ISSUE 32

SPRING 2021

SECTION FEATURES
PLAYING THE BAD GUYS 3
2 FROM THE EDITOR
HAVE AIRCAR, WILL TRAVEL … 5
4 FRAG MAPS ZOOMERS 10
Review

THE VRUSK HUSTLER 12

22 TITAN RISING: 2299 RADIATION HAZARDS IN THE 14
Episode 25 FRONTIER – PART 1

ALIEN TECHNOLOGY FLOWCHARTS 24

41 REAPING NEW STAR AN INDUSTRIOUS LIFE 27
FRONTIERS MINIA-
TURES FROM REAPER
The Frontier in Miniature
IR MASKING SKEINSUIT AND 31
MILITARY TOXYRAD GUAGE

THE EXPANDED MEDKIT 32

BC ESCAPE PLAN COMIC
Episode 10
STARBUCKAROOS 35
SOARING TO NEW HEIGHTS ON 37
HAKOSOAR
SPRING 2021 FRONTIER EXPLORER 1
Cover Art: Jerry Boucher, Jay Thurman

Editors: Tom Stephens, Tom Verreault

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR
Hello Explorers! have used for the Frontier Explorer and
Senior Editor: Tom Stephens Welcome to issue 32 of the Frontier Ex- only offering the PerfectBound format
Layout Design: Shane Winter plorer. We have so many great articles (think paperback books). Which would re-
again this time around that I nearly ran quire all publishers to convert all of their
Layout: Tom Stephens
out of room on the table of contents page titles and re-order print proofs.
again. We start off with a “Blast from the Luckily, enough people had been pur-
https://frontierexplorer.org Past” and a play report of an old Star Fron- chasing the Frontier Explorer issues that
tiers game from decades ago. e “Blast DriveruRPG did the conversion auto-
https://patreon.com/FrontierExplorer
from the Past” series presents articles matically for all 30 currently available as
found on dead Star Frontiers websites or print as well as both Technical Manuals.
other places from before the magazine ank you to everyone who has been buy-
LOOKING FOR SUBMISSIONS started and the early days of the game. ing those, you saved me a lot of work.
Do you have material you’d like to see pub- is issue has three such articles, the al- Because of my burnout, as well as the
lished in the Frontier Explorer? We accept
submissions of any fan material for Star Fron-
ready mentioned play report, a system for need to wait until the printing format
tiers, FrontierSpace, or any other sci-fi role- resolving investigation of alien technology switched over at the beginning of March, I
playing game whether it is new races, equip- (or any complex task, really), and an in-set- never did the POD version of issue 31. I’ll
ment, vehicles, setting material, play reports, ting card game you can bring to your table. be submitting that when I do this one.
or anything else. We have two articles on aircars and new For the Star Frontiersman, I do need to
If you have something you’d like to share, flying vehicles by Jerry Boucher and Oscar reorder print proofs of the first 5 issues,
head on over to the Frontier Explorer web-
Rios. Oscar also gives us a look at the life but issue 6 is still available as it was already
site and hit the gold “Submit New Content”
button. We’ll help you get the material ready of a typical, non-adventuring vrusk. in the correct format. ose first 5 issues
for publication and into a future issue of the e big article this issue is the first of a are already in the proper format, I created
magazine. two-part series that looks at using radia- them that way from the start. I just need
tion effects in the game by Joe Cabadas. to reorder a proof since the default at the
GETTING THE RULES & BACK ISSUES e second half will be in issue 33. time was saddle-stitched for that size of a
The published rules and modules for Star Tom Verreault gives us a bevy of articles book. at will happen as I get the print
Frontiers and FrontierSpace, as well as all including reviews of a sci-fi map designer version of this issue ready to go as well.
back issues for the Frontier Explorer and the and Star Frontiers compatible miniatures, I’ll be honest, this issue of the magazine
Star Frontiersman (including print-on-de- another character archetype, several bits almost didn’t happen as the burnout I was
mand physical copies of the Frontier Ex-
of equipment, and finally, a detailed look suffering was really bad. I had zero moti-
plorer) are available for purchase or down-
load on DriveThruRPG. at the published material on the Scree vation to work on it and I got started really
All the old issues of the fan magazines, as Fron system and its implications/extrapo- late. If it wasn’t for Tom V’s work on edit-
well as print-on-demand versions of the lations. ing, I don’t think I would have made it. I
Frontier Explorer can be found at the Fron- We round out the issue with our usual think I’m over the burnout now, but it may
tier Explorer page. These products are of- comics by Scott Mulder. Unfortunately, take some time to get back up to speed.
fered as pay-what-you-want. You can grab due to some unexpected events, Jurak We put the magazine out each quarter
them for free, but this provides a way for you
to make a donation to help support the mag-
Hangna was unable to transmit an article but hear very little feedback on the articles
azines if you so desire. for this issue, but we should expect one or issues in general. ere are typically
Wizards of the Coast offers the Star Fron- from him next time. Which reminds me, I 600-1000 downloads from DTRPG in the
tiers rules and modules on their Star Fron- should check in with Alex Stone to see if he first month and I hear feedback from less
tiers page. has any new adventures to report. than a dozen people. If you want to let us
FrontierSpace products can be found on I want to give a big shout out to my co- know what you think, ask questions, or
the DWD Studios page. founder, Tom Verrrault, as he did the bulk add commentary, feel free to drop us a line
of the heavy lifting on the editing on this at editors@frontierexplorer.org. If I
issue. I’ve been really burnt out since Jan- start getting regular submissions, I might
©2020 Frontier Explorer Magazine. The Frontier Ex- uary and he stepped up to the plate and ed- even start a “Letters to the Editors” sec-
plorer and Star Frontiersman names and logos are ited all the articles. I did a final editing tion. And, if you’re getting this from
trademarks of the Frontier Explorer Magazine. Wiz-
ards of the Coast, Star Frontiers, and their logos are pass as I was putting everything into lay- DTRPG, please rate and review each issue.
trademarks of Wizards of the Coast, LLC in the out but there weren’t a lot of changes And comment and share on social media.
United States and other countries. The rights to all needed and that saved me a bunch of time. Or support our Patron campaign at
material presented here are retained by their origi-
nal authors and are printed with permission.
Changing topics, here’s an update on the https://www.patron.com/frontierex-
print on demand versions of magazine. As plorer.
The Frontier Explorer is not affiliated with, en- we were finishing up the last issue, we got at’s enough from me. Sit back, settle
dorsed, sponsored, or specifically approved by Wiz-
ards of the Coast, LLC. The Frontier Explorer may
word that Lightning Source, the printer in, and enjoy this issue of the Frontier Ex-
use the trademarks and other intellectual property DriveruRPG uses to produce the POD plorer. And as always, keep exploring.
of Wizards of the Coast, LLC, which is permitted un- versions, was changing their formats dis- - Tom Stephens
der Wizards’ Fan Site Policy.
continuing the saddle-stitched format we Senior Editor

2 FRONTIER EXPLORER WINTER 2021

 PLAYING THE BAD GUYS
GAME REPORT
BY ALBIN JOHNSON
comes with game) and began heisting the
Editor’s Note: This article resurrects our “Blast
from the past” efforts as it was saved from a lost jewelry store at gunpoint. Joe's Dralasite
website on the Internet Archive. There is an- and Ola's Vrusk didn't like the idea and got
other article later in the issue from the archive nervous about Star Law so they leave. Jim,
and you can probably expect to see more in the
Dave, and Don relish in the idea and start
future.
shooting everything. It was great! James
I remember the LAST official game of Star just sulked in the corner, mad that his
Frontiers ever played by my old group back game had been hijacked (I was such a jerk!
home. It was a riot, because we'd all been :)

