Guidance NPC's page

Once Again Thuldas directs the ship's scanners at the larger ship. Though the signal is weak he is able to squeeze our a little bit more information.

"Scanning original contact..." says the ship's AI. "Updating Data Profile. Displaying..."

SCAN REPORT

SHIP CLASS: DRONE PLATFORM
SIZE: MEDIUM
CREW COMPLIMENT: NONE - NO LIFESIGNS DETECTED.
SPEED RATING: 3
MANEUVERABILITY: AVERAGE
ARMOR RATING: 15
ELECTRONIC/THERMAL SIGNATURE: 14
HULL STRUCTURAL INTEGRITY: 70
SHIELD STRENGTH: 40 TOTAL
* FORWARD: 10
* PORT: 10
* STARBOARD: 10
* AFT: 10
WEAPONS: NONE

Thuldas directs the ship's scanners at the larger ship.

"Scanning next contact..." says the ship's AI. "Data coming in now. Displaying..."

SCAN REPORT

SHIP CLASS: DRONE PLATFORM
SIZE: MEDIUM
CREW COMPLIMENT: NONE - NO LIFESIGNS DETECTED.
SPEED RATING: 3
MANEUVERABILITY: AVERAGE
ARMOR RATING: 15
ELECTRONIC/THERMAL SIGNATURE: 14
HULL STRUCTURAL INTEGRITY: 70
SHIELD STRENGTH: 40 TOTAL
* FORWARD: 10
* PORT: 10
* STARBOARD: 10
* AFT: 10

"Scanning..." says the ship's AI. "Collating data now. Hostile contact is small and agile, but has no shields... displaying data now."

SCAN REPORT

SHIP CLASS: DRONE
SIZE: TINY
CREW COMPLIMENT: NONE - NO LIFESIGNS DETECTED.
SPEED RATING: 5
MANEUVERABILITY: PERFECT
ARMOR RATING: 16
ELECTRONIC/THERMAL SIGNATURE: 15
HULL STRUCTURAL INTEGRITY: 20
SHIELD STRENGTH: ZERO. NO SHIELD GENERATORS PRESENT.
WEAPONRY: LIGHT LASER CANNON IN TURRET MOUNT.

Unsatisfied with his own portmanteau,...

How often do you get to work "Portmanteau" into a sentence? :)

"So," Stell asks as the ship sets down. "How much daylight do we have left? Is there any weather forecast? Did we see any dust storms in the area when we were on our approach. Best be prepared for the worst."

"The local day is quite long, about 48.3 hours. As such, even though it is afternoon you have over 9 hours of sunlight remaining."

"The atmosphere is a breathable nitrogen-oxygen mix, but there are trace elements that would be toxic if they were present in greater quantities. Health problems might occur if you were to settle here."

"However, these trace elements condense into clouds in the upper atmosphere, and storms produce precipitation that is potentially poisonous. These storms are sudden and unpredictable, but also brief and rare. Precautions are advised."

"Models predict that dust storms do occur, but I detect none at the moment. Prevailing winds in the are are moderate at present. I should be able to warn you if one is approaching."

It's worth reminding you of the antitoxin-like plant bulbs the Ysoki at the Vat Garden gave you.

"We are unable to land near the site of the Unbounded Wayfarer's distress beacon," says the Ship's AI.

"The area is covered in thick shifting sand. Deep radar scans indicate the dune seas in this area are up to 50 meters deep before solid rock is found. If we land in that region the Calico Wanderer will sink into the sand and may not be able to lift off. This may be why Unbounded Wayfarer was stranded here, though I also detect that her hull is very badly damaged. Much of the wreck seems to be under the sand."

"There is a safe landing site just over two kilometers from the beacon. You should be able to walk on the sand without too much difficulty."

"If you wish to leave the ship unattended," says the ship's AI, "you may wish to initiate lockdown mode in case enemies board this ship while you are gone. I am prepared to initiate lockdown mode on your command."

"Continuing scan," says the ship AI.

"Starboard and Port weaponry seems to be identical; each side has a light laser cannon mounted."

