The Risks of Travel in Outer Space (part 4)

Another result of space combat is mechanical failure. During space combat, enemies will attempt to target vital starship systems such as a ship's engines, communications, or life-support. Even if specific systems were not targeted, hull breaches can quickly suck all life out of a starship. Once the battle is over, starship damage needs to be addressed immediately, and characters with engineering skills become vital to survival. A damaged starship could be left drifting without propulsion and risks collision with floating debris from the battle, asteroids, or even an unplanned entry into a nearby planet's gravitational field. If communications have been damaged or destroyed, characters may be unable to hail a passing starship in the distance for help. If life-support cannot be repaired, it won't be long before the remaining oxygen and heat is depleted, and the starship may soon become a floating tomb for the characters.

The Risks of Travel in Outer Space (part 3)

Pirates, smugglers, and even worse threats are very present in the Solar Echoes universe. The expanse of space is huge, and while law-enforcement exists (for example, the characters are part of an elite special forces unit, the Union Guard), the law cannot be everywhere—there is just too much area to cover. As a result, battle will happen in space when foes descend upon travelers. Starship battles are very intense experiences, because the fate of the entire crew rests upon the team working together to defeat their enemy. However, even if a starship battle is survived, the aftermath may be what ultimately defeats the characters. Injuries sustained in space combat can be severe, and limited medical facilities exist aboard a starship, sometimes being no more than a med-kit and the medical experience of one of the characters. Even a minor injury could become a huge threat if insufficient treatment is available, because in space, time is not on your side—it may take days or weeks before a bleeding or poisoned character can be taken to a civilization with a hospital.

The Risks of Travel in Outer Space (part 2)

The first incident that may occur is something some of us may have already experienced—running out of fuel. In the days before cell-phones I remember being a little nervous the first time I traveled across a 2-hour expanse of desert in the West Coast or more than an hour on the Jersey Turnpike on the East Coast. Both roads were, for the most part, without exits, and if I hadn't put enough fuel in my car, I would have had a very, very long walk to find a gas station or help. Even if I could call from my phone for help, I could be in for several hours of waiting. On the West Coast, the heat of the desert was the danger, while on the East Coast during winter, the frigid temperatures were a serious threat. In space, without fuel to propel a starship to the next destination, both the oxygen supply and the cold of space could become very serious challenges. Food and water supply could also become crucial, if players haven't stocked up enough to cover the extra days (or weeks) they may have to wait for help to arrive.

The Risks of Travel in Outer Space (part 1)

There are many dangers in outer space, and in Solar Echoes, we attempt to generate some of the fear and trepidation that accompanies space travel. We want players to have a sense of the danger in the vast emptiness of space every time they step aboard their starship to travel. Preparation is key to survival, because forgetting even the smallest, seemingly unimportant item can be a crucial mistake when the characters are floating days, or even weeks, away from civilization. While the MC will accelerate gameplay during lengthy spans of inter-stellar travel, gameplay will suddenly become very focused if something goes wrong. Space is vast, and even if some areas see frequent starship travel, most travelers will not encounter more than a few starships in between destinations. It could be a long time to wait, and there is no guarantee in space that someone will come along at all—imagine being stuck in the middle of the ocean, hoping for a boat to pass by. Even in a populated universe, being stranded in space has serious consequences.

Organizations in Solar Echoes (part 5)

Dealing directly with the criminal syndicate known as The Seven will not be something characters will experience at low-levels. It will take several missions involving minor criminals answering to The Seven before the characters will be able to form enough intel to reveal that The Seven is at work. Once this is determined, it may still be in the characters' best interest to construct a strategy before attempting to approach the criminal syndicate with any accusations. It is also important for players to keep in mind—criminal syndicates are so large that a “smoking gun” will never be found—only parts of the organization may be temporarily damaged. It may seem fruitless to even try to tear down part of the syndicate, but the alternative is leaving it alone to flourish. Without UG vigilance, The Seven may someday attain their goal and rule entirely over all the Krissethi clans. Should that day come, the fragile alliances among the races will begin to collapse.

Organizations in Solar Echoes (part 4)

Pirates are no longer the disorganized vagabonds they were once considered to be, and UG intel has indicated that pirating has become such a profitable practice that all major criminal syndicates employ at least several different pirate gangs. It has been viewed as a symbiotic relationship: pirates gain private backing to support common pirating needs, such as starship refueling, maintenance, and ammunition restocking. Syndicates gain a relatively steady supply of goods and illegal contraband through the pirates they support, reaping a large percentage of the profits. Supply is often distributed among various smuggling operations, money launderers, and front companies, making it a nightmare to trace for the Union Guard and regional law enforcement.

Organizations in Solar Echoes (part 3)

How is it that criminal syndicates are able to elude the Union Guard, whose sophisticated special forces teams and direct ties with the ISU have enabled them to become the biggest thorn in the side of lawbreakers? Though criminal organizations don't have funding or intel support from the ISU, their vast networks of resources provide funding and information enough to frustrate the efforts of UG agents. Normal citizens are often kept “on the take” through blackmail and other coercion methods so that sufficient alert may be given in time for criminals to escape or “clean up” their activity, while hacking and tracking efforts also reveal UG movements. Despite efforts to predict and avoid entanglements with the law, criminal syndicates such as The Seven face losses on a daily basis, thanks to tireless UG diligence. It is discouraging, though, that The Seven still seems to be gaining power...