IMAGE BY TOM VERREAULT

to college for a year and SF was a thing fad- Anyways, the law arrives in no time and
ing fast in our interests as 'grown-ups'. in force - vehicles ring the entire block,
James McCameron had a nice, normal sce- closing it off from escape. Jim, Dave, and
nario for us to play. Jim was so bitter at James bolt out the store, firing at every-
having spent all those years as a 'medic' thing in sight, blowing away pedestrians,
character to my 'military' character (re- shooting at the cars, etc. Joe's dralasite and the two of them somehow manage to
member when military guys were the only makes use of the panic and climbs one of bust through the roadblock above. A fast
ones who mattered? we were such the buildings and accesses a pedestrian car chase follows, and out of the hail of
doofuses!) that he re-wrote his entire char- walkway to cross into non-surrounded ter- gunfire their car is hit and the steering
acter to be even more of a killer than my ritory. Ola is smart, too, and as a Vrusk goes out. They crash outside Port Loren
legendary Yalua the Yazirian. tech. runs over to one of the elevators to and escape on foot.
Anyways, halfway into the intro of the descend into the parking garage below. The rest isn't pretty, but it's the stuff of
game, everyone rebels and says: "Hey, let's Don the human sees Ola's retreat and fig- stories. Jim and Dave are the only living
do something fun like take over the ship, ures his is a better plan than sticking members still caught in the blockade, and
be pirates, or just raid Port Loren!!!!" Well, around and follows. Jim and Dave scurry there's NO escape. They dive into store af-
James was put off at the idea of his game about, Yazirian and Osakar, laughing like ter store, shooting customers and dodging
plot being ditched and protested that he Beavis & Butthead and enjoying the whole gunfire from the police that sit outside
didn't have the stats rolled up if they 'Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid' af- each shop's window. They take hit after
wanted to go 'robbing banks' in Port fair. At one point, Jim sees James (control- hit, but somehow keep going. Finally, Jim
Loren. So I just snickered and said 'aw, it's ling Yalua) standing off to one side looking and Dave grin at each other, look out one
easy, James, just come up with some rough for police to come storming in. Jim mut- of the windows and said "I'll take the hu-
stats that make sense ... here, let me do it ters something to me, the GM: "Heh heh - man over there" "Okay, I want to go down
and you control Yalua. Mind his backpack, well, so much for your legendary Yalua, with that Vrusk over there". The two of
though, he's got a full sack of TD-19!" Al!!!" He fires his laser pistol at the back- them go crashing out a picture window,
Well, the boys were happy. I plopped pack at the 10 SEU setting - the TD-19 ex- guns blazing, and after a hundred dice rolls
them down in the middle of Port Loren plodes in a bright burst of flame and all simulating the police gunfire, the two are
where they proceeded to that little cluster that's left of Yalua is a greasy spot on the history....
of buildings in the middle (see map that sidewalk! I was crushed! Jim and Dave What a rush. What a nice game to end
high-fived. the legacy on....
Meanwhile, Joe makes like
Lee Harvey Oswald. His Drala-
site clears the street, pursued
by law enforcement that see
him on the elevated walkway.
He runs into a darkened holo-
theater, where he somehow
IMAGE BY TOM VERREAULT

loses them. Ola and Don, at the

same time, enter the under-
ground garage, Ola success-
fully opens and hotwires a car,

SPRING 2021 FRONTIER EXPLORER 3

 FRAG MAPS and useful to the RPG community. I have
no criticism, love the product, and it is so
versatile and usable, and he’s doing his
REVIEW part to support the sci-fi RPG fan commu-
nity, so I’m going to give 5 out of 5 drala-
BY TOM VERREAULT
site thumbs up for Frag Maps. I highly rec-
The Frag Maps “Crash Site” map turned “Crash Site” is the first map set where he ommend supporting his Patreon cam-
up in several sci-fi RPG related Facebook collaborated with VFX artist, WildMag- paign: https://www.patreon.com/frag-
groups recently. Immediately, I thought of icSurge, and this map set has animated maps/posts.
the crash site in the classic “Crash on Vol- VTT maps with fires in the wreckage and a
turnus” module and had to investigate sandstorm. Note: an animated VTT won’t
deeper. work on Roll 20 due to that site’s lack of
Frag Maps is a content creator with a support.
Patreon campaign. The are 4 levels of pat- Other map sets I’ve downloaded were
ronage with the lowest starting at $1. He the Corporate Lobby, Cyber Diner (a Ra-
produces 1-3 sets of maps per month in men Bar really), Cyber Car Park, Cyber
the sci-fi and cyberpunk genres. He is very Slums, Cyber Warehouse, Hacker’s Lair,
engaged with his patrons via Discord and Market Street, Skyscraper Helipad and a
displays excellent customer service skills. Computer Server Room as well as a bonus
A typical map set comes with print and air ambulance. Despite the fact that many
virtual tabletop files both for daytime and of his map sets are labelled “cyber” they
night. His VTT maps are compatible with completely fit the Frontier.
Fantasy Grounds Unity, Foundry, Astral The artwork is impeccable, and his mis-
and Roll20. sion is to produce maps that are unique

4 FRONTIER EXPLORER WINTER 2021

 HAVE AIRCAR, WILL TRAVEL … and operating an aircar or similar vehicle
in this way requires the necessary skill.
However, for simple journeys between
BY JERRY BOUCHER one or more points, a passenger or driver
can instruct the VC to follow a given route
Although Alpha Dawn and Zebulon’s using turbofans can land on tarmac, con- at a preferred speed. The VC will then as-
Guide include descriptions and stats for crete, and other surfaces without damag- sume control for the takeoff and landing
aircars and air transports, those designs ing them. as well as any maneuvers enroute. No skill
represent a kind of default for these spe- In order for these vehicles to hover and or roll is required for this kind of flight.
cial kind of aircraft. However, there may be perform other maneuvers, the nozzles use The VC also prevents the driver making
circumstances where players would like to vectored thrust. This means that the noz- maneuvers that push the vehicle over its
acquire and use some other aircar-like ve- zles are moveable and steer the vehicle in design limits, from contravening local
hicles. the direction the driver wishes to travel. speed and/or altitude limits, and handles
Smaller nozzles placed at various points the electronic handshake (see below). How-

COMMON FEATURES around the vehicle assist in making adjust-

ments whilst hovering. Robots, flitboards
ever, it can be modified or altered if re-
quired. The VC also controls ‘life support’
All aircars in the various forms as de- and other objects that are cable of flight for the vehicle: air conditioning, oxygen
scribed below share certain features, based and hovering have a similar version of supply, cabin pressure, and escape proce-
around a common power and propulsion these features. dures.
source. All of them require one more The exhaust from vehicles and larger ro- For various legal and practical reasons,
parabatteries of some type for power, and bots can throw up large amounts of dust air vehicles are usually restricted to follow-
this power source drives two or more pro- and debris from untreated surfaces, and in ing certain routes and flying at certain al-
pulsive jets. These jets are not fuel-fed, hot populated areas they are usually allotted titudes for normal travel in populated ar-
exhaust types (known as turbojets) but in- their own landing and parking areas. Many eas. Ostensibly these ‘airlanes’ work in
stead use highly efficient turbofans. cities and large towns have multi-level much the same way as highways on the
Turbofans use a parabattery power towers where aircars can be parked for a ground, although vehicles can pass up and
source to drive a fan (a kind of propeller) time-based fee. Air vehicles have pads and down bands of lanes at different altitudes.
that draws in air through a cylindrical reinforced areas that bear weight when Mass transit system computers interact
chamber and vents it at very high speed. landing and resting, although airbikes usu- with the VC in such a way that passengers
This in turn creates thrust, which is di- ally deploy small legs with pads. rarely notice delays when changing direc-
rected by nozzles, and the various aircar- All air vehicles use a vehicle computer tion or altitude, and information from the
type vehicles have two or more of these. (VC) which receives commands from the system is relayed to the driver via the
Air for the jets is drawn in through one driver controls and then vectors the thrust HUD. In most areas, there is a maximum
or more vents placed around the vehicle from the nozzles accordingly. The process speed limit of 250kph, although local laws
bodywork, and these vents are protected of flying, landing/takeoffs, braking and may increase or reduce this limit.
by mesh screens to prevent debris and hovering can be largely controlled by the Air vehicles have a wide variety of roles
other objects being sucked into the fans. computer, unless the driver decides to and are used by commuters, corporations,
The exhaust from this process is cold, handle such maneuvers directly. Flying haulers, security firms, and law enforce-
and therefore aircars and other vehicles ment. Airbikes and some types of aircar

