6 months ago you accepted a position with a private company who specialized in providing system-wide law-enforcement for areas which did not want to use their own colonists in paramilitary police-forces. The company, known as Long Arm Ltd., hires retired spacers, provides them with basic law enforcement training and stations them wherever the client needs them in Man-Space.
The enforcement teams, known as “Ice Hawks”, are generally equipped one TL higher than the local environment. They are also provided with an accurate socio-political database to help them understand forces in the background which may be directly affecting the Ice Hawks. Each contract is for one Standard Year and is renewable upon mutual agreement.
Ice Hawk companions NORSREN‘d tight to the gas giant, closed up at
CONDITION:RED. L.A. Central has provided you with a Viking Series ‘99 Star
Sled, which is a great fast-intruder.
A NORSREN can be detected by ships in normal-space by up to fifteen minutes in advance of actual emergence. So, you weren’t surprised when there was another ship hanging around your exit point. You were surprised when they promptly locked on and opened fire.
However, it isn’t even a fair contest between a Series ‘99 with 4 cannons and a Hero-class trader overhauled for pirate work. You left it a flaming wreck plummeting into the gravity-well of the gas-giant in two attack-passes.
You skimmed the gas-giant and proceed to the primary world. Meredes is a binary star system; Meredes-A is a smallish G-series star orbited by a white dwarf companion on a 500 year orbit. This creates a habitable zone in orbits 2.5 through to 4.5. The primary is a small world; 2000 miles in diameter (size=2), sitting firmly in orbit 3. It has two small moons, the largest of which is 130 miles in diameter. The smaller is half that size.
Orbits 2, 4 and 5 are covered by extensive asteroid belts. Asteroid mining is the primary function of the system, with the main world left for agriculture, colonization and light industry. Having had several incidents of essentially clan-warfare between Belter families, the government turned to the L.A. for enforcement.
You are tasked with providing law enforcement in the Belts. Operating with five other L.A. units, you are responsible to patrol against and investigate any acts of lawlessness with in the Belt. The main world will be policed by their own indigenous forces. Of specific note are a rash of claim-jumping, drug-smuggling and piracy incidents which have been on the increase in the past eighteen months.
You have just docked with the orbital platform which is going to be home for the last six months of your contract. It is night by Planetary Mean Time (PMT). You move your personal effects (one ton, per Ice Hawk, maximum) from your ship to your cabin. A few unfamiliar faces say hi to you and welcome you aboard. You finish unpacking and watch the planet-rise unfold out your cabin
window.
Your’re on task. Ready for an adventure?
Setting: Space Opera, “Near Earth”, Year 2199
Tone: Gritty & dramatic
Number of players: 3 - 5
Player roles: Pilot, Engineer, Gunner-Marine, Gunner-Marine, Fixer
Power scale: Modest, growing.
First Scene will be: A surprise attack by well-armed unknown forces catches everyone flat footed.
More details via: My Blogsite, Game Millieu Notes @ <http://michelrvaillancourt.com/storium-my-games-plus-other-notes/sci-fi-setting-tnec-2199/ >
Other Notes: Familiarity with either the “Traveller” RPG, the Babylon-5 or FireFly TV-series would be beneficial.
ESRB: Expect “M” for “Mature” - Content is generally suitable for ages 17 and up. May contain intense violence, blood and gore, sexual content and/or strong language. May content use of Alcohol, Drugs, or Tobacco.
Hosted and narrated by:
Michel Vaillancourt (MichelV69)
Started 07/18/14.
Scenes played: 9
License: Community License
image source: Derived from works of David Reddington, Kahkeshan Omid & Brian Spencer
