Star Aria

Captain Dave Hannibal Mack Lena Stooz The Horny Hog Log Kingbeast's Lair

Welcome to information about John's Star Hero game.  These pages will detail all of the key things that players will need to know to take part in this exciting campaign.  Check back for updates!

Sit back, strap in, and hang on tight!

Introduction

Welcome to my new Star Hero (SH) campaign!

Star Aria (SA) is a near Space Opera style campaign set in the far reaches of space.  Adventures will revolve around the PC’s and their new home, the asteroid mining colony Archimedes 2.  A lot of background information will be provided so the players have a good idea about what the universe is like in 2402.  This document is the culmination of that data.

Why “Star Aria”? 

I chose the name Star Aria for a couple of reasons.  I wanted a name that conveyed the fact that the campaign is in a near Space Opera style.  An “aria” is a climactic song in an opera.  Change “Space” to “Star”…and boom…Star Aria.  I also wanted a name which could be reused for future SH campaigns.  If several years from now I want to start a different SH game in another place in the universe or with a different theme I can use the same name.

What do I mean by “near Space Opera style”? 

First off I’ll define the edges of the science fiction (SF) gaming genre.  On the purely fantastic side the style is known as “Space Opera”.  In Space Opera setting technology is considered almost magical.  Nobody really cares how stuff works…it just does.  An example of a setting that is almost entirely Space Opera is Star Trek.  The other extreme is known as “Hard Science”.  In Hard Science settings laws of physics and science are strictly enforced and obeyed.  There are not many movies in this vein but a setting like Alien has Hard Science elements.  Star Aria falls somewhere between these polls.  Some of the Space Opera elements in SA include things like Flux Travel and Psionics which are pure fantasy.  The technology advances and what powers them as well as some of the weapons are driven by Harder Science.  Some of the decisions were made for game balance and RPG flavor.  For example, characters will bleed and could die if they get hit with a high end laser rifle.

Campaign Document

All of the details for this campaign can be found in the Star Aria PDF file which can be downloaded from the File Downloads page.  Here are details from the Revision History in the appendix of the Star Aria PDF.

Revision

Date

Description 

0.1

1/30/2004

First revision.  Released to Jim and Steve for further review.

0.2

2/1/2004

·         Added a section on Currency.

·         Added a general Technology section.

·         Added a Weapon section for Unusual Rounds.

·         Added a Cred Cost column to the Weapon charts.

·         Pulled Bleeding into it’s own section.

·         Changed name of section from “Near Cosmic Good Guys” to “Good Intentions”.  I also cleaned up the text in this section.

·         GREATLY simplified the category charts for Electronics, Systems Operation, and Computer Programming.  They are MUCH more affordable now.  I think it is a good balance of cost now.

·         Updated doc with comments from Steve’s email.  Too many changes to list individually.  Thanks Steve!

·         Completed several sections which were filled with simple headers.

·         Alphabetized several sections.

0.3

2/6/2004

·         Fixed the Characteristic Minimums/Maximums for the various packages and updated the associated description of how it works.

·         Completed the Computer Technology section.

·         Worked on the weapons charts.  Starting filling out stats for the higher tech weapons.  I need to review them but it is a start.

0.4

2/10/2004

·         Added MANY corrections based on feedback from Jim.  Too many changes to list individually.  Thanks Jim!

·         Expanded section on reasons why PC might come to A2.  Got rid of the other related section.

·         Added a GM Character Review Guidelines section dealing with problem areas that I will be looking for when PC are created.  Got the idea from talking with Steve over email.

·         Added details for Cybernetic examples.

0.5

2/12/2004

·         Changed the Ichthians so their emotional response was physical not purely emotional.

·         Combined all of the Technology subsections under the main section.  I think the doc flows a lot better.  I also cleaned up the text so it reads better.

·         Added a paragraph to the introduction which defines the Space Opera versus Hard Science aspect of Star Aria a bit better.  This seemed like a fundamental problem with the other drafts.

·         Added Computer Link Perk details.

·         Changed the Va Rulen slightly.  Dropped their Strength and Body just a bit as they have no racial Disadvantages in the Package.  Looks fine now.

·         Completed Fringe Benefits tables.

·         Completed Job Packages.

·         Added Hovercraft to TF.  At the same time I cheapened the existing TF.

1.0

2/13/2004

·         First release to all of the players.

·         Completed Technology section on Star Ships.

·         Cleaned up several table headers that crossed page boundaries.

1.1

2/29/2004

·         Pulled Concealment from Cicadians and the size packages as this ability should be represented by Stealth.

·         Tuned the Flux Travel section to represent the fact that gates help the ship enter AND exit.

·         Added details for energy weapons that Overheat.

·         Added Knockback Resistance to list of changed powers.

·         Fixed the ordering on the size and environmental packages.

·         Added Tourite to the list of explosives.  Changed the names of some of the existing explosives.  Cleaned up the explosives chart with better formatting.

·         Performed lots of changes on the weapons charts.  Pulled almost all of the weapons using normal bullets.  Changed the names of the existing weapons to reflect a race of origin and to give them more flair.

·         Added a Weapons section with General Information.  This way I do not have to repeat it five times.

·         Filled out the Sights chart.