IMAGE BY JERRY BOUCHER

SPRING 2021 FRONTIER EXPLORER 5

have been developed as racing machines, They are only removable or adaptable by handshake, the distance at which the sys-
either for an overall lap time or for pole po- persons possessing the required computer tem sends a warning to an approaching
sition. Morgaine’s World plays host to the skills. Otherwise, the VC has 12 ports aircar/aircraft, and the message the sys-
annual airbike and aircar Frontier Champi- which can accept a variety of vehicle-based tem sends to it. Another option allows it to
onship races. Both follow a 500km circuit progits. disable vehicle offensive progits such as
in the sky at varying altitudes over the CrashWish and VehicleSight.
course of the race. This is mapped out by a ELECTRONIC HANDSHAKE The standard system is capable of han-
computer which the racing vehicles can In populated areas, aircars and similar dling up to 10 simultaneous approaches,
track with their onboard systems. Rumors vehicles are not usually permitted to land although larger systems (used, for exam-
suggest that a similar race, although in a anywhere the driver chooses. In order to ple, by aircar parks) can greatly increase
more basic form and with a smaller circuit, prevent a vehicle landing in a certain area this number. Local laws will also stipulate
is occasionally held on Outer Reach in the (i.e. part of a street, a roof, restricted air- the maximum allowable extension of the
Dramune system. Aircars involved in this space, etc.) an electronic barrier can be ex- handshake’s field and altitude around any
race are armed and drivers are expected to tended around and above it, up to a prede- given area/building.
fight as well as fly. termined height. No aircar or similar vehi- The standard system described above is
Despite the fact that the VC helps main- cle can land on or pass through this space widely available and is the equivalent of a
tain stability and safety during flight, air- unless the vehicle computer possesses the level 3 computer program. It weighs 10kg,
cars are not strictly aircraft in the sense of correct electronic ‘handshake’. This is an and costs 4000 Cr.
being capable of sustained aerobatics and encrypted signal stored within the VC that
similar extreme maneuvers (loops, rolls, passes to and from the vehicle and the bar- INERTIA SCREEN
etc.). The VC will not allow them to be per- rier, and access is only granted if the bar- As an added extra, any type of aircar can
formed and overriding the VC in these in- rier accepts the handshake. be fitted with an inertia screen. This is part
stances will merely result in the aircar rap- A driver trying to land in or on an area of a Type A ImpactProtect progit that can
idly losing height and becoming uncon- or building will usually be queried or be installed into the VC. The screen is au-
trollable unless the pilot is very highly warned by the barrier as they approach tomatically activated by sensors included
skilled. within 20-100 meters of it, and then asked with the system and absorbs half the dam-
Because of this, military use of air cars is to send the required handshake signal. age to any occupants within the vehicle.
limited to smaller types for scouting/re- Otherwise, it will seem that an invisible Inertia screens worn by the occupants
connaissance and some larger types for closed box or dome surrounds the area, are not added to this, but skeinsuits are.
transportation. Racing aircars are more and the driver will not be able to steer the The screen includes its own power supply,
dedicated to straight line speed, although vehicle into it. which works independently of the
recent developments have led to more ma- The barrier will force the vehicle to stop parabattery/batteries and has enough
neuverable designs, some aspects of which at a hover in midair, overriding any inputs charge for a single use. It can be recharged
may lead to improvements for conven- made by the driver, and will provide verbal at a cost of 100 Cr. The cost for the system
tional aircars. warnings via the VC and HUD. Even at- is 1000 Cr for airbikes and 2000 Cr for all
tempts at passing through the barrier at other types of aircars.
VEHICLE COMPUTER high speed will bring the vehicle to a com-
The vehicle computer (VC) is as de- plete hovering stop in a very short distance LIFE SUPPORT
scribed in Zebulon’s Guide, and all forms of without crossing it, and could cause injury Most aircars and similar vehicles are ca-
aircar and similar vehicles cannot operate to the driver, passengers and cargo. pable of flying at high altitudes (to a height
without one. It is powered by the vehicle’s Police, security, and other specially des- of around 5000m, although this may vary
parabattery, and should it be disabled or ignated vehicles may be able to override with the local planetary environment),
destroyed, the vehicle will not operate and the barrier, and the handshake may be and so must have some form of cabin pres-
flight is impossible. hacked or acquired by other means. surization and other measures to ensure
Information from the VC is provided by The handshake system itself is a self- passenger comfort.
a HUD (heads up display) projected onto contained computerized unit which has an This also means that ordinarily all ver-
the inside of the windscreen and/or via encrypted radio link to the local mass sions are airtight. However, these
one or more screens within the vehicle. Es- transit system computer, should one be measures may be omitted from any type if
sential flight, life support/emergency con- present. the purchaser so wishes and can be re-
trol, and electronic handshake progits are The system includes a scanner/detector moved as an option when buying a new ve-
hardwired into the VC and are Type D, that has a range of up to 10km. Aside from hicle. This reduces the purchase price by
whereas the Type A progits AudioAct and storing a list of permitted vehicles, the 1000 Cr. Should an owner wish to remove
CompTalk are fitted as standard and are owner has various adjustable options. the option at some later stage, the cost is
usually activated by microphones within These include the size of area usually 1000 Cr, depending on local mar-
the vehicle or via a throat/helmet link. (length/breadth/altitude) covered by the ket conditions and capabilities.

6 FRONTIER EXPLORER WINTER 2021

 IMAGE BY JERRY BOUCHER
Of course, aircars and other designs that must prepare themselves before activat-
lack pressurization cannot not be used ing them. AIRBIKE
above 3000 meters without protective • Escape pod – Pods can be used by all air- Cost: 5,000 Cr (1 person)
clothing and an oxygen supply. cars, but not airbikes. They are self-con- 7,000 Cr (2 person)
All aircars and similar vehicles are legally tained unit, essentially a detachable part (rental – 30 Cr plus 30 Cr/day)
required to be fitted with equipment of of the vehicle containing the seating Top/Cruise Speed: 350kph/250kph
some kind which allows the passengers to area. This is launched away from the Passengers: 1
escape or recover from an emergency in main body of the aircar with small rock- Cargo Limit: 10 kg, .35 cubic meter
safety. ets and remains pressurized and climate Parabattery: Type 2
Various options are available and can be controlled. The detaching of the pod can Structural Points: 60
chosen when the vehicle is first purchased, be activated by the vehicle computer or The airbike is the smallest type of vehi-
at no extra cost to the purchase price. De- by passenger action. Once deployed, the cle classified as an aircar and earned the
pending on the situation, these measures pod releases one or more parachutes name ‘bike’ because the earliest models
will be automatically activated by the VC, which allow it to land safely. seated the driver in a prone position. The
or it will provide a warning and suggest name stuck, and various modern designs
that the system be activated. Alterna-
tively, they can be activated manually by TYPES still feature this way of sitting within the
vehicle.
the crew or passengers, although this op- Aircars and other air vehicles vary It has an enclosed body resembling an
tion involves several distinct steps in order widely in design and form. Some resemble elongated pebble or almond, with a door
to prevent accidental use. their ground-based cousins but are usually panel on both sides which usually folds up
Examples of emergency measures in- larger. Most use the lifting body principle in some way for access/egress. Some own-
clude: combined with the brute force of the vec- ers choose to remove these (temporarily or
• Parachutes – One or more small para- tored thrust to stay airborne, sometimes permanently) although this reduces the
chutes are deployed automatically from aided by other lift-generating shapes or Top/Cruise Speed to 220/150kph and re-
spaces within the vehicle by the VC or by surfaces. quires that the driver and passenger wear
passenger action. These are most com- Similarly, their interiors differ in form protective clothing and have an oxygen
mon on smaller aircars and all airbikes. and function from one design to the next. supply if travelling at altitudes above
Larger versions are only fitted to stand- Some designs are tailored to suit the needs 1000m.
ard and compact airplats. of one particular Frontier race, while oth- Small winglets unfold from either side of
• Ejector seats – Usually found on larger ers are more universal. the body when the airbike travels above
vehicles and military types, these seats Various commuter and ‘sport’ aircars 80kph.
are operated by passenger action. They can be flown with some windows and parts
can be deployed both at ground level and of their roof retracted into the bodywork, RACING AIRBIKE
from a stationary vehicle, as well as at al- although this reduces their top speed by Cost: 10,000+ Cr
titude (although not above 3000m if the 50kph and restricts flight to below 2000m. Top/Cruise Speed: 450kph/300kph
passenger lacks protective clothing and Unless otherwise stated, all types have a Passengers: 1
an oxygen supply). In order to prevent range of 1000km. Cargo Limit: 10 kg, .35 cubic meter
serious injury, those using the seats Parabattery: Type 2

SPRING 2021 FRONTIER EXPLORER 7

 IMAGE BY JERRY BOUCHER
Structural Points: 60 Compact aircars are usually used as per- light transport. Designs capable of carry-
Racing airbikes for non-professional use sonal transports for commuting and joy- ing 6 passengers can usually be found in
are quite popular, although their top speed riding with either tandem or (more com- use as taxis.
is very restricted over urban areas. They monly) side-by-side seating for two-seat
resemble their professional brethren only versions. The ‘Sport’ version is a generally
in general styling and appearance. Profes- faster, sleeker design inspired by certain AIRVAN
sional airbikes can reach speeds of 700kph types of Air Racer and usually costs 1000 Cost: 45,000 Cr
and cost up to 75,000 Cr, but their range is Cr (1 person) or 2000 Cr (2 person) more (rental – 100 Cr plus 100 Cr/day)
limited to 350km. than the standard version. Top/Cruise Speed: 300kph/200kph
Passengers: 1-2 (van), 1-8 (bus)
COMPACT AIRCAR ‘URBAN’ AIRCAR Cargo Limit: 1000 kg, 10 cubic meters
Cost: 10,000 Cr (1 person) Cost: 20,000 Cr Parabattery: Type 4
12,000 Cr (2 person) (rental – 60 Cr plus 60 Cr/day) Structural Points: 100
(rental – 40 Cr plus 40 Cr/day) Top/Cruise Speed: 400kph/220kph Airvans resemble smaller versions of
Top/Cruise Speed: 350kph/200kph, Passengers: 4-6 ground and hover transports and are usu-
450kph/250kph ‘Sport’ version Cargo Limit: 100 kg, 1 cubic meter ally used for hauling light cargo. Various
Passengers: 1 or 2 Parabattery: Type 3 versions also exist that act as buses capa-
Cargo Limit: 50 kg, .5 cubic meter Structural Points: 90 ble of carrying up to 8 passengers, alt-
Parabattery: Type 2 These represent a wide variety of de- hough their cargo limit is reduced to 500kg
Structural Points: 75 signs used for commuting and general (5 cubic metres).