SCAN REPORT

SHIP CLASS: HEAVY FREIGHTER
SIZE: LARGE
CREW COMPLIMENT: ERROR - NO LIFESIGNS DETECTED. ESTIMATED CREW 6-10.
SPEED RATING: 3
MANEUVERABILITY: AVERAGE
ARMOR: VARIED 3-6 m CALCIUM DURIDE LATTICE (RATING 11)
ECM: 620 MW ROTATING FREQUENCY INTERRUPTS (RATING 11)
SHIELD STRENGTH: NONE
HULL INTEGRITY: 88% (RATING 88)
POWER PLANT: UNKNOWN (OUTPUT RESEMBLES MODEL ARCUS ULTRA RATING 150)
PRIMARY WEAPON: HEAVY LASER IN FORWARD MOUNT
SECONDARY WEAPONS: LIGHT LASER IN PORT AND STARBOARD MOUNT

"Resuming scan," says the ship AI.

"The ship has modest defenses fitting a civilian vessel. I do not detect any deflector shields; the enemy shield projector seems to be inoperable. The main weapon is a heavy laser mounted forward."

SCAN REPORT

SHIP CLASS: HEAVY FREIGHTER
SIZE: LARGE
CREW COMPLIMENT: ERROR - NO LIFESIGNS DETECTED. ESTIMATED CREW 6-10.
SPEED RATING: 3
MANEUVERABILITY: AVERAGE
ARMOR: VARIED 3-6 m CALCIUM DURIDE LATTICE (RATING 11)
ECM: 620 MW ROTATING FREQUENCY INTERRUPTS (RATING 11)
SHIELD STRENGTH: NONE
HULL INTEGRITY: 90% (RATING 90)
POWER PLANT: UNKNOWN (OUTPUT RESEMBLES MODEL ARCUS ULTRA RATING 150)
PRIMARY WEAPON: HEAVY LASER IN FORWARD MOUNT

"The contact is a starship, but with a hull mainly made of calcium, indicating she is of Eoxian design," says the ship AI.

"I do not detect any life signs. The ship has power, and is maneuvering. It appears to have sustained some battle damage. Displaying data now."

SCAN REPORT

SHIP CLASS: HEAVY FREIGHTER
SIZE: LARGE
CREW COMPLIMENT: ERROR - NO LIFESIGNS DETECTED. ESTIMATED CREW 6-10.
SPEED RATING: 3
MANEUVERABILITY: AVERAGE

You will need more/better scan rolls to get more information.

The ship comes up on the viewscreen. It looks like an enormous jumble of vertebrae and other bones with a huge glassy red eye at the front. The ship begins to turn towards you.

"Energy spikes indicate that contact is powering weapons. I recommend caution. Contact may be hostile."

On the morning of your 24th day in the drift, you are woken by the sound of the ship's intercom.

"Attention," the voice of the ship's AI comes in over the intercom. "We are approaching the coordinates. I am detecting a ship on Long-Range scanners."

I'm still not quite clear who is taking the science officer position, but could someone please make a Scan check. The DC is 12 but the more you beat the check by the more information you get.

5d6 ⇒ (6, 5, 5, 2, 6) = 24

"Greetings," chirps the ship's AI, manifesting as a holographic image on the bridge. "Due to the lack of Drift Beacons in the target area, the course you have plotted will take 24 days."

"Guidance, I hope the Society has a spare ship we can use to make our way out there when we're ready?"

"The society has a number of shuttles available should you require transport to and from The Master of Stars. Fitch can arrange to send one to a docking port that is convenient for you."

"Guidance, why are all those offices being cleared out? Also, did any of the faction leaders say their tasks were time-sensitive?"

"Currently the majority of Starfinder agents are on an expedition in a region of space known as the 'Scoured Stars.' After the expedition arrived, some sort of barrier came into being which bars access to and from the Scoured Stars, preventing the expedition from returning. This has become known as 'The Scoured Stars Incident.' As a result, the Starfinder Society finds itself short of personnel. Adjustments are being made in light of this."

"As for the missions for the various faction leaders, I have no information about these missions. The faction leaders will be able to tell you more. I do suggest you complete each mission before reporting to the next faction leader."

