A scenario for levels 1-4. Begins on September 11, 2022.
You begin in the waiting room outside the office of the leader of the Exo-Guardians, awaiting the start of your briefing.
Celita reaches over to examine one of the blue-leafed plants clustered in pots in Ixthia’s office. “Don’t lean too close,” Ixthia warns, “that one’s carnivorous.”
Celita pulls her hand back, narrowly avoiding the snapping blossom of one of the plants, then looks up at the open door. “Perfect timing, Starfinders. Thank you for coming.”
Ixthia spreads their arms wide with palms up and spins in a traditional copaxi greeting, then gestures for everyone to be seated. While Ixthia makes no move to sit themselves, Celita perches atop a stool far away from the hungry blue plant, pulls out a datapad, and begins the mission briefing.
“Upon Historia-Prime’s death, his holdings and possessions passed into the care of the Starfinder Society. In the months since, the Dataphiles and Cognates factions have focused on inventorying and investigating the ownership of these holdings. We’ve determined many were obtained illegally. These stolen possessions, funds, and properties are in the process of being returned to their true owners. All that said, one site, located here on the Station, deserves further scrutiny. The property was legitimately purchased and renovated by Historia-Prime well before his ill-fated mission to the Scoured Stars. He had taken over the life of Historia-3 at the time. Now that it’s ours I want to know what’s inside.”
Ixthia nods in agreement. “We’ve spent the past year cleaning up Historia-Prime’s messes, including the recent Data Scourge. That work continues today. Your mission is to examine the property, clear it of dangers, and find out what Historia-Prime used it for. It could be nothing more than an empty warehouse. Or it could be an automated house of horrors with a nasty trap waiting to be sprung on the Pact Worlds.”
Celita taps her datapad, causing it to project a holographic map of Absalom Station’s Spike into the center of the office. “The property is in the Sparks, a neighborhood in the Spike. Historia-Prime has owned the property for over a century, and it’s still drawing power from the station, but we haven’t been able to hack into it. If there are any computers in there, they’re completely sealed off from the Pact Worlds infosphere.”
“Be cautious and thorough,” Ixthia warns. “We look forward to your full report.”
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I take it the funds have been properly audited and their flow determined? asks Bordle, who also works as a forensic accountant. She also looks warily at the plant. Have there been any radiation, EM signatures or magnetic fields been detected from that property? And if it is an automatic house of horrors, maybe the power should be cut?
And are any of the other plants in here dangerous?
"If we could cut the power, we would have. Historia always had backups," Celita says.
Ixthia adds, “Just these. These are bluebloods. They went extinct several years ago on our home world, Tabrid Minor. Royo found us a botanist who had some Tabrid flora in his greenhouse and let us take a cutting. If our ecology recovers enough, maybe we’ll be able to reintroduce them.”
You may roll Computers, Culture or Diplomacy to learn about Historia-Prime.
You may also roll Culture or Diplomacy to learn more about Sparks.
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Historia Prime
Sparks.
Oh yes. Historia Prime was behind the Data Scourge and also founded the Dataphiles. My partner was involved in a lot of the Data Scourge incidents. Incidentally I decided to join Ziggy's faction. We were both rather concerned about him and are pleased he is doing okay. As for the Sparks, they do a lot of the Station's manufacturing down there.
And I hope you succeed in returning those plants to your home world. It would be nice for Tabrid Minor to become .... erm .... blue again.
It takes you around an hour to travel through the Spike from Downlow to Sparks. Sparks is a highly industrialized neighborhood bordered by titanic drydocks for starship manufacturing and repair, but also containing hundreds of smaller custom tech shops. It’s an incredibly noisy neighborhood, and the constant thrum and crash of industrial machinery punctuates daily life.
As you approach the address provided by Celita, their view of the building is blocked by a long line of hungry people waiting for the free hot lunch offered by the All Hands community center that resides next door. The crowd is hungry, tired, and irritable. When you arrive, you’re quickly recognized as Starfinders, which causes the crowd to react with distrust and anger.
The line quickly becomes an angry crowd who vent their frustrations at you, hurling accusations and laying grievances at your feet. Numerous citizens accuse you or the Starfinders of causing the Data Scourge or the Drift Crisis. A male vlaka signs angrily. A female damaya lashunta speaks up, fury in her face, about how her little shop does detail work for luxury yachts—who’ll have use for that now? A ysoki child wails in hunger, while another tries to soothe her, telling everyone that their moms were supposed to come back weeks ago from a cargo run. “We have no idea if they’ll ever come back! What are we going to do?”
Each PC will need to make two checks to calm the crowd. Any skill is fine as long as you can explain how it will help. Exceptional creativity or use of limited resources will reduce the DC of these checks.
You can also try to disperse them with force, though anyone who participates in that will receive Infamy. (This includes skill checks that involve use of force, not just combat.)
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Bordle tries to comfort the ysoki kids
What's your mom's names and the name of their ship. I .. have a few clients on my books that may be able to help me track them down for you. And my partner is a space pilot, and I know she'd be keen to go rescue them if they need it. She rescued a lot of people
She hands the crying ysoki a sandwich Here. You need this more than me. And I promise to do anything in my power to help you. What's your names little ones?
She then goes to help set up tables while making calls to her partner and Faction Leader Fitch.
It takes a moment for Jasmine to convey, through a hesitant interpreter, what she wants to do. Once she does, the vlaka accepts the spell, and Jasmine's gesture of good faith goes over well.
Zantai's high jump is fairly impressive, but it is much harder to tumble through the crowd.
Bordle does a good job calming the ysoki with assurances that the Drift is just weird and their parents will get home soon. She can't quite figure out how the latches on the table work, though.
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Oda's eyes suddenly come into focus. She shakes her head as if to clear cobwebs and looks around the room.
Oda slowly lowers her light reaction cannon toward the ground and places it to the side out of the way. She is deliberate in her movements.
Once the cannon is safely on the ground and out of her way Oda searches the discarded scraps of the kitchen's day's cooking to see if she can whip up some extra food.
The crowd settles, filling their plates with food from All Hands.
A female vlaka approaches you with a blue skittermander whose lower hands are bandaged. She approaches and signs to you, introducing the pair as Bargai and Fidget. She smiles when she realizes Jasmine can also sign in Vlakan. "It's good to be around Starfinders again. Would you come inside and speak for a moment?"
The community center is next door to Historia's property, and the irregular sounds of a neighboring factory are very loud, regularly causing the furniture to vibrate. When Bargai first feels the rumbling of the furniture, she apologizes, “Oh, I should have warned you! I’ve been told our neighbors are quite loud. The shaking takes some getting used to, but it’s made our rent very affordable.” Shen then asks what you are doing in this neighborhood.
She responds in sign, with Fidget and/or Jasmine interpreting, "I was born deaf, but many of those who live here develop hearing loss because of the machinery."
"Of course, any help from the Society would be greatly appreciated. Though I still wonder why so many agents have come down to my little corner of the station..."
“No one knows who owns it. It’s been abandoned for years, which is a shame, because this neighborhood could use another strong local business. I’ve not seen anyone go in or out, though I often find people sleeping or passed out in the entry way. I bring them inside when I can.”
We don't know much about what's inside. Sounds like a factory day or night. Even the hearing among us get used to the noise. It's clearly not abandoned, but I don't think anyone lives there either. Sorry I can't tell you more, but you're welcome back here any time you need a rest."
With no other source of information here, the Starfinders approach the building. As expected, it has no signs of life from the outside, but metallic, industrial noises from the inside are constant. The entry door to the complex is locked and has the look of long abandonment.
As Bordle and Zantai attempt to open the door, a burst of electricity courses through the floor. Bordle and Zantai both take nonlethal electricity damage (Reflex DC 14 half).
I need some more rolls on that door, whether to open it or check for anything else.
Jasmine can tell that there is nothing moving within range of her blindsense on the opposite side of the door, and there might be a small window of time to work on the door before the trap is recharged.
Bordle tries to disable the sensors on the door, but can't find the right file directory.
Oda tries to open the door.
With a grunt, she pulls the doors open.
Cheery red furniture contrasts with an otherwise austere sitting room. Portraits of androids, each with a cold expression and silver circuitry, adorn the walls. Beneath each is a plaque indicating a name. The largest portrait in the room is of Historia-Prime. The other portraits are of later Historias, endingin a final, smaller holographic portrait of Historia-4. The north and east walls house fireplaces with softly glowing flames, while the south and west walls are bisected by metal doors.
A few moments after you enter this room, the shimmering silhouette of a hologram forms overtop the table in the sitting room’s center, resolving into the frowning likeness of Historia-4. “Starfinders, you’re late. I’ve been expecting you to report for planar simulation training for quite some time. Explain yourselves.”
Historia-4 remarks, “I suppose there hasn’t been much call for planar missions of late. Which Historia is currently leading the Dataphiles? Five? Six?”
“The Starfinder Society must be a mess. I see you contacted me so that I can set things in order.
“You have been assigned three planar simulation missions. The >details< have been sent to your datapads.”
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Erm .... I agree that there WAS a bit of a mess but things are already being set back in order
Her datapad chirps as a new text arrives. She then reads it.
Seriously? And how are we supposed to get there?
She moves away from the hologram to consult with Celita on this latest development. Maybe she missed the word 'simulation'.
Historia points to the door tot he west. "I've taken care of all the travel arrangements. You just need to go do what Starfinders do best."
Celita tells you that you need to find out what is going on, which may mean playing along with the Historia hologram for a while.