IMAGE BY JERRY BOUCHER

8 FRONTIER EXPLORER WINTER 2021

 IMAGE BY JERRY BOUCHER
It is supplied with a 20-meter long cable covered, partially streamlined rigid covers
that can be attached to its underside, AIRPLAT (AIR PLATFORM) are available and cost 2000 Cr.
which allows loads of up to 300kg to be Cost: 80,000 Cr
carried distances of up to 50km at speeds (rental – 100 Cr plus 100 Cr/day) COMPACT AIRPLAT
up to 200kph. Top/Cruise Speed: 150kph/100kph Cost: 45,000 Cr
Passengers: 1-10 (rental – 75 Cr plus 75 Cr/day)
COMPACT AIRVAN Cargo Limit: 5000 kg, 20 cubic meters Top/Cruise Speed: 175kph/120kph
Cost: 30,000 Cr Parabattery: 2 x Type 4 Passengers: 1-8
(rental – 80 Cr plus 80 Cr/day) Structural Points: 120 Cargo Limit: 2000 kg, 10 cubic meters
Top/Cruise Speed: 350kph/250kph Airplats are essentially a ‘no frills’ design Parabattery: 2 x Type 3
Passengers 1-2 in which the turbofans, parabatteries and Structural Points: 100
Cargo Limit: 500kg, 5 cubic meters VC are placed within a square or rectangu- A smaller version of the standard air-
Parabattery: Type 4 lar platform and surrounded by a basic plat, these are commonly seen at space-
Structural Points: 80 bodywork shell. ports and similar planetary facilities being
Compact airvans are often used in urban Despite being capable of flight, they are used as light transports.
areas as delivery vehicles, but can also be usually flown short distances as a kind of Usually there is only space for a 2-person
found in a wide variety of other roles, es- prime mover, used most commonly on crew within the covered or uncovered
pecially with utility and security compa- farms and other large facilities as a means cabin, although if no cargo is being carried
nies. of transporting materiel from one place to there is provision with basic seating for 6
another. It is rare to see them at altitudes passengers. However, for every 2 passen-
AIR RACER above 1000m, although they are capable of gers not carried 300kg of cargo can be
Cost: 200,000 Cr reaching 2000 metres but only in ideal transported instead.
Top/Cruise Speed: 1200kph/600kph weather conditions. In emergencies, large parachutes can be
Passengers: 1 The crew cabin (which seats 2) can be deployed and these are capable of support-
Cargo Limit: no available space open or closed and fold-down seating ing the vehicle and a 2000kg payload.
Parabattery: 2 x Type 4 along the inside of the platform can ac- Some passengers and crew choose to wear
Structural Points: 80 commodate another 8 passengers, but glijets, although this is not mandatory.
Rarely if ever available for private use, these lack any form of cover. It is supplied with a 15-meter long cable
the Racer is included here to illustrate the In emergencies, large parachutes can be that can be attached to its underside,
cutting-edge types currently being used at deployed which are capable of supporting which allows loads of up to 500kg to be
various circuits around the Frontier. As it the vehicle and a 5000kg payload. Some carried distances of up to 10km at speeds
is a relatively young sport, there is not yet passengers and crew choose to wear glijets, up to 120kph.
any commonality of form from one design although this is not mandatory. The cargo area of the platform is usually
to another aside from interior details set It is supplied with a 30-meter long cable an open space, although covered, partially
out by the ruling body. Both private and that can be attached to its underside, streamlined rigid covers are available and
corporate-sponsored teams vie for the cov- which allows loads of up to 1000kg to be cost 1000 Cr. As with the standard airplat,
eted Frontier Championship title, and carried distances of up to 25km at speeds these vehicles are usually flown at alti-
strict rules on budgetary restrictions has up to 100kph. The cargo area of the plat- tudes up to 1000m, although they are ca-
helped to keep a level playing field. form is usually an open space, although pable of reaching 2000 meters but only in
ideal conditions.
SPRING 2021 FRONTIER EXPLORER 9
 ZOOMERS
A NEW CLASS OF AERIAL VECHICLE FOR STAR FRONTIERS
BY OSCAR RIOS
In a joint venture between Pan Galactic Top/Cruise Speed: 400 kph / 150 kph
Corporation and Wartech, we present to Passengers: 1 or 2
QUAD-ROTOR LIFT / TRANSPORT
you today our latest offering: a dual coaxial Cargo Limit: 250 kg, 2.5 cubic meters (HEAVY ZOOMER LIFT / HEAVY
rotor configuration for atmospheric aerial Battery: Type 3 Parabattery ZOOMER TRANSPORT)
vehicles - the Zoomer. The Zoomer is prov- This model comes in a one- or two- Cost: 70,000 Cr
ing popular with a wide variety of custom- seater cockpit configuration, with the two- Top/Cruise Speed: 350 kph / 75 kph
ers and organizations. Faster than a seater available in both a side-by-side or Passengers: 8 / 24
jetcopter, more agile than an aircar and tandem layout. Light Zoomers are a step Cargo Limit: 15,000 kg, 45 cubic meters
with most models being able to operate up from the Pod, and lighter, faster, and 800 kg, 8 cubic meters
with lower power requirements, Zoomers more maneuverable than a standard Battery: Two type 2 Parabatteries
are creating their own distinct niche in the Zoomer. They have a lower power-to- This large Zoomer has four large rotor
market. weight ratio, allowing for modifications to pods, giving it outstanding lift capabilities.
Zoomers get their name from the sound the standard chassis. They are used for It comes in two varieties.
their engines make as they come up to scouting, light ground support, and as gen- The lift configuration allows it to
speed. The vehicle uses a dual-coaxial, eral transport. transport up to six passengers in addition
ducted-fan, rotor system mounted on the
sides of the vehicles. Each one consists of DUAL-ROTOR SUPPORT (STAND- to the pilot and co-pilot, as well as 45 cubic
meters of cargo. They can be deployed for
two large nine rotor blade fans, moving in ARD ZOOMER / ZOOMER GUN- emergency relief missions to disaster ar-
opposite directions, mounted one atop the
other in a disk pod. Each engine has a wide
SHIP) eas, delivering medical supplies, equip-
Cost: 55,000 Cr ment, and teams of doctors. They can also
range of motion, providing not only verti-
Top/Cruise Speed: 600 kph / 150 kph be employed to land a combat squad of six
cal lift and hover abilities, but propulsion
Passengers: 8 or 2 and their vehicles, either one or two
and outstanding maneuverability. These
Cargo Limit: 1,000 kg, 3 cubic meters ground or hovercars, or a single explorer.
make Zoomers some of the fastest and
Battery: Type 4 Parabattery This configuration is also used in construc-
nimblest aerial vehicles operating to date.
This standard model of the Zoomer line tion, moving building teams, generators,
is proving quite popular with exploration and building materials to remote locations
STANDARD MODELS teams, military, and law enforcement not accessible by road.
units, as well as search and rescue teams In the transport model, this Zoomer can
DUAL-ROTOR POD (ZOOMER POD) everywhere. With a wide chassis able to transport up to twenty-two passengers
Cost: 30,000 Cr house up to six passengers, in addition to and their equipment. It is most often used
Top/Cruise Speed: 1,200 kph / 500 kph the pilot and co-pilot, this doubles the as a troop transport but can be used for
Passengers: 1 room for personnel over both the aircar rescue and mass evacuations duties. In a
Cargo Limit: 150 kg, 1.5 Cubic Meters and jetcopter. It has a high power-to-lift few cases this chassis has also be config-
Battery: Type 3 Parabattery ratio and a modular mounting pod option, ured as a mobile areal hospital ship, with
This smallest model of Zoomer has in- giving it a wide array of modification op- sixteen beds and facilities for 8 medical
credible speed and is very cost-effective tions. It is quickly becoming a favorite with personnel.
with a high power-to-weight ratio. De- Landfleet and planetary
signed for a single pilot, most models have militia forces for use as
a transparent plexisteel bubble cockpit de- an air cavalry transport.
sign, granting the operator an incredible It also comes in a two-
degree of visibility. They are idea for long seater configuration,
range patrol, news reporting, reconnais- giving it even more room
sance, and search and surveillance duties. for modifications. This
On some worlds they are also being used model of chassis has a
lower front-on profile,
IMAGE BY JERRY BOUCHER

for racing.
making it an ideal plat-
DUAL-ROTOR SCOUT (LIGHT form for gunship opera-
ZOOMER) tions.
Cost: 45,000 Cr
10 FRONTIER EXPLORER WINTER 2021
MILITARY MODELS DUAL-ROTOR SCOUT
Zoomers are often modified for military (LIGHT ZOOMER)
use. For those with access to the Dragon Max Coats / Concealable: 6
/3
magazine article Tanks A Lot! (issue #99)
Cost/Coat: 4000 cr./6000
and Tanks Again! (issue #103), below are
cr.
the specifications for the various models

