GM Jhaeman's SFS # 2-17: Cost of Living (Subtier 5-6)

Game Master Jhaeman

Starfinder! You've been summoned to a mission briefing. On your way through the Lorespire Complex, you notice new, eye-catching details: colorful alerts plastered across notice boards and flashing on holoscreens call for Starfinder volunteers to assist with a disaster-relief supply run to the Vast.

You soon arrive in the cluttered loading dock office of Venture-Captain Naiaj, a bleachling gnome in humming armor. She's standing amid a cloud of holographic supply manifests; the area tints her platinum hair and pale skin a bluish hue. She holds up the palm of her hand to signal for you to wait, as she speaks into a comlink and manipulates a datascreen. Soon, you're joined by other Starfinder agents.

Please go ahead and describe your character and introduce yourself to your fellow agents.

Scottamander Tracy reports for duty. He is a first response specialist trained in disaster relief so this is right up his alley. He arrives, decked out in an International Rescue uniform and carrying a 'Go Bag' full with emergency rescue equipment. He is a two toned skittermander with red fur on the head and grey on the rest of him.

He is a helpful skittermander but has learnt to do it properly. Behind him is his holographic hireling - Brains - who handles all the science stuff.

Yes, his ambition is to form a Pact Worlds wide International Rescue service.

This character is voiced by the late Shane Rimmer

A halfling in outdoor gear saunters up to Venture-Captain Naiaj. "Hey there, Naiaj," he says. A squox sticks its head of one of the pockets of his jacket. Ashtif smiles and strokes its head. "Looking forward to hearing what this mission is about."

He smiles over toward the skittermander and waves. "Hello there. I'm Ashtif Cloudskipper, pilot and explorer. Pleasure to meet you."

Scottermander Tracy - Rescue Specialist. Likewise. This is Brains

In the hallway a large Vesk calls out.

"Rattus my employer has no use for a smuggler who dumps their cargo at the first sign of a patrol cruiser!"

"Hey even I get boarded sometimes! I'll get the money! I got places to go!"

--

The door opens up and a white ysoki enters.

"Rattus here. Piloting and charming guy!" He smiles.

7' tall will long gangly limbs. His head shrouded by the hood of his great cloak. A humanoid looking person walks through the entrance of the Lorespire Complex. He seems to ignore all the chaos around him and he says nothing to any of his fellow Starfinders.

As you meet your fellow agents, Venture-Captain Naiaj finishes the call she was on and addresses you all in a professional tone. “Greetings. This is an urgent matter, so I’ll be quick. As you may have read on the infosphere, there’s an outbreak on Zeyther-3, a frozen mining backwater in the Vast. About half of the planet’s population is currently quarantined with something called ‘gutmelt’ inside Glimmershield, Zeyther-3’s only major settlement.”

“Glimmershield’s elected leader, Firstsight Taksta, sent out urgent requests to the Pact Worlds for antiemetics, fluid supplements, and other medicinals.” Naiaj gestures to a holographic spreadsheet.

“Our colleague Fitch, of the Wayfinders, has recently worked with the izalguuns, who have provided the Society with a surplus of medical supplies. We’ve also developed a relationship with the talented Doctor Monsylkis, who’s already on the ground and working with the Firstsight to develop a cure.” Naiaj lifts herself in one surprisingly fluid movement to perch on the edge of a receiving table.

“Since we have all the resources required to help in this crisis, we’re duty-bound to act,” she declares. “As volunteers, you will board the freighter Tale of Sustenance and ensure its cargo of medicines reaches Glimmershield. When you arrive, check in with the Firstsight and assist her however you can. Then, rendezvous with the good doctor and find out what resources she needs to help her patients.”

“All right: questions? Look sharp.” Naiaj cocks her head expectantly.

"No problem. Can we expect any trouble?"

Ashtif listens and nods. He clears his throat. "Yeah, a few questions. Will we be spending most of our time in Glimmershield itself, or should we anticipate helping to transfer the medicines to outlying settlements as well? What sort of terrain and climates should we expect on the planet, if we do have to do some exploration ..." He leans toward Tracy and says, "I've had my eye on this cool exploration buggy that might be worth looking into ..." Then he clears his throat and continues with teh questions, "Also what sort of species are dominant there, languages we might need to know, or any animals or natural threats we should be aware of ... aside from the gutmelt, of course."