In other words, there is no game impact on what order you complete the missions in.

As the group lines up to access the panels, the hologram continues speaking.

“It is our pleasure to officially welcome you into the Starfinder Society. Today is the commencement of your new role as a Starfinder field agent. It is our tradition, at the end of the graduation ceremony, for new graduates to present themselves to the heads of our most prominent factions and complete a task at those leaders’ behest. This allows the leaders of these groups to become familiar with all new Starfinder agents, and it provides a constant supply of agents for handling situations in our holdings on Absalom Station. While these tasks were formerly symbolic, the heavy loss of Starfinder agents in the Scoured Stars necessitates that these missions become something more. Please treat any tasks given with the gravity you would grant any other Starfinder assignment.”

“I have sent each of you a file with a profile of each faction leader, along with their address and contact information. If there are any questions I will be happy to answer them.”

The hologram looks at the group expectantly.

See the The Commencement Table 1 Slides for the information contained within the file.

Now it is up to the group to decide which faction leader they will visit first.

As the group gets comfortable, a green holographic image of a middle-aged human woman shimmers into view in front of the electronics console that dominates one wall.

“Greetings,” it says. The feminine voice is the same voice you have heard throughout your visit, though this is the first time a face has been presented to match the voice.

“I am Guidance. Congratulations for completing our entrance exam. We are pleased to offer you a position within the Starfinder Society. All relevant contracts have already been sent to you when you first applied. Should you wish to accept this offer of membership, please use the cheek swabs in the open receptacle to provide a genetic sample for Starfinder Society identification purposes. This constitutes acceptance of the offer of membership. If desired, you may place your hand on the glowing panel to receive a subdermal implant further marking you as a member of the Society.”

Two panels open on the console wall. One contains a set of swabs and a receptacle to place them in, while the other contains a panel with a glowing hand shaped outline.

Up to you if you choose to accept the implant. If can be removed later if you wish to replace it with a different implant. Details are below.

Rising Dawn wrote:

"It seems we have completed all of our tasks. We should return to Guidance and report our success."

"Agreed!"

It is simple to establish a comm connection to Guidance.

"Hello, Starfinders," she says calmly. "Yes, I have already received reports from the faction heads of the success of your missions. Congratulations! You will be pleased to know that all the faction leaders were satisfied with your performance. I have entered your names into the rotation and you will no doubt be called on to perform another mission soon. Since the Scoured Stars Incident, we need skilled agents more than ever. I believe that all five of you show great potential as you begin your careers as Starfinder Field Agents. Good luck."

"For those of you who are new to the station, the Starfinder Society has an account at a nearby hotel called the Moons of Sleep. If you wish to take rooms there while you wait for another assignment, the Society will cover your expenses there. Of course, you are free to make alternate arrangements."

Strictly speaking there was no particular need to report back to Guidance, as the assignments were from the faction leaders. The module has Guidance give the characters a pat on the head but that's about it.

"I REALLY hope they are satisfied and let us in"

You were actually in from the beginning of the adventure. The opening sequence is your "graduation."

"Do we have an assignment right now?"

"Each of the faction leaders has an assignment for you, but you must visit each one in person to receive your assignment. There may be time to undertake some activities beforehand but I would not wait for too long. Assignments are usually time-sensitive."

"Nope, no questions. We go and talk to the faction leaders and they tell us what to do. Oh, one question. Where can we find them?"

Yes, I assume they've already transmitted that information to our data pads. But Wint would ask :-)

Actually she hasn't yet, though she would have before you left even if you didn't ask.

"Radaszam can be found at his office in the Nyori Palisades, in the central part of the station. He runs a company called 'Obsidian Spiders' and the office is under that name."

"Historia-7 has an office here in the Lorespire Complex, in the Archives compound."

"Zigvigix does not maintain an office, and resides in the Downlow district. He will likely prefer to meet you somewhere other than, but nearby his residence, so I will provide you with his comm code."

"The headquarters of the Wayfinder faction is on a starship called Master of Stars which is a part of the armada in orbit around Absalom Station. Contact Fitch at his comm code and he will send a shuttle to transport you there."

"I am now sending you a file with precise locations for Radaszam and Historia-7 and comm codes for Zigvigix and Fitch."

"It is up to you in what order you wish to contact these leaders. They are expecting to hear from you."

"If there are no further questions, then I will wish you good luck! Contact me after all four assignments are done, or earlier if you have more questions."

"If we wish to join a faction, do we contact the leader you mentioned? I'd like to join the Wayfinders, please."

"As I said earlier, membership in a faction is not a requirement, as assignments will come from all faction leaders as well as other leaders within the society. Membership in these factions is informal, so speaking to the leader directly is a good way of doing that."

"Guidance", he says, turning back to the hologram in front of the console, "Ya got any tips o' tricks for new Starfinders that are less'n keen t' get mulched b'fore their first paycheck?"

"If, by 'mulched' you mean harmed or killed, I can offer you a few pointers, though your examination has proven that you have the necessary skills to function as a field agent generally."

"Firstly, you are a team, and teamwork is a great asset. The Starfinder society doesn't send individual agents on assignments for a reason. Be aware of the abilities of your team and work together to achieve goals."

"Secondly, it is useful to keep a stock of supplies, particularly medical supplies, in case of energencies. Things like serums of healing and medpatches can be life savers."

"Guidance, has the memorial to those on the Scoured Stars mission been completed yet?"

"It has only been 81 standard days since the incident was first detected. While we do not know the fate of those beyond the barrier around the Scoured Stars, there is no particular reason to believe they have specifically come to harm, though it is certainly possible. We simply have no data. Right now the operations of the Society are based on the premise that the expedition is simply trapped and in need of our assistance. The current First Seeker's primary agenda is to investigate the incident to try and find not only the cause but also a way to penetrate or bypass the barrier."

"As such, she considers a memorial to be premature. Construction has therefore not yet begun."

"Are there any other questions?"

"I hope that satisfies your curiosity. Are there any other questions?"

The hologram looks around the room expectantly.

"Guidance, can you tell us more about the factions and their leaders?" she asks.

"I would be happy to," the hologram says as it smiles.

"The term faction is perhaps unfortunate, since it implies a competitiveness where none actually exists. Were the Starfinder Society a typical corporation, the factions would probably be called 'divisions' or 'departments.' But because the Society has a much more loose structure, the term 'faction' persists."

"The Society has many goals, and as a result it is possible that none of those goals would receive the attention they need if everyone were trying to fulfill all those goals at once. Thus, some members of the Society Leadership have decided to specialize and focus on specific goals, leaving the other goals to other groups. This is more efficient. Each Faction therefore represents specific goals of the Society and concentrates on achieving those goals. Understand that there is no obligation for field agents to join any of these factions, and assignments can come from any faction."

In alphabetical order, the first faction is the 'Acquisitives.' The Acquisitives seek to improve the financial and economic position of the Society. The Society is funded partly through donations but primarily through the sale and licencing of its various discoveries. The Acquisitives seek to find ways to monetize these discoveries and to pursue exploration which has a good chance of turning a profit. They also seek to enhance the fame and reputation of the Society, since these things affect the value of the Starfinder Society brand."

"The leader of this faction is a Vesk male by the name of Radaszam. He often is referred to colloquially as 'The Dealmaker.'"

The second faction is the 'Dataphiles.' The Dataphiles seek above all to expand the body of knowledge within the Starfinder Archives. While Starfinder expeditions go out and make discoveries directly, it is often the case that information pertaining to these discoveries has already been uncovered by someone else and has been kept secret. The dataphiles seek to uncover such knowledge within other organizations here in the Pact Worlds and elsewhere."

"The leader of this faction is a female Android that goes by the name of Historia-7."

The third faction is the 'Exo-Guardians.' The Exo-Guardians seek to use the resources of the Starfinder Society to aid in the defense of the Pact Worlds themselves. While the Starfinder Society earns a profit, its goals are inherently altruistic and beneficial to the Pact Worlds. The Exo-Guardians interpret this by focusing on discoveries that can assist in the defense of the pact worlds, such as technology that can be used by military forces, or intelligence about potential enemies of the Pact Worlds. Though the Stafinder Society is not an arm of the government, thanks to the work of the Exo-Guardians we have a good working relationship with the Pact Worlds government."