IMAGE BY JERRY BOUCHER

Screen Costs: 10,000 cr.
of Zoomer.
Spaces: 4
For each model, the following character-
Maximum Turrets: 1 SM
istics are specified:
Max Coats/Concealable – The maxi-
mum number of armor coats and maxi- DUAL-ROTOR SUPPORT
mum number of concealed armor coats (STANDARD ZOOMER) QUAD-ROTOR LIFT (HEAVY
Cost/Coat: The cost of each coat of ar- Max Coats / Concealable: 8 / 3 ZOOMER LIFT)
mor and cost of a concealed coat of armor. Cost/Coat: 4500 cr. / 7,000 cr. Max Coats / Concealable: 12 / 3
Screen Cost: The cost of an Albedo or Screen Costs: 10,000 cr. Cost/Coat: 4000 cr. / 6,000 cr.
Inertia screen for the vehicle. Spaces: 6 Screen Costs: 25,000 cr.
Spaces: The number of weapon spaces Maximum Turrets: 1 SM Spaces: 4
that can be mounted on a vehicle. Maximum Turrets: 1 SM
Maximum Turrets: The number and
sizes of turrets that can be mounted on a
DUAL-ROTOR SUPPORT (ZOOMER
vehicle. GUNSHIP) QUAD-ROTOR TRANSPORT
Max Coats / Concealable: 15 / 5 (HEAVY ZOOMER TRANSPORT)
DUAL-ROTOR POD (ZOOMER POD) Cost/Coat: 10,000 cr / 12,000 cr. Max Coats / Concealable: 25 / 5
Max Coats / Concealable: 2 / 0 Screen Costs: 10,000 cr. Cost/Coat: 11,000 cr. / 13,000 cr.
Cost/Coat: 2000 cr. / n.a. Spaces: 16 Screen Costs: 25,000 cr.
Screen Costs: n.a. Maximum Turrets: 2 SML Spaces: 6
Spaces: 1 Maximum Turrets: 1 SM
Maximum Turrets: 1 SM

SUPPORT THE FRONTIER EXPLORER VIA PATREON

SPRING 2021 FRONTIER EXPLORER 11

 THE VRUSK HUSTLER
ARCHETYPES
BY TOM VERREAULT
With an unparalleled ability to read a voluntary exchanges that do not mutually the disarming of alarms and picking of
mark or victim, the vrusk hustler makes benefit both parties. locks not to mention the ability to operate
his way by grift, confidence games, and If a con or confidence game ever falls vehicles for a getaway. The vrusk hustler
duping the unsuspecting. His comprehen- apart, he is well able to flee using the should also consider gaining a level of mar-
sion enables him to spot a “tell” or manip- greater speed of his species to outdistance tial arts as the subskills defensive throw-
ulate social situations to his advantage. most pursuers. For this reason, he likes to ing and nerve combat could be crucial in
His crimes are his artform. travel light. escaping a sticky situation. Under the
Zebulon’s Guide skill system, bluff skill

CHARACTER CONCEPTS DEVELOPMENT will greatly enhance the hustler’s capabili-

ties.
The DEX ability score will be important
THE CARD SHARP/SHARK
EQUIPMENT
for sleight of hand maneuvers during con-
This character uses his comprehension fidence games or cheating at cards. Be-
ability to read other players and their cause a referee may call for an INT or intu- First and foremost, this archetype likes
“tells”. He is looking to take advantage of ition check in certain situations vrusk hus- to travel light. When it is necessary to run,
less astute beings for financial gain. He tler will not want to neglect this stat. The you don’t want to be encumbered. Thus,
may not even be seen as doing anything PER ability score will be important to the the vrusk hustler avoids carrying a lot of
wrong provided he is not employing cheat- vrusk hustler while plying his trade and it equipment that might trigger the encum-
ing methods like false shuffles, false cuts, should not be neglected. brance rules where he would be slowed to
bottom dealing or second dealing (dealing His species (racial) ability of comprehen- half movement. Owning a technician’s
the second card from the top). sion must be devel-
His comprehension ability allows him to oped beyond its
maximize his winnings and limit his loses starting level of
at the card table. Because he has honed his 15%. As soon as
ability to bluff, he can also use his compre- possible the player
hension score to modify attempts at bluff- will want to put at
ing. He’s stoic and gives nothing away at least 10 XP into this
the table. ability and raise it
Note: if using the classic Alpha Dawn char- to 25% giving his
acter rules bluffing is not a skill. Just make a character a 1 in 4
PER ability check and modify by the compre- chance of success.
hension score of the vrusk hustler. For 8 XP more the
He can usually find a game and has the character will have
poise to fit into any social setting. He may a 1 in 3 chance of
be a criminal or a legitimate player, but he success. Depending
always spots who can be fleeced. on the skill system
being used, this is
THE CONFIDENCE BUG the equivalent of
This character is a flimflam specialist, a gaining two skill
grifter, and a cheat. Whether he plays the levels.
long game, as depicted in the movie Oceans Under the Alpha
11, or the short game like 3 Card Monty or Dawn skill system,
the shell game, he is always looking to con psycho-social skill
someone. He uses his comprehension abil- will aid the vrusk
IMAGE BY AARON O’ BRIAN

ity to identify and exploit characteristics hustler in manipu-

of the psyche like credulity, naivete, com- lating his marks. A
passion, vanity, irresponsibility, and level of technician
greed. His cons and tricks are at their heart skill will aid in
schemes requiring

12 FRONTIER EXPLORER WINTER 2021

tool kit could be important but it might OBLIGATIONS TO THE ZENK Think of it as a hi-tech lock pick that
not be carried all the time. Civilian style Flaw: The vrusk mafia, the Zenk, knows works in less than 1 combat round. Its cir-
defensive suits that look like normal civil- who you are and as far as they are con- cuitry includes a lock scanner and weak in-
ian clothing and won’t telegraph that the cerned you owe them. Once per adventure ertia wave field probes (for mechanical
hustler is ready for action will be worth the (not session) but at the game master’s dis- locks) and the circuitry to disable elec-
investment. A small concealable weapon cretion, the Zenk will ask the vrusk hustler tronic locks.
or a tangler grenade can also come in for a “little favor”. Saying no or failing These devices are sometimes disguised
handy when the heat is on. could be deadly or bring about a request as other items like a file (tablet) or laptop
When the hustler can afford it, a for an even greater favor. computer. At a minimum it is the size of a
holoscreen will be a must. Holodisks that Note: the Zenk were introduced in “Patri- file computer (Zebulon’s Guide). There are
change the vrusk’s appearance to another ots, Terrorists, and Spies- More Frontier 3 types: Common, Rare, and Extremely
vrusk may fool observers using infrared Cults for Star Frontiers gaming” by Kim Rare. The common type carries a +5% bo-
optics into not realizing a holo-screen is in Eastland Dragon Magazine, #109, pg. 80 nus to lock picking actions. The rare type
operation whereas a disk that changes the carries a +10% bonus to lock picking ac-
vursk’s appearance to another species or tions. The extremely rare type carries a
invisible will out him to IR optics. Thus, NEW EQUIPMENT +15% bonus to lock picking actions.
the vrusk hustler will have several holo In light of the fact that the vrusk hustler Alternate rule: if the character using this
disks that radically change his appearance with a technician skill doesn’t like to be fails at their skill check but not by more
to other vrusk: doctor, pilot, old, fashion weighed down by carrying his full tool kit, than 10% the referee can simply rule that
model, corporate exec, etc. the following new items are presented to the skill check is not a failure just that the
Because there will be a chance that law aid this archetype. character has not succeeded this turn and
enforcement may try to detain the hustler may take another consecutive turn with a
with subdual weapons, solvaway capsules LOCK PICK SET (MECHANICAL) second skill roll. The net result is that it is
and the anti-shock implant should also be Purely for mechanical locks which are one skill attempt but takes twice as long.
on the hustler’s must have list. wide-spread in the Frontier because of Cost:
their inexpensive nature, the lock pick kit Common: 250 Cr

EDGES AND FLAWS is simply a set of tools for defeating me-

chanical locks the “old fashioned way”. The
Rare: 500 to 750 Cr
Extremely Rare: 1000 to 1500 Cr
weight is negligible. There is no bonus for Weight: 1 kg
FLAMBOYANT ARROGANCE using this item, it simply allows a character
This is both an Edge and Flaw at the to perform his open locks subskill on GENERIC SLEIGHT OF HAND
same time. purely mechanical locks without the bene-
Edge: Once per game session the player fit of a tool kit.
AND/OR MAGIC PROP
There are host of items designed to de-
may invoke this edge for a +10 bonus to Cost: 20 Cr Weight: n/a
ceive: loaded dice, specialty decks (Sven-
bamboozle an NPC by being so over the
gali decks), double walled bags, etc., that
top with his lies that no one would believe LOCKSMITH TOOL KIT may be employed by the vrusk hustler that
an intelligent being would say such a thing This item is not one that a vrusk hustler
would normally be the province of a magi-
without it being true. However, if the roll with technician skill would carry around
cian.
fails there is an automatic angry to hostile but one that he would consider owning. It
Cost: 5 to 25 Cr Weight: n/a
reaction by the NPC against the vrusk hus- contains all the tools a locksmith would
tler. use to defeat a lock and create a mechani-
Flaw: Sometimes the character believes cal key, card key, or baton key. It includes
MASTER CRAFTED POOL CUE OR
their own press a little too much and must fine tools, a lock scanner, a mini key cutter, SIMILAR GAMING IMPLEMENT
attempt a con or theft that would be best and encoding station for card and baton When a hustler goes in for table type
left untried. Once per session the game keys as well as key blanks of multiple gaming like humanity’s game of pool, he
master can invoke this flaw. A good time types. The tool kit requires technician skill generally will splurge for the best pool
might be when the player is invoking it as to use. stick or similar gaming implement he can
an edge. Example: the vrusk hustler is at- Cost: 500 Cr Weight: 10 kg afford. Good quality carries a 5% bonus,
tempting to bluff his way past a security Better quality carries a 10% bonus, and the
guard with forged papers and invokes THE JERICHO DEVICE best quality carries a 15% bonus.
flamboyant arrogance for the +10% bonus Named for an ancient legend about walls Cost:
but the game master also invokes flamboy- coming down, the Jericho device is illegal Good quality: 250 Cr
ant arrogance and requires him to pick the on many worlds but is readily available Better quality: 500 Cr
guards pocket at the same time. from black market outlets and sometimes Best quality: 1d10 X 1,000 Cr
the Capellan Free Merchants. Weight: 1 kg (with case)