He pauses, and then says, "Oh, yeah, and are there going to be enough medicinals for us to innoculate ourselves before we arrive?"

A voice that is barely louder than a whisper emits from within the hood that obscures Istilnar's face.

"Will the environmental protections on our armor shield us from the virus?"

Venture-Captain Naiaj looks pleased that her assigned agents seem to be paying attention and asking good questions. She looks at the group's ysoki member first. "I find it's good policy for Starfinders to always expect trouble. Not only could tensions be high in Glimmershield due to the stress of the disease and potential for quarantines, but the planet Zeyther-3 isn't a place to trifle with. The planet has unpredictable electromagnetic fluctuations that make going outside the shielded domes of Glimmershield a dangerous proposition." Her words flow naturally into answering Ashtif's inquiry. "Frankly, I don't know exactly what will be required of you at this point. Zeyther-3 is essentially a ball of ice, and travel outside the dome is risky even without the electromagnetic fluctuations. If you have a means to make surface travel easier, then by all means bring it with you."

She reviews some notes on her datapad. "As for this 'gutmelt', the good news is that none of the cases have turned fatal. It’s a virulent and unpleasant stomach virus that seems to be unique to Zeyther-3. How it spread into Glimmershield and whether environmental seals keep it out, I don’t know, but Dr. Monsylkis is focused on finding a cure or vaccine. She'll surely be able to provide you with more information."

"Anything else?"

Ashtif nods. "Ball of ice. Got it." He glances around. "Does anyone know the life bubble spell? I've been caught in some blizzards in my day, and it's no fun. I'm not sure I want to test a new exploration buggy out on an ice planet, though ..." He begins looking through his starfinder backpack to take stock of his supplies. "Won't need this swimsuit, probably ..." he mutters.

"I can't do magic" Rattus shrugs his shoulders.

Neither can I. But we should have enough gear to get by. I'll grab the appropriate pod on the way out. Are we looking at high levels of radiation because of these electromagnetic disturbances? Or they just play merry havoc with our compasses?

If we do get a ground vehicle, I'd recommend four wheel drive and tracks.

Naiaj reviews a datapad to answer Scottermander's question. "I don't see anything in here about the electromagnetic storms being radioactive."

"Good luck. Head to the docking bay when you're ready and look for a freighter named Tale of Sustenance. It's being loaded with the cargo of medicine as we speak."

Please feel free to slot boons. The scenario doesn't recommend any particular ones, and no starship boons are needed.

Istilnar's mysterious presence becomes more mysterious as he says nothing.

The halfing joins you all. Hello, name's Bodo

Ashtif smiles and waves at the new arrival, clearly pleased to see another halfling in the mix.

He says, "Hey, I'm placing an order with AdabarCorp before we leave. Does anybody else want to get some cold climate gear?"

Ashtif drops off a quick order to AdabarCorp, including anything that the rest of the team needs to order, and within minutes a drone drops off a couple of crates of supplies that Ashtif has stowed onto the ship, where he'll sort the various survival equipment away into the rest of his gear.

"I do! Definitely! This rat ain't one for cold weather!"

Orders start arriving as the Starfinders prepare for the mission!

I'll wait another 12 hours or so and then assume purchases are made and move on to the travel.

George 09-23 arrives a bit tardy to the briefing room. While the android is never late if he can help it his long trip back and his immediate reassignment made it unavoidable.

He activates his interpersonal software program and he begins his Socialize(TM) protocol. He waves to the party.

"Hi, I am George 09-23 and I am going with you. Might I suggest the Thermal Capacitor Mark I if you have the credits. It is rated to -50 Farenheit as well as being useful against laser weapons."

I am slotting my boons for the mission. Faction: Dataphiles Champion, Starship: Enhanced Targeting, Social: Expert Blackmail, Slotless: Marked Field Agent, Ally Boon: (Duskmire Allegiance-Yetis), Personal Boon: Scoured Star Survivor.

What's that in proper measurements? Scottermander asks.

T..t.t.hat w.w.ould be m.minus f.forty f.five and a half M.m.mister T.T.Tracy replies Brains

Scottermander takes the advice and gets a thermal capacitor as well as suitable environmental gear - now what to put in the other upgrade slot?

Istilnar orders some additional environmental gear that is appropriate for the cold weather.

Ashtif looks up the thermal capacitor on his comm unit. "Yeah, that does look nice ... but I am saving up for a jetpack, so I think I'll have to pass. I've got the cold weather gear, a mobile hotelier tent - although it's only rated for 4 occupants - and a portable weather station, along with a survivalist's kit. And a climbing kit. So, hopefully, that'll cover things."

Before long, the experienced Starfinders are ready for their journey to Zeyther-3 and board the Tale of Sustenance. She ship's captain, a female witchwyrd named Echiba, shows you to quarters and promises to make as speedy a journey as the Drift will allow.

Days pass quickly, with the usual routine established in any long starship voyage through the Drift. Captain Echiba delights in wordplay and riddles, but she's serious when, partway through the journey, she reports that several common Drift Beacons along the ship's path have inexplicably gone dark. "We'll still get there," she says reassuringly. "But it'll take a couple of extra days. I'll report the matter to the Church of Triune to investigate."

The journey through the Vast will take 5d6+1d4 days. If folks have any particular Downtime activities they want to do aboard ship, feel free.

"Weird. I'm sure it's nothing, though. Travel through the Drift is about as safe as it comes. Almost boring. Give me some good gravity wells and high-energy thrusters." Ashtif sits on the ground, sorting through his survivalist kit supplies, and re-packing them more efficiently into his starfinder backpack pockets for easy access. He has an array of batteries in front of him, to be sure everything is fully charged before you arrive.

Istilnar locks himself in his quarters. Anyone who passes his door hears strange chanting, in a language no one understands. Odd smells like incense and bizarre noises not usually not heard in a starship, but what one might hear if they were deep in a rainforest coming from his quarters. Explore Futures

Mysticism: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (3) + 10 = 13 Pretty sure that is an epic fail.

Scottermander spends the trip checking his gear, making sure all the batteries are charged as well as reviewing all the available information on Zeyther-3, gutmelt disease, and Glimmershield.

The rest of the journey proceeds uneventfully. As the Tale of Sustenance exits the Drift and enters Zeyther-3’s atmosphere, it approaches the planet’s equatorial band; this section of the world is a stark landscape of icy plateaus and deep rocky depressions that quickly fill the ship’s viewports

The settlement known as Glimmershield clings to the north side of an immense mesa, its gleaming dome of coppery metal looming over modular structures clustered against its leeward side; vehicular tracks crisscross the snowy ground between the buildings.

As the freighter descends to the surface, a smaller dome splits open and retracts to reveal a landing pad; once the ship lands safely within, the dome immediately closes around it.

A pic of Glimmershield is on Slide # 3. (Please add your name and token to Slide # 2). I ran out of time to describe who's waiting on the landing pad, but will do that in my next post.

As they approach the dome of the settlement George 09-23 activates the seal on his armor. While the android does not need to breathe hopefully a self-contained environment will be a protective barrier against the tricky gunmelt virus.

"I suggest that everyone activate their armor seals now. Better safe than sorry when dealing with alien pathogens."

"Thanks George will do!"

I don't want some bug infecting me

Istilnar zippers up this cold weather gear and activates his black heart. Works the same as an armor's environmental protections.

Beat me to saying that

Scottermander had already done so. He carries a Null Space Chamber with all the rescue gear inside. It is labelled with the International Rescue logo.

As they land and prepare to disembark, Ashtif injects himself with a Tier 1 antibiotic. +4 to saves vs. disease for 2 days. He zips up his coldweather gear and activates his seals before they cycle out the airlock onto the planet. His squox is curled up inside the cold weather gear with him, providing extra warmth.

As you descend from the Tale of Sustenance's landing ramp, you see a female espraksa (a feathered, humanoid bird-like species) waiting for you. “You must be the Starfinders! Welcome to Glimmershield, warmest spot on the planet. You’re here just in time, as the situation’s deteriorating downstairs, where my people are quarantined!” She continually checks the datapad strapped to her arm, and doesn't seem to realise she hasn't introduced herself.

A picture of this NPC is on Slide # 4.

George 09-23 nods.

"Sure, just let us know how we can help. Is Dr. Monsylkis nearby?"

What is the scope of supplies we've brought here? Do we need to move palettes off the ship with a forklift or something, or are we just carrying boxes?

Ashtif nods. "We made it as quickly as we could. We'll get the supplies unloaded and organized as quickly as possible. I'm Ashtif Cloudskipper, by the way. Didn't catch your name." If needed, he will hop into whatever truck or other device is being used to drive the supplies around.

So what's the current situation and how can we help?

"Oh, I'm sorry! I'm Firstsight Taksta, Glimmershield's Chief Administrator." If an epraska can blush, she'd be turning red.

“Thank you for the supplies, they’re absolutely what we need and I’m sure Dr. Monsylkis will be relieved to get them. But unfortunately, and if it’s not too much trouble, the outbreak is only one of our problems right now.”

Taksta clicks her talons together as she lists issues. “First, we’re operating on low power. Our shielding and climate control systems are still online, but with critical energy reserves, I don’t know how long we can keep them running.” She gestures vaguely outwards. "Off-site Coil condensers provide most of our energy, but the last storm knocked them out. It’s usually a quick fix, but with so many Shielders sick, we’re running ragged. Once we get those generators online, things will be much easier.”

“Second, our healthy residents are at their breaking points. They’ve been confined to the upper dome for weeks and are getting bored and irritable. My head of maintenance, Ankreeng, is fomenting unrest, claiming the incoming shipment isn’t enough and that I’m not managing our resources appropriately. He bears a grudge towards me, though I’m not sure why, and I think my presence will only exacerbate the problem. I’m worried his faction might take action soon.” Taksta sighs wearily.

“To make matters worse, the doctor sent me a comm this morning. The gutmelt cases are getting worse--some of her patients are unresponsive now. She’s afraid they might die without the proper medical intervention. Your supplies are a good start, but that’s not a long-term solution.”

Taksta flexes her facial feathers in the approximation of a weary smile. “Simple supply run, eh? You tackle the generators and the rabble-rousers. I’ll get these supplies squared away and make sure the rest of this bubble doesn’t fall apart.”

She transmits a map of Glimmershield along with the coordinates of the malfunctioning off-site generator. As she does so, city workers come to help unload the supplies brought by the Tale of Sustenance.

Point me at the generators and I'll see what I can do Scottermander says.

"Yeah I can help too. I'm ok with tools and such."

Yes, I can help too.

Without asking permission, Istilnar casts Detect Affliction on Taksta to see if she is infected with the gutmelt.

George 09-23 is much more eager to solve a technical problem than a social one.

"Sure, the generators are the priority here. We should get started right away."

Agreed. And maybe the restoration of power may .... erm .... convince the rabble to stop rousing

"Great!" says Firstsight Taksta. "The generators are about a half-hour's walk to the east of here. It'll be cold, so make sure your environmental seals are fully active! Once you're done, send me a comm message." She points out a personnel hatch to exit the dome.

Outside, you see occasional flakes falling and some shallow snowdrifts around the domes, but visibility and walking conditions are good.

Ashtif nods. "Great. Nice to get a chance to explore some of the terrain outside of Glimmershield." He pulls the map up on his armor's comm unit and heads out to the east, looking for any flora or fauna that he hasn't encountered before.

He pulls out his rifle, with a uniclamp on it so that he can access his broad-spectrum scanning kit as he proceeds.

Perception w/ kit: 1d20 + 14 + 4 ⇒ (14) + 14 + 4 = 32

Istilnar trudges along after Ashtif saying nothing and with the hood of his great cloak pulled tightly over his face.

George 09-23 nods at Ashtif as he prepares for a possible conflict. The android is confident in his Thermal Capacitor and his serviceable (although now antiquated) armor will keep him warm and toasty.

"Everyone keep your eyes open outside the dome. I would not be surprised if we run into some unfriendly indigenous life forms on our way to the generators."

"Gotcha" says Rattus as he looks for threats.

Perception: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (8) + 7 = 15