"The leader of this faction is a Shirren that goes by the name of Zigvigix."

The fourth faction is the 'Wayfinders.' The Wayfinders concentrate on the primary mandate of the Society, which is exploration. The Wayfinders recognize that the greatest discoveries of the Society come through exploration and understand that despite recent setbacks this exploration must continue; this exploration for its own sake guarantees the Starfinder Society's place as an independent and neutral agency, and without it the Starfinder Society would inevitably become just another corporation."

"The leader of this faction is an Ysoki female by the name of Fitch."

"There is a fifth group that refer to themselves as the 'Second Seekers.' Since every new First Seeker embarks on a project to establish their legacy, the Second Seekers are a group which hopes to assist the First Seeker in their personal goal. But since the goals change with every new First Seeker, so does membership in this group. And the group has no official leader since they answer to the First Seeker directly. As such they cannot be called a 'faction' in the sense that the others are."

"You're the leader of the Society? After we finish this Commencement, who replaces you as the Leader? I'm assuming that you're just the leader for commencing us recruits, right?"

"I am not the leader of the society. I am an artificial personality created to administrate the Society's network resources and provide assistance to the society's agents."

"The title of the Leader of the Starfinder society is 'First Speaker.' The current First Speaker is a former field agent by the name of Luwazi Elsebo."

"Guidance, what is th' current personnel status o' th' Society, as is pert'nent t' new recruits? Seems a bit short-staffed 'round here."

"You are correct in your assessment," says the hologram placidly. "Recently the society launched a major expedition to a star cluster known as the Scoured Stars. This expedition took with it the vast majority of Starfinder field agents and starships, and was led by the First Speaker himself."

"Some unforeseen event which we do not yet understand created a barrier around the scoured stars after the expedition arrived. Since then, no drift travel has been possible into or out of the cluster. As a result we have lost all communications with the expedition, and they have not returned. We do not know what has happened to the expedition, and it is possible that they are perfectly unharmed and simply unable to return."

"As a result, the Starfinder Society finds itself short of field agents at this time. We have initiated an aggressive recruiting drive in which you are a part. We have also retrained many administrative staff to act as field agents in the meantime. Though the Society has lost much of its personnel, it's financial resources remain strong, so we anticipate that we will be able to rebuild our complement of field agents given time."

As the group gets comfortable, a green holographic image of a middle-aged human woman shimmers into view in front of the electronics console that dominates one wall.

“Greetings,” it says. The feminine voice is the same voice you have heard throughout your visit, though this is the first time a face has been presented to match the voice.

“I am Guidance. Congratulations for completing our entrance exam. We are pleased to offer you a position within the Starfinder Society. All relevant contracts have already been sent to you when you first applied. Should you wish to accept this offer of membership, please use the cheek swabs in the open receptacle to provide a genetic sample for Starfinder Society identification purposes. This constitutes acceptance of the offer of membership. If desired, you may place your hand on the glowing panel to receive a subdermal implant further marking you as a member of the Society.”

Two panels open on the console wall. One contains a set of swabs and a receptacle to place them in, while the other contains a panel with a glowing hand shaped outline.

Up to you if you choose to accept the implant. Details are below.

As the group lines up to access the panels, the hologram continues speaking.

“It is our pleasure to officially welcome you into the Starfinder Society. Today is the commencement of your new role as a Starfinder field agent. It is our tradition, at the end of the graduation ceremony, for new graduates to present themselves to the heads of our most prominent factions and complete a task at those leaders’ behest. This allows the leaders of these groups to become familiar with all new Starfinder agents, and it provides a constant supply of agents for handling situations in our holdings on Absalom Station. While these tasks were formerly symbolic, the heavy loss of Starfinder agents in the Scoured Stars necessitates that these missions become something more. Please treat any tasks given with the gravity you would grant any other Starfinder assignment.”

“If there are any questions I will be happy to answer them.”

The hologram looks at the group expectantly.