SPRING 2021 FRONTIER EXPLORER 13

 RADIATION HAZARDS IN THE FRONTIER – PART 1
BY JOSEPH CABADAS

As a technologically advanced society, Ship’s engineers are equipped with an The main source of exposure to ionizing
radiological materials can be found in inssuit, which safeguards them against ra- radiation occurs during medical exams
many places on the Frontier including the diation exposure, as part of their standard when X-ray or computed tomography
atomic drives of starships. Even ships with tool kit. However, exactly how much pro- scans are made. The amounts of radiation
ion engines emit radiation in the form of tection this suit provides is left undefined. used in medical procedures are so small
highly charged particles of photons and One could assume it provides sufficient that the risk of damage is minimal.
electrons. shielding for routine engine overhaul Even when radiotherapy is used to treat
Part one of this series will look at radia- maintenance. cancer, the quantity of ionizing radiation
tion sickness and treatment methods. Part Zebulon’s Guide included yet another used is so carefully controlled that the risk
two will provide information about protec- wonder drug called Neutrad. This injecta- of problems associated with exposure is
tions available against radiation, its effects ble medication is used for treating radia- tiny. 2
on equipment and other sources. tion exposure. Zeb’s noted: “Radiation poi-
Radiation plays a role in at least two of soning is most commonly caused by nuclear ALPHA RAYS
the original Star Frontiers modules includ- battery or plant leakage or by a character be- Produced by fission and the decay of cer-
ing “Bugs in the System” and “Mission to ing exposed to ancient nuclear weapons or tain materials, the alpha particle consists
Alcazzar.” However, the actual game me- their residue in nuked areas.” of two protons and two neutrons; fast-
chanic of handling radiation exposure and However, there are many other ways moving, it is the equivalent of the nucleus
the possibilities of radiation sickness and characters could be exposed to radiation. of a Helium atom. It causes damage
death were left largely unexplored. During ship combat, disruptor cannons, through electrostatic changes because it
In the Alcazzar module, when players proton and electron beams and the nu- has a positive charge. Although it does not
encounter such a hazard, the referee is in- clear-armed torpedo are other sources of penetrate the outer layers of the skin, if in-
structed to tell them that characters enter- radiation exposure. haled it can damage the lungs.
ing the affected area “immediately take 5 Not only should ship engineers be
points of damage and begin to feel dizzy. If equipped with an inssuit, but other crew BETA RAYS
they leave the building immediately, they suf- members should wear similar gear to This type of radiation consists of free
fer no further damage. Characters who do not shield them from radiation poisoning. 1 electrons that usually form a field around
leave immediately take another 5 points of certain materials or high-voltage power
damage… After they lose 25 Stamina points,
they become horribly nauseated… damage TYPES OF RADIATION lines. Much lighter than an alpha particle,
beta rays can cause surface burns to skin
continues to accumulate until they die. In terms of radiation in relation to char- tissue. It can travel a longer distance than
“Radiation damage cannot be healed during acter health, two forms of radiation can be an alpha particle before losing energy.
this adventure,” the module states. “Thus, considered: non-ionizing radiation (low-
points lost in this encounter have the effect of energy radiation) and ionizing radiation GAMMA RAYS
permanently lowering the Stamina of the (high-energy radiation). This is a photonic (light) radiation and
characters involved.” Examples of non-ionizing radiation in- includes ultraviolet (UV), X-ray, and
clude visible light, microwaves, ultraviolet higher energy rays. The various energy lev-
(UV) radiation, infrared radiation, radio els cause varying degrees of burn damage
waves, radar waves, chronocom signals and have variable penetrating power. For
and wireless computer connections. The example, UV has very low penetrating
main source of non-ionizing radiation that power and may produce surface burn dam-
can affect health is UV-radiation. High lev- age to skin tissues, X-ray travels readily
els of UV-radiation can cause sunburn and through tissues, yet N-16 gamma radia-
IMAGE BY TOM VERREAULT

increase the risk of someone developing tion is severely damaging to tissues but
skin cancer. has very short (7.1 seconds) halflife.
Ionizing radiation is more likely to dam-
age tissue than non-ionizing radiation.

1
Verreault, Tom (jedion357). “Radiation sickness on
2
Mandal, Dr. Ananya. “What is Radiation Expo- Lisa Ledwidge, “Measuring Radiation: Terminology
and Units,” https://leer.org/topic/classroom/
the Frontier,” Star Frontiersman magazine, issue 17, sure?” http://www.news-medical.net/health/What-
pp. 28-29. is-Radiation-Exposure.aspx. Also, some of the infor-
mation for this section comes from David Close and

14 FRONTIER EXPLORER WINTER 2021

NEUTRON RAYS Designers Workshop (GDW) offers some character accumulates one or more rads he
Neutron rays are very fast-moving parti- inspiration. Radiation exposure in that must be checked for radiation illness. How-
cles with no electrical charge. They can game is measured in rads (radiation ab- ever, the character is checked for radiation ill-
damage issues because of a “billiard ball” sorbed dose), which is means that 1 gram ness only once per day, on each day that he ac-
type of action that occurs when it strikes of material absorbed 100 ergs of energy. 4 cumulates additional rads.
hydrogen atoms – such as water – within Some terms for measuring radiation in- All Star Frontiers player character races
tissues. It will break water molecules clude: are treated fairly equally when it comes to
(H2O) into OH- and H+. This effect causes • Rem (Roentgen equivalent man) is a dealing with poisons, sickness, damage
various chemical and electrostatic changes unit of ionizing radiation equal to the from weapons, etc. This rule is in effect for
at the lowest level of chemistry within the amount that produces the same damage dealing with radiation exposure/illness,
body. to humans as one roentgen of high-volt- though the symptoms may vary according
Nuclear fission produces large quanti- age x-rays. The name is derived from to each species’ biology.
ties of neutron radiation. Water shielding Wilhelm Roentgen who discovered ion- Assume that most Frontier races only
and lead shielding is often used to block izing radiation in 1895 at about the receive 300 millirems (each millirem is
neutron rays while hafnium (a shiny, silver same time that Pierre and Marie Curie equal to 1/1,000th of a Rem) per year as
ductile metal) readily absorbs free neu- discovered radium. Although roughly normal background radiation. There are
trons. equivalent to 1 rad, the rem takes into no detectable injuries or chance of illness
account the “quality factor” of the radia- from such exposures. Those working in
COSMIC RAYS tion because, for example, a 1 rad expo- and around radioactive sources – power
Produced by supernovas and possibly sure to X-rays is less damaging than a 1 plant workers, ship engineers, starship en-
other interstellar sources, cosmic rays are rad exposure to neutrons. gine construction workers – should be ex-
high energy radiation composed of atom • The Sievert (Sv) is equivalent to 100 posed to no more than 5,000 millirems (5
fragments such as protons, electrons, and rem (100 rad). It is a measurement sys- rads) maximum per year. This is an accu-
atomic nuclei. Major habitable planets tem that looks at the biological effects of mulated exposure rate. Most Frontier
(Earth-like) generally have atmospheres radiation. workers would be wearing protective gear
and magnetic fields that shield the surface • Gray (Gy) is a unit of absorbed radiation and should not reach this level.
from any adverse effects of this radiation. that is equivalent to 100 rad. Pirates, criminals, Sathar agents, more
In space around a star system, unshielded primitive races and the like probably do
• And the Curie (Ci) is a unit of radioac-
travelers may receive an exposure of 2.6 not show the same concern about radia-
tivity equal to one gram of pure radium-
millisieverts per day. Fortunately, Frontier tion exposure to “expendable” slave labor-
226.
spaceships and space suits (also called vacc ers. Such workers will not receive the best
The information above provides a sim-
suits) provide enough protection where – if any – protection from radiation expo-
plified explanation and is not an exhaus-
this threat to health is negligible. sure. If a player character were to become
tive list. Other radiation measuring stand-
a prisoner in some pirate uranium mine,
ards include the Becquerel and “Disinte-
In nature or a nuclear accident, rarely is their only hope for long-term survival is a
grations per second,” which looks at the
radiation pure enough that it can be easily quick rescue or escape.
number of subatomic particles released
categorized into alpha, beta, gamma, or from the nucleus of a given atom over one
neutron rays. Often radiation is encoun- second. RADIATION EXPOSURE CHART
tered in a mixed state – that is, alpha, beta, Using the rad is actually an “old school” In addition to keeping track of a charac-
gamma and neutron radiation are all emit- way of measuring radiation, but for game ter’s Stamina (STA), players would need to
ted to some degree. 3 purposes this will be the standard used on record the amount of rads that their char-
the Frontier. acters accumulate during a campaign.
Twilight 2000’s rules for dealing with ra-
HANDLING RADIATION diation note: Exposure to lower levels of ra-
The Radiation Exposure Chart provides
the multipliers used to determine the
diation will produce temporary illness, while
EXPOSURE higher levels can kill. All exposure is cumu-
chances of a character falling ill or the risks
of death from an exposure to radiation.
In an effort to create a workable set of lative. The referee uses the rad level on the chart
rules for Star Frontiers for dealing with ra- When a character’s accumulated rads reach that is closest to – but not exceeding – the
diation exposure and radiation sickness, or surpass 50, he must be checked for radia- character’s accumulated rad level. For ex-
the game “Twilight 2000” by Game tion illness. Thereafter, each time the ample, a character with a rad level of 62 or

