|
A missing Starfinder ship's distress signal would have gone unnoticed were it not for a passerby detecting it and selling the information to the Society. The PCs are to travel to the crippled starship, and once aboard, reach the bridge in order to piece together the tragic story of the vessel's lost crew. Only by unraveling the mysteries of the drifting starship can the PCs hope to uncover information critical to the Exo-Guardians future operations.
|
Ysh'yaal is a smiling Tiefling, clad in black heavy armor, bearing the holy symbol of Besmara.
At her side a simple laser pistol and no other weapons. But you see that she has a toolbag with different used bits and part of computers and other electronic devices.
Howdy! I'm Ysh'yall, but you can call me Ysh' if you want.
|
Howdy! I'm Ysh'yall, but you can call me Ysh' if you want.
"SO nice to meet you, Ysh'yall!" says a human man, approaching her with his hand out to shake. SHAKE SHAKE SHAKE He has a long, customized, rifle slung over his back, with various kits and equipment bristling from a backpack and gear belt.
"This is going to be a GREAT mission. I can FEEL it, ya know? Always pay attention to what the universe is telling you, ya know?" he says with the utmost earnestness. His positivity just gushes.
His left arm is clearly artificial a prosthetic with an Arkanen corporation's logo on it. It's got several dataports and other sockets on it, as well.
He breathes in deeeeeeply, "AHHHH, yes. A good day, I know it. Think we'll get to shoot anybody in the head? I bet we will. YESSS!"
He pumps his artificial arm, with the hand clenched into a fist. "I can tell this is a gonna be a GREAT mission."
|
"I like this guy," comes a feminine voice from over near the door. A thin, wiry halfling dressed in a simple gray flight suit leans casually against the wall, taking in the scene. Her blonde hair is pulled back into a loose ponytail and her lips are similarly pulled back in a rather wide grin.
"Wish more of the agents running around here had that kind of attitude. It'd make some of these grunt-level jobs a little less teeth-grindingly boring, you know?"
The halfling finally straightens up and ambles over to join Ysh'yall and the Unnamed Man, sticking her hand out.
"Primrose Montajay, but most folks just call me Prim," she explains. "Nice to meetcha!"
|
|
Ysh'yaal handsake is stronger than expected and you think her armor is not just for parade.
The tiefling smiles at the man enthusiasm as well as Primrose's eagerness. She don't seems to notes the absence of name as she's use to that sort of thing.
Howdy, for sure it will be a great mission! My last one was very entertained. A bare asteroid, but full of pre-gap dwarven machineries and history.
|
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
"Primrose Montajay, but most folks just call me Prim," she explains. "Nice to meetcha!"
SHAKE SHAKE SHAKE "Nice to meet you, too!" says the man to the halfling. He looks at Ysh and Primrose. "You can call me whatever you want. Jay. Bob. Though I'm not really the silent type. Joe. Whatever. Normally, I'm just The Specialist."
"Venture Captain Arvin has been calling me in when he needs... things done. I'm good at what I do. But what I do isn't always good. So long as it pays and the sun keeps shining on my face, it's allllll fine. Positive thoughts are the key, ya know?"
He unslings his customized huchket rifle and checks the sights and its action. All good, he reslings it. If anybody's looking, they may notice the words "Positive Thinking" in Sarcesian burned into the stock of the weapon.
|
A burly Vesk enters next and greets the other members of the team. "Shaan, Shaan Poloo's the name. Simple name fer a simple fella. Least that's what mama always said... Not too sure what she meant by that anyhow..." He shakes his head quizzically before turning his attention to the mission at hand.
"A starship gone missing, eh? Well, can't imagine it's anything too serious. These things happen, dontchaknow? Crew probably got tired of lousy food onboard and beat it fer a square meal. Thought's sure crossed my mind after the fourth helping o' space rations, I ain't ashamed t' say. Anyways, as long as we're gettin' paid to head up there 'n check it out, sounds like a fun little joy ride, right? What could possibly go wrong?"
Shaan carries little besides a battered and well-used doshko and a cannon that looks like is may still be in its shrink wrap.
|
|
An elderly male human with light brown skin, bright white hair and matching close cut beard enters the briefing. He carries a variety of gear for many different situations but is not overly armed or armored. A set of pistols are holstered at his waist and slipped into a shoulder holster is a non-lethal stun gun. All the weapons appear to be well used. A sturdy backpack is slung over his shoulders.
As everyone appears to be getting nice and friendly he opens with a big grinning smile, "Ah great, already chatting. I tell you, last mission I could barely pull a full sentence out of my teammates, made for long travel times! This'll be a lot better, I can feel it in my bones."
He moves around the room to everyone, offering a handshake, "But where are my manners, Alejandro Carlos at your service. Alejandro is fine, though sometimes I'll pretend I'm a Captain just so the focus is off everyone else. I don't mind the spotlight, so long as it doesn't get too hot."
|
|
"Positive thoughts are the key," Prim agrees with a nod, though her eyes do slide to The Specialist's rifle as she speaks.
In more ways than one, I guess!
As Shaan and Alejandro arrive and introduce themselves Prim greets them in kind. "What could possibly go wrong? Well, now that you've said that, probably everything," she chuckles at the vesk. "Then again, it probably wouldn't be a proper job without some sort of spanner being thrown into the works at some point, right?"
"And hey, no problem, 'Captain'," Prim adds, winking at Alejandro. "I can have a way with words when I really want to but I'm best at driving the boat, so just tell me what course to set and I'll get us there."
|
|
An augmented host shirren watches a bustling crew move office equipment from several large pallets into a large warehouse, while other workers weld scrap metal to gaps in the warehouse’s walls. The shirren occasionally directs a crew member and makes a note on a datapad. The shirren, Zigvigix, notices their new guests and turns to telepathically project a greeting.
Greetings again Ysh'yall, Alegandro, Elektra, Primrose and Shaan. So good of you to help me out, and now... to help me out again!
Zigvigix wears a set of shoulder speakers that blast out sugarpop music from the band Strawberry Machine Cake. They bounce in place along to the music. “Welcome back! Isn’t this song the best? I’ve been playing it on loop for hours!” Behind the excited shirren, several grizzled-looking station workers, each carrying a side of a heavy-looking holotable, roll their eyes.
“Thanks for coming—I hope you’ll understand if I keep this brief; we’ve got a lot of work to do to get our new headquarters up and running, and you are on a short timetable. A ysoki salvage barge named the Clutter Collector, captained by a ysoki named Winks, picked up a distress-beacon transmission in the Drift. Winks didn’t have time to check it out, but she sold the data to the Society when she reached Absalom Station. How nice of her!"
“Well, it turns out that this beacon came from the Struggle’s Scholar, a kasathan ship that…” Zigvigix pauses for effect as their antennae wiggle excitedly.
“…escaped from Sangoro’s Bulwark! If you don’t know, the Bulwark was the old base of operations for the Exo-Guardians. Now, First Seeker Luwazi wisely grounded us from investigating the Bulwark after all contact was lost with it shortly after the Scoured Stars incident, but we can’t pass up this opportunity to learn what happened there. We might even be able to find the coordinates to our missing headquarters. Wouldn’t it be joyous to have a large fortress to play loud music in?”
Zigvigix hands over a datapad. “Here are the coordinates of the distress signal. It is unlikely any of the crew survived, or they’d be here by now. So be on the lookout for bodies. Since the crew is mostly kasathas, it would mean a lot to their extended families if you could bring back their remains or keepsakes to the Idari! Otherwise, salvage any data you can—especially the ship’s log—as it could tell us what happened to Sangoro’s Bulwark. This datapad also holds a one-time-use decrypter that will let you decode the Exo-Guardians ciphers used on the distress signal. Good luck!”
"We have both a Pegasus and a Drake in the docks at the moment, so you get a choice of ships for this mission. Any questions?"
|
|
The infectious bubblegum beat is music to Shaan's ears and the burly vesk is soon tapping his foot and humming along, so much so that he nearly forgets to listen to the briefing. But, once he manages to focus on the task at hand, he grunts with displeasure. "Sending us off to pick through the wreckage of a ruined old ship! Hmph. Hard to see the profit in that. Nor the thrill. At least give us a bit of a challenge, won't you? I mean, whatever happened to that ship and its crew, that's ancient history now - how do you expect us to keep our skills sharp if all we have to do are salvage missions like this!?!" Still, though the soldier seems grumpy about what seems like a pointless venture to him, the falsetto chorus of Strawberry Machine Cake's latest hit soon catches up to him and it's not long before he's humming along once again.
He glances up. "Oh, yeah. What's this Sangoro's Bulwark and why ain't we s'posed to investigate it? That sounds a little bit interesting after all..."
|
|
“The vesk explorer Sangoro found the uninhabited fortress on a world in the Vast. It was an immense edifice of metal and stone, forged by some forgotten species—how nice of them! This discovery happened during a time when the Pact Worlds and Veskarium were in open conflict, which I hear was quite a sad time. Sangoro surprised everyone by offering the site to the Starfinder Society in exchange for membership, and with the stipulation that the fortress could not be used as part of the conflict between the Pact Worlds and the Veskarium. The Society accepted, and Sangoro went on to found the Exo-Guardians.”
|
|
"The Drake is fine if you're expecting a fight but you can't beat the Pegasus if you're looking for speed and versatility," Prim pipes up. "Which is better for this? Hard to say. Tasty salvage opportunities draw all sorts of folks and not all of them are willing to share. But if we're just looking to get there, do what we need to do, and get back, the Pegasus might be the way to go."
