Simply put, is there anything which can force or pull a ship out of the Drift?
No.
Not that I'm aware of, but there's nothing stopping you from homebrewing your own interdiction device, or Drift trap, etc.
Ok, I have to answer this with there is specifically one thing. That ship's drift engine. As second alternate, would be if the ship docks in a larger ship in the drift, then its drift engine can bring it back to the material plane.
However, I'm not sure if what you were asking was can something in the normal universe pull something out of the drift? If that is your question, then short of something like a wish, I don't believe that is supposed to be possible. (the drift is supposed to be resistant to summons/summoning magic, if I recall correctly)
It might not be hard to imagine some sort of portal or portal trap located/lodged in the drift, that might cause a ship to essentially trigger a transference into whatever normal space matches with that point in the drift. (potentially a drift mine, that might drop you somewhere, like a sci-fi pit trap, in normal space where you might get ambushed) And that point in normal space, could be anywhere in the galaxy with the way the drift works. It would certainly be an interesting trap for pirats or some sort of Drift-aware space creature. (probably starship scale, making a guess)
However, I'm suspecting you are talking about like the other posted, some kind of Interdiction device in normal space, keeping someone from being able to pass through the drift to pass into some other protected space in normal space. However, since spaces in normal space and the drift don't match up linearly, you can't really build a contiguous wall in the drift to fence out someone from getting to a location in normal space, so it is hard to imagine that functioning.
The closest I could imagine would be either building some sort of magic/technological field that inhibits drift/in drift/out transferences within a particular region in space. We know operating conventional thrusters for instance prevent drift engines from pulling the ship into/out of the drift, for instance, so maybe other effects could inhibit it in some larger scope.
Alternately, I could imagine something of a Drift Balloon/Parachute which might not function as a complete inhibitor, but it might cause a ship triggering a transference from the drift into normal space within its effect to get 'slid' outwards from where its natural entrance might normally take it, and drop the item instead at the edge of the so called 'drift parachute' effect. Thereby effectively pushing items out a significant distance from some centrally protected space/volume.
I'm trying to recall, do the rules prohibit using your drift drive while on planet or right next to large space stations? I remember making that assumption early on, but I can't recall if it actually says one way or the other.
I'm also curious, could a single ship with a functioning drift drive, couple via airlock with another ship with a disabled drift drive (or without one, but stranded in the drift) and trigger a drift portal and pull the other ship back into normal space? Would the ship have to be at most the original ship's size rating, or would it have to be an size at least one smaller, for it to successfully pull itself (and the other through). Does it make a difference if the other ship once had a functioning drift drive. (does a drift drive ship have a design that pulls the 'drift' portal out to its outer edges of the hull to slide it from one plane to the other, so potentially using a functioning drive to pull a similarly sized ship (or smaller) that is designed for drift travel might work, but an arbitrary non-drift ship, or other large ship sized object couldn't' simply be towed into normal space without fitting inside the ship, or having some other form of drift field projector to envelop nearby objects outside into its drift field.
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When you go by the rules and setting, there is no device which can do this.
It would also be difficult, as the Drift isn't a aligned plane (aka, two points next to each other in the drift aren't next to each other in the material plane).
But you can, of course create such a device for your adventure if needed. I think this would make a grate story arc:
Ships go missing in the Drift, the players have to investigate, they find no ships but at one point will be pulled out of the drift. Just to find an ancient space station with some sort of automatic drift-disrupter technology. The station is occupied by pirates who use the device for their gain (without understanding it really).
Who build it? What happens if this technology falls into the wrong hands? how will the church of Triune react to it?
Not yet.
Well, cheers everyone for your responses. Yes, I was after a Interdiction sort of thing with a bubble effect to stop them from running away...
I went for an easier option, I played on the morals of the good characters to catch and keep their attention with a random space station found in the Drift
Yeah the drift shadow projector might do what you want. (Page 153 of the pact worlds book).
It’s very short range (10 hexes) but has the effect of reducing a ship’s drift engine rating by 2.
The Hellknights have something to prevent entering the drift, so if you just want to prevent escape that would be enough.
https://www.aonsrd.com/Starship_ExpBays.aspx?ItemName=Drift%20Shadow%20Proj ector&Family=NoneIf you want something to pull ships out of the drift maybe you can incent an upgraded version of that.
Problem is, how do you map drift space to real space to decide if something in the drift gets into range of an interdictor in real space?
And you also need something to prevent escape with normal engines. I can't find them on Nethys, but wasn't there an expansion bay which would move the ship 100 hexes in one direction so that it can escape?
Gravity Gun and many other options slow down ships, then you reduce them to 0 HP so they can’t move.
The 100 hex escape device is a Gray tech secret, not someyto plan for or worry about.
But long range active sensors see 100 hexes, so if you’re surrounded by ships so equipped they’ll see where you move to.
SO people are aware, the plot was basically X machine on an abandoned space dock dragged and is preventing them from Drifting away... Just for something a little different more then anything.
To help keep my group together I have been running a Roll20 Starfinder and I have been running my own little missions for them, basically trying to keep a variety going in their jobs/missions.
I finally found a few CR appropriate Swarm beasties (as a sort of 'lost group') and 2/3rd of the group know a little about the Swarm, I didn't want them to just up end and run away