3 Democratic Action, Vol. 8, No. 4. This information rm/basic-ref/glossary/radradiation-absorbed-

Chang, Andrew L. “Forum: Radiation,”
www.starfrontiers.us/node/3093, 15 Sept. 2008. was reposted on the website https://ieer.org; and dose.html.
4
Close, David and Lisa Ledwidge. “Measuring Ra- “Rad (Radiation Absorbed Dose),” U.S. Nuclear Reg-
diation: Terminology and Units,” Science for ulatory Agency, https://www.nrc.gov/reading-

SPRING 2021 FRONTIER EXPLORER 15

 during the encounter before she realizes the For example, an exposure of
RADIATION EXPOSURE CHART danger. S20/R15+3d10! would mean that the char-
MILD SERIOUS The referee would then check the 100 Rads acter suffers a -20 percent penalty to all
RADS DEATH
ILLNESS ILLNESS line. Thallera has 40 Stamina points. There is ability and skill checks for duration of 18-
50 1.9 -- -- no chance of death, but she has a 76 percent 45 days and will then die. An exposure of
chance to avoid serious illness (40 STA x 1.9 S50/R0! would indicate that a character re-
75 1.7 -- --
= 76). The referee rolls a 49 and the character ceived such a lethal dose of radiation that
100 1.5 1.9 -- avoids that side effect, but then he has to go they would eventually suffer from a -50
200 0.75 1.7 2.0 to the Mild Illness column. Here the character percent penalty for all ability checks and
has a 60 percent chance to avoid mild radia- would die within the day. Note: the symp-
300 0.5 1.5 1.9
tion sickness. toms of radiation sickness begin manifest-
400 0.25 0.5 1.5 This time, the referee rolls a 62 and will ing over a period of minutes to hours, with
600 0 0.25 0.5 need to consult the Mild Radiation Sickness the condition worsening as time passes.
800 0 0 0.25 Table to determine how ill Thallera will get. If any ability statistic, other than Stam-
In some instances, there is still a chance of ina, drops below 0, the character would fall
900 0 0 0 death. unconscious; he would lose 1 point in that
even 74 would use the 50 Rads line while a ability permanently per day of uncon-
character who has accumulated 802 rads
would use the 800 Rads line. The dash (--) RADIATION SICKNESS sciousness. So, if a character started with a
Dexterity score of 40, but went uncon-
on the chart means that the effect does not For game purposes, radiation poisoning scious for 10 days, when he awakens his
apply at that rad level. is handled similarly to other poisons. For new DEX score would be 30.
To use this chart, multiply the charac- example, a radiation sickness result of If Stamina drops below zero, the charac-
ter’s current Stamina score by the multi- S10/R20 would mean that the character ter is considered dead and would lose 1
plier to determine his percentage chance suffers a 10 percent penalty (-10%) to all point of Stamina per turn until reaching
of avoiding the effect. Possible effects are skill and ability checks for 20 days. The minus 30 STA at which point freeze fields,
checked for in the following order – death, first number after the “S” indicates the in- surgery, etc. would not work to revive the
serious illness and mild illness. tensity of the radiation and the abil- character.
The referee rolls a d100; if the number is ity/skill penalty the character suffers. The
equal to or less than the percentage “R” followed by the number represents the MILD RADIATION ILLNESS
chance, the character avoids the effect. duration of the radiation sickness in days. Use the Mild Radiation Sickness Table if
Otherwise, he is affected. A multiplier of If the formula is followed by an asterisk the Radiation Exposure Chart indicates
zero (0) such as on the 800 rad line means (“*”), the character must make a current that a character would suffer from mild ra-
that the character cannot avoid that effect, Stamina check to avoid death at the end of diation poisoning. Apply any modifiers to
which in this case would definitely mean a the duration. An exclamation point (“!”) the roll and see what illness the character
serious illness with a very high likelihood means that the character will die after the contracts.
of death unless the character can receive end of the duration. 6
some form of advanced medical treat-
ment. MILD RADIATION SICKNESS TABLE
The referee checks for radiation illness ROLL (2D10) INITIAL EFFECTS DEATH NEUTRAD TREATMENT
for any characters that are exposed to ra-
0-3 No detectable symptoms or injury. No None required.
diation, but does not inform the player of
the result. Instead, the referee should tell 4-7 S5/R1. Onset: 3-6 hours. No Cured instantly.
the player what symptoms the character 8-10 S5/R2. Onset: 3-6 hours. No. Cured instantly.
begins to exhibit as they occur. 5
11-12 S5/R10. Onset: 3-6 hours. Latent: 5%. No Cured instantly.
6 Adapted from “Radiation Sickness on the Fron-
tier,” by Verreault (jedion357); the “Gamma Dawn” 13-14 S10/R2. Onset: 3-6 hours. Latent: 10%. No Cured instantly.

For example, Thallera is a Yazarian techni- 15-16 S10/R5. Onset: 3-6 hours. Latent: 5%. No. Cured instantly.
cian who is exploring an abandoned building. 17-18 S10/R5+1d10. Onset: 1-6 hours. Latent: 10%. No Reduce to S5/R5.
She is unaware that there is a leaking nuclear 19-20 S10/R5+2d10. Onset: 1-6 hours. Latent: 10%. No Reduce to S5/R10.
battery in a nearby storage room. She is ex-
posed to a dosage of 289 rads of radiation 21+ Consult Serious Radiation Illness Table. N/A N/A

5 Aramis, Umungus, Rum Rogue, and FuMan Chu. 6

The following information comes from a 2008 Adapted from “Radiation Sickness on the Fron-
forum discussion on Radiation on the starfron- www.starfrontiers.us/node/3093. In this case, tier,” by Verreault (jedion357); the “Gamma Dawn”
tiers.us website with contributions from the follow- the verbiage is modified from the Twilight 2000 first rules plus other sources including a discussion on
ing users: SmootRK, Tom Stephens (TerlObar), edition rules. Radiation, www.starfrontiers.us/node/3093.