Prim shrugs. "I'm not inclined to be too terribly picky either way. Just depends on what we think'll be the best tool for the job. Hey Zig, those coordinates - are they located near anything worth mentioning or worrying about?"
|
|
"The location? Nothing specific. About the ship itself I have a little infomation. It’s a kasathan starship that was undertaking a short mission to Sangoro’s Bulwark around the same time the signals stopped coming in. We assumed the ship was lost along with the Bulwark, but this signal proves otherwise—thrilling! I do not think any of the crew could have survived this long, though—sad! Still, the ship is compact, with only ten or so internal compartments, so once you find it, it shouldn’t take long to search.”
|
|
Happy to see you well Zig! Yes, good music. My friend Neroo is also a fan of it, and she gave me the virus!
Ysht'aal stays silent for a moment, thinking of the mission Almost like my previous job, how ironic! But this time, it will be an already abandoned ship...
Do we have the log of the passengers and crew? If we need something for the families to get back at the Idari we need to be sure to have found everyone, right?
And do you have the plan of the ship? I suppose it's a basic frame.
|
|
Alejandro writes a few notes down on his phone screen then pipes up, "The location we are heading, any known dangers or groups operating in that area?"
He turns to the group and adds as an aside, "I suggest the Peg, it's quicker so if we have to run from something we can't handle, better to be forced to fight."
|
|
"I'll see what we can dig up on the crew" agrees Zig. Meanwhile you do a bit of brainstorming about what you already know that may be of relevance...
The fortress Sangoro bequeathed to the Starfinder Society was the only structure on the planet. It was a massive edifice left by some forgotten race, with extensive underground tunnels and storage vaults. The Exo-Guardians kept a large stockpile of equipment within the Bulwark, letting field agents on missions in the Vast access necessary items without traveling back to Absalom Station. Because of the importance of these resources, the exact coordinates of Sangoro’s Bulwark were kept from most Starfinders, and ships traveled to the location only by using encrypted flight plans.
Shortly after the Scoured Stars incident led to the disappearance of most Starfinder Society field agents and leadership, an unknown force overwhelmed Sangoro’s Bulwark, and—until now—there have been no survivors or distress calls. With this attack, the Society’s data archives lost all information on the exact location of Sangoro’s Bulwark, with even nominated First Seeker Luwazi Elsebo bereft of such knowledge. Only the Society’s amalgam digital consciousness, Guidance, might know the location, but it has ignored all requests to provide the data.
Some rumors from the few Starfinders who visited the Bulwark before the fall report that the Drift and Material Plane space surrounding the area was prone to strange events. Exactly how these dangers manifest varies by each rumor, but it appears the space surrounding the Bulwark’s home system is prone to odd interplanar abnormalities. Starships are advised to carry powerful scanners to identify potential stellar hazards and bleeding between the planes.
"I've found a little more out about the ship. " says Zig.
"The Struggle’s Scholar is an older model of kasathan starship known as an Idaran Centuria. Its curved hull is representative of kasathan design standards. Rooms were normally about 15' high, so lots of space. I've uploaded a schematic for you.
"As for the crew- there were five of them. Sunen was the pilot and Setwi the engineer. In addition there was Teliu, Blue-sky0191 (an android), and captain Yotto. "
|
|
Alejandro pulls up a few files and reads a good deal off about various things that might come up on their mission. He looks up, "Sorry, looks like my search-fu is pretty quick. Interesting stuff about the stellar hazards though, might explain why the ship is just now being heard from."
He taps in a few more notes about the crew while everyone discusses the intell.
|
|
"Stellar hazards? Planar anomalies? So we basically don't know what we're gonna get," Prim remarks with a shake of her head. "In that case yeah, I'm leaning my vote towards the Pegasus too - push comes to shove, I'd rather try to outrun than outgun."
Unable to help herself, Prim gives the 'Captain' a friendly sock on the arm. "Nice work digging all that up! Between that and what Zig's got for us, I feel like we've got a fair idea of what we're getting ourselves into."
|
|
A blue-skinned android with dark bluish-black hair tied into a ponytail slips into the briefing room right as Ziggy finishes talking. She wears a sleek but armored black body suit that hugs her form, built to catch the eye (but only if she lets herself be seen) tightly, marred only by a pistol on each hip and a baton on the back of her belt. A tattoo in the shape of a butterfly, the symbol of Desna, is on the back of her right hand, and you can see what look like faint circuitry lines running along the veins of her wrists and neck.
"Tania," she says simply, introducing herself with a nod to everyone, running her fingers along the bulkhead of the wall before leaning against it. "I've got some friends down at the docks who could give a boost to whatever ship we take. If we're taking a pegasus maybe I'll ask them to boost the firepower since it already has good speed and computers?"
|
|
You depart into the drift along side another Starfinder vessel, the Promise of the Future. That ship has a team of kalos on board. As you are travelling together for the first part of the trip, you get a chance to chat with them before your course through the drift takes you too far apart. They are Deepspeaker Alluguth, Mantarider IUshuul, Manatrider Suulhu-Huur, and Wavetreader Vhoosh.
|
|
When Ysh'yaal embarked on the Pormise of the Future she has a new companion with her. A sturdy dwarf that looks like more a scholar than a fighter.
Hi, please, let me introduce you Graybeard. We've met during a mission on an asteroid and we are best friend now. His cultural knowledge and of the Mysticism will be of great value.
bows his bald head and waves his hand Greetings. I'm proud to be helping the Starfinders and my friend Ysh'yaal on this mission.
Once on board, Ysh' is interested by the kalos.
Howdy! I'm Ysh'yaal. We're going an a simple mission to get back the corpses of fallen comrades. What's yours?
|
|
"We're the Manta Corp!" explains their leader. "But our mission is classified. It sounds a lot more interesting than cleaning duty though." he adds with a hint of pride.
You spend a couple of days exchanging pleasantries with the aquatic folk before your paths drift you out of communications range, you get a good feeling about each and every one of them during that time.
Deepspeaker Alluguoth is soft spoken man who appreciates both information and the wisdom to use it correctly.
Ushuul introduces you to "muncher" - his automatic machine gun. He comes across headstrong and sounds like he enjoys a good fight.
Suulhu-Huur is another warrior, but one who specialises in melee rather than distance fighting. Her weapon of choice is an energised trident. "Should we meet in person, I would be proud to spar with you." she offers Shaan.
The last of the group, Vhoosh, is another woman who says little about her own abilities but is very keen to hear about some of the more accomplished kills you have manged.
|
|
It takes another three weeks before you close in on the approximate location of the Struggle's Scholar. A scan of the area shows a large field of asteroids near the beacon.
Your scanners also pick up another ship approaching fast. A visual shows the ship ablaze on either side with three bright-red thrusters, which are reminiscent of the energy blades of a plasma doshko.
|
|
Ysh'yaal seems to talk more about her friend Neroo, from Absalom Idol, who invite her into the Starfinder Society than herself.
Nevertheless, she clearly came from the Diaspora and seems to know a lot about Piracy and the Free Captains...
Once around the place, she quickly, with the help of her dwarven companion, scans the area.
|
|
Sitting on the edge of his seat as they approach the location, Alejandro notices the blip of an incoming ship. He keys up the intercom system, "Looks like someone else is interested in us or... what we are here for. Scan em and see what we got to deal with."
He glances at the small screen attached to his chair and tries to skim the mechanical details for information, but is too distracted to find anything of value.
|
|
Shaan enjoys the banter with the Manta Corp agents and heartily agrees with Suulhu-Huur's offer to spar. "Space ain't as big as it looks and I reckon we'll meet again and we can match your trident against my doshko!"
As the other ship approaches, Shaan cautions the others. "Not all vesk are as friendly as myself. We should be on guard." Then he hails the captain of the other vessel in their tongue.
|
|
The other vessel switches over to Common, in accordance with Shaan's request.
"Ahh, a pegasus? That must make you Starfinders eh? The Honourbound here is a bit like you, but we salvage old ships rather than information. Been looking in the drift for the last few weeks before we came upon this find. How did you end up here?"
|
|
Alejandro pops onto the comm, "Captain Alejandro here and thank you for swapping to an easier language for us, it is much appreciated. Now your gut feeling as to why we are here is correct and it could be a quandary, but I think we can work something out."
He pauses for a second while looking over the mission parameters, What can I offer to placate them?
"Alright so since you've been quite up front with us, I'll do the same. The ship belongs to our society. But we aren't here to get the ship back, just to figure out what happened and recover any crew remains for their families. So I can see this working out fine for us. We do a sweep, copy the computer logs and remove any remains, then leave the ship for you, easy enough."
|
|
"Well... what if those things are of interest to the people who sent me..." sighs the captain.
"I have a better idea. Why not a duel? Winner gets the ship! Obviously an honoruable duel we wouldn't want to be trying to actually kill each other so... no targetting life support systems in purpose! And as honorable duelists face each other... no targetting the rear of your opponent. Anyone can surrender at any point, but if you ship is crippled, you must surrender, and we will offer aid and repair support."