Traveller Hero: 1249 Timeline in the Verge Subsector

[Bygoneyrs]

Hello everyone,

 

Ok as many may know I am a "Old Time" Traveller fan and am redoing my campaign and setting it once again in the Verge Subsector. Time frame is 1249 and I am making a change at least in my own campaign area of the Verge subsector.

 

Firstly inregards to the Virus, as it spread across space it caused great destruction as we all know. One of the super AIs it infected was a Mega Corp Bio lab research facility, that went to the extreme and infected people with the strains of the different Bio germs it was working on. It

exposed many patients and staff to a combination of two different Bio projects and the result was a disasterous plagues that spread far and

extremely fast into and across the Verge subsector.

 

Thus spread one plague that acts like the "Rage" from 28 Days and 28 Weeks Latter. After thus once infected with the rage, the plagued people will become extrememly vilent and attack anything living. These

infected were easy enough to dispatch, basically shoot them dead as normal works real well.

 

Next there is the "Dead" plague now this plague is passed on via a simple stratch or bite from a infected to a new host. Once the new victom dies, they re awaken with only primal instincts of wanting to eat and will try to eat any other living thing. They seem to feel no pain and have hightened strength plus can seem to see better in the dark. Now these plague infected will dryup if they do not keep eating fresh warm blood and meat. Their higher brain functions seem to be lost, but they seem to be able to communicate amongst themselves and work together in a manner of fashion. Also they seem to be able to take alot

of body damage, but massive damage to the brain will mostly kill them dead for good. Also massive structure damage to their bodies will cause them to loose use of body parts, but as long as the brain/head is still attached to their body they can move their limbs that are not destroyed. So if you were to hack off ones head, it's body would thrash for a while but in a few minutes would stop . The head would live on untill it runs out of fluids and energy and die in time.

 

It has also been noted that those that were infected with the "Rage" do not seem affected or are immune to the "Dead" plague. Thus also

those that have the "Rage" do not seem to see be able to infect them either. Both plague infected will attack one another as well.

 

So in my 1248 era Traveller set in the Verge Subsector, the AI Virus purged across the area, as well as did both the "Rage" and "Dead" plagues too. The destruction was extreme across space, and whole worlds were depopulated. Mostly both plagues burned themselves out in time, but they could be still out there !!!

 

Now I have decided to set my campaign in a system that has a culture of Humaniti that settled there in the 2nd Empire of Man, and fallen into decline and was slowly rebuilding their tech again. When the time of the Virus struct they were are Tech Level 9 on the verge of reaching TL 10. the Virus had very little effect on them and neaither of the two plagues never reached them either. So by 1248 era, they have reached TL 11 with some TL12. They use shuttle warp tech and cold sleeper to travel between star systems. Think Aliens (first movie) and Aliens II (2nd movie space ship tech). They knew about the "great war", but not the real details. They want to see what happened to everyone, not knowing what happened.

 

Also as a culture they unified and explored their system in great details. Their system was as follows:

 

(keeping the detail simple here)

 

Sun : Yellow star just like our own SOL

 

Orbit 1: Desert world - thin atmospher with lots of minerals and

elements - minor plant life

Orbit 2: Home world - Earths twin but only 65% water covered,

rich in minerals, elements and food resources

Orbit 3: Mars like world - but has frozen waters and some lifeforms

as well as some rare minerials and elements

Orbit 4: Large Gas Giant with (5) moons - rich in menerals and

elements

Orbit 5: Asteroid belt - vast amounts or Iron ore and other metals

 

Thus the the race calling themselves the Alninnarr on their homeworld of Alnin have begun to make their first steps in the great beyond to explore space and see what happened. They have made it to the closest systems to them, but they need to fully explore them and to keep exploring.

 

The players will be apart of the Scout service and will be Explorers!

 

Comments anyone...?

 

Penn

[Bygoneyrs]

Re: Traveller Hero: 1249 Timeline in the Verge Subsector

 

Now the players will be either Ex-Navy or Ex-Marines, and there will be a total of (5) PCs, (5) NPCs, and a squad of (8) Marines on their scout vessel. They will get the choice to explore one of (3) systems that are newly reached inwhich the Alninnarr have a outpost already in system. Or they can explore one of (2) systems that are yet total unknowns.

 

The (8) Marines are really "Red Shirts", and the (5) NPC crew are other crew that will have both a name and position, with their skills set for their specific function/position. So if one of the PCs characters are killed they have other possible crew members to assume and build as PCs.

 

Penn

[StGrimblefig]

Re: Traveller Hero: 1249 Timeline in the Verge Subsector

 

First question: how did the biological plagues get off-planet? Since they both seem to reduce victims to low-functioning animals or zombies, how could an infected human operate a starship to get to other systems and allow it to spread across the sector?

 

I have not seen the movies in question, so please forgive me if it is supposed to be obvious.

 

I could see there being a "germination" period after a person is infected and before they start to show symptoms (especially if it were several days in length). That would possibly allow an infected person to get offworld and start the cycle on another planet. I could see a "cut-scene" (perhaps a recording the PCs find) in which a ship comes out of jump only to crash into a moon or something. The rescue squad finds the crew dead, except for one with very faint life signs, but he is nearly dried up. As the paramedics try to save him, he attacks. Before he is destroyed, he gets good bites in several of the rescue squad...

[Bygoneyrs]

Re: Traveller Hero: 1249 Timeline in the Verge Subsector

 

Exactly!!!

 

Picture this scene:

 

The outbreak begins and spreads throughout a Starport. Ok a group of people band together and manage to make it to their Space ship, with only a few gotten scratched or bitten. They manage to launch and travel to the jump point and go into jump. Lets say 3 of the 7 man crew have fallen ill from their injuries. While in Jump, the three die for the 'Dead plague' or are taken over by the "Rage" and attack the rest of the crew. Now either the infected crew kill and eat the rest of the crew, and then the ship comes out of jump in a new system(destination for the ship to reach after it exits jump space). Then the ships exits jump into normal space and is adrift looking like a derelict and not responding to system hails to the ship. Next a System Defense Boat (patrol) is dispacted to the adrift derelict that appears to be undamaged and powered but no sign of life or answer to any hails. The armed patrol then sends over a armed Marine boarding party and then board the ship. Next they discover dead crew and a firefight and find a survivor and try to take him prisoner and he attacks . Someone is bitten and they kill this plagued person, but bring their injured Marine back aboard the patrol vessel and so the process starts again.

 

So think of the above situation starting with a bunch of ships escaping the first infection outbreak, only to spread it to a few other systems, and then a bunch of infected escaping those systems to eventually infect others and so on! It could spread extremely fast!

 

Penn

 

 

First question: how did the biological plagues get off-planet? Since they both seem to reduce victims to low-functioning animals or zombies, how could an infected human operate a starship to get to other systems and allow it to spread across the sector?

 

I have not seen the movies in question, so please forgive me if it is supposed to be obvious.

 

I could see there being a "germination" period after a person is infected and before they start to show symptoms (especially if it were several days in length). That would possibly allow an infected person to get offworld and start the cycle on another planet. I could see a "cut-scene" (perhaps a recording the PCs find) in which a ship comes out of jump only to crash into a moon or something. The rescue squad finds the crew dead, except for one with very faint life signs, but he is nearly dried up. As the paramedics try to save him, he attacks. Before he is destroyed, he gets good bites in several of the rescue squad...

[Sweeper]

Re: Traveller Hero: 1249 Timeline in the Verge Subsector

 

Heh, it has a nice Resident Evil vibe to it. Maybe you could add some of the stuff from any of the videogames, right down to the virus continuosly mutating the victims into mosters like the Nemesis. RE4 and,IIRC, RE5 are going with a cult angle. Real creepy stuff.