16 FRONTIER EXPLORER WINTER 2021

 this will depend upon the number of rads
SERIOUS RADIATION SICKNESS TABLE the character has accumulated. Use the Le-
ROLL (2D10) INITIAL EFFECTS DEATH NEUTRAD TREATMENT thal Radiation Dosage Table to see how se-
0-3 S15/R2+1d10. Onset: 1-3 hours. Latent: 5%. No. Cured instantly. vere the illness is and whether or not the
character can make a current Stamina
S15/R5+1d10. Onset: 1-3 hours. Death: STA STA
4-7 Cured instantly. check to avoid death.
+10%. Latent: 10%. +10%
8-10 S20/R10. Onset: 1-3 hours. Latent: 10%. No Cured instantly. TABLE RESULT DETAILS
11-12 S20/R10+1d10. Onset: 1-3 hours. Latent: 15%. No Cured instantly.
ONSET
13-14 S20/R15+2d10*. Onset: 1-3 hours. Latent: 15% No Reduce to S5/R10.
This refers to the period of time before a
S25/R20. Onset: 1-3 hours. Death: STA check. La- Reduce to S10/R10. Latent: character begins to exhibit symptoms of
15-16 STA
tent: 20%. 5% radiation poisoning. Assume that a charac-
S25/R20+1d10*. Onset: 1-3 hours. Death: STA Reduce to S10/R20*. Death: ter’s condition will normally worsen over
17-18 STA
check. Latent: 20%. STA +10%. Latent: 10%. the course of hours rather than the full ef-
S30/R10+2d10*. Onset: 1-3 hours. Death: STA Reduce to S10/R20*. Death: fect of the radiation poisoning hitting all
19-20 STA
at once. See “Effects and Symptoms of Ra-
check. Latent 25%. STA. Latent: 5%
21+ Consult Lethal Radiation Dosage Table. N/A N/A diation Sickness by Race” for more infor-
mation.
In some cases, the player may need to For example, a character suffering from
SERIOUS RADIATION ILLNESS roll a current Stamina check for their char- an S20/R30* sickness would suffer the on-
Use the Serious Radiation Sickness Ta- acter to avoid death, sometimes with a set of symptoms such as headaches and
ble if a serious illness was rolled. Apply any modifier. If the character is being treated nausea after about 1 to 2 hours and the
appropriate modifiers to the roll. in a hospital, they receive an additional referee could impose an initial -5 percent
A character that suffers from a serious +20 percent modifier to avoid death. penalty for ability and skill rolls, but an
illness is often incapacitated, requiring hour later, the symptoms would worsen
medical care similar to those who have suf- LETHAL RADIATION DOSAGE and the ability and skill penalties increase
fered from major wounds. The sickness ta- This column indicates that the character to -10 percent, etc. This would keep the
bles provide some guidelines on how to has received a lethal dose of radiation. He player guessing as to just how bad an ill-
handle radiation exposure levels, the ini- will undergo worsening symptoms of radi- ness the character has unless properly di-
tial effects, whether there is a chance of ation poisoning that will lead to death, agnosed.
death and the effects of Neutrad in treat- which sometimes could be within minutes
ing radiation poisoning. to days, weeks or even months. Much of LATENT
A character suffering from radiation
LETHAL RADIATION DOSAGE TABLE sickness can later develop other health
problems, including cancer, as a result. If a
ROLL (2D10) INITIAL EFFECTS DEATH NEUTRAD TREATMENT
player or referee rolls the indicated num-
S10/R2*. Onset: 1-3 hours. Death: STA ber or less, consult the Latent (Long-term)
0-3 STA Reduce to S5/R2. Latent: 5%.
check. Latent: 20%. Effects subsection.
S15/R20*. Onset: 1-3 hours. Death: STA
4-7 STA Reduce to S10/R10. Latent: 5%.
check. Latent: 20%. NEUTRAD TREATMENT
S20/R15+1d10*. Onset: 1-2 hours. Neutrad treatments are only 100 per-
8-10 STA Reduce to S15/R15. Latent: 10%. cent effective if used within the first five
Death: STA check. Latent: 25%.
days of radiation sickness; if used after the
S20/R30*. Onset: 30 min. -2 hours. Death: Reduce to S15/R15*. Death: STA
11-12 STA sickness has run its course; it has no effect
STA check. Latent: 25%. check. Latent: 15%.
and will not revive a dead character.
S20/R15+3d10! Onset: 30 min. -2 hours. Reduce to S15/R15*. Death: STA If Neutrad is used on a patient who is
13-14 Yes
Death. check. Latent: 15%.
suffering from radiation sickness, but it is
Reduce to S20/R5*. Death: STA after the first five days, the Medtech suf-
15-16 S30/R10! Onset: 15-30 min. Death. Yes
check. Latent: 20%. fers a penalty when rolling to successfully
Reduce to S20/R5+3d10*. Latent treat the character. The penalty is a -5 per-
17-18 S40/R1+1d10! Onset: 10-20 min. Death. Yes
30%. cent modifier per day after the fifth day.
Reduce to S30/R1d5*. Latent: For example, “Doc” Umungus injects Neu-
19-20 S50/R0+1d5! Onset: 5-10 min. Death. Yes trad into a Dralasite who has been suffer-
50%.
ing from radiation poisoning (S10/R10).
21+ S90/R0! Onset: 0-10 min. Death. Yes Reduce to S40/R1d10! Death.
The patient has been suffering for six days,

SPRING 2021 FRONTIER EXPLORER 17

so Umungus gets a -5 percent penalty to • Acute Exposure. A brief yet very in-
his skill check. 7 See the Radiation Treat- tense exposure to radiation. This may be
RADIATION SICKNESS
ments subsection for more information. considered to be much more harmful to MODIFIERS
a character – or, at least, brings out radi-
MODIFIERS TO THE RADIATION ation sickness and death much more
CONDITION MODIFIER
SICKNESS CHART quickly than a brief or moderate expo- Low Level Radiation -2
Although the Radiation Exposure Table sure. Medium Level Radiation 0
provides some general guidelines, the ref- • Wounds, Poisoning, Etc. A character Severe Level Radiation +2
eree may want to take into account the fact who is already suffering from serious
that there are different types of radiation Extreme Level Radiation +4
wounds, disease, poisoning from a
including gamma, beta, neutron, and al- toxin, and other maladies is much more Brief Exposure -2
pha rays. Different types of shielding and susceptible to radiation illness. Moderate Exposure 0
even Star Frontiers power screens will pro- • Single Dose of 100-499 rad/500+ Prolonged Exposure +2
vide various levels of protection in addi- rad. An intense burst of high levels of
tion to an inssuit. 8 Acute Exposure +3
radiation causes more damage to a char-
• Low Level Radiation. Anything above acter immediately. Previous Mild Radiation Illness +2
normal background radiation but below • Intense Neutron/Gamma Radiation. Previous Serious Radiation Illness +4
10 rads per hour. A character receives an intense burst of Currently Suffering Rad. Illness +5
• Medium Level Radiation. Radiation neutron and/or gamma radiation, which
between 11 and 99 rads per hour. Hospital Treatment -4
potentially causes more damage.
• Severe Level Radiation. Radiation be- • Anti-Rad Implant. This implant helps Wounded (not incapacitated) +1
tween 100 and 199 rads per hour. the character’s resilence to radiation ex- Wounded (incapacitated) +2
• Extreme Level Radiation. Radiation posure. Character suffering from poisoning +2
levels above 200 rads per hour. • Anarad Treatment. A radioprotectant Character suffering from disease +2
• Brief Exposure. For game purposes, a drug that a character must take prior to
brief exposure to radiation can be de- radiation exposure. Character suffering from infestation +2
fined as a period of time measured in Character malnourished +4
combat turns to minutes. Obviously, a REAL WORLD RADIATION EXPO- Character subjected to intense neu-
+4
brief exposure to low levels of radiation
is less harmful to a character than a me-
SURE EXAMPLES tron radiation
While the game rules try to reflect real- Character subjected to intense
dium, severe, or extreme level of radia- +4
ity, here are some actual examples of what gamma radiation
tion.
can happen to a person who suffers from For each single dose of 100-499 rad +1
• Moderate Exposure. This can be con-
acute radiation exposure, including:
sidered as exposure to radiation over a Pre-treated with Anarad-5 or -10 -1
• 0-25 Rad: No observable effect.
period of minutes to hours or even a day. For a single dose of 500+ rad +2
Exposure to low levels of radiation is less • 25-100 Rad: Slight blood changes.
• 100-200 Rad: Significant reduction in Pre-treated with Anarad-20 -2
harmful than to higher levels.
• Prolonged Exposure. Contact with ra- blood platelets and white blood cells Anti-Rad Implant -1
dioactive substances over an extended (temporary).
period of time ranging from more than a • 100 Rad: A single dose can cause radia- • 500 Rad: A single dose can kill half of
day to weeks, months or even years. One tion sickness, but not death. those exposed to it within a month.
example would be exposure to radon – • 200-500 Rad: Severe blood damage, • More than 600 Rad: Death in less than
this is a naturally occuring gas that is nausea, hair loss, hemorrhage, death in two months for over 80 percent of cases;
ordorless and invisible. Radon emits al- many cases. this was the typical exposure of a Cher-
pha radiation and is known to contrib- • 400 Rad: Sufficient to wipe out a Hu- nobyl worker who died within a month.
ute to the development of lung cancer in man’s immune system. About 50 per- • 800 Rad: If this is total body irradiation
people who have been exposed to ele- cent of victims die within a few days in a short time, causes the sloughing off
vated levels over a lifetime. Often, radon from infections, though this condition of the mucosal throughout the gastroin-
is measured in picocuries; a picocurie is can be successfully treated with medi- testinal tract within a few days. Victims
one trillionth of a curie. 9 cines.

7 8 9
Note: this is a House Rule, much like most of The following information comes from a 2008 “Health Risk of Radon,” United States Environ-
the rules in this section. Zebulon’s Guide provides forum discussion on Radiation on the starfron- mental Protection Agency,
no guidance on how effective Neutrad is when treat- tiers.us website. www.starfron- https://www.epa.gov/radon/health-risk-radon.
ing a character with radiation poisoning. tiers.us/node/3093.

18 FRONTIER EXPLORER WINTER 2021

 suffer severe fluid and blood loss
(bloody diarrhea) and die. SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS OF RADIATION SICKNESS
• 1,000 Rad: Fatal within weeks WITH HUMANS
• 1,200 Rad: Total body irradiation at Headache Nausea and vomiting
this level causes brain swelling within a Fever Weakness, fatigue
few hours. The victim will get bad head-
(S) