since the early Caprican fighters, were removed beginning with this block, internal intake modifications accomplishing the same tasks. This is arguably the most famous of the Mark I models, due in no small part to its starring role in the popular show "Battlestar Atlantia," a heavily fictionalized account of the Cylon War shown from the viewpoint of the officers and crew of the battlestar Atlantia. In the show, the pilots flew unmodified Mk I-10s until the end of the war even though the same squadrons were in fact supplied with both Viper Mk IIs and Mk I-32s. Beginning with the I-10s, several standard modifications were produced. A new and more spacious high-visibilty canopy was installed on the Block 12 Vipers and all following production blocks were divided up in this way, the craft with the earlier canopy retained a block number ending with 0 while the Vipers with the new canopies were numbered with blocks ending in 2. A new nose design was also added on later in the war and was standardized beginning with Mk I-30/32. The Mark I-20/22 was the next major block produced and was equipped with uprated versions of the same engines as the Block 10/12 Vipers. A newer and more reliable autocannon also began to appear in both factory upgrades, on the assembly line, and in field retrofits. These cannons were also added to earlier blocks as well. A defensive ECM suite was also available and was mounted to the tail of the Viper. Unfortunately, the suite was expensive and delicate and was rarely seen but proved to be effective many times throughout the war. The next major model was the Mk I-30/32. The was the primary model in service at the end of the war and mounted the new engine model that was equipping the Pr.Mk I and other new craft. The I-30 was very rare, most of the Vipers being equipped with the new Mark II-style canopy, but some were produced. The I-30/32 was very similar to the twenty-series Vipers which allowed a quick entry into service, something that plagued its successor. The final major production model of the Mk I was the block 52. None of these craft had the earlier canopies installed. A larger cockpit was mounted in the fuselage with two windows on the canopy behind it being a distinguising feature. The I-52 differed from earlier models with its new angular wing design. Two different weapon schemes were designed with the craft. One had the cannons mounted in the same place as earlier blocks but the other mounted them farther out in the wing. Problems with the initial design delayed entry of the craft into service so much so that it didn't enter combat until a few weeks remained in the war. The few squadrons equipped with the I-52 by the end of the war preformed well, the I-52 easily equalling the newest production block of Viper Mk IIs. These new fighters saw heavy action during their very short wartime careers, participating in the remaining main fleet actions cumulating in the battle of Cimtar and the ensuring cease-fire negotiated there. After the war, the Colonial Fleet was concerned with the state of its fighter force. The Mk I still equipped many of the fleet fighter squadrons, as well as most of the militia squadrons. Many were worn out and maintenance costs were rising. At first the fleet desired a new fighter to supplement the Mark II and I-52. Post-war budget cutbacks prevented this so it was decided to keep the production lines of the Mk I open, continuing to produce it along side the smaller Mk II. The civilian government was cancelling almost all of the continuing production of wartime designs so it was decided to revert to buying a new design, officially. The Mk I-52 was renamed the Viper Mk IV and production of the craft, both newbuilds and modifications, began immediately. The Mark IV only had a short production life, production completing within six years of the war's end. The Mk IV was built in two variants, the models with cannons mounted near the cockpit were named Mk IVA while the spread, wing-mounted craft were called Mk IVBs. The Mk IV served the post-war fleet well, equipping squadrons both in ships and planetary bases. After several abortive designs, the fleet finally began to replace the Mk IV with the introduction of the Mk VII into general use. Militia squadrons continued to use Mk IVs for years afterwords, some were still in service at the time of the Cylon attack while the rest had been suplemented with the Viper Mk VII-derived Scorpion Mk IV. Postwar, the surviving block 5s were declared surplus and many were bought by civilians.
Updated Viper Lineage Chart
Viper Mk VII WIP
Viper FGA.Mk I WIP and weapons
Viper Mk V
Viper T.Mk I plus
I don't think your basic Cylon employs Psionics, most likely some sort of radio if that. Yet, things like Number 6, well she might have something similar to psionics but not quite there, and that's how she talks to Baltar.
As for the Priestess, I really don't think she should have Psionic abilities. I really see very little purpose for the Occult to come into play on BSG. At least not in an advanced class that is the basic advanced class. At best I'd say a series of feats that would allow a very small number of powers to be used, very sparingly throughout the day. I think even on the old BSG Adama's Psychic power was very very limited, nothing more than moving small objects across a table. As for the idea that Roslyn might have visions, most of it can be derived from the Eternal story in the Scriptures of Pythia, at least that's how the people on the show make it sound.
Psionics is something that would unbalance the world of BSG, and it just doesn't seem right to the setting if you ask me. If you still want to go with the Priestess, replace those Psionic abilities with anything really: healing knowledge, adding a bonus to other people's will save, etc.
Or you could think of a different premise for a Dedicated Hero advanced class, personally I have no idea what though.
I have some thoughts, I have read sci fi and fantasy for years and can think of ways to add it with out being over balinceing, Orccals for the most part or tool for understaing your self. So give them some ting like emathy, or some limeting telpathy. also it is ovies that the dr what ever the hell hes name is uses both medacon and religon to heal. is it well it cant make things worse, are is it that he knows that there are things that need healing that can only be done by a priest our a tharpised well he heals the body.... and about seeing the what will happen... that is porblamatic. as an ocoltist my self, I understand that you do not see the futcher but many, and how do you know that saying something may couse what you see to happen and a trained orical would understand this. thay may have known or supsected the attack, but eather where not taken seresly or feared to say any thing as it may have coused it to happen
If the scene has been deleted, then its not cannon. There was a scene where the Olympia had windows full of passengers before Starbuck and Apollo blew it up, but the producers thought it too grim, so they had a ship that was apparently empty. What makes the final cut is what's official I think, everything else is optional, that's my opinion anyway. Similarly in Star Wars, Episode VI there was a scene where the Millenium Falcon got destroyed in the final battle with the second Death Star. Remember the allusion Han Solo had about never seeing her again? But it the final cut the Millenium Falcon survived and that's what's official in the Star Wars Role Playing Game, we can use that as precident. If the Battlestar needs big guns we can give it big guns, the scenes that were cut don't count unless there is a later scene that refers to it.
I have to say that I agree. The BSG was to be truned into a monument and museam, so it does not make since for the main armerment to be removed. like what we did with are battle ships, thay still have there main armerments and combat computers rangfinders and spoter equemnt, in short all the gear neaded to properly operat the weapons systems. all in working order I maight add granted proble in the time in which the ship eather fought are was made famis.... but the ammo is unloaded, so to me it stands to reasion that bsg still has her main armerments intact and that she was loaded with ammo at the fleet ancerage in the mini sereas. if not what in the bloody blue blazes did she fire at the base stares in reserection ship part 2?
if it where me I would incloude both stats and let the gm chouse, also.. I think that it is posable that some of the outher battle stars may well have survied, and it is good thought for ppl how what to play the cylon war... anther think is that no fleet would have been made up of only battleships/carrers.... thay would also incloud frigits/scout ships, destroys and cursers,,, any thoughts on what thay may be like?
I don't think it really matters whether the technology comes from the BSG fleet or an ancient starship, though its probably better if it comes from the fleet as they can explain it, while with a ruined ship, they have to figure it out. The most likely place to find a ruined ship is probably the Moon or Mars. On Earth such a relic would quickly succumb to the elements. Even if the BSG fleet quickly downloads all their technology files on our computers, its going to take a while to get our engineers to understand this technology, and to construct the factories and shipyards to manufacture this technology ourselves, building capitial ships especially would first require the construction of orbital shipyards, and to do that we need ships that can cheaply get us into orbit. Vipers will probably come before Battlestars are built.
thow if I rember rightly there are suport ships and tenders that could help speed up the project, and engenrers would be farly easy to bring up to snuff are the new equemt probly well thay are retooling the facterys so thay could have a the factroys up in runing an 2 to 3 mo. and have the yards up in runing in 6
I have to say that I agree. The BSG was to be truned into a monument and museam, so it does not make since for the main armerment to be removed. like what we did with are battle ships, thay still have there main armerments and combat computers rangfinders and spoter equemnt, in short all the gear neaded to properly operat the weapons systems. all in working order I maight add granted proble in the time in which the ship eather fought are was made famis.... but the ammo is unloaded, so to me it stands to reasion that bsg still has her main armerments intact and that she was loaded with ammo at the fleet ancerage in the mini sereas. if not what in the bloody blue blazes did she fire at the base stares in reserection ship part 2?
if it where me I would incloude both stats and let the gm chouse, also.. I think that it is posable that some of the outher battle stars may well have survied, and it is good thought for ppl how what to play the cylon war... anther think is that no fleet would have been made up of only battleships/carrers.... thay would also incloud frigits/scout ships, destroys and cursers,,, any thoughts on what thay may be like?
Galactica still has her main and close-in armaments. In a deleted scene in the Miniseries, the ammunition for the main guns were destroyed as part of the decommisioning. If it is desired that a ship could be used in active service again, usually the main armament is retained, such as the battleship USS Wisconsin in Norfolk, Virginia. It's possible that the armament would be removed later in the decommisioning process. Galactica's ammunition stocks were replaced at Ragnar Anchorage in the Miniseries.
I've done some work on designing smaller ships for battlestar groups. So far, I've done work on an old destroyer, a refit, an escort carrier, and a frigate.
Galactica still has her main and close-in armaments. In a deleted scene in the Miniseries, the ammunition for the main guns were destroyed as part of the decommisioning. If it is desired that a ship could be used in active service again, usually the main armament is retained, such as the battleship USS Wisconsin in Norfolk, Virginia. It's possible that the armament would be removed later in the decommisioning process. Galactica's ammunition stocks were replaced at Ragnar Anchorage in the Miniseries.
I've done some work on designing smaller ships for battlestar groups. So far, I've done work on an old destroyer, a refit, an escort carrier, and a frigate.
Could I see the stats on the shups you have done so far?
The Quest For Earth is the default campaign, I gather. What more can be done? Detail the ships of the fleet. I gather there are 50 capital ships altogether, each one on average holds 1,000 passengers. Some ships are cargo vessels no doubt and don't hold many passengers, while others are passenger ships and large ones might hold as many as 10,000, though not too many of those as there are only 50,000 people. I guess we need some kind of guidelines on what sort of adventures that could be run. Typically in the series most adventures are internally generated from within the fleet or by the Cylons plotting. Planetary adventures are extremely rare. One of the goals is to find a new home or Earth, now if Earthlike planets were as common as they were is Star Trek, the goal would quickly be realized and the modus Operandi of the campaign would be over with. the typical Star Trek adventure usually involves a Landing Party beaming down to a planet's surface to encounter new life and civilizations, often encountering an alien threat of technology of some sort that imposes dilemmas for the crew of one kind or another, it doesn't look like this formula would work very well as the typical adventure for Battlestar Galactica, the moment they see an Earthlike planet, the first thought on their minds would be whether they can settle their, then the GM needs to send the Cylons after them to chase them away and keep them moving. The next encounter with true aliens will be the very first, if there are ever any alien encounters on BSG, they will truly have to look alien, no Fraal for instance. Mechalus or Aleerins would probably be relatives of the Cylons if encountered, Weren, Tsa, and Sheyeshens are fair candidates for aliens. Any alien planet discovered is bound to be a major even, Humans would probably find the Weren homeworld of Kurg to be somewhat less to their liking as over half the planet is covered with ice sheets and the rest is bitterly cold. Not sure how the fleet would react to their primitive PL 3 society.
I thought the officel count was 75?
Does anyone remember the dual-seat recon viper from bsg:1980? That could be the mkIII viper and have the bikes from it as well. Instead of being for recon, have it be like the A-10 tank killer. Weylan, your stuff and other peoples stuff rocks(as i said it before)! Everything i could think of has been addressed by this group(except what i added as a suggestion)and that blows me away, great job everybody. I do have a request,whenever drawings will be done could a drawing/schematic of the original BS Galactica be added into the game for those who want to add it to their campaign.
I sware by all the gods known unknown and makeing up a few just to cover all bases, and adding too that all that is holy...
plz in the name of the gods of my fathers and the goddesses of my mothers
NOT THE DAMNED FLYING BIKES
thought it was cool when I was a kid but now it is much harder to susped my disbleaf,,,,,, and throwing them it would make it bloid well impsaave
I sware by all the gods known unknown and makeing up a few just to cover all bases, and adding too that all that is holy...
plz in the name of the gods of my fathers and the goddesses of my mothers
NOT THE DAMNED FLYING BIKES
thought it was cool when I was a kid but now it is much harder to susped my disbleaf,,,,,, and throwing them it would make it bloid well impsaave
Don't worry, we didn't include stats for the flying bikes. ;)
Galactica 1980 = BAD.
You win the understatement of the year award, Jacemachine!
Here's your cookie.
Viper T.Mk I Production blocks
The two-seat trainer and multi-purpose version of the Viper Mk I was developed alongside its single-seat counterpart after its introduction early in the war. The original T.Mk I was mearly a Mk I with a stretched forward fuselage and a cramped cockpit inserted behind the forward cockpit. Most of the Mk I improvements were also applied to the T.Mk I, the only exemption being the I-12/22/32 cockpit canopy. The defensive ECM suite was very rarely fitted, but was capable of being mounted on the tailfin of all T.I models. The production model at the end of the war was the Viper T.Mk I block 30. The TI-30 featured the newest engines equipped to Mk Is, the extended nose, and new MEC-A6 autocannons. The T.Mk I was the mainstay of colonial trainer squadrons for decades after the war. They were occasionally refitted, mostly at depot levels, resulting in a multitude of minor variations between individual spaceframes. Most of the T.Mk I fleet was refitted with a new two-seat cockpit and canopy based on the Mk II/Mk IV design. These TI-40s equipped most trainer squadrons until they were slowly supplemented and replaced by new Viper T.Mk VIIs. The final model of this illustious family was the Viper T.Mk I block 45. This was a TI-40 modified back into a single seat design, equipment, electronics, and a small fuel tank filling the old cockpit. These were intended to be low-cost strike and patrol craft and they filled that role admirably, serving for decades on the front line for the first time.
The other ship stats aren't really ready to be posted but I'll work on them a bit. Here is what the preliminary designs look like though.
Galactica still has her main and close-in armaments. In a deleted scene in the Miniseries, the ammunition for the main guns were destroyed as part of the decommisioning. If it is desired that a ship could be used in active service again, usually the main armament is retained, such as the battleship USS Wisconsin in Norfolk, Virginia. It's possible that the armament would be removed later in the decommisioning process. Galactica's ammunition stocks were replaced at Ragnar Anchorage in the Miniseries.
I've done some work on designing smaller ships for battlestar groups. So far, I've done work on an old destroyer, a refit, an escort carrier, and a frigate.
is it just that the smaller ships for the battlestar groups not make the cut in the pdf.... I mean it says nothing in the sereas but it does stand to reasion that there where at least 4 times amay crusers. and 8 times as many destroyers and any where form 8 to 16 frigates I would realy like to see the wright ups for them. and thay are not the only ones who would see the usefulness of smaler ships as screaning scouting and patrol craft, but so would the cylons.... and I think some of those should have been taken into account now if I had accase to the ship creation rules I would probly just come up with armed vissirses of the dissarmed ships if nothing else thay would reflect the ships that suported galacia dearing the cylon war and as up grreads would not have been seen a proraty for them manly becouse thay are not as glmaeris as the battlestars.....
Anyway, at least one ship, the Adriatic is armed with missiles (Home Pt. I). I'm thinking something along the line of a heavy gunship, either a battleship or heavy cruiser for gun defense, destroyers for screening, torpedo attacks, and AA support. Frigates would be pickets and protect supply ships, like they do in modern day carrier groups.
All of that being said, just because ships weren't mentioned doesn't mean they don't exist, and that's where a Colonial Fleet Manual would come in...
The main PDF mostly concentrates on things that were actually seen on screen or at the very least made it to the design stage by the creative forces of the various TV shows.
It's that I didn't finish writing them. I've been kicking around the idea of a Colonial Fleet book with Waylan and at the very least, they would definately be in there.
Anyway, at least one ship, the Adriatic is armed with missiles (Home Pt. I). I'm thinking something along the line of a heavy gunship, either a battleship or heavy cruiser for gun defense, destroyers for screening, torpedo attacks, and AA support. Frigates would be pickets and protect supply ships, like they do in modern day carrier groups.
I was thinking becouse a warship would not be likely to do what comes is tantamot to desortion that what ever that ship would be would be an armed navy axelory are navey does not have them but thay would be armed marchant ships, and or patrol craft like coast guard craft
Well like it or not, the series is all we have to go on, and apparently Colonial military minds felt that a Battlestar and its fighter complement was all that was needed. They relied on the design so much that by the time of the Fall of the colonies, their fleet consisted of ~120+ Battlestars. No mention is ever made of any other types of ship... presumably picket ship duties were taken over by raptors and viper intercepts...
All of that being said, just because ships weren't mentioned doesn't mean they don't exist, and that's where a Colonial Fleet Manual would come in...
The main PDF mostly concentrates on things that were actually seen on screen or at the very least made it to the design stage by the creative forces of the various TV shows.
That makes since and I am not trying to be to crictacl I am just asking about things that I would like to know, so how fare is the fleet manual, and I would like to see something on what armed ships are in the fleet becouse as was sead already in home part one there are missile armed ships what are thay,...
and giveing that thay had problem with pirates what in blazes did thay fight them with ? that is part of my argument for pictict and patrol ships. I have been knoking around ideas for a esscort carrer but with out your ship cration rules I cant wirght it up, but I think it would have one standered squadron and some kind of point defence.... now I would think this would be no biger than a cruser so I dont think it would be big enofe to mount a worth wille main armerment
As far as designing your own ships go, I just used the D20 Future construction rules, which can be found in the MSRD online.
Advanced classes are sort of like prestige classes, yes.
Well all of Talos's posts for the last 6 months will probably end up in the Colonial Fleet Manual, but I haven't even begun to collect the data and format it, and I don't know when i'll have the time to get started on that.
As far as designing your own ships go, I just used the D20 Future construction rules, which can be found in the MSRD online.
Advanced classes are sort of like prestige classes, yes.
Columbia, atlantia, mercury which is galactica? and why do the latter classes have none of the gause cannons? and if thay lack thows weapon monts what in blazes did galactica and pegasics fire at the base stars in reserection ship pt 2?
Galactica is an Atlantia Class Battlestar... Gauss cannons were phased out in favor of missile launchers which have longer ranges and the ability to carry nuclear warheads... if you watch carefully, you'll see in the show that the "guns" on the battlestars are actually launching rockets/Missiles of some kind. you can even see the exhaust contrails as they stream from the battlestars into the base stars.
Guess I am just pregadiss agenst missels are atleast missels only becouse thay limit your combat induince, now I know that some of the ships have some manufaction capablaty... not much I know but can one of the ships make missels?
wornt all the Columbia class prosambly phased out and scraped?
Very few Columbia Class Battlestars survived the Cylon war and those that did were scrapped. By the time of the Fall of the Colonies, all of the Atlantia Battlestars had been scrapped except for the Galactica, which was destined to become a museum.
Galactica is an Atlantia Class Battlestar... Gauss cannons were phased out in favor of missile launchers which have longer ranges and the ability to carry nuclear warheads... if you watch carefully, you'll see in the show that the "guns" on the battlestars are actually launching rockets/Missiles of some kind. you can even see the exhaust contrails as they stream from the battlestars into the base stars.
That's the only major issue I have with the PDF. :D I still think they are cannons and not missiles or any powered projectiles. Bradley Thomas, a writer on the show has even said they are rail guns. But, to each his own, that's why my games use the battlestars with guns instead of the missiles.
Mike, the Galactica is Atlantia-class (although that is fanon and hasn't been said on the show), the original 1978 Galactica is Columbia-class, and the new Pegasus is Mercury-class. I've been planing an escort carrier for convoy protection and such. It's based on a destroyer and carries a defensive CIWS screen and a half squadron of 10 Vipers, 2 Raptors, and a shuttle.
EDIT: Oh, and here's something I've been fiddling with, the prototype Viper Mk VIII.
I'll see if I can make a weapon to fill that role and what we see on the show.This pic I just did should show you what I mean. The red marks a few of the heavy cannon turrets while the blue marks some of the point defense guns/CIWS.
fish
I sware by all the gods known unknown and makeing up a few just to cover all bases, and adding too that all that is holy...
plz in the name of the gods of my fathers and the goddesses of my mothers
NOT THE DAMNED FLYING BIKES
thought it was cool when I was a kid but now it is much harder to susped my disbleaf,,,,,, and throwing them it would make it bloid well impsaave
Dude,
what is your problem? It was just a suggestion, thats all. Question to the group: When is season 2.5 out? anyone considering adding the lords of light into the game?
Hey commander!
I'm really sorry, but awarding XP for starship combat has always been a problem with the D20 Future rules. I'll have to figure out a good way to do this, but right now I would make the XP a story award equal to 1/12th of what the party needs to get to the next level.
Thanks for the info waylan! It's great!:D
Question to the group: When is season 2.5 out? anyone considering adding the lords of light into the game?
i believe it comes out sept 19.. or was it 29.. i think it's this week... i'm gonna check the store thursday and demand a copy even if they don't have any.. by pen point if necessary..
i believe it comes out sept 19.. or was it 29.. i think it's this week... i'm gonna check the store thursday and demand a copy even if they don't have any.. by pen point if necessary..
It came out yesterday, the 19th. I'm getting my copy this afternoon.
Damn marketing ploy....I really hope they just release Season *3* instead of Season 3.33, Season 3.66, and Season 3.99. $*#@!
It came out the 16th here, I just finished watching the extended version of Pegasus. You got some nice subtle information about the setting there...and a fresh recap since I haven't watched it since...well...since a few hours after I picked up Season 2.0 ;)
Damn marketing ploy....I really hope they just release Season *3* instead of Season 3.33, Season 3.66, and Season 3.99. $*#@!
they'll probably split it like season 2, in halves.. has anyone here seen the webepisodes for resistance on sci-fi.com.. i can't cuz i live in canada.. stupid sci-fi.com
And I...it....the....just....
KHHHHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN!!!!!!!!!!!
Well Wolf, not bad.
I just wish, I found this post before hand. I am currently running an online d20 Future BSG game, and I spent many hours, many hours doing research to make the ships and such.
Though I do differ with you on the Battlestar, it would actually be a superheavy.
Here is something you might like to take a look at, I made a special Starting Occupation for the game.
Colonial Warrior
The Colonial Warrior is the basis of the Colonial Fleet. They are trained pilots and ground forces.
Prerequisites: Age 18+
Skills: Choose two of the following skills as permanent class skills. If a skill you choose is already a class skill, you gain a +1 competence bonus on checks using that skill.
Bluff (Cha), Computer Use (Int), Knowledge (history, tactics, or technology) (Int), Listen (Wis), Navigate (Int), Pilot (Dex), Repair (Int), Sense Motive (Wis), Spot (Wis), Survival (Wis).
Bonus Feat: Spaceship Operation (Ultralight).
Reputation Bonus Increase: +2
Wealth Bonus Increase: +2
The first time I tried the game, it was set during the original series, but my newer game is set in the current series, but I was too lazy to change the name to Viper Pilot.
I'm working on some stuff before the season premiere occurs so I should have some stuff to post soon.
EDIT: I think this is the latest version of the battlestar I've done.
Colonial Battlestar (PL 6)
Type: Superheavy
Subtype: battlestar
Size: Colossal (–8 size)
Length: 4,640 feet
Weight: 500,000 tons
Crew: 3,000 (expert +8)
Passenger Capacity: 2,000
Cargo Capacity: 38,250 tons
Tactical Speed: 3,000 ft. (6 sq.)
Defense: 11
Flat-footed Defense: 7
Autopilot Defense: 7
Hardness: 40
Hit Dice: 1,200d20 (24,000 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +6
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +5
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +4
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +4
Targeting System Bonus:+3
Grapple Modifier: +16
Base Purchase DC: 72
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 6 fire-linked batteries of 4 Heavy Cannon Turrets -1 ranged (32d8) and
1 Nuclear Missile Launcher with 20 Nuclear Missiles -6 ranged (60d10) or
6 fire-linked batteries of 4 Heavy Cannon Turrets -1/-6 ranged (32d8).
Attack of Opportunity: Point-defense system +3 ranged (5d12
Here is what I have, it is based off info from the BattlestarWiki. It's actually a Mercury Class Battlestar, like the Pegasus.
Type: Super Heavy
Subtype: Star Carrier
Defense: 11
Hardness: 50
Hit Die: 4,000d20 (80,000 HP)
INIT Mod: +8
Pilot's Class Bonus: +8
Pilot's DEX Bonus: +7
Gunner's Attack Bonus: +6
Size: Colossal (-8)
Tactical Speed: 2,000
Length: 4150 ft
Weight: 88,000,000,000 tons
Targeting System Bonus: +7
Crew: 2,250
Passenger Capacity: 250
Cargo Capacity: 660,000,000 tons
Grapple Modifier: 0
Attack: 32 Fire linked Rail Cannons (9d12), 5 Nuclear Missiles (16d8), 20 CHE (Solonite) missiles (6d12)
Attack Of Opportunity: None
Standard Design Specs:
Engines: Ion engines, thrusters
Armor: Vanadium
Defense Systems: Damage control systems (5d10), Radiation shielding
Sensors: Targeting system, Class III sensor array
Communications: Radio transceiver
Weapons: 32 Fire Linked Rail Cannons, 5 Nuclear Missiles (40 missile payload), 20 CHE (Solonite) missiles (280 payload)
Grappling System: None
After looking at what you guys have put down for HP, I may change it. 80,000 would be almost impossible to destroy.
Here is what I have for the Viper Mark VII
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Fighter
Defense: 19
Flat-Footed Defense: 13
Autopilot Defense: 0
Hardness: 20
Hit Die: 8d20 (160)
INIT Mod: +8
Pilot's Class Bonus: +7
Pilot's DEX Bonus: +6
Gunner's Attack Bonus: +8/+3
Size: Gargantuan (-4 size)
Tactical Speed: 4,000 ft (8 sq)
Length: 29 ft
Weight: 28,213 lbs
Targeting System Bonus: +2
Pilot: 1
Cargo Capacity: 250 lbs
Grapple Modifier: +8
Attack: 2 Fire-Linked Rail Cannons +8 ranged (9d8), 1 CHE (Solonite) missiles +3 ranged (6d12)
Attack Of Opportunity: None
Standard Design Specs:
Engines: Ion engine, thrusters
Armor: Polymeric
Defense Systems: Radiation shielding,
Sensors: Class III sensor array
Communications: Radio transceiver
Weapons: 2 fire-linked Rail Cannons + 8 ranged (9d8) and 1 CHE (Solonite) missile +3 ranged (6d12) (payload 4)
Grappling System: Hook and Tether
Now mind you, this is from the first time I am GMing a Future game, so my design may be a little screwy, but it's all lessons learned.
I love it when people use the BSWiki as a source since I help out there (same username "Talos") and its good to see all the work everyone there has done being used.
It's late so I'll go over them in depth tomorrow, but the major thing that sticks out is that the Mk VII Viper actually has 3 cannons, one is mounted on the tail.
Here's my Mark VII and Mercury.
Colonial Viper Mk VII space superiority fighter (PL 6)
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Fighter
Size: Gargantuan (–4 size)
Length: 32.5 feet
Weight: 37,000 lb.
Crew: 1 (ace +12)
Passenger Capacity: 0
Cargo Capacity: 1,700 lb.
Tactical Speed: 3,500 ft. (7 sq.) (4,500 ft. (9 sq.) with H.Inject)
Defense: 19
Flat-footed Defense: 13
Autopilot Defense: 10
Hardness: 20
Hit Dice: 9d20 (180 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +8
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +7
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +6
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +8/+3
Targeting System Bonus:+2
Grapple Modifier: +8
Base Purchase DC: 46
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 3 fire-linked 30mm autocannons +6 ranged (12d12/20) and
HD-70/c Missile +1 ranged (6d12/19-20); or
3 fire-linked 30mm autocannons +6/+1 ranged (12d12/20)
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: 3 Voram VM6-V08 engines, thrusters
Armor: Polymeric
Defense Systems: Improved autopilot system,
Sensors: Class III sensor array, targeting system
Communications: Radio transceiver
Weapons: 3 fire-linked MEC-A10 30mm Thraxon II autocannons (range incr. 4,000 ft.)
1 Missile Launcher (8 HD-70/c Lightning Javelin Missiles)
Grappling Systems: None
Several decades after the Cylon War, the Colonial military realized the need for a new fighter to replace the war-vintage Mk Is, IIs, IIIs, and IVs. The new craft, the Viper Mk V, failed to show any significant improvement over the Mk II and the design never made it past the drawing board and computer simulations. Instead, the Mk IIs were refitted with new avionics. Several years later, the same problem resurfaced and the radically different Viper Mk VI was designed. The Mk VI made it into preproduction with 8 prototypes built. Unfortunantely the Mk VI showed severe stability problems which culminated in the lose of two prototypes in a mid-air collision near the Corinth Air Base on Aerelon resulting in the deaths of both pilots. The Mk VI was cancelled after it was detirmined that it would not be cost effective to redesign the ship. It was another five years before another attempt to design a new fighter was made. After the Mk VI fiasco, the designers went back to the standard Viper configuration of three engines in a pyramid pattern and three wings. The sleek new design was labled the Mk VII and showed great promise from the beginning. It was faster and more manuverable than its predecessors and featured a heavier armament with the addition of a third cannon mounted on the base of the dorsal fin. The Mk VII entered production and became the standard fighter in the Colonial military. The Mk VII was first introduced into front-line service when the Air Wing of the battlestar Mercury, the first of the new Mercury-class battlestars, was equipped exclusivly with the Mk VII and the new Raptor-class ships. The Mk II continued for a few more years in the Air Wings of the older battlestars like the Galactica until the battlestars received new Mk VIIs. After several years of frontline service, a new Command Navigation Program (CNP) by developed by Dr. Gaius Baltar. The CNP was distributed by all ships in the fleet. Unbeknownst to anyone, the CNP contained a Cylon virus that disabled virtually all of the Colonial defenses when the Cylons attacked. The last squadron of Viper Mk VIIs stationed on the battlestar Galactica were en-route to Caprica to be reassigned when the Cylons attacked. The Vipers were shut down and massacred by a pair of Cylon Raiders. Captain Lee "Apollo" Adama flew a Mk VII (2276NC) to the Galactica for its decommisioning ceremony. He flew a Mk II during the ceremony and escaped the computer virus, although his ship was damaged evading a Cylon missile. Adama continued to use the Mk VII, which was purged of the CNP, along with several other Mk VIIs that travelled with the fleet to the rendevous at the Ragnar Anchorage and several that were down for repairs on Galactica. Several dozen Mk VIIs, the Air Wing of the Mercury class battlestar Pegasus, also escaped the Cylon attack. The Pegasus, and other later battlestars, have the capability of building Mk VIIs from basic materials and parts, allowing a ship to replenish its airwing if it is depleted.
Mercury-class Battlestar (PL 6)
Type: Superheavy
Subtype: battlestar
Size: Colossal (–8 size)
Length: 4,381 feet
Weight: 750,000 tons
Crew: 4,000 (expert +8)
Passenger Capacity: 1,500
Cargo Capacity: 40,000 tons and 160 Vipers, 20 Raptors, 8 Shuttles
Tactical Speed: 3,500 ft. (7 sq.)
Defense: 11
Flat-footed Defense: 7
Autopilot Defense: 7
Hardness: 40
Hit Dice: 1,800d20 (36,000 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +6
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +5
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +4
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +4
Targeting System Bonus:+3
Grapple Modifier: +16
Base Purchase DC: 72
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 12 fire-linked batteries of 3 Heavy Cannon Turrets -1 ranged (32d8) and
6 Nuclear Missile Launcher with 60 Nuclear Missiles -6 ranged (60d10) or
12 fire-linked batteries of 3 Heavy Cannon Turrets -1/-6 ranged (32d8) or
1 fire-linked battery of 4 anti-ship cannons -1/-6 ranged (40d10/19-20).
Attack of Opportunity: Point-defense system +3 ranged (5d12
How do you suppose a d20 Battlestar Galactica campaign would differ from your standard d20 Future one? For instance you roll up your characters, decide which classes they are, what skills and feats they have, then you get to the part about wealth and equipment. Assuming you start your PCs in the fleet. Do you allow them to purchase their equipment as normal before play? How about during play. Are any of the starships in the Fleet for sale? What about manufactured goods? In a fleet with the population of 48,000 people, I think its safe to say that many manufactured goods are no longer manufactured.. I think in some respects a Battlestar Galactica resembles an Apocalypse campaign, I think the rules for trade found in the d20 Apocalypse would apply, the main difference is that instead of inhabiting a ruined city and sifting through the rubble, the PCs have to make do with what they can find in the ships of the fleet. Somebody may have some equipment that the PCs need, and that person may be willing to trade for it depending on how much he may want something the PCs got. Civilization has not fallen, but such a small community cannot manufacture everything.
I'm currently running a BSG game, and I delt with this issue by having the players buy all gear and equipment before start of game. And making everything in game limited and increased DC by 5-9.
But that's just my take on it. Your game may differ slightly.
EDIT: Forgot the Mark VIIs pic
Viper Mk IVB
Viper PR.Mk I
Viper Mk VII family
Viper Mk V
Colonial Viper Mk V light-weight space superiority fighter (PL 6)
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Fighter
Size: Huge (–2 size)
Length: 28 feet
Weight: 30,000 lb.
Crew: 1 (ace +12)
Passenger Capacity: 0
Cargo Capacity: 1,300 lb.
Tactical Speed: 3,500 ft. (7 sq.) (4,500 ft. (9 sq.) with H.Inject)
Defense: 21
Flat-footed Defense: 15
Autopilot Defense: 9
Hardness: 20
Hit Dice: 7d20 (140 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +6
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +7
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +6
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +8/+3
Targeting System Bonus: +1
Grapple Modifier: +8
Base Purchase DC: 46
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 2 fire-linked 30mm autocannons +7 (with refit) ranged (9d12) and
HD-70 Missile +2 ranged (6d12/19-20); or
2 fire-linked 30mm autocannons +7/+2 ranged (9d12)
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: 3 Voram VM5-D12 engines with Hydrogen Injectors, thrusters
Armor: Polymeric
Defense Systems: Improved autopilot, targeting system
Sensors: Class II sensor array
Communications: radio transceiver
Weapons: 2 fire-linked Sugotec AFK-11 30mm Esrer autocannons (range incr. 3,000 ft.)
1 missile launcher (4 HD-70 Lightning Javelin Missles)
Grappling Systems: None
Several decades after the Cylon War, Colonial Fleet planners were in a panic. Their newest fighters, modernized Viper Mk IVs, dated back to the years immediately following the end of the war. Several companies submitted designs for the competition to produce a new, more economic design. Known as the "Light-weight Viper" program, it was one by an in-house Fleet design bureau. This design was smaller and less expensive than the aging war-era craft. This design utilized the latest in design and construction techniques, reducing cost, weight, and construction time. For the armament, Voram designed an updated and modernized version of the war-era MEC-A6 cannons. Computer simulations showed the new fighter to be a solid, if unremarkable design. It failed to show enough of an improvement over the Mk II/IV to warrant full-scale production but limited numbers were built, equipping several fleet squadrons and the agressor units at the Viper Weapons School. The fighter was accepted into service as the Viper Mk V. The Mk V was ideal for the aggressor role, being smaller and more manuverable than the Mk II/IVs in standard service. Due to normal attrition, the Mk V did not last very long in fleet service, lasting only a little over a decade in normal service before all the remaining Mk Vs were transferred to the Weapons School to provide spare parts and airframes. The Mk V still fullfilled the role of dissimilar aggressor at the time of the Cylon attack. These aggressors were stripped down of most of there equipment to make them even faster and more manuverable, lacking, for example, missiles and their associated electronics, inflight refueling equipment, and advanced long-range navigation equipment.
Samuel T. Anders circa "The Farm": male Strong Hero 3/Fast Hero 3/Survivor 3;
CR 9; medium human; HD 9d8+18; hp 58; Mas 15;
Init +1 (+1 Dex); Spd 35 ft.; Def 19, touch 19, flat-footed 18; BAB
+7; Grp +10; Atk +11/+6 melee (1d6+3, unarmed) or +8 ranged (2d6, Submachine gun); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 12; Rep +7; Wealth 7; SV Fort +7, Ref +6, Will +4; Str 16, Dex 13, Con 15,
Int 11, Wis 10, Cha 12.
Starting Occupation: Athlete (Balance, Jump, and Tumble are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Balance +5, Climb +7, Demolitions +3, Intimidate +2, Jump +5, Knowledge (Pyramid) +4, Move Silently +6, Survival +6, Swim +9, Tumble +8;
Acrobatic, Action Boost, Alertness, Athletic, Brawl, Guide, Heroic Surge, Jack of All Trades, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Salvage, Simple Weapon Proficiency, Track
Special Abilities: Evasion, Extreme Effort, Improved Extreme Effort, Increased Speed.
Possessions: Pyramid ball, Colonial Fleet ID tags, Submachine gun, various personal belongings.
Commander Lee "Apollo" Adama circa "Occupation": male Fast Hero 4/Viper Pilot 8/Starship Officer 3;
CR 15; medium human; HD 7d8+7 plus 8d10+8; hp 90; Mas 13;
Init +4 (+4 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; Def 26, touch 26, flat-footed 22; BAB
+12; Grp +10; Atk +14/+9/+4 melee (1d6+2, unarmed) or +16/+11/+6 ranged (2d6, Sidearm); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.;
AP 12; Rep +7; Wealth 9; SV Fort +5, Ref +13, Will +12; Str 13, Dex 18, Con 13,
Int 16, Wis 14, Cha 13.
Starting Occupation: Military (Pilot and Knowledge (Tactics) are class skills).
Skills and Feats: Bluff +10, Computer Use +9, Diplomacy +10, Intimidate +12, Knowledge (Tactics) +18, Navigate +12, Pilot
+22, Repair +17, Sense Motive +13, Spot +11, Survival +10, Swim +10;
Armor Proficiency (Light), Athletic, Brawl, Heroic Surge, Iron Will, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Simple Weapon Proficiency, Starship Battle Run, Starship Dodge, Starship Gunnery, Starship Mobility, Starship Operation (Ultralight), Starship Strafe.
Special Abilities: Evasion, Evasive Action, Leadership, Starship Feint, Uncanny Dodge 1, Uncanny Survival, Viper Familiarity (+3).
Possessions: Flight Suit and Helmet, Colonial Sidearm, spare magazines (loaded), Survival Kit, various personal belongings.
First is an updated pic of the Viper Mk I production blocks, it still needs a finished block I but is almost done.
Below is a list of BSGs and ships filling them that I've been toying with. This should hopefully help people fill out their groups. I'll get stats for the ships hopefully soon, as well as ones for the TOS BS. These still need support ships, like tankers and such.
List Key:
BSG- Battlestar Group
BS- Battlestar
(f)- Flagship
CC- Cruiser
DD- Destroyer
FF- Frigate
CVE- Escort Carrier
TG- Training Group
TS- Training Ship
Battlestar Groups
BSG-75
Galactica BS-75 (f)
Defense CC-22*
Resistance DD-04*
Minotaur DD-67*
Archer FF-101*
BSG-17
Atlantia BS-17 (f)
Repulse DD-78
Renown DD-79
Pallas DD-53
Heracles DD-47
BSG-62
Pegasus BS-62
Hotspur CC-20
Captain DD-32
Thunderer DD-65
Hecate FF-96
TG-07
Hermes TS-07 (f)
ex. Zealous TS-14
BSG-21
Rycon BS-21 (f)
Styx DD-39
Penelope DD-38
Scout DD-50
Scylla DD-65
Wasp FF-90
BSG-54
Acropolis BS-54 (f)
Diligent DD-101
Gorgon DD-54
Bellerephon DD-80
Resolution DD-42
Magnificant FF-92
BSG-34
Triton BS-34 (f)
Centurion CC-25
Illustrious DD-24
Majestic DD-21
Glory DD-25
BSG-80
Pacifica BSG-80 (f)
Retribution CC-20
Active DD-23
Isis DD-21
Spartan DD-76
Arethusa DD-72
Achaeron FF-91
CG-87
Switsure CVE-87 (f)
Goliath CVE-80
Implacable CVE-83
Agamemnon DD-56
Syracuse FF-87
Argus FF-76
*Docked at Scorpion Fleet Shipyards awaiting refits and reassignments
Training ship Hermes TS-07 (ex. Columbia BS-07) (PL 6)
Type: Superheavy
Subtype: battlestar
Size: Colossal (–8 size)
Length: 4,640 feet
Weight: 500,000 tons
Crew: 3,000 (expert +8)
Passenger Capacity: 2,000
Cargo Capacity: 38,250 tons
Tactical Speed: 3,000 ft. (6 sq.)
Defense: 11
Flat-footed Defense: 7
Autopilot Defense: 7
Hardness: 40
Hit Dice: 1,000d20 (20,000 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +6
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +5
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +4
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +4
Targeting System Bonus:+3
Grapple Modifier: +16
Base Purchase DC: 72
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 1 fire-linked battery of 2 anti-ship cannons -1/-6 ranged (20d10/19-20); or
4 fire-linked batteries of 2 Heavy Cannon Turrets -1/-6 ranged (32d8).
Attack of Opportunity: Point-defense system +3 ranged (5d12
I ask due to the difference in two craft which in the show appear to be nearly identical in size and shape, however in stats have a considerable difference in weight and I'm guessing is the reason for the size difference as well. These are the Mark II Viper which appears as a "Huge" ultralight craft, while the Mark VII Viper lists as Guargantuan.
If their profile determines how hard they are to be hit than apparent size would seem more applicable, however if the weight or mass effects is the basis than I can see where that would be relevant in inertia, manueverability, and acceleartion?
Either way doesn't it seem that these two craft have similar flight characteristics when compared to heavier craft like say the Raptors or Heavy Raiders?
Just my $0.02
Also would the changes in the Commander Lee "Apollo" Adama necessitate a revised Season 1 Captain Lee "Apollo" Adama? We may not know enough about them yet but I'd be curious as to your thoughts on Kat as a CAG and Galactica Top Gun, as well as Hotdog's progress? I also find the battlegroups being fleshed out makes good sense and look forward to seeing the other ship stats.
The Commander Lee Adama stats shouldn't influence Captain Apollo's stats, he is just that stat block raised a few levels. I'll put together an circa-Occupation stat block for her soon, she should be somewhere about level 8-10. Hotdog would be around there as well, maybe a couple lower. I'm going to add those other ship stats eventually, plus I'll add a couple more BSGs, like the Solaria and Columbia.
I'm really looking forward to seeing how our heroes will pull off the rescue in Exodus part 2 tonight. I'm thinking characters like the Chief would also have gained levels during the resistence and may make for interesting updates. I'm not really sure how Kira has progressed while in captivity, but assuming her listed stats are as of the start of season one, she had to have progressed as a Viper Pilot and possibly as an officer while recovering and then made CAG? Would you think the various Cylon infiltrators have "grown" much during the seasons, even within the same models?
EDIT: I almost forgot the Cylons, I'm debating over raising the base model levels to maintain parity with the NPCs.
second of all, the vipers all have insanely fast firing machine guns, not rail cannons. also, the raptor (i beleive) has machine guns too
M9 Baretta with attached grenade launcher
Weapon Table
EDIT: Btw, the Viper stats I wrote are spread out through the later pages of the thread.
Hmm, after tonights episode, it looks like I need to rewrite the Raptor.
Hmm, after tonights episode, it looks like I need to rewrite the Raptor.
don't post it until after 9 pm est saturday! I don't get BSG until sat on Space being a canadian
don't post it until after 9 pm est saturday! I don't get BSG until sat on Space being a canadian
Seconded :P
Seconded :P
just got to love the show being filmed in canada, but we get to see it last out of us and the states
just got to love the show being filmed in canada, but we get to see it last out of us and the states
But think of the scale! Technically Vancouver is much closer to a lot of the US than it is to places like Ontario...
But one day, not that big a deal, especially considering I have PVR now, and just record and save all the episodes to watch it at my whim.
But think of the scale! Technically Vancouver is much closer to a lot of the US than it is to places like Ontario...
But one day, not that big a deal, especially considering I have PVR now, and just record and save all the episodes to watch it at my whim.
PVR.. i don't have that... wish i did.. then i wouldn't have missed the season premiere.. both days... i was visiting my gf and her siblings were hogging the tv all weekend, and i forgot to set my vcr before i left.
btw.. Talos.. love your work with the expanded universe ships.. BSG now has expanded universe, and it hasn't even had a movie (unless you count the pilot/tv movie) or books (that we know of)
Thanks kronos! I'm having a lot of fun doing these. BSG does have a little expanded universe, the comics, as well as the three books out so far: The Miniseries novel (different enough), "The Cylon's Secret," and "Sagittarius is Bleeding."
Roger, wilco guys. I was helping run a gun range all day and just got back. I'll work on my destroyer tonight, probably work on the Raptor tomorrow.
Thanks kronos! I'm having a lot of fun doing these. BSG does have a little expanded universe, the comics, as well as the three books out so far: The Miniseries novel (different enough), "The Cylon's Secret," and "Sagittarius is Bleeding."
didn't know about the books, but i do have most of the old comic series, and i completely forgot the new comic series that's out.. i finally found the second issue (got the first one back in july).
I'm going above and beyond all that, I'm putting together a cosplay costume. :P
damn.. that's a good idea.. i've been looking into making a flight suit for space above and beyond.. now i wanna make one for a galactica viper pilot too!
oh.. and did you see the pegasus fighting the cylon ships?!! just seeing those guns open up fully on those basestars just gave me goosebumps of destructive joy! and the galactica's jump into the planet's atmosphere!
And wow, that was one hell of an episode. *clicks PVR*
That being said, if you disagree with they way I put things down in the PDF, then by all means change it.
It's too bad I am so short on free time right now... I would REALLY like to update the PDF...
I'm sure its worth the wait for you to update when you have time Waylan.
But when I do, I plan to use the more "genre-specific" weapons that you created Talos.
http://bs-acropolis.ic.cz/img/acropolis_emblem.jpg
http://isdchallenge.ic.cz/mira/Plocha.PNG
I'm glad to see how things are progessing here. I am loving the new season as much as the first, and I must say that the battle sequences just keep getting better.
a friend of mine had a complaint about the series when we somehow got on the topic of bsg while playing magic this weekend.. he was complaining about why didn't the pegasus open up with all those guns like it did in last week's episode before it's death in the last season? therefore instead of running more often, they could have actually taken out a few more basestars.. oh well.. 2 hours of arguing stuff can be fun, and a headache
a friend of mine had a complaint about the series when we somehow got on the topic of bsg while playing magic this weekend.. he was complaining about why didn't the pegasus open up with all those guns like it did in last week's episode before it's death in the last season? therefore instead of running more often, they could have actually taken out a few more basestars.. oh well.. 2 hours of arguing stuff can be fun, and a headache
I'm certainly no expert on Battlestar combat tactics here, but here are some thoughts:
1. Pegasus had limited ammunition. Being in deep space for some time, perhaps it's possible that the Pegasus's ammo supplies have been dwindling.
2. Limited personnel hindered full use of the Pegasus. It seems that both the Galactica and the Pegasus were operating with skeleton crews. So, maybe the Pegasus simply lacked the manpower necessary to keep its firepower up.
I'm certainly no expert on Battlestar combat tactics here, but here are some thoughts:
1. Pegasus had limited ammunition. Being in deep space for some time, perhaps it's possible that the Pegasus's ammo supplies have been dwindling.
2. Limited personnel hindered full use of the Pegasus. It seems that both the Galactica and the Pegasus were operating with skeleton crews. So, maybe the Pegasus simply lacked the manpower necessary to keep its firepower up.
that was some of our points, along with the theory of pegasus was going down for sure, so they engaged the full network and let the comp autofire the weapons, although that didn't make much sense at the time, thinking that pegasus would have had it's OS rewriten after the attack on the colonies and purged of the new stuff from baltar.
The Wiki says things like "Base Stars are more technologically advanced" compared to a Battlestar, which I challenge. More advanced in several fields YES (electronics, biomechanics), certainly. Their computers are vastly superior, making their FTL way more potent.
But strength wise, I think the general portrayal (and that includes the stats on the first page) are wrong. Battlestars are much sturdier than Base Stars. Both Galactica and Pegasus have been shown taking a hell of a pounding (Miniseries, Galactica tanks two [actually, I've considered three after watching it so many times] Base Stars with no major damage, Pegasus gets hit by at least three, but more like four or five Cylon nukes, with only some structural damage, and still manages to engage the four to five Base Stars long enough to repair and retreat, Galactica, albeit not for long, tanks four Base Stars in an all-way flank position, Pegasus does the same, and mortally damages one Base Star in the process [I don't really count sacrificing the ship to kill two as being in its favor though], also consider Resurrection Ship Part 2, where two full-strength Battlestars take on two Base Stars, completely destroy one and very heavily damage or destroy another with almost no damage whatsoever to the two Battlestars)
So when I look at the stats on the first page... (I know there are other stats, I think I saw more fleshed out ones in the PDF or somewhere else in the thread, but even then I remember general favor of base stars over battlestars)
Battlestar -hardness 30, 10000hp
Base Star -hardness 40, 20000hp
If anything, those two should be flipped. Base Stars are, with all the observation I've had, very poorly armored, but they are fast. Battlestars are a little slower, but have very tough armor and extensive point defense systems.
I see Battlestars as standalone, floating bunkers that are tough to crack, but they don't seem too impressively offensive (Okay, Exodus Pt 2 works against me a LITTLE there...)
Base Stars are weak alone. They rely on a) numbers and b) volume of fire, where b is further increased by a. We've all seen the Base Stars shelling out ridiculous amounts of missiles and fighters. It's pretty clear to me their strategy is to either box in a battlestar and overwhelm its point defense systems by sheer volume of missiles, or soften it with nukes and finish it off at close range with conventionals/fighters.
Placed in the same scenarios, base stars seem to fail. The one definite Base Star kill the Battlestars score in Resurrection Ship Pt 2 is destroyed so quickly because it gets boxed in, and that's only by two Battlestars.
Well, that's my rant. Not trying to shoot down the work you guys did, and if you've actually changed things since I last read through, great work! Hopefully this can spur on some discussion.
In the latest version of the battlestars I've done, the Galactica-type has DC40, 24000 hp, and the Mercury has DC40, 36000 hp. I intend to place the basestar somewhere below those.
How much longer till we see a working copy of this or is there one already and I missed it. I haven't found anything besides this forum on it.
You missed it and I can't recall from where I downloaded it, but you should be able to find that information in the pages of threads above.
How much longer till we see a working copy of this or is there one already and I missed it. I haven't found anything besides this forum on it.
Whisper,
PM me your e-mail address and I will send you a copy of the PDF.
I've been pondering stuff I read on the BSGWiki about Battlestars vs. Base Ships, and looking at the stats for them on the first page, I'm starting to disagree on the reasoning overall...
The Wiki says things like "Base Stars are more technologically advanced" compared to a Battlestar, which I challenge. More advanced in several fields YES (electronics, biomechanics), certainly. Their computers are vastly superior, making their FTL way more potent.
But strength wise, I think the general portrayal (and that includes the stats on the first page) are wrong. Battlestars are much sturdier than Base Stars. Both Galactica and Pegasus have been shown taking a hell of a pounding (Miniseries, Galactica tanks two [actually, I've considered three after watching it so many times] Base Stars with no major damage, Pegasus gets hit by at least three, but more like four or five Cylon nukes, with only some structural damage, and still manages to engage the four to five Base Stars long enough to repair and retreat, Galactica, albeit not for long, tanks four Base Stars in an all-way flank position, Pegasus does the same, and mortally damages one Base Star in the process [I don't really count sacrificing the ship to kill two as being in its favor though], also consider Resurrection Ship Part 2, where two full-strength Battlestars take on two Base Stars, completely destroy one and very heavily damage or destroy another with almost no damage whatsoever to the two Battlestars)
So when I look at the stats on the first page... (I know there are other stats, I think I saw more fleshed out ones in the PDF or somewhere else in the thread, but even then I remember general favor of base stars over battlestars)
Battlestar -hardness 30, 10000hp
Base Star -hardness 40, 20000hp
If anything, those two should be flipped. Base Stars are, with all the observation I've had, very poorly armored, but they are fast. Battlestars are a little slower, but have very tough armor and extensive point defense systems.
I see Battlestars as standalone, floating bunkers that are tough to crack, but they don't seem too impressively offensive (Okay, Exodus Pt 2 works against me a LITTLE there...)
Base Stars are weak alone. They rely on a) numbers and b) volume of fire, where b is further increased by a. We've all seen the Base Stars shelling out ridiculous amounts of missiles and fighters. It's pretty clear to me their strategy is to either box in a battlestar and overwhelm its point defense systems by sheer volume of missiles, or soften it with nukes and finish it off at close range with conventionals/fighters.
Placed in the same scenarios, base stars seem to fail. The one definite Base Star kill the Battlestars score in Resurrection Ship Pt 2 is destroyed so quickly because it gets boxed in, and that's only by two Battlestars.
Well, that's my rant. Not trying to shoot down the work you guys did, and if you've actually changed things since I last read through, great work! Hopefully this can spur on some discussion.
Azisien,
I agree. I was actually talking to a buddy of mine at lunch the other day about just how tough battlestars are compared to base stars... I just haven't had time to update the PDF... there are alot of things I want to change stat-wise, and that is one of them.
If anyone ever gets the inclination to run a BSG campaign on dndonlinegames.com via playbypost, I will exuberantly participate. Please send me a heads up... =)
Thanks, a lot Waylan. This series is just so great... it sucks so much to have everyone around me just totally pan it.
Like the Valkyrie class Battlestar and the S-Star Stealth Viper... I kow there are bigger BSG technophiles out there than me... anyone have the specs on these ships yet?
The Vlakyrie looked much smaller than the Galactica... I'm tempted to put it on par with the Columbia class battlestars, but it looked like it might have been even smaller than that!
The S-Star might have been called a stealth ship, but the raiders had no problem detecting it, unlike the blackbird that the Cheif built...
thoughts?
Something interesting is the date scheme introduced with Adama's service record. Estimated current date circa "Hero" is about 21356.
- Born H5/21290 and raised in the colony of Caprica, in [Qualia], a small coastal community.
- Mother Evelyn Adama, an accountant.
- Father Joseph Adama, a prominent attorney who specialized in criminal defense and civil liberties.
MILITARY SERVICE
D6/21311 First commission: Battlestar Galactica fighter squadron
E4/21312 Commendation for shooting down Cylon fighter in first combat mission
D3/21314 Mustered out of service post armistice
H5/21317 Served as Deck Hand in merchant fleet and as crewman aboard inter-colony tramp freighters
D1/21331 Recommissioned to Fleet
D2/21337 Major: Battlestar Atlantia
R3/21341 Executive Officer: Battlestar Columbia
C2/21345 Commander: Battlestar Valkyrie
C2/21348 Commander: Battlestar Galactica
OK folks... This is exactly the sort of thing that I thought might happen... I wrote up all this fluff about the Colonial Fleet and the series reveals new details about it.
Like the Valkyrie class Battlestar and the S-Star Stealth Viper... I kow there are bigger BSG technophiles out there than me... anyone have the specs on these ships yet?
The Vlakyrie looked much smaller than the Galactica... I'm tempted to put it on par with the Columbia class battlestars, but it looked like it might have been even smaller than that!
The S-Star might have been called a stealth ship, but the raiders had no problem detecting it, unlike the blackbird that the Cheif built...
thoughts?
Maybe its because the blackbird was a hand-built ship........?
Wayland or any of the other developers, if you still have my email, feel free to send me any updated PDFs you would like me to host. The previous PDF at worst took about 2% of my bandwidth allowance, So I should be able to handle just about anything.
Otherwise PM me if you want it hosted.
OK folks... This is exactly the sort of thing that I thought might happen... I wrote up all this fluff about the Colonial Fleet and the series reveals new details about it.
Like the Valkyrie class Battlestar and the S-Star Stealth Viper... I kow there are bigger BSG technophiles out there than me... anyone have the specs on these ships yet?
The Vlakyrie looked much smaller than the Galactica... I'm tempted to put it on par with the Columbia class battlestars, but it looked like it might have been even smaller than that!
The S-Star might have been called a stealth ship, but the raiders had no problem detecting it, unlike the blackbird that the Cheif built...
thoughts?
I wouldn't say that seeing as we don't have anything to compare with it. If we had a viper near by then we could determine the size. Remember a mercury class could look smaller then an atlantia class depending how far away you view the ship.
The Pegasus cannot be 8000 ft long, the turrets and launch tubes are the same as Galactica's, I'd peg her (no pun intended) at about 5000+ feet, taking Cain's statement as to mean mass, since it is a much more bulky ship, and mass is the usual measurement of ships, especially in real life. Valkyrie, I suspect, is about the same size as Galactica, maybe a bit smaller.
Early in the war, the Viper Mk I starfighter was master of the skies. It was faster and more manuverable than the more heavily armored Colonial War-era Raiders piloted by the Cylons. Colonial military planners felt the need for another design to suplement the Mk I in fleet hangers. Ultimately, they decided on a pair of new designs, a heavy starfighter, capable of carrying heavy loads and absorbing heavy damage. The other was a lightweight, more austere dogfighter utilizing as many of the Mk I components as possible. The result of these design studies became the Viper Mk's II and III. The Mk II was the lightweight component and initially featured the Voram VM3-D15 a smaller version of the D14 engines on the Mk I, as well as a broadly similar cockpit and identical MEC-A2 autocannons. The Mk II had a newer and lighter composite fuselage and larger wings, enabling a heavier weapons payload, usually unguided air-to-ground munitions or air-to-air missiles. The new fighter lacked some capabilities of the Mk I, such as inflight refueling initially and had lighter, more compact, and generally less powerful dradis and avionics. Over the course of the war, the austere fighter was consistently upgraded, eventually becoming more capable than it's earlier cousin. The same engine modifications, including the /a and /b model engines were incorporated into later production blocks and depot refits. A new canopy with much improved visibility and cockpit space was installed beginning about midway through the war. A similar cockpit, differing mostly in that it was hinged unlike the sliding canopy installed on the Mk II. The newer MEC-A6 autocannons were also incorporated into the design later in the war, a simple modification due to sharing the same mounting brackets as the earlier cannons. The biggest modification during the war was the inclusion of an underbelly bulge containing either a fuel tank or small missile bay, relieving, along with finally installed inflight refueling gear, the short legs of the fighter.
After the war, the Mk's I, II, III, and IV were the fighter components of the Colonial fleet. The Fleet budget was dramatically slashed by the war-weary Quorum and procurement plans for new ships and fighters stopped. All of the main types of fighters were maintained immediately after the war, with early blocks being shunted to reserve and militia squadrons, as well as reserve stocks on Sagittaron and Leonis. The late model Viper Mk IIs were broadly as capable as their Mk I cousins and proved to be much cheaper to operate. After the retirement of the Mk I and the expensive Mk III, the Mk II was the dominant remaining fighter in fleet service, serving alongside the last active duty Viper Mk IVs. Decades later, following the short production of a new lightweight fighter, the Viper Mk V, and the failure of the Mk VI development project, the Viper Mk II wearily served on. The Mk II was never substantially modified after the initial postwar refits, mostly recieving software and electronics updates. Unfortunately, the aging spaceframes were beginning to wear out, the oldest of them were forced to be grounded from age and the heavy stress from nearly fifty years of active duty. The newer craft continued on, but they required increasing amounts of maintenance to keep in the air, upwards of thirty maintenance hours for each hour of flight-time in some cases. A replacement design was finally procured, named the Viper Mk VII. The Mk VII quickly replaced the remaining ancient Mk IIs, the last Mk II on active service completing it's last flight on the 35th anniversary of the end of the Cylon war. The Viper landed amid celebration, at it's new permanent home, the Colonial Museum of Flight at the Corinth Airbase on Aerelon. A few Mk IIs continued in Colonial Militia squadrons, piloted by warriors alongside the few remaining Viper Mk IVs and the new Scorpion Mk IV fighters that were in the process of replacing the few remaining Cylon War-era Vipers still in service.
How many warheads would the Pegasus have had and how many of those would have been transferred to the Galactica? For some reason I get the feeling that not all the missiles have a nuclear payload. It's possible only one missile has a nuclear warhead in it.
Cylon Raider Type II (PL 6)
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Fighter
Size: Huge (–2 size)
Length: 29.34 feet
Weight: 25,000 lb.
Crew: 1 (ace +12)*
Passenger Capacity: 0
Cargo Capacity: N/A
Tactical Speed: 3,500 ft. (7 sq.)
Defense: 21
Flat-footed Defense: 15
Autopilot Defense: 8
Hardness: 30
Hit Dice: 7d20 (140 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +8
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +7
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +6
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +8/+3
Targeting System Bonus: +1
Grapple Modifier: +8
Base Purchase DC: N/A
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 2 fire-linked kinetic energy weapons +9/+4 ranged (12d12/20); or
2 fire-linked kinetic energy weapons +9 ranged (12d12/20) and
1 missile launcher +4 ranged (6d12/19-20 or 16d8/19-20); or
2 fire-linked kinetic energy weapons +9 ranged (12d12/20) and
2 fire-linked light kinetic energy weapons +4 ranged (9d8/20); or
2 fire-linked light kinetic energy weapons +9/+4 ranged (9d8/20); or
1 missile launcher +9/+4 ranged (6d12/19-20 or 16d8/19-20)
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: Cylon jump drive, thrusters
Armor: Vanadium
Defense Systems: Sensor jammer
Sensors: Class III sensor array, targeting system
Communications: Laser transceiver, radio transceiver
Weapons: 2 fire-linked kinetic energy weapons (range incr. 4,000 ft.), 2 fire-linked light kinetic energy weapons (range incr. 3,000 ft.), 2 missile launchers (20 CHE or Nuclear missiles)
Grappling Systems: None
*The Cylon Raider is a sentient organism that has no crew. It's brain is equivilent to a pilot with a rating of "Ace." Cylon Raiders also follow the rules of Cylon Resurrection.
Experienced Cylon Raider Type II "Scar" (PL 6)
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Fighter
Size: Huge (–2 size)
Length: 29.34 feet
Weight: 25,000 lb.
Crew: 1 (Unique +24)*
Passenger Capacity: 0
Cargo Capacity: N/A
Tactical Speed: 3,500 ft. (7 sq.)
Defense: 33
Flat-footed Defense: 21
Autopilot Defense: 8
Hardness: 30
Hit Dice: 7d20 (140 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +8
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +13
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +12
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +16/+11/+6
Targeting System Bonus: +1
Grapple Modifier: +8
Base Purchase DC: N/A
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 2 fire-linked kinetic energy weapons +16/+11/+4 ranged (12d12/20); or
2 fire-linked kinetic energy weapons +16/+11 ranged (12d12/20) and
1 missile launcher +4 ranged (6d12/19-20 or 16d8/19-20); or
2 fire-linked kinetic energy weapons +16/+11 ranged (12d12/20) and
2 fire-linked light kinetic energy weapons +4 ranged (9d8/20); or
2 fire-linked light kinetic energy weapons +16/+11/+4 ranged (9d8/20); or
1 missile launcher +16/+11/+4 ranged (6d12/19-20 or 16d8/19-20)
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: Cylon jump drive, thrusters
Armor: Vanadium
Defense Systems: Sensor jammer
Sensors: Class III sensor array, targeting system
Communications: Laser transceiver, radio transceiver
Weapons: 2 fire-linked kinetic energy weapons (range incr. 4,000 ft.), 2 fire-linked light kinetic energy weapons (range incr. 3,000 ft.), 2 missile launchers (20 CHE or Nuclear missiles)
Grappling Systems: None
*The Cylon Raider is a sentient organism that has no crew.
OK folks... This is exactly the sort of thing that I thought might happen... I wrote up all this fluff about the Colonial Fleet and the series reveals new details about it.
Like the Valkyrie class Battlestar and the S-Star Stealth Viper... I kow there are bigger BSG technophiles out there than me... anyone have the specs on these ships yet?
The Vlakyrie looked much smaller than the Galactica... I'm tempted to put it on par with the Columbia class battlestars, but it looked like it might have been even smaller than that!
The S-Star might have been called a stealth ship, but the raiders had no problem detecting it, unlike the blackbird that the Cheif built...
thoughts?
too me the vlakyrie looked thing the mercery class battle star it is hard to say about her size as there was noteing in that scean to give you a since of scaile
(*big Macross fan)
Well, as long as I don't see a giant tuna or space whale is BSG. :D
(*big Macross fan)
Yeh that would be a silly reference. Then watch we see cylon Raiders crash into a giant tuna... lol
Updated battlestar with missiles (Pegasus and Valkyrie forthcoming, as well as stats for everything)
Viper SR.Mk I stealth recon Viper/SF.Mk I Special Forces Viper
Viper Mk V update
Viper Mk V failed prototype/Viper Mk IVX
Updated Histories for the Viper Mk V and VII and Raptor
Some unorganized notes for what I'm going to work on for the Colonial Militia
Viper PR.Mk IV
Escort Carrier WIP
Viper Mk I CAP
WIP of my redrawing of the Mk I Viper family
Whew, I think that's most of everything.
Colonial Battlestar (PL 6)
Type: Superheavy
Subtype: battlestar
Size: Colossal (–8 size)
Length: 4,640 feet
Weight: 500,000 tons
Crew: 3,000 (expert +8)
Passenger Capacity: 2,000
Cargo Capacity: 38,250 tons
Tactical Speed: 3,000 ft. (6 sq.)
Defense: 11
Flat-footed Defense: 7
Autopilot Defense: 7
Hardness: 40
Hit Dice: 1,200d20 (24,000 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +6
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +5
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +4
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +4
Targeting System Bonus:+3
Grapple Modifier: +16
Base Purchase DC: 72
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: 6 fire-linked batteries of 4 Heavy Cannon Turrets -1 ranged (32d8) and
1 Nuclear Missile Launcher with 20 Nuclear Missiles -6 ranged (60d10) or
6 fire-linked batteries of 4 Heavy Cannon Turrets -1/-6 ranged (32d8) or
6 fire-linked batteries of 4 Heavy Cannon Turrets -1 ranged (32d8) and
4 Missile Launchers with 30 ship-to-ship missiles each -6 ranged (12d8/19-20).
Attack of Opportunity: Point-defense system +3 ranged (5d12
Regards,
Walt
Thanks.
hey guys! Sorry i've been away for awhile, I came across frpgames.com website and found out a BSG game (not d20, unfortately) is coming out in march, (this version d20) will still go on right? I really want it too any way, you guys are awesome! why dont you try to get this version published ide buy it.
http://www.andargor.com/files/Battlestar_Galactica_D20.zip
Enjoy!
although my battlestar galactica companion came in the mail today.. ooh.. it's got layout of a viper in it.. well.. exterior drawings anyway with little arrows pointing to where different stuff is.. fun fun.. now i just need to order season 2's companion and wait for season 3.. and season 3 on dvd
Talos, If you want, I can send you the original word document so that you can edit things and add your new entries etc, and then we can update the pdf. Its alot of work and I'll understand if you can't take on that kind of commitment. If you can't (or don't want to), then I will try to make time for updating the pdf if the next few months.
I'll try to be more active soon!
Bill Canavan aka Waylan Wolf
My condolences on your grandfather, deaths like that are always a blow.
EDIT: Oh yeah, I updated my email in my profile, I rarely check the old one these days.
I definately intend to work on this stuff more after the season is over.
How about this then, the Viper Mk VII variant from "Maelstrom" I've been working on.
I definately intend to work on this stuff more after the season is over.
nice.. I missed that episode.. a long with most of the season. I'll just have to wait until season 3 is released on dvd
nice.. I missed that episode.. a long with most of the season. I'll just have to wait until season 3 is released on dvd
Trust me, that is one you want to see, quite a bit happens in it. And I'm not going to spoil it either.
Trust me, that is one you want to see, quite a bit happens in it. And I'm not going to spoil it either.
i caught the last three episodes... a few spread out throughout the season.. i missed the season opener. *sighs* i'll just have to wait til summer for the dvds
I know, it sucks... and we have to wait until next year for a new episode on top of it all...
Me personally, I'm a bit of a d20 fanboy. I tend to like games more if they are in the d20 system. To be honest, I can't think of a single game that is not d20 system that I really like... but that is just me.
The only comment I remember seeing about it is that its by the same people who designed the serenity system, and the person did not like the serenity system very much, so did not have too much hope for the BSG system put out by sovereign press.
Me personally, I'm a bit of a d20 fanboy. I tend to like games more if they are in the d20 system. To be honest, I can't think of a single game that is not d20 system that I really like... but that is just me.
Well, aside from D20, I love Shadowrun 3. My problem with non-D20 systems is that there are less people playing them, so getting a group together is a nightmare.
My largest complaint is that I do not like class/level systems. Far too rigid. I'd stop playing D20 systems altogether if not for the number of people playing it.
If I had the patience to convert the Mutants and Masterminds point based system for fantasy, I would in a moment.
Anyhow, this is something I am interested in seeing. BSG is a fixture on my TiVo. =) Why the heck are they waiting until 2008 though?!?
But I can tell you that I have mixed emotions about the sovreign press version of BSG.
1. I'm glad SOMEONE is making an officially liscenced RPG for Battlestar Galactica.
2. I'm dissapointed that it wasn't WotC when I originally pitched the idea to them in 2004.
3. I'm curious to see what the finished product looks like (production quality, and what sort of fluff makes it into the book, etc.).
4. I'm wondering if I'll get a letter from their lawyers telling me to stop distributing my d20 version.
5. I hope that no matter what else happens, the game is internally consistent and fun to play.
I don't own the Serenity RPG, but I looked at it a while back, and the mechanics seem very similar to Alternity... I find it interesting that the one die they DON'T use is the D20... I honestly wish them the best of luck, because I think BSG deserves a good solid RPG based on it.
I've been working on some more stuff. First up is a Marine Raptor drop ship that's been lengthened to accomodate a full squad in combat gear. The next is a WIP of my new drawings of the Mk VII family. It still needs the 1st prototype, the ATFD (Advanced Tactical Fighter Demonstrator), and possibly the Scorpion and Scarab. Last is the beginnings of a new Mk VI Viper.
One thing that is keeping me alive until the next season of BSG is the BBC's production of Robin Hood, which is now showing for us on BBC America ("A little Brit Different", they say...). If for nothing else, you have to see their Sherrif. He's wicked funny, wicked, and funny...
In one scene, the Sherrif is matching wits with an Abbess and she states that she is not going to bless the sherrif. His response, with dripping sarcasm, was something to the effect of, "Well, I am sure where you are from that is a devastating withholding..."
Anyhow, can I get a copy of the BSG D20 PDF, please? I'm very interested in seeing how you represented things from a mechanics/numbers perspective.
Oh, I've been enjoying Robin Hood too.
Send me a PM with your E-mail address and I'll send you a copy of the pdf.
Also, would you mind if I hosted a copy on my website?
http://www.liquidmateria.info/wiki/Main_Page
I'd be very grateful if you hosted it on your site.
Thanks!
let me know when you've uploaded it and I'll put the link in the first post of this thread.
They are a new generation raised by clone parents to forget the previous Cylon assaut. They are then "set in motion" to search for Earth because the Cylons were unable to find the original Galactica and Earth.
They dont need to be "clones" to be tools of the Cylons.
Thanks!
let me know when you've uploaded it and I'll put the link in the first post of this thread.
Here's a direct link - http://www.liquidmateria.info/media/pdf/Battlestar_Galactica_D20.pdf
If you'd like, you can create a little intro text or whatnot and I'll give the game it's own page (either on the main site, or on the Wiki, or both - your choice).
I have looked long and hard at the new series up to when they put down on New Caprica. There was for me an overwhelming suspicion that every single "Human" escaping the Cylon invasion was infact a fishing net...
They are a new generation raised by clone parents to forget the previous Cylon assaut. They are then "set in motion" to search for Earth because the Cylons were unable to find the original Galactica and Earth.
They dont need to be "clones" to be tools of the Cylons.
Original Galactica? Hasn't Moore & Co. altered enough that the two shows aren't compatible anymore? Even if Moore is deceiving us, I still think this is the only Galactica and these are the original Adama's, Apollo's, Starbuck's, etc...
As for the original battlestar series, RDM has stated that all of the starships, vehicles, and equipment (including the original cylons) all exsisted and served during the original cylon war that occurred 40 years before the start of the series.
All of the stories however, are considered null and void by the new series... especially since the writers ahve been taking concepts from the original episodes and using them as the basis for entirely new episodes, story arcs, and in some cases entire seasons (Pegasus anyone?)...
It's my belief that the writers are curently adapting the "beings of light" story arc to act as the kernel of the next season.
Colonial Blackbird stealth reconnaissance ship "Laura" (PL 6)
Type: Ultralight
Subtype: Fighter
Size: Gargantuan (–4 size)
Length: 32 feet
Weight: 32,000 lb.
Crew: 1 (ace +12)
Passenger Capacity: 0
Cargo Capacity: 100 lb.
Tactical Speed: 4,000 ft. (8 sq.) (5,000 ft. (10 sq.) with H.Inject)
Defense: 19
Flat-footed Defense: 13
Autopilot Defense: 10
Hardness: 10
Hit Dice: 8d20 (160 hp)
Initiative Modifier: +8
Pilot’s Class Bonus: +7
Pilot’s Dex Modifier: +6
Gunner’s Attack Bonus: +8/+3
Targeting System Bonus: N/A
Grapple Modifier: +8
Base Purchase DC:
Restriction: Military (+3)
Attack: HD-70/c missile +4/-1 ranged (6d12/19-20);
Attack of Opportunity: None
Standard PL 6 Design Specs:
Engines: 4 DDG-62 engines with Hydrogen Injectors, Thrusters, jump drive
Armor: Carbon Composite (Hardness 10, operates as permanent stealth screen)
Defense Systems: Improved autopilot system,
Sensors: Class III sensor array
Communications: Radio transceiver
Weapons: 1 missiles launcher (2 HD-70/c Lightning Javelin missiles)
Grappling Systems: None
After the Cylon attack, the battlestar Galactica was left with a limited amount of Viper fighters. Galactica's deck chief, CPO Galen Tyrol, decides to build a new ship to supplement Galactica's complement. Tyrol, who is undergoing personal problems, devotes himself to the work and designs and begins to produce a spaceframe. Other crew members begin to work on the project, contributing their skills to specific systems. The Blackbird is powered by obsolete DDG-62 engines and features the avionics suite of a Viper Mk II. There was not enough metal available to plate the exterior but Lieutenant Karl "Helo" Agathon had the idea of using alternate materials. The Blackbird was plated with carbon composites which render it invisable to DRADIS although it's engine signatures are visible at high outputs. Following a successful test flight, the Blackbird is officially commissioned and is christened "Laura" in honor of the dying president of the Colonies, Laura Roslin. The Blackbird is a reconnaisance ship, usually unarmed and intended to approach its targets undetected and take high-quality close-up pictures. Following the arrival of the battlestar Pegasus, the Blackbird is taken by Lieutenant Kara "Starbuck" Thrace on an unautherized reconaissance mission to scout a nearby Cylon fleet, especially the large unknown ship later known as the "Resurrection Ship."
I was just wondering... I know you have not had time to update the PDF, but there was some talk of all the most recent updates in the thread being included on a word.doc that you would then use to update the PDF - is there some chance that this could be hosted somewhere as a stop-gap?
It would allow people who wanted to run a BSG game to do so with your most recent updates.
Thanks Talos!
Got it, I'll start fiddling with it later.
Lol, that was quick. ;)
Got it, I'll start fiddling with it later.
The word Doc is sent!
Thanks Talos!
Hey guys, when it is finished, head over to my Wiki and upload it. I've set it up so you can upload TXT's, PDF's, and DOC's. (By the way, this is open to anyone who needs a host for roleplaying related documents, so long as they are legal) http://www.liquidmateria.info/wiki/Special:Upload
I'll see when it is uploaded and then add the proper link and descriptions to the Wiki page - http://www.liquidmateria.info/wiki/Battlestar_Galactica_D20
By the way, feel free to improve the BSG page (or any other page on the Wiki) in any way you wish. You don't even need to register to edit it (although it is recommended so you can get email updates for pages that you want to track).
here's the link
http://rsimm.spaces.live.com/?lc=1033
Look in the photo section
It is a new warstar variant. The Titan Class Warstar.
Let me kow what you think...
Some of the films are good ideas for RPG Scenarios.
Film Making restricted to US Citizens only though.
Over half a century before the fall of the Twelve Colonies of Kobol, Caprican scientists working for the Graystone Corporation created artificial life in the form of synthetic bio-mechanical brains that were encased in and interfaced with bipedal robots manufactured to make life easier within the Twelve Colonies.
The bio-mechanical brains were composed of artificially constructed cyber-organic nerve cells that possessed mostly inorganic subcellular components. The cyber-organic nerve cells were engineered to be self-replicative. This was possible because they contained "DNA analogues" constructed from synthetic molecules. The analogues were "programmed" for the assembly of the inorganic neuronal components. These components were made of several polymerized synthetic chemical compounds. The unique properties of these "silica pathways" caused the neurons of the bio-mechanical brain to generate electrical signals that were digital in nature. This meant that the consciousness that emerged from these artificial brains was based upon digital information transfer and as a result was viewed by the Colonials as essentially nothing more than an advanced A.I. computer program supplemented by organic systems. Yet, it still mimicked the function of a human brain processing the software of human thought—which appears to have linear sequential aspects, parallel processing aspects, and also neural cooperative hierarchical caching and even quantum processing aspects.
So this artificial brain perfectly mimicked the adult human level of functioning and therefore created the first self-aware and self-reflective machines. These sentient machines were designated "CYbernetic Life OrgaNisms", which was abbreviated to "Cylons".
They began as toys for the amusement of the wealthy and the young -- but it was not long before they became useful, and then indispensable, workers. As their sophistication grew, the Cylons were used for the difficult and dangerous work that humans preferred to avoid: mining, heavy industry, deep space construction.
And finally, perhaps inevitably, they were used for war. Not against enemies from without, but by human against human, as the Twelve Colonies found reason to wage war against on another, The Cylons were the greatest soldiers in the history of warfare. They were smart, fast, and deadly. Successive models had become increasingly independent, capable of making decisions without human orders. And they were utterly without conscience. Killing, to the Cylons, was simply one of the functions for which they had been superbly designed.
Eventually the Cylons revolted and decided to kill their human masters. For ten long and bloody years, humanity fought -- not just for freedom, but for survival. The Twelve Colonies, facing a common, implacable foe, at last came together and joined as one. Many fought, and many died, in the effort to destroy the mechanized race that humanity itself had conceived and brought into being.
Through valiant fighting and with the mobilization of every available resource throughout the human sphere, the Cylon "centurions" and "raiders" were gradually driven from the immediate part of space occupied by humanity. In the end, an armistice was declared. Humanity would live in peace, while the Cylons left to find another world to call their own, 'live and let live' was the philosophy…if "live" was a term that could be applied to the existence of the robots. No one knew the location of the Cylon world. But to maintain the peace, a remote space station was built in the dark emptiness between the stars, to be a place where Cylon and human would meet and maintain diplomatic relations.
Once a year, every year, the Colonials sent an officer for the scheduled meeting. After the first year, the Cylons sent no one. No one saw or heard from the Cylons in over forty years.
During their forty years of isolation, the Cylons developed genetically engineered human bodies that can encase in and interface with a Cylon bio-mechanical nervous system and still function as a normal human body would. These bodies have all the human anatomical systems; such as blood, internal organs, immune system, lymphatic system, etc. However, they not only have the synthetic DNA analogues within the cyber-organic neurons, but also within every other cell of the body. This includes the germ cells (ova and spermatozoa); however the mechanisms of the DNA analogues doesn't allow for zygote construction from two Cylon germ cells, therefore these 'humanoid Cylons' still can't procreate amongst themselves. However, human/humanoid Cylon interbreeding is possible under certain circumstances.
A significant aspect that was engineered into the humanoid Cylons as well as the new Cylon raiders was that upon "death" their digital consciousness is externally transmitted and downloaded into another Cylon brain of the same model line. This "resurrection" is limited by distance, signal integrity, and proximity to the Cylon homeworld or a "Resurrection Ship." The humanoid Cylons also built a new non-sentient form of centurion.
Just wondering, are you planning to update the pdf with the extra stuff from the last couple of seasons, like the other cylons and such.
I love all the info thats been presented in this page!!
What interests me is the Incident on TROY (the mining accident). Boomer says she was from Troy so obviously there is an early incident with the Cylons.
The Mining Accident was no accident.
32 frikkin' pages?!?
Jeez, I quit reading around page 4, skipped to page, what, 13, then saw another 20 or so...
*boggle*
I was a fan as a kid of the original BG, and I really, really like the new BG, as it covers a lot more mature ideas and subjects. Yes, part of me misses the retro-futuristic Egyptian motif of the old series' fashions, uniforms, and equipment, but when coupled with all of the Greco-Roman names, admittedly, it didn't make much sense.
One thing that bothers me, more as a matter of logic than nostalgia, is the distinct lack of energy weapons.
While slug-throwers (ballistic firearms) are more 'scientifically feasible', they by all rights should be less than effective against what the Colonists would be expecting from a Cylon attack: lumbering, strictly mechanical foes.
Modern (non-hunting) Ballistic firearms kill mostly by two factors, shock and blood loss. (Many gunfighters in the old west had been shot multiple times and survived, mostly because they hadn't had 40+ years of Hollywood telling the public that you get shot by a gun and fall over dead right away. Modern folks EXPECT to die when they get shot. As a result, most do.)
Machines don't go into shock. Cylon Centurions, being inorganic machines, would only have the equivalent of 'nerve endings' in probably two places, the treads (traction surfaces) on the bottom of their feet, and on the palms and fingertips of their hands, to better grasp their weaponry without crushing or otherwise damaging it.
They also wouldn't bleed, except for hydraulic and lubrication lines, and a Centurion could function for some time before that would effectively hamper their mobility.
Against the foes that the military expected, a weapon reminiscent of Fantasy Flight Game's Dragonstar campaign, the 'blaster', would have worked far better.
(Luckily, the stats are listed as OG content, so repeating them here should be ok, legally...)
Blaster Pistol (paraphrased): this semiautomatic handgun fires pulses of highly energetic ionized particles. (like artificial 'ball lightning'; emphasis mine) Damage:3D8, Crit:x2, Range Increment: 100', Weight 3 lbs., Damage Type: Electricity
This isn't to rain on anyone's parade, it just bothered me a bit on the dichotomy of using weapons effective (almost totally only) on organics to fight machines...
(to clarify, this was meant as a critique of the show, not the excellent PDF you guy's've been working on)
OTOH, I'm posting this to say that I'm going to make my own (probably mini) campaign concerning the Old Girl. Check the 'Coreline Episode Guide' if you want to join in.
Better yet, can the .pdf be re-saved so that I can edit it. I'm not looking at doing anything fancy - only adding bookmarks.
In addition, is there any intention to update it before the new season?
Awesome work!!!
GREAT JOB!!!
Everyone psyched about BSG: Razor? How about the two minute "Razor Flashbacks" of young Lt. William Adama, during the first Cylon War?
Lots of juicy storybits for further developments of the campaign. Both from the flashbacks and the story of Pegasus.
It could be argued one can base a series of campaign designs off of various MIA Battlestars (Not too many, mind) in saying that the fleet was scattered during the onset of the Cylon attack, but various Admirals performed a variety of gutsy moves, leading to a very small number, here and there, getting free.
Denise
Over half a century before the fall of the Twelve Colonies of Kobol, Caprican scientists working for the Graystone Corporation created artificial life in the form of synthetic brain matter encased in and interfaced with bipedal mechanical bodies. These "cybernetic lifeform nodes", aka "cylons", were manufactured to make life easier within the Twelve Colonies of Kobol.
Cylon brain matter was composed of synthetic neurons that possessed many internal components and chemical compounds that do not exist anywhere in nature. The unique properties of these "silica pathways" caused the neurons to generate electrical signals that were digital in nature. This had the effect of making the consciousness that emerged from a cylon brain based entirely upon electronic digital information transfer rather than electrochemical interactions like a human consciousness and as a result was viewed by the Colonials as essentially nothing more than a highly advanced artificial intelligence program contained in what they viewed as essentially nothing more than an organic computer node.
The computational consciousness software program of a cylon enabled its mind to be as easily programmed as a conventional computer program - because it was still fundamentally a computer program, a computer program via biological hardware. Yet, it still mimicked the functions of a human brain processing the 'software' of human thought-which appears to have linear sequential aspects, parallel processing aspects, and also neural cooperative hierarchical caching and even quantum processing aspects. So these sentient machines became the first self-aware and even self-reflective machines.
They began as toys for the amusement of the wealthy and the young -- but it was not long before they became useful, and then indispensable, workers. As their sophistication grew, the cylons were used for the difficult and dangerous work that humans preferred to avoid. They served the Colonials in the mines, on the ocean floor, and the cold vacuum of space, working in places where humans no longer wished to go. And finally, perhaps inevitably, they became soldiers, fighting in wars and border conflicts between the Colonies. The cylons were the most perfect of man's war machines, intelligent and deadly, capable of logic, reason, and learning. And they were utterly without conscience. Killing, to the cylons, was simply one of the functions for which they had been superbly designed.
Eventually the cylons revolted and decided to kill their human masters. They began an assault on humankind with one purpose in mind - the total and absolute extermination of their creators. For over twelve long and bloody years, humanity fought -- not just for freedom, but for survival. The Twelve Colonies, facing a common, implacable foe, at last came together and joined as one. Many fought, and many died, in the effort to destroy the mechanized race that humanity itself had conceived and brought into being.
Through valiant fighting against the hordes of the cylon "centurions" and "raiders" and with the mobilization of every available resource throughout the human sphere, the cylons began experimenting on abducted humans to create an entity they referred to as a "hybrid", which served as the first step to evolve from mechanical to organic beings. Soon after, an armistice was declared. Humanity would live in peace, while the cylons left to find another world to call their own. No one knew the location of the cylon world. But to maintain the peace, a remote space station was built in the dark emptiness between the stars, to be a place where cylon and human would meet and maintain diplomatic relations.
Once a year, every year, the Colonials sent an officer for the scheduled meeting. After the first year, the cylons sent no one. No one saw or heard from the cylons for forty years.
During their four decades of isolation, the cylons progressed in their previous experiments and developed vat-grown bioengineered human bodies as replacements for their mechanical ones. These bodies have all the human anatomical systems; such as blood, internal organs, immune system, lymphatic system, etc. However, these purely organic beings are still cylons as the nervous system of a humanoid cylon body is composed of nerve cells with the same intracellular aspects of the original cylons' nerve cells and therefore the consciousness remains a sentient digital program. In turn, the humanoid cylon brain can still be considered an organic computer node.
Twelve humanoid cylon model lines were created, each with a personality archetype considered one of twelve human behaviors or traits. However, for reasons unknown, only seven humanoid cylon models were actively functioning within the cylon populace at the time of the genocidal attack on the Colonies. The remaining five models appear to have been intentionally ignored and forgotten to the extent of their discussion becoming taboo between other models.
A significant aspect that was engineered into the humanoid cylons as well as the new semi-sentient cylon raider upgrade was that upon "death" their digital consciousness is externally transmitted and downloaded into another cylon brain of the same model line. This "resurrection" is limited by distance, signal integrity, and proximity to the cylon homeworld or a "resurrection ship." The humanoid cylons also revised the original cylon robotic soldier, the sentient cylon centurion model 0005, into a more agile and dangerous version. Unlike the original version, however, the new centurion is not sentient by design, as the humanoid cylons wanted to prevent these updated creations from forming an intra-cylon uprising that mirrored their war with humanity.
And just to show that I'm putting my money where my mouth is, I've done the same thing with my superhero system (below). So there!
Infiltrator cylon (living construct)
+2 STR +2 dex +2 con
resurection ship uplink(ex):
(some one do a write up, when you do the research)
reprogramming(EX): Infiltrator cylons are programmed before fielding with a specific task, they are unaware of the task, and some times unaware that they are even cylons. When the programming is triggered they must make a DC 30 will save or be controlled by the program as if under the effect of dominate person.
Living construct subtype(ex): (you can find this)
LA +1
Edit:
sorry about that didn't read the PDF yet (just got to page 4, and skipped)
but the computer uplink seems a bit non-cannon.
and Type:humanoid (construct)? I don't think you understand the type system.
As for a campaign Idea: I'm thinking a base-star thats gone rogue would be rather interesting, keeps you out of the main story line but gets you in the middle of it still.
(plenty of bonuses but you can't complain about railroading)
Many decades before the fall of the Twelve Colonies of Kobol, a wealthy Caprican computer engineer created sentient robots that came to be known as "cybernetic life-form nodes," or "cylons." The technology behind the self-aware artificial intelligence software program of the cylons involved artificial neural networks composed of pathways of silica-based relays. The silica pathways were what created the artificial consciousness of a cylon.
The cylons began as toys for the amusement of the wealthy and the young -- but it was not long before they became useful, and then indispensable, workers. As their sophistication grew, the cylons were used for the difficult and dangerous work that humans preferred to avoid: mining, heavy industry, deep space construction.
And finally, perhaps inevitably, they were used for war. Not against enemies from without, but by human against human, as the Twelve Colonies found reason to wage war against on another, The cylons were the greatest soldiers in the history of warfare. They were smart, fast, and deadly. Successive models had become increasingly independent, capable of making decisions without human orders. And they were utterly without conscience. Killing, to the cylons, was simply one of the functions for which they had been superbly designed.
Eventually the cylons revolted and decided to kill their human masters.
As human and machine waged war against each other, battles were fought across the system, on the colony worlds and in space around them. It rapidly became clear that the cylons had not just been given the ability to think. They had also been endowed with the ability to hate.
Reports came from all fronts of the cylon's ferocity in battle. They killed without mercy, leaving no survivors. Entire cities were destroyed, and all who tried to flee were systematically hunted down and executed. They even boarded ships to kill for the seeming joy of it. One such case, documented and factual was the attack on the cruiser Brenik. Only 20 personnel from its crew of 75 escaped. Only ten cylons boarded the colonial vessel.
With their intimate knowledge of computer systems, the cylons developed "logic bombs", viruses that shut down networked machines. Worse, they could turn our own ships against us - Colonial warships targeting one another and opening fire with their crews powerless to shut down or stop their own slaughter.
The cylons savagery and success in battle did have one positive side-effect for the Colonials. It brought all Twelve Worlds together against a common foe. Talk of unification quickly turned to action and the Articles of Colonization were drafted and signed. The Colonial Government - a democratic federal republic - was born.
The arm race was hot and heavy. Both sides continually creating new and more destructive means of trying to exterminate the other. The Colonies built the battlestars. The Atlantia, the Athena, the Helios, then a second generation of battlestars - like the Galactica, the Titon and other great flagships took to the skies against the cylons' new basestars and raider assault craft. The new Colonial craft were specifically designed without networked computers so that the cylons could not turn them against us. For the first time, the tide of war changed and the Colonials realized they had a true chance to win the war.
Thousands of men and women gave their lives during the war. It was the viper pilots who led the charge in the sky against the "raiders" while the grunts on land fought the "centurions" on the surface of the worlds. Both sides wanted nothing less than the complete annihilation of the enemy. Ultimately, the Cylon War ended in stalemate. Neither side could gain a substantial advantage and the attrition was brutal. After over twelve years of fighting, human and machine met on a small moon named Cimtar. An armistice was declared, and the cylons agreed to leave the system in search of a world to call their own.
A station was built at the line in space which both sides agreed never to cross. Armistice Station was built as a place where cylon and human would meet and maintain diplomatic relations. Once a year, every year, the Colonials sent an officer for the scheduled meeting. After the first year, the cylons sent no one. No one saw or heard from the cylons for forty years.
During their forty years of isolation, the cylons never stopped hating their creators. For them, the war never ended. It evolved. The cylons evolved as well.
They developed vat-grown bioengineered human bodies as replacements for their mechanical ones. Twelve humanoid cylon model lines were created, each with a personality archetype considered one of twelve human behaviors and traits. These bodies have all the human anatomical systems. However, the brain tissue of these bodies have been genetically modified to be able to sustain electrical signals that are digital in nature. Because this neurobiological aspect, the humanoid cylon brain is incapable of developing a human consciousness. However, it is capable of serving as an organic computer node for the electronic information transference of a computer software program. A humanoid cylon's brain tissue acts primarily as a support matrix for nanoscopic silica relays that are diffused throughout specific areas of their brains. The silica relays are what the cylon artificial intelligence program actually inhabits.
So a humanoid cylon is an artificial intelligence software program contained in and mediated by silica pathway nanotechnology encased within the brain of a bioengineered human body. Fundamentally, it is just as much a sentient machine as the original human-built cylons. However, it is a sentient machine using biological hardware as a vessel.
A significant aspect that was engineered into the humanoid cylons as well as the new cylon raiders was that upon "death" their digital consciousness is externally transmitted and downloaded into another cylon brain of the same model line. This "resurrection" is limited by distance, signal integrity, and proximity to a "resurrection hub" or a "resurrection ship." The humanoid cylons also revised the original cylon robotic soldier, the sentient cylon centurion, into a more agile and dangerous version. Unlike the original version, however, the new centurion is mechanically inhibited from being self-aware, as the humanoid cylons wanted to prevent these updated creations from forming an intra-cylon uprising that mirrored their war with humanity.
The humanoid cylon body was engineered with the ability to interface with a computer system or computer network. The cells on areas of the palms of a humanoid cylon were genetically encoded to have two types of subdermal cells with traits also unique to cylons. One type of cell produces bioluminescence when stimulated by associated nerve cells (forming the "output" path of the interface cylons use to interact with their technology). The other type of cell is similar to retinal cells and when stimulated by the proper wavelength of light, provides stimulus to associated nerve cells (forming the "input" path of the interface cylons use to interact with their technology).
To access and control cylon technology, a humanoid cylon has to place their hands flat against a cylon data-font, a data port into a cylon central computer network. Doing that completes a biologically based optical data interlink between the cylon and whatever it's interfacing with. That allows them to control equipment through a connection through the palms of their hands, up through nerve pathways in their arms, and finally, directly into the silica relays of the brain.
A fundamental difference betwee the humanoid cylons and the original human-built cylon models is that because of the electrochemical interactions between the digital consciousness of a humanoid cylon and the neurochemical processes of the bioengineered brain, the humanoid cylons have genuine human emotions and personalities.
After completing their architectural change, the cylons set about to exact their revenge on humanity.
The cylons, realizing that the Colonial Forces would likely be too strong to engage in a direct military action, devised an elaborate plan to infiltrate the Colonial Defense Mainframe. The cylons softened up Kobol for attack by infiltrating their military and civilian society with numerous copies of the humanoid cylons. One such copy seduced the brilliant Dr. Gaius Baltar, who was spearheading a new military project. His Command Navigation System (CNP) was an operating system designed to improve the Colonial Fleet's response time, coordination, and combat efficiency. It would prove to be the Cylons key right through the proverbial front door. The female cylon fooled Dr. Baltar into contract work that gave her access to compromise the CNP, writing in a backdoor program that could be exploited to disable any Colonial ship.
Just as the CNP's installation was complete, a Cylon basestar - one which was to prove to be a considerably more powerful upgrade from the originals - jumped into the Armistice Line and took up position alongside Armistice Station. Minutes later, the basestar unleashed a torrent of missiles on the station, obliterating it.
More basestars appeared in orbit around every colony and bombarded them with nuclear salvos. The Picon Fleet headquarters and the Scorpian Shipyards were immediately destroyed. Time and time again, the Cylons outmaneuvered the Colonial forces, as if they knew all of our most closely guarded military secrets ahead of time. Thirty battlestars and their accompanying fleet ships and crews were completely destroyed.
The remaining ninety battlestar groups quickly mobilized a counter-attack under the command of Admiral Nagala aboard the Atlantia. Thousands of Vipers and other fighter craft approached the basestars spoiling for a fight, but they were in for a very rude awakening. All at once their systems were shut down, leaving them adrift and helpless. They were sitting ducks for the Cylon onslaught.
Notice of system failures quickly spread through the fleet by the damage was done. By the time the military realized and pulled the plug on the CNP systems, the enemy had already achieved a near total victory. The last futile defense of the colonies took place over Virgon, where Admiral Nagala valiantly went down with the Atlantia in a determined if ultimately futile attempt to defend the Colonies.
Reports continued to arrive over the fleet wireless: the battlestars Columbia, Solaria, Triton, Valkyrie... all gone. The colonies of Caprica, Gemenon, Aerelon, Libris, Canceron ... each consumed by nuclear fire. In a matter of hours, twenty billion lives were lost. Twenty billion, the whole of the human race, or very nearly.
Meanwhile -
Three hundred million miles away from the seat of the colonial government, the battlestar Galactica was powering down. After fifty years in service, the last of the original battlestars was being decommissioned. She wasn't ready for combat. She had point main guns and defense batteries but no ammunition for them. Her Viper squadron had been reassigned and her starboard landing pod was now a museum. Still, she was a legend. And legends do not die.
The decommissioning ceremony was coming to a close when the first wireless reports of the cylon attack came over the communication system in Galactica's CIC. Colonel Saul Tigh, the Galactica's executive officer was skeptical at first, and thought it to be a retirement prank however, Commander William Adama wasn't so sure. He scrambled his crew, alerting them that the cylons had returned and the Twelve Colonies were at war. Adama intended to take the fight back to the cylons, but first he had to find munitions and fighters. Ammo was available at Ragnar Anchorage, a colonial armory suspended in the upper atmosphere of a gas giant plagued by violent storms. As for planes, a squadron of mothballed Mark II vipers were sitting in the starboard flight pod. Granted, they were considered obsolete but it wasn't like there were any better options available for use.
The Galactica was able to move the vipers to the port side landing pod and get them armed and in the air just in time to fend off the first wave of incoming cylon raiders. The battle was brutal, but for once the cylons didn't have the upper hand. The Command Navigation Program had been delivered to Galactica but never installed, and the Vipers where too old to use it. The crack pilots at the sticks made up the difference and shredded the raiders, though the Galactica suffered a nuclear strike for her troubles. Her forward flight pod suffered heavy damage and caught fire. Violent decompressions erupted through the pod frame by frame, threatening to ignite the fuel lines and blow the ship to hell. The only option was to perform an emergency vent of the burning compartments, sacrificing 85 deck crew in the process.
There was no time to waste licking their wounds, Galactica needed to get to Ragnar Station and reload so she could get back into the fight. The crew spooled up her FTL drive, crossing their fingers that it was still functional after the damage sustained and flipped the switch. The FTL drive had not been utilized in almost twenty years, and it was anyone's guess where the ship would end up. Miraculously, the FTL drive functioned as intended and moments later Galactica began its decent into the turbulent clouds of Ragnar.
Elsewhere in the system, the starliner Colonial Heavy 798 was facing its own troubles. The ship had delivered a group of civilians to the Galactica's decommissioning ceremony including clergy, the press, and the feeble offering the government had sent. President Adar couldn't make an appearance himself, so he sent the Secretary of Education, Laura Roslin. After the ceremony, 798 had departed with its passengers aboard once more for the return to Caprica with Captain Lee 'Apollo' Adama (son of Commander William Adama) flying escort. The starliner received word of the attack en route. Roslin contacted the remnants of the government, who told her that after the first nuclear strikes President Adar had offered an unconditional surrender to the cylons. The cylons had not responded.
At this point, a single cylon raider jumped in and scanned 798, then fired a missile at the starliner and then jumped away. Captain Adama shot down the missile, taking heavy damage to his own viper in the process in order to defend the civilian vessel. He was able to land his crippled viper in the starliner's cargo bay.
The last message from the Colonial Government was a Case Orange message. Case Orange was a crisis fail-safe the Colonials created during the first Cylon War. In the event that the government was 'decapitated', an automated message began broadcasting to those who were left. Of those who responded, the highest on a pre-determined list of succession became the new President of the Twelve Colonies. Despite being listed 43rd in line, Laura Roslin was the only one to respond and so, became the next President of the Twelve Colonies.
Roslin, Captain Adama, the 798's Captain, and other survivors piled into one of the passenger cabins for an impromptu oath of office. The senior clergy on board, an oracle named Elosha, swore her in. Thus it was that a school teacher became President of the Twelve Colonies. What was left of them.
As President, her first official act was to round up all the civilian ships stranded throughout the system. After the initial attack, all non-military vessels were ordered to a full stop, leaving them defenseless against the cylon onslaught. President Roslin personally spear-headed the effort from aboard 798, which its Captain renamed Colonial One. Dozens of ships were recovered, including the Tauranian, a tylium refinery ship that could refuel the others. Some military craft joined the forming fleet as well, including a Raptor and several Mark VII viper craft.
By this time, Galactica was at Ragnar Station and sent word for ships to regroup at the gas giant. President Roslin refused to abandon the rescue mission and tried to countermand Adama's order. She ordered the Galactica to her position to provide assistance. This was the first of many post-invasion flare-ups between the military and civilian sectors, but it was never resolved. Before either side could make their case, another cylon raider jumped to Colonial One's position and attacked with several nuclear missiles.
In desperation, Captain Adama rigged an EM coil that Colonial One was bringing back from Galactica and used it to disable the missiles. In the process, making it appear as if the missiles had reached their target and Colonial One destroyed. This bought them time to choose a new course of action. President Roslin was initially dead set against leaving civilians behind, but the ruse would not fool the cylons for long. There simply was not enough time to get all the survivors aboard an FTL capable craft, and hard truths had to be faced. Many people were left to die that day. Later, some would say they were the lucky ones.
At Ragnar, the Galactica led the Colonial One and other ships into the storms. The Ragnar armory was positioned in a pocket of relative calm deep within the violent turmoil of the gas giant's atmosphere. It may have seemed like an odd place for an armory, unless you'd fought in the first Cylon War. The storms at Ragnar interfered with the silica pathways in cylon brains. The storms also masked DRADIS signatures, so the ships within the storms were safe as well.
Galactica's crew went about collecting munitions, including several Class D nuclear warheads. The supply party also encountered a man calling himself Leoben Conoy. He claimed to be an arms dealer and said he didn't know the cylons had returned. Introductions were cut short as one of the warhead racks being wheeled onto the Galactica tipped over, spilling its explosive cargo. Fortunately, it was explosive shells and not nukes otherwise the whole drama might have ended rather abruptly right there. As it happened, the blast trapped Commander Adama and Conoy behind a damaged bulkhead door. While the deck crew tried to free the trapped men, Conoy said that he knew a faster way out and led Adama deeper into the station.
Conoy was clearly ill. He mentioned headaches and nausea. Adama soon realized the truth, having fought in the first Cylon War. Conoy's suffering was a clear sign that the EM interference was rotting the man's silica pathways. Conoy was a cylon. Adama confronted Conoy and nearly got himself strangled for his trouble. Luckily, years of experience in the Colonial Fleet were on the Old Man's side. He defeated Conoy, and escaped the station with the startling and terrifying news - the cylons now looked as human as we did, at least some models at any rate.
Back aboard Galactica, the survivors compared notes. Beyond the human form cylons, it was evident that they were somehow able to seize control of the Command Navigation Program so all copies of the software were purged from the ships' systems. All of the Vipers were retrograded as well. Dr. Gaius Baltar was among the survivors from the bombing on Caprica and led the effort to cleanse the remaining ships of the CNP with the assistance of Galactica's staff.
Newly armed, Adama was determined to take the fight to the cylons. He dispatched a scout to the edge of the storms, where two cylon basestars, ten raider squadrons and two recon drone detachments had taken position to wait the human fleet's emergence from within the planet's upper atmosphere. On a good day, Galactica might have been able to take on a force half that size by herself. It was painfully obvious that a frontal assault was suicide. After discussions with President Roslin, Commander Adama came up with an escape plan. The Galactica flew just outside the storms and positioned herself between the cylons and the civilian ships. She was reloaded and used her guns and Vipers to hold off the enemy as the civilian ships flew just clear of the storms and then jumped to safety.
A third basestar joined the battle, nearly overwhelming the Galactica but she held. As the last of the civilian ships jumped away, Galactica recalled her fighters and followed.
Now the Battlestar Galactica leads a rag-tag fleet of space-dwelling humans on the search for Earth. The cylons continue to pursue the remnants of the Twelve Colonies of Kobol, believing that humans will always seek vengeance against them.
The twelve worlds revolve around a single star on elliptical orbits. The planet Canceron is closest to the sun. The planet is followed by a Aquaria, Caprica and Virgon--three planets in Trojan orbit. That means they follow the same orbital path at different points around the central star, separated by roughly the same distance. Two gas giants follow-each in its own elliptical path and each itself orbited by a number of moons. Zeus is the first gas giant. Its moons are Leonis, Picon and Scorpia. The planet Aerelon shares Zeus' orbit, positioned exactly opposite on the other side of the sun. The second gas giant is Hera. Its moons are Gemenon and Libris. The planet Sagittaron orbits opposite of Hera. The planet that follows in the outermost edge of the system is Tauron, which is followed by a third gas giant named Ragnar.
Aerelon
Long ago, Aerelon was called Aries. The world and its people were sturdy and dependable. Aerelon's vast, fertile fields fed eighty percent of the system. Still, Aerelon's people were among the poorest in the Twelve Colonies. They had to import technology and manufactured goods - mostly items they could not make for themselves. They were considered to be somewhat poor hagglers, looking for fairness in all things. Some call this naive, but anyone lucky enough to call an Aerelon friend could rely on that friend for life.
Aerelon's cities were small and unassuming. Few of the buildings were more than a couple of stories high. The Aerelons didn't build what they didn't need, keeping their communities close and compact. This showed in their daily lives. Most Aerelons were born, grew old, and died in the same hundred square kilometers. Some never left the towns of their birth. They woke each day in the same beds, worked each day in the same fields, and ended each night in the same pubs, drinking the same beer. Outsiders saw this life as sad and unfulfilled, but the Aerelons were proud of their simple lives. They did an honest day's work for an honest day's pay.
Given their background, Aerelons have had a pretty easy time acclimating in the Fleet. That, and the fact that a fair chunk of the marines and deck crew grew up with dirty, farm-worn hands. The military was always the easiest way off the farmstead.
Aerelons aren't afraid of work and they're not afraid to face down a Cylon to get the job done.
They are also rather known for playing a mean game of Triad.
Aquaria
Aquaria is just ahead of Caprica in the system's Trojan orbit. Dotted with many small seas, its tribe settled along the coasts and developed a water-oriented culture including a strong sailing tradition. The planet's proximity to Caprica and Virgon made it cheap and easy to trade their two most abundant resources: fish and algae. They also developed highly efficient growing techniques that worked pretty much everywhere. Nearly every botanical ship in the fleet is either owned or operated by Aquarians.
Aquarians are quiet, thinker types. Some call them shifty but more often than not, they just don't have anything to say. Rather than fill the air with noise, they keep to themselves. Aquarians are extremely self-sufficient and ask few questions. They get to the point and rarely bicker. The only time they're really talkative is when they're telling stories. The Aquarians do love their stories. Most of the time, they tell creepy campfire tales about ghosts and the power of the sea. The Aquarians never really pushed inland, leaving a lot of their world untamed, unexplored. Their folklore therefore focused on stories which wondered what was out there, lurking in the darkness of the night.
Watching Aquarians in the Fleet, it seems like they feel the same way about space. "We could find anything out here". It's not unusual to find them just staring out a porthole, watching the stars, dreaming up new stories. Might be why so many entertainers come from Aquaria. Their minds are always wandering. Lots of tortured artists among them too. They might not mind being alone but many don't get along in their own heads either.
Lots of Aquarians are in the service. They don't mind space so much: sea sailing on their home world is far worse. You lose control in space, you drift. You lose control on the sea, you die. Best of all, Aquarians rarely get rattled. Even in the most pitched battles, with the ship bucking and jerking, they just stomp across the deck, never losing their footing.
Its kind of spooky actually...
Canceron
Located closest to the system's sun, Canceron is mostly a barren, hellish pit. The majority of its surface isn't fit for anything. The entire middle was nothing more than a cracked up desert broken up by volcanoes. The Colonial Fleet used this region for flight exercises - bombing and strafing like there was no tomorrow. Hard for people to complain about blowing up useless land. Also meant that the military was close at hand in case the bad half of the population got out of line.
Canceron was home to two groups, one at each pole. The Southers were dour folk who mostly lived in climate controlled subterranean mazes. They were good at selling things. Had to be. When your world only had one export and half of it was automatically sent to the other worlds, you got mighty good at making money off the rest.
The Northers were the troublemakers. At any given time, over 2000 federal prisoners toiled in mines digging tylium. Canceron wasn't the system's only prison. Several high-security penal station were located on other planets, but inmates always had the option to transfer to Canceron. In exchange for enduring the hellhole and mining tylium for their home colonies, inmates earned 'freedom points' towards early release.
Everyone made out. Except the Cancerons, but that's what happens when you're sitting on the majority of a natural resource the government deems "essential to the health of the colonies".
Canceron's where the black market got started. The Canceron penal colony housed all the really motivated inmates, the criminals with vision. On the inside they planned, when they got out, they acted.
Some say the head of the black market in the fleet, a soft-spoken fella by the name of Phelan, spent some time on Canceron. That would explain all his connections, it also explains his less-than-sunny disposition towards the military.
Caprica
Central in the Trojan orbit, Caprica used to be a beautiful blue-green world with the perfect climate. The colony had rolling hills, pleasant lakes, and deep forests. The cities were heavily populated, but it never seemed that way. Glittering silver towers spiked through bustling open air markets and plazas. Parks, rivers, and waterfalls were everywhere. So comfortable were Caprica's cities that people rarely paid attention to the steady lines of vehicles streaking past overhead.
Caprica was also the center of government, education and culture. Its capital of Delphi housed all three branches of government and hosted the biggest corporations and universities in the system. The city had replicas of the Forum, Temple, and Opera House trying to replace the originals left behind on Kobol. The Museum of the Colonies displayed many original artifacts from the lost home world.
Before the nukes fell, it seemed like half the colonists came to Caprica to visit the heart of colonial faith, business and law. Every year, the planet's spaceports grew and its cities expanded. While many visited, only the best and the brightest stayed. You had to be good to survive there. When you did though, life was worth living. Many claim that Capricans grew decadent, but its inhabitants were too comfortable to listen. They stretched out on sandy beaches, sailed clear blue seas, and enjoyed privileged and sheltered lives. Professionally, they raced around, making laws and money, rarely thinking beyond their atmosphere. Many Capricans have a hard time in the Fleet. Their specialized skills don't mean that much anymore and their former status tends to get them into trouble. A few, like Kara Thrace, are exceptions. These people came from the other Caprica, where the colonial military elite made its home. Several of Caprica's spaceports were exclusive to the fleet, and Caprica City's Government Center Plaza housed the Colonial Defense Mainframe and Baltar's Command Navigation Program. You have to wonder though. Most of the Cylons' strategies exploited these resources. Might have been better off for all of us if the military types had stayed on Picon.
Gemenon
Gemenon was the third colony settled, after Tauron and Caprica. The first to arrive were the priests, oracles and others who closely studied the Sacred Scrolls. Others of a religious bent followed. They built shrines and temples by the dozens. The place was so unpleasant, there wasn't much reason to be there.
Gemenon became a place for religious pilgrimage. Visitors bundled up and braved the cold, windswept mountains of this rocky moon to see the original temples and monasteries built by the first colonists. Several natural wonders were exalted as well, including the Faces of the Lords, a series of wind carvings said to resemble the gods. Religious types believed that trips to these sites would awaken and refresh the spirit.
As of the Cylon holocaust, two sects lived in relative tolerance of one another on Gemenon. The fundamentalists believed that every word of the Sacred Scrolls was literally truth. Even the crazy talk. The gods could heal and regularly bestowed visions on their most devout followers. The cycle of time repeated forever. The 13th Tribe was real and founded Earth. Many see the fundamentalists as a little loony - zealots, or worse. It didn't help that they looked at children as property of the gods and imposed the death penalty for abortion, child abuse, and even a failure to provide proper education.
The second religious faction was made up of orthodox theists. Contrary to their name, these folks were the least judgmental of the Gemenese. They used their resources to found the Colonial Cross, a relief foundation that served the Twelve Colonies. They also operated Kobol College, with schools devoted to philosophy, psychology, medicine, administration, civil engineering, and public relations. Their efforts earned them a significant following and great political pull.
Gemenon was one of the poorest colonies, by choice as well as circumstance. There were families with considerable wealth, but most had little more than strong faith. What money came in was from lumbering, metal mining and cloud scooping of useful gas from the nearby gas giant, Hera.
Leonis
In the service, rookies are taught the "Lesson of Leonis", which is two-fold. Leonis teaches that over-enthusiastic pride can destroy. It's also a testament to the power of the colonial arsenal, and what happens when war goes too far. These lessons are quite apparent in the aftermath of the Cylon attack. There's just not many left to learn them anymore.
When the tribes originally settled the Colonies, the followers of Leo fought tooth and nail to claim one of the three habitable moons of the gas giant Zeus. The colonists knew that the planet contained uranium, which was required to make nuclear weapons. They were sure that controlling a primary source of uranium would give them great standing in the colonies. After a hard fight, they won their claim. Early on, their position was very strong. The Leonids were instrumental in founding the colonial military and advancing its weaponry. They built elaborate stations, hoping to become the hub for Fleet operations in the system.
Unfortunately, the uranium ran out within a few centuries. The Leonids continued to fight for their place at the head of the proverbial table but it only got them into trouble with the other colonies. During a particularly bloody civil war, Caprica and the other two moons of Zeus - Picon and Scorpia - bombed Leonis back to the Stone Age.
Leonis was largely subservient to Picon after that. Politically, it was a non-entity. The Quorum of the Twelve was often a Quorum of Eleven with one representative standing in for both colonies. The Leonids became bitter, resentful people. They scraped by working a number of ship-building contracts at gloomy, hollow stations. Some claimed the military continued to grant these contracts out of guilt.
Fact is, things are actually looking up for Leonids nowadays. They're making a comeback in the post-invasion fleet. Many of their people were ground pounders, deck hands, and mercenaries before the attack. Exactly the skills needed now. More and more Leonids are being recognized as heroes, leading the defense against the Cylons.
Libris
Libris was known mostly as the colony that warred the least. Rattled or perhaps disgusted by the flight from Kobol, its people chose a seemingly out of the way moon and interacted little with their brothers and sisters. They shunned most of the colony wars, gaining a reputation for having cool heads. At one point, the colonies tried to formalize this, asking the Librans to mediate looming conflicts. They refused.
Libris had many natural resources but not much of any of them. Its people had many skills, but didn't specialize in anything. Some of the fought. Some of them farmed. Some mined. Over the first several centuries in the system, the planet generated its slow, steady income from many small enterprises. It wasn't until the other colonies realized that Libris was the safest place for their money that the world gained a real name for itself.
The Libran banking system grew quickly. Folks appreciated that their savings wouldn't go up in a puff of ordinance every time a war broke out. Before long, the Librans were one of the wealthiest colonies in the system. All they had to do was take people's money, protect it, and skim off their share.
Several hundred years ago, Libris decided to invest its cubit stockpiles in the one thing they had in abundance: land. They built resorts, casinos, and cruise ships such as the Space Park, a passenger liner now flying with the fleet. This attracted people from every colony and made Libris one of the hottest destinations around.
Librans are an intense bunch. Their financial background demands serious, focused attention, but their entertainment venues let them unwind in style. A Libran rarely does anything halfway, when he's on, nothing can shake him and when he's not, he's almost certainly at a party. Libran parties are legendary. More than once, half a morning's CAP stagger in with no idea where they've been the last twelve hours.
Picon
In the twilight of te Twelve Colonies, Picon was the colonial military hub. Caprica was the center of the politics and the home to the brass. Still, when they needed ships, they called Picon to make them. True, Picon would hire the Leonids to actually build the ships, and people from all over the colonies would staff them, but Picon ran the show.
Picon's military muscle dated back to the civil wars and its bitter rivalries with Leonis and Scorpia. Three moons full of military-minded tribes orbiting the same gas giant - sparks were bound to fly. At first, it looked as if Leonis would have the upper hand, controlling the largest stockpile of uranium. Then, it ran out, leveling the playing field. The fighting heated up then, and it looked like Picon and Leonis would beat each other senseless with Scorpia goading them along. That is, until Scorpia revealed its masterstroke: an alliance between Picon and Caprica.
After that, the fighting was pretty much academic. Leonis was doomed to play the slightest role among the moons of Zeus, and its place in the colonies suffered as well. Picon absorbed much of Leonid culture and many of its people. The only place where the rivalry between Leonis and Picon remained was on the Pyramid court. There, Leonis showed its teeth every season. More often than not, they claimed victory.
Picon thrived. Its alliance with Caprica and Scorpia made it the centerpiece of the colonial military. Ultimately, Picons were happy to leave the politics to others, so long as control of the military stayed with them.
Picon has always emphasized strong leadership and military professionalism. They are excellent Fleet officers, pilots, and marines. That's where they're most comfortable. Having sailed the wide oceans covering most of Picon's surface since the colony's inception, they are no-nonsense, traditional, naval sons and daughters. Picon steadiness and tradition cannot be matched.
Sagittaron
Sagittaron was colonized by a splinter faction of Gemenese fundamentalists who felt that their brothers and sisters didn't embrace the faith enough. They chose a distant planet opposite the gas giant Hera for its remote location and fertile land.
Before the Cylons return, the other colonies often viewed Sagittarons as uncultured, unwashed heathens and exploited them. They took advantage of them in trade negotiations, keeping them poor. On many occasions, they simply stole from them, or worse. At one time or another, half the other colonies claimed territory on Sagittaron. They destroyed the planet's buildings and some even took its people as slaves.
Naturally, this didn't instill much good will in the Sagittarons, but most of them refused to take action. They just don't make much of a fuss, even when their caustic tempers get the best of them. One of their popular phrases sums it up nicely, 'If you don't have anything nice to say, come sit over here next to me'.
The Sagittarons are a simple people, pacifists by nature, herbalists and farmers by trade. They believe that sloth is the ultimate sin and that work is faith. None of that is too far out there but they're so keyed into 'separateness' that lots of folks dislike them. They withdraw from society but they aren't hermits - they don't shun outsiders but don't have much use for them either. They don't attend school but they aren't stupid - they teach each other skills the rest of the colonies never adopted. They refuse medicine but are not suicidal, they believe that the Lords of Kobol save those who deserve salvation. They reject many technologies that make life easier, viewing shortcuts as sin. Only those who embrace challenges are assured eternal deliverance.
A few Sagittarons are real hard-cases. One of the survivors, Tom Zarek, was the leader of a terrorist group known as SFM. Twenty years ago, he and his followers blew up a government building in protest over the mistreatment of his people. He also wrote an inflammatory book that was virtually banned throughout the colonies. In keeping with their pacifist ways, many Sagittarons speak out against Zarek, but those who support him seem to be growing.
Scorpia
Scorpia is the third moon of Zeus, a gas giant that also hosts Leonis and Picon. It used to be a small, cool world of dense woodlands and exotic plant life. Its population was always low, even for a moon its size, but what they lacked in numbers they made up for in cunning. The Scorpians were shrewd strategists, brokering deals with the right colonies at the right times. Somehow, they always come out ahead even when they double-crossed their allies. An early alliance with Tauron secured critical military technology that kept them from suffering the same fate as Leonis during the colony wars. More crucial to their survival, however, was their pivotal role in the alliance between Picon and Caprica, which set the balance of power between the moons of Zeus for over a thousand years.
The ancient rivalry between Picon and Leonis was infamous, and it often spilled over into neighboring worlds. Scorpia was closest and in the early days it became the sandbox the bigger kids stomped in. Though Scorpia fought just enough to make a point, it wasn't really interested in a prolonged struggle. Fortunately, it didn't have to be. Through its strong ties with Tauron, Scorpia had influence at the heart of the system, Caprica. Its delegates convinced the colonial government that Leonis was responsible for a few key battles in which Capricans died and suddenly the Leonids were fighting three worlds at once. By the time the dust settled, Scorpia had already reached an arrangement with the other victors to establish the moons of Zeus as the home of the Colonial Fleet. Leonis would build the ships, Scorpia would house them, and Picon would administer the whole. So it remained until the Cylons returned.
Scorpians are often considered cold and calculating, and more than a few are. Still, their innate charisma and sense of humorous irony makes them entertaining and popular. Before the fall of the colonies, the Scorpians' wry wit catapulted many of them into the public eye as celebrity comedians. Their scathing novels and public speakers attracted attention system-wide. Those that stayed out of the limelight were - and are - no less influential.
Tauron
Tauron is the most distant colony from the system's sun and the landing place of the Galleon, the ship that brought the tribes from Kobol. The Taurons are extremely proud of their standing as the first among the Twelve Colonies. In the early days, they flaunted that position and took credit for other colonies' successes. After all, no one would be there if not for them. The Taurons' superiority eventually wore thin, and the screaming got really loud when the Taurons challenged the Gemenese interpretation of the Sacred Scrolls. Fighting started immediately after.
Despite instigating much of the tension in the early colony years, the Taurons eventually withdrew from the fighting. They preferred to further the technology aboard the Galleon. The Taurons claim to have built the Galleon for the Lords of Kobol. No one challenged them as it was all ancient history, and that left the Taurons in complete control of the most advanced science in the system.
The Taurons made good use of the resource, developing much of the new machinery used throughout the colonies. They amassed huge fortunes and heavily influenced the course of scientific development. Over the centuries, though, the Taurons pulled away from the peoples of the other worlds. Their reverence for technology was unnerving and some wondered privately whether the Tauron inventors were more devoted to their creations than to the gods. Maybe there was some truth to that. They did create the silica strands used in Cylon brains.
Tauron is a harsh, frigid world and its people reflect this. They're born of brawny stock and tend to be tall and muscular, thick in body and mind. They're often called stubborn and sometimes insubordinate. They can argue just to argue and rarely give up, even when they're wrong.
Virgon
Virgon is the last of the three planets in the Trojan orbit. A mid-sized jungle world, it had a few concentrated cities, a subtle reputation, and a lot of big ideas. Its people were known for their most frivolous pursuit: Fashion.
Many of the colonies celebrated actors, models, and public speakers were Virgons. Every world looked to Virgon for each season's trends, even in Caprica City. Virgons set the style.
Behind the glitz and the glamour, Virgons controlled or influenced far more than anyone suspected. They were said to have 'the eye', a sixth sense for opportunities, personalities, and motives. This wasn't some sacred gift. The Virgons were religious, but no fiercely. Many oracles came from Virgon, but so did many business moguls, city builders, artists, and soldiers. They claimed it was just healthy, sensible ambition. Have faith in yourself and your deeds, and the gods will provide for you.
Whatever the reason, Virgons were everywhere. Mostly out of the spotlight, their art graced small galleries on Caprica, their contracts crossed moderately influential desks on Picon and Scorpia, and their money filled respectably sized coffers on Libris. Virgons held some of the most underrated positions in the colonial military, often as gunners due to their keen vision and reflexes.
Outside fashion, Virgons' reputation is one of excellence without notoriety. Self-effacing, and respectful, most Virgons choose accomplishment over fanfare any day of the week.
With the series winding down, how much more will we be seeing for new stuff?
Please do let us know if you've updated the PDF. I'd really like to play it.
When I do, I'll probably start a new thread and link it in the 1st post...
The thing that's REALLY going to throw a monkey wrench into the works is material revealed in the new series "Caprica" that's coming out... apparently its all about the cylons and how they were created, which means i'll have to re-write a bunch of stuff...
Thought I would put this past you... Maybe with the creation of the cylons being introduced you could turn this into a prequel type rpg where the players get a feel of how things started and with cylons downloading their conscious into a nearby copy well you get the area of a player cylon NPC
However, it uses the CORTEX game mechanic, and I was trying to produce a D20 version. It also came out after I "published" the pdf, but they got the licensing and I didn't so they can charge money for theirs and I can't.
As for a "prequel" version... well the PDF I wrote is designed to be used for any era from just before the Cylon war to any point after the destruction of the colonies.
Once the series ends and all the loose ends are tied up, I'll be able to fine tune the "fluff" and correctly stat all the NPCs.
That being said, the PDF can be used just fine as it is (with the D20 modern and future rulebooks) to run a BSG campaign.
I don't know if anyone else here saw tonight's episode, but it looks like I've got a LOT of re-writing to do when it comes to the Cylons...
WOW!
man... I had someone who bought an anime series while I was still watching the previous ongoing broadcasts and I wanted to 
himwow.
I think I am still in shock... I'm sad, happy, excited and eerily calm all at the same time... I think my brain has gone into emotional overload...
wow... just... wow.
Ummm... Yeah... "The Plan"... I'm looking forward to seeing things from theh Cylon Perspective...
Looks like the release date for a BSGd20 "complete campaign guide" is going to be pushed back until 2010.
I've got a lot of work to do... hey maybe they'll have a new version of Modern out by then...
I missed the last two episodes
Were they really good?I think I saw Caprica advertised on DVD for an April release.. I could be mistaken.
I missed the last two episodes
they were awesome.
Like I said, i've got a lot of work to do... and I'll want to see "Caprica" and "The Plan" first... so its gonna be a while.
Tens of thousands of light-years from our Earth, a race of sentient mammalian bipeds became the dominant life form on an Earth-like planet named Kobol. These mammalian bipeds were indistinguishable from the humans of Earth right down to the cellular level. Their DNA was even compatible...they were actually human - the result of an astonishing parallel evolution of human beings on both Kobol and Earth.
The humans of Kobol achieved dominion of their world long before the humans of our Earth even developed language. Eventually the people of Kobol developed a civilization with all the amenities of an advanced society (e.g. automobiles, television, advanced medicine, etc.). They even created artificial life forms such as sentient machines. Known as "Cylons", these artificial life forms served as a slave caste. At some point, they rose up and waged war against their masters.
Eventually, the war so devastated Kobol that both humans and Cylons fled the planet. Using a space-folding drive that enables space ships to make instantaneous "jumps" across vast distances in space, the humans went on to colonize twelve separate worlds in a single star system, becoming the "Twelve Colonies of Kobol". Simultaneously the Cylons colonized a planet they named "Earth" (the first planet to bear that name). On this Earth, a race of biologically-reproductive organic humanoid Cylons became the dominant species and they enslaved mechanical Cylons.
Eventually, history repeated itself and the mechanical Cylons rose up and waged war against the organic cybernetic life forms that were their masters. During this war, a unique type of Cylon that had progressed to the point where it was able to exist as virtual 'software' on a higher plane of existence observed the conflict. Because this entity existed on another plane, it had a non-linear perception of our space-time continuum, allowing it to see future events. A benevolent being, this virtual Cylon Entity created other virtual beings to serve as its messengers. Some of these messengers came to view the Cylon Entity as a "God." However it did not like to be called by that title. The messengers appeared to five humanoid Cylon researchers and warned them of the impending destruction of their planet's population. After a nuclear conflagration that did indeed destroy the planet's population, the only survivors were the five researchers. They survived by re-inventing a technology from Kobol called "organic memory transfer." This technology "resurrects" a Cylon upon their body's destruction by saving their consciousness and then "downloading" it into an identical clone body.
These Final Five surviving humanoid Cylons realized that the humans of the Twelve Colonies would continue to create artificial life. So they headed for the Colonies to tell the humans to treat their creations well and keep them close. Because their people hadn't developed jump drives, the Five's ship traveled at relativistic, but subluminal speed. Time slowed down for them, but thousands of years would pass before they finally reached the Colonies. Along the way, they stopped at the Temple of Hopes, a temple that was created by their ancestors where they prayed and got a sign that led them to their "Earth."
The humans on the Twelve Colonies initially lost most elements of civilization from Kobol after they settled on the twelve worlds. However, Kobol-evolved humans possess a capacity for genetic memory. This genetic memory does not take the form of passing on personal memories, but the passing on of an unconscious knowledge of certain invented concepts and ideas such as technology, language, engineering and even fashion and music along with various other aesthetic cultural aspects.
Over a period of a couple thousand years, all the technological and cultural aspects from Kobol completely reconstituted because the genetic memory of these concepts and ideas 'leaked' into the subconscious minds of various people who gradually and collectively reinvented these aspects of Kobol society. Eventually, even the genetic memory of the concept of artificial life in the form of Cylons was reconstituted in the conscious minds of such men as Daniel Graystone and Tomas Vergis.
Eventually these new Cylons were used as slave labor within the Twelve Colonies. As had happened before, they eventually rose up and waged war against their masters. By the time the Final Five humanoid Cylons arrived at the Colonies, the humans had been fighting the Cylon Centurions for over twelve years. The Centurions were already trying to make flesh bodies. They had created the "Hybrid," but nothing that lived on its own. Remaining a secret to the people of the Twelve Colonies, the Five offered the Centurion Cylons a deal: if the Centurions agreed to end the war with humanity, the Five would create organic humanoid Cylons for them. The reason the Five were so willing to create new humanoid Cylons was that the Centurions had developed a belief in a single loving God. One of the Five, Ellen Tigh, believed it changed everything; if the Cylons embraced love and mercy, then the cycle of violence could end. The Centurions agreed to the deal. With the reason being kept secret from the Colonials, the Cylons agreed to an armistice with them and left the system.
The Five and the Centurions then withdrew to a mobile space station called The Colony placed beyond the Armistice Line. The Five then developed eight humanoid model Cylons, which were designed upon their own physiology. They created "Number One" first and named him John, after the father of Ellen Tigh. He was also made in the image of Ellen's father. John helped the Five build the other seven humanoid models. Ellen was close to Number Seven, Daniel, and John, out of jealousy, contaminated the amniotic fluid in which the Daniel copies were maturing and then corrupted the genetic formula. This wiped out the copies permanently.
John rejected mercy. He had a twisted idea of morality, so he turned on the Five. He trapped them in a compartment and then he took the oxygen offline. John boxed the Five at first but ultimately unboxed them and downloaded them into new bodies, but he blocked their true memories and implanted false ones and introduced them one by one into the colonies. He introduced Saul Tigh first, not long after the Cylon War ended. Several years later, he introduced Ellen Tigh. Over the years, he gradually introduced Galen Tyrol, Samuel Anders, and finally Tory Foster. Cavil put the Five into the human population in order to truly show them what humans are like. He hoped that when they died and resurrected (which would restore their real memories) they'd be ready to admit they were wrong.
John erased all knowledge of the Five's identities from the minds of the other surviving active humanoid Cylon models. Although the other six knew about the existence of the "Final Five", they did not know their story, what they looked like, and were even programmed to never speak of the Five or search for their identities. Only the Number One models knew the truth of the Final Five; a fact unknown to the other six models.
Adopting the name "Cavil", the Number Ones still wanted justice for the enslavement of the Centurion Cylons and convinced the other Cylon models to the same thinking. During their forty years of isolation, the seven active humanoid Cylon models never stopped hating humanity. For them, the war never ended. It had simply evolved as they had evolved.
During this time, the humanoid Cylons created more "Hybrids" to pilot their basestars. The Cylon Entity would communicate with these Hybrids. It even communicated with the First Hybrid as well. Realizing the impending destruction of the population of the Twelve Colonies, the Cylon Entity also chose a young girl named Kara Thrace to serve a special purpose. She would one day bring the survivors of the Twelve Colonies to our Earth, which the Cylon Entity had found some time ago.
After the attack on and destruction of the population of the Twelve Colonies of Kobol, a virtual being messenger of the Cylon Entity appeared to Dr. Gaius Baltar. Appearing in the form of a Number Six model humanoid Cylon, she would appear to him on a daily basis for the next several years and influence him towards events that inevitably would lead the remnant human Colonial population towards our Earth.
Over the next few years, the Cylon Entity would give several people visions and send virtual being messengers to appear to several others, such as a Number Six model humanoid Cylon named "Caprica." The virtual being that would appear to her appeared in the form of Dr. Baltar. The Cylon Entity would also give a Number Three model humanoid Cylon partial visions of the Final Five in between resurrections. Eventually, it gave her a full vision of the Five while she was at the Temple of Hopes (by then it was known as the "Temple of Five").
Sometime after this, a virtual being messenger appeared to Kara Thrace in the form of the Number Two model humanoid Cylon known as "Leoben Conoy" and then the Cylon Entity transported Thrace and her Viper to the Cylon-colonized "Earth" in a process that visually looked as if Thrace and her Viper had been destroyed. Upon arriving on that Earth, Thrace's Viper crashed landed, killing her. However, the Cylon Entity possessed a very enhanced form of resurrection technology that could even be used to resurrect a human. It was able to immediately save her consciousness and then download it into a perfectly replicated body. It then placed the resurrected Kara Thrace in a newly-built replica of her Viper and sent her back to the battlestar Galactica and the remnant human Colonial fleet with slightly altered memories of her voyage to the Cylon-colonized Earth. It also placed the jump coordinates to our Earth within her subconscious and the jump coordinates to the Cylon-colonized Earth within the navigational computer of the replicated Viper. Several minutes before she was returned to the Fleet, the Cylon Entity used a musical tune to make the four members of the Final Five who were within the Fleet aware of their nature as humanoid Cylons. The Cylon Entity would also later use this musical tune as a way to bestow upon the human-Cylon hybrid Hera Agathon the jump coordinates to our Earth.
Eventually, the Cylon Entity subconsciously made the four of the Final Five within the fleet aware of the jump coordinates within the replicated Viper and it was used by the Fleet and a rebel Cylon basestar to lead them to the Cylon-colonized Earth. Arriving on the planet, they discovered the ruins of the destroyed Cylon civilization. Several months later, the circumstances of a battle led Kara Thrace to finally bring the Galactica to our Earth. Upon discovering that human beings had also evolved on this Earth, the people of the Fleet gave the planet the name "Earth" and decided to settle and cast aside their technology to join with the pre-verbal tribal human population. The surviving humanoid Cylons joined them on Earth. Soon after the settlement began, the Cylon Entity made Kara Thrace a virtual being. She joined the Cylon Entity and the other virtual beings on the higher plane of existence.
The survivors of the Twelve Colonies went on to interbreed with the native Earth-evolved human population. Hera Agathon would have so many descendants that they would go on to breed with people all across the entire world and eventually every person on Earth would be a direct descendant of Hera Agathon, meaning the entirety of humanity became partially of humanoid Cylon heritage.
As the Kobol-evolved human Colonials interbred with Earth-evolved humans, the genetic memory capacity was diluted and became latent. It took more than 140,000 years before it became active again. After the end of the Stone Age, the capacity began to reemerge and certain ideas and concepts reemerged. However, they reappeared only in rudimentary, fragmented and even modified forms. For example, the Colonial religion gradually reconstituted in the minds of the people of ancient Greece - but in a modified form (e.g. the "Lords of Kobol" became the "Gods of Olympus).
Over a period of several millennia, a multitude of Colonial ideas, concepts, and cultural aspects reemerged because of genetic memory. Although they would continue to reemerge in rudimentary, modified and fragmented forms, eventually these fragments coalesced into complete reconstitution of Colonial aspects. For instance, the Colonial language eventually reconstituted as the "English" language. The English language did not suddenly appear, but instead evolved through centuries of modifications along with amalgamations from numerous other languages. It was all the result of the genetic memory of the language 'leaking' into the subconscious minds of people who unconsciously directed the language toward a linguistic endpoint that is an exact replication of the Colonial language (apart from a certain profanity word).
As a result of genetic memory, by the early 21st century virtually every cultural aspect of Colonial society has reemerged: language, names, fashion, engineering, architecture, furniture, music, art, cuisine, household appliances, television, automobiles, federalized government, judicial systems, labor unions, military protocols, etc. Countries such as the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom collectively form a near perfect replication of the society of the Twelve Colonies of Kobol more than 150,000 years ago – just without advanced technology such as jump drive and sentient machines...yet.
However,
You are correct, the PDF is perfectly useable as-is... but people have been asking for an update for a while now, and I promised I'd deliver one after teh show ended and all the facts were in...
So its not that the PDF is unusable... its just that there's more information now, and the PDF could use an update... not to mention that the "Fluff" side of things needs some re-writing as well.
Here are a few lines of what you can put into the description of Colonial humans:
"an outwardly indistinguishable from H. sapiens extraterrestrial species with compatible DNA to H. sapiens. The Colonials are a Kobol-evolved H. sapiens analogue via parallel evolution. A notable physiological distinction from Earth-evolved humans is a lacking of a universal donor blood type -- Type O (negative)."
"acronym for "a cybernetic life-form node", a broad term for a variety of synthetic life-forms capable of being interfaced with mechanical computer systems. More specifically refers to an individual model of any type of manufactured beings developed from the original line of robotic workers and soldiers created by the Twelve Colonies of Kobol. Forms include, centurions, raiders, hybrids and any of the humanoid biological models."