·         Add VR (Va Rulen) to the abbreviations list.

·         Added Critical Hits and Fumbles.  Tons of fun!  J

·         Clarified the Ego roll limitation for Psionics.

1.2

3/9/2004

·         Changed the name of the Armor section to simply Protective Devices.

·         Added more details to the Weapons section.

·         Added more details to the Protective Devices section.

·         Added a new advantage for defensive powers called Adjustable.

·         Added a new limitation for defensive powers called Fragmenting.

·         Changed the web site links to refer to my new family web site.  It will host John’s Hero HQ, KODL, and all of my family pages.

·         Tuned Luck so it is better.  It is now straight out of FREd (i.e. the way it was used in Reliance Reforged (i.e. see Jynx  J)).

·         Added Shields to the Systems Operation skill.  I forgot it previously.  L

·         Added header in the Technology section for information on robotics.

·         Added many entries to the Glossary.

1.3

4/16/2004

·         In the section on the forming of the TC I tweaked the date a bit so it fits the timeline better.  The date I had, 2396, put the entry in the wrong section and did not impart the feel I want.  I changed the date for the forming of the TC to 2380.  Thus the TC has been around for 22 years.  I know this influences slightly some stories but I hope we can work through it.  Sorry about the late change.

·         Filled out lots of detail in the equipment section.  I added stats for almost everything.

·         Added pictures of Archimedes 2 from a top and side view.  I tuned the accompanying text so it refers to the correct dome numbers.

·         Added disclaimer to the introduction to let folks know that the pictures are taken from other sources and are being used for personal enjoyment only.

1.4

5/3/2004

·         Added information about the Psi Community from emails with Jim.

·         Added a Cost Chart.  This give the cred cost for many basic items and services.

·         Added cred costs for all weapons, armor, and gear.

1.5

5/21/2004

·         Added brief paragraph about robotic technology.

·         Added information about the Trog T-Rex Battlesuit.

·         Added general TCPA information to the Things section.

·         Added high port and down port to definitions.

·         Added TCPA fringe benefits.

1.6

6/30/2004

·         Tweaked the perk section to refer to the TCPA when applicable.

·         Added a new section with TCPA departments.

·         Added Kinetic Containment Blanket to list of equipment.

·         Added TCPA Data Package to list of equipment.

·         Changed the order of the Equipment section to clarify the entries.

·         Performed two very minor cleanups.  One in the Cicadian section and one in the cybernetic arm section.

1.7

3/9/2005

·         Pulled references to embedded sector maps.  Instead all of the Star Aria sector maps will be in a separate PDF file.  This will also allow me to update the maps separately.  J

·         Inserted a new picture of the A2 domes from space.  It is pretty cool.  I also reformatted the top view dome picture so it sits with the text.  It looks nicer.

·         Changed the name of the Va Rulen in the picture.  Her name is now Vickizandra Of House Gwynn (i.e. see Hannibal’s background for details).

·         Updated the section on ship sensors.  It now specifically mentions that one cannot detect “life”.

·         Added size names to the star port ratings.  This will allow it to match the maps.

·         Pulled the Adjustable advantage away from Kinetic Shields.  Adjustable will still be used for ship shields but not for personal shields.

·         Cleaned up the Luck example.

·         Cleaned up the verbiage in the Psionic section.

1.8

8/1/2005

·         Tuned the Hero Designer support section to reflect the work I have done on the templates for Star Aria.  J  I then moved the information to the first section to keep all of the external resource information in one place.

·         Added Fed, Floppy, and Bush to the list of Slang.

·         Changed two gravity plating comments in the technology section to make it a bit more common.

·         Added a campaign rule setting that hit location penalties will not be halved if a character is stunned.

·         Added details in the Campaign Rule Settings section for vehicle combat rule changes.  Please read this section for the details.

·         Tuned Computer Programming, Electronics, Systems Operation, Transport Familiarity, Weapon Familiarity, and Weaponsmith slightly.  The changes were made to bring them in line with the Hero Designer templates.

·         Navigation referred to Hyperspace not Flux.  This was fixed.

·         PS: Zero G Training was clearly defined as a Dexterity based skill.

·         Clarified the fact that Starting/Maximum Change is a new Power.  It should be treated as a Power not a Disadvantage.

·         Clarified the change to Damage Shield and how it is implemented in Hero Designer.

·         Moved Inherent to the Advantage section from the Limitation section.  It was in the wrong place.

·         Changed the damage for Star Ship weapons to reflect a good play balance.  When I initially did these numbers I had not designed a ship yet.  J

·         Added costs for the various Sights.

·         Clarified the text on Armor concealment.

·         Added Biogentech to Slap Patches and the medical care tube to reflect the manufacturer name.

·         Tuned the medical care tube so that it reflects the proper regeneration rate.

·         Fixed several small typos.

1.9

3/23/2006

·         Fixed calculation errors and a typo in the Trog package.

·         Added stats for a blaster carbine.

·         Changed the PD/ED protection for the various shield.  The values were too high.  They were changed from 5/10/15 to 5/7/10.

·         Added Things section about the TC Navy.  This includes a very brief summary and a breakdown of the ranks.  (Thanks for the help Brian.)