Delves Without Number

Nestled in the Fajardo Sector, situated right in the middle there, Trove was a planet of mineheads all across its sparse desert surface. Long ago, the planet was colonized by the Earth Mandate and threaded all throughout with the infinite depths of the Delves; the soil dug easy and the earth's infinite bounty sustained the world with ease. Even our minds expanded ever outward; mastery of the psionic arts made us as gods. Then The Scream hit.

The psionic teleportation jumpgates that sent humanity across the stars shattered. Every psychic in the galaxy suffered horrible, catastrophic seizures at the same time. Countless Trovers were lost in the dark of the Delves. Silence reigned. The Delves grew strange and dark. Things grew and bred down there. The Trovers survived, sort of. A life of agrarian subsistence replaced the wealthy mines of the Delves. Whatever fresh hell was down there they kept sealed with superstition and folklore—they said that the Scream came out of the Delves and only quieted once every gate to the Delves was shut.

Then, one day, the Free Merchant vessel Smilodon arrived. Trove rejoined the galactic community along with dozens more planets in the Fajardo Sector. The galaxy had healed; through painful experimentation, the psychic arts were rediscovered alongside the invention of the new and strange Magical arts. The Spike Drive, once forgotten in the wake of the Jumpgates, now united planets through the spread of trade, culture, and news.

Now, news was the biggest one of those to come into and out of Trove. It wasn't even a decade after the Smilodon's arrival when news of the great sealed Delve gates reached the first gaggle of freebooters with the bright idea to "pry those suckers open." Surprising everyone, the Scream did not resume tearing through the Sector. Instead, all that came out was a gentle breeze and a soft blue light.

Orbital scans indicate Trove has a diameter of approximately 5,688 kilometers. Scans at the mouth of that first Delve indicated a depth of at least 6,500 kilometers; later scans (at this gate and others) would find Delves going anywhere between 7,500 and 10,000 killmeters deep. The third expedition to enter, the first to return, came back with stories and video of an entire world inside the Delves, where time, gravity, biology, and space became mere suggestions. Entire oceans twisting in arcs along vaulted caverns, forests of horned statues choked with vampiric plantlife, harsh steel complexes shot through with glowing lines of circuitry. The Delves's hellish architecture was never exactly the same dive to dive, and the horrible predators prowling down there seemed to have the same inconsistency. The explorers also returned with fabulous prizes though—metals and minerals and other gadgets not seen since the Scream! The creatures of the Delves were horrific, sure, but the payout from all the stuff you could swipe off the monsters really helped make the nightmares quiet down. The mining towns of old sputtered to life again, feeding a brand new industry of adventurers, tunnel punks, and trade companies from all across the sector.

The surveyors over at the up and coming frontier town of Fairweather only recently "struck gate," and you have managed to get in on the ground floor, for the most part, on a new set of Delves. Finding other adventures was the easy part; land and a generator were only a little harder, partially subsidized by hungry trade barons and Corporate Factor Janeva Galven. She is more than willing to run the place while you're gone, taking her pay from dividends. She's technically retired anyway, this is just for fun. Now the real task begins. Are you ready to enter DELVES WITHOUT NUMBER?

---

Welcome to my Stars Without Number Revised Edition forum campaign! Get the rules here and brief yourself if you've never heard of the game! I've been thinking about this game for awhile now, a smaller-scale Space Western set in a boomtown that centers on dungeon crawling instead of like, mining or oil. Players are part of a team, build a base, collect loot, and connect with NPC's in between dungeon crawls in an aggressively alien space forgotten by time known as the Delves of Trove. Touchstones include Firefly and the other really aggressive "western" versions of Space Westerns, the "ecosystem of adventure" that Blades in the Dark has going, and all the parts I liked about the premise of the four or five episodes of that anime Is It Wrong To Pick Up Girls In The Dungeon from, like, 2013 or whenever it came out, the parts about making friends and rivals and going on adventures in a single centralized dungeon.

A note about character creation: I'm going to suggest you roll randomly across the board because that makes your character objectively more powerful, if also less focused, but I won't force you to if you don't want to. Put all rolls into this rolz room please. Password is tvtRolls if you get prompted. I'm looking for 4-8 players before starting this game, but I'm 100% fine waitlisting people because especially in the early game SWN can be lethal. Please let me know if you have further questions!

• Name:
• Pronouns / Gender:
• Level: We're starting at level 1, but I figured I'd keep this field here for future bookkeeping.
• Attributes:
  • STR:
  • DEX:
  • CON:
  • INT:
  • WIS:
  • CHA:
• Background:
• Class: In addition to the main 4 classes I'm allowing the Magister and Arcanist classes from the Space Magic chapter in the deluxe rulebook, pulling spells from the Magic User or Cleric's spell list in the game Labyrinth Lord Revised Edition—pick one of the two spell lists at character creation.
• Psychic Disciplines / Spells:
  • Effort / Spell Slots:
• Species: Humans are the default, but if you want to play as a xeno you can use your level 1 starting focus to gain the "two major benefits" option on page 213 of the PDF or 192 of the book. I'd prefer if you also fleshed them out with the alien generation rules prior to that but if you just spend your focus on your species and say "space elf" or whatever that's cool too. I am also allowing VI PC's (Vehicle Bots are limited to a drone or motorcycle), but not True AI's. It's also definitely acceptable to play a Rubber-Forehead Alien with zero mechanical differences from humans.
• Foci:
• Skills: I am implementing the Magic skill as suggested in the book. Selling loot will be using the Trade rules from the Suns of Gold supplement, so the Trade and Know skills will be useful for making money.
• Attack Bonus:
• Equipment: I'm ruling that everyone picks a gear loadout rather than rolling cash and purchasing items. So much of this game is gonna be about getting new stuff and more money.
  • Equipment Bulk:
  • AC:
• Credits:
• Debt: For my own sanity I'm making all debts on this planet function at a 5% monthly compound interest rate—that is, on the first of the month I will add 5% of your current debt onto what you owe.
• Base Additions: As mentioned higher up in the OP, the crew is not on a ship at all, but set up in a base; functionally it's identical to a Free Merchant chassis for now, with weapons mounted on external turrets, and "mass" meaning "real estate" in this case. Your current credit score means you can get up to 100,000 credits of debt to spend on your own character's purchases for the base, but in exchange, all cash must go towards paying the debt until a minimum 10% of your current loan is paid that month. Keep in mind that the listed price of most fittings are multiplied by 10 when applied to the "Frigate-class land" here. So, if you have a debt of five grand, the first 500 credits you make that month must go towards paying it off; you drop the loan down to 4500 credits, and at the start of next month 275 are added onto your loan, bringing it back up to 4775, and you'll have to pay 478 credits towards your loan that month. Just punch in whatever you want for now and we can work out compromises on specific power or mass drain overages later.
• Appearance:
• Biography: Feel free to generate up other worlds in the sector as relevant to your character, and make sure to include how your character
• Misc:

Edited by Taco on Oct 26th 2018 at 6:04:59 AM

Definite interest here! Will get a sheet up some time this weekend.

"Evii is right though" -Saturn "I didn't know you were a bitch Evii." -Lior Val

Definitely interested. Not exactly super experienced at this stuff but I'm sure I'll figure it out.

• Name: Ginny "Ginger" Gehrman
• Pronouns / Gender: She / Her
• Level: 1
• Attributes:
  • STR: 13 [+0]
  • DEX: 8 [+0]
  • CON: 10 [+0]
  • INT: 9 [+0]
  • WIS: 8 [+0]
  • CHA: 16 [+1]
• Background: Courtesan
• Class: Adventurer [Warrior / Expert]
• Psychic Disciplines / Spells: N/A
• Effort / Spell Slots: N/A
• Species: Human
• Foci:
  • Diplomat-1
  • Henchkeeper-1
  • Close Combatant-1
• Skills:
  • Perform-0
  • Know-0
  • Lead-0
  • Talk-1
  • Stab-1
• Attack Bonus: +1
• Equipment:
  • Laser Pistol (1d6)
  • Armoured Undersuit (AC 13)
  • Monoblade Knife (1d6)
  • 8 x type A cells
  • Backpack (TL 0)
  • Compad
• Equipment Bulk:
  • Readied (6/6)
    • Laser Pistol
    • Armoured Undersuit
    • Monoblade Knife
    • 6 x type A cells
    • Compad
    • Backpack
  • Stowed (2/13)
    • 2 x type A cells
    • 100 credits
• Credits: 100
• AC: 13
• Debt: 50k spacebucks
• Base Additions:
  • Survey Sensor Array: Most ships require only basic analysis of a star system, sufficient to identify population centers, do rough scanning of an object’s composition, and chart major navigational hazards. Survey sensor arrays greatly enhance the ship’s sensor abilities, allowing for finely-detailed mapping of objects and planets, along with broad-spectrum communications analysis. They also improve attempts to detect other craft when scanning a region for stealthy vessels. Any rolls with survey sensor arrays add +2 to skill checks.
• Appearance: More than just a pretty face.
• Biography: Ginny always had a way with words. This was evident since childhood. Her gregarious nature meant that Ginny was rarely lonely growing up. As she blossomed into adulthood, she found that when her words failed her, which was rare, she could rely on her beauty. And if that were to go awry... Well, let's say that Ginger is not squeamish nor is she unprepared for the occasional brawl. One (1) such brawl went a little too sideways while she was working as a courtesan on the nearby planet of Accadus, a cultural powerhouse that is often stationed by those who hit it big in Delves. One such scumbag had gotten a little too rough with Ginger and did not live to feel the embarrassment for their drunken behaviour. Knowing that even her skillset might make getting out of this jam a tad difficult, Ginger fled her homeland to seek adventure on Trove. After all, her life had grown dull until this moment and she hopes to continue feeling this alive.
• Misc: Ginger can be a bit aloof and vain but has the good sense to snap herself out of it if she notices or someone else points it out.

Edited by EviIPaladin on Oct 26th 2018 at 10:21:36 AM

"Evii is right though" -Saturn "I didn't know you were a bitch Evii." -Lior Val

• Name: Victoria Alberg
• Pronouns / Gender: She/Her
• Level: 1
• Attributes:
  • STR: 10 (+0)
  • DEX: 18 (+2)
  • CON: 14 (+1)
  • INT: 11 (+0)
  • WIS: 10 (+0)
  • CHA: 9 (+0)
• HP: 5
• Background: Soldier
• Class: Warrior
• Psychic Disciplines / Spells: N/A
• Effort / Spell Slots: N/A
• Species: Human
• Foci:
  • Sniper (1)
  • Gunslinger (1)
• Skills:
  • Shoot 1
  • Fix 0
  • Survival 0
  • Sneak 0
  • Stab 0
• Attack Bonus: +1
• Equipment:
  • Readied (6/6)
    • Combat Rifle (1d12 damage)
    • Woven Body Armor (AC 15)

    • Knife (1d4 damage)

    • 60 rounds ammo

    • Backpack (TL 0)

    • Compad
  • Stowed (2/13)
    • 20 rounds ammo

    • 100 credits

• AC: 17
• Credits: 100
• Debt: 100k
• Base Additions: Armory: Rather than maintaining lengthy lists of ship equipment, a captain can simply buy an armory. Ships so equipped have whatever amounts of TL 4 military-grade weaponry and armor that a crew might require, and integral maintenance facilities for its upkeep. There is enough gear available to outfit the entire crew for normal use, but giving it away or losing it in use may deplete it.
• Appearance: Here ya go.
• Biography: Victoria was born on the planet Tetra, where the world is ruled by and large by a handful of gigantic corporations. She struggled to survive in a system that showed mercy to the incredibly powerful elites and bared its teeth upon those unlucky enough to be born commoners. Determined to get a better life for herself, she joined the military. There was seemingly always a war to be fought, and enlisting was a quick way to raise your social status. She became renowned by many as a very skilled sniper, proving an invaluable asset to the various PM Cs and mercenary outfits that were willing to hire. This way of life proved brutal and took a toll on her mind, leading her to eventually flee to the Trove.
• Misc: Victoria has no tolerance for chauvinists, in large part because she often worked with what were essentially armed frat boys for hire.

Edited by HilarityEnsues on Oct 29th 2018 at 2:07:05 PM

Y'all are both good to go. Hilarity, one thing, skills are capped at 1 till level 3. Whenever a Focus would put you over your cap, though, you can assign that free point wherever you want instead. Otherwise though looks good!

Here's a link to my Virtual AI Engineer, because that's really what we needed for this party:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1U2-s2oQG8ex4-j288I7rKRJE6deeOVYaYar0QRMapUk/edit?usp=sharing

Wooze looks at Glass with a 'please take her away' look

• Name: Doctor D Light (Yes his first name is Doctor)
• Pronouns / Gender: Male
• Level: 1
• Attributes:
  • STR: 9 (+0)
  • DEX: 7 (-1)
  • CON: 10 (+0)
  • INT: 14 (+1)
  • WIS: 10 (+0)
  • CHA: 14 (+1)
• HP: 1
• Background: Vagabond
• Class: Psychic
  • Psychic Disciplines / Spells:
    • Oracle
    • Personal Apportation
  • Effort / Spell Slots: 1
• Species: Human
• Foci:
  • Tinker 1
• Skills:
  • Survive - 0
  • Perform - 0
  • Trade - 0
  • Precognition - 0
  • Teleportation - 0
• Attack Bonus: +0
• Equipment: Technician
  • Laser Pistol (1d6 damage)
  • 4 type A cells
  • Armored Undersuit (AC 13)
  • Backpack (TL 0)
  • Monoblade knife (1d6 damage)
  • Dataslab
  • Postech toolkit
  • Metatool
  • 6 units of spare parts
  • 200 credits
• Equipment Bulk:
  • Readied (4/4)
    • Armored Undersuit (AC 13)
    • Backpack (TL 0)
    • Laser Pistol (1d6 damage)
    • Postech Toolkit
  • Stowed (6/9)
    • 4 type A cells
    • Monoblade knife (1d6 damage)
    • Dataslab
    • Metatool
    • 6 units of spare parts
    • 200 credits
• AC: 13
• Credits: 200
• Debt: 0
• Base Additions:
• Appearance: Doctor is past his prime though not quite starting the slide into old age. A decade ago he would of been a handsome and charming man but now with a thick crop of white hair and the twitch of far too many accidental self-electrifications he has to work on perfecting his 'wise and trustworthy old man' look.
• Biography: Known as a wheeler, dealer and (on some particularly mean-spirited backwater planets) a conman, Doctor Light runs his Marvelous Travelling Radio Shack out of a dingy transit vehicle that he's bolted signage, storage and furniture to. Most of his 'patent technolgisms' are barely-functional scrap metal he's scavenged from the trash and polished up, but as long as he isn't being run out of town he tries to fix up whatever tech people bring before him.
• Misc: While he doesn't have too many scruples, Doctor Light refuses to sell or repair maltech (but will buy any that he can)

It's clearly a case of backroom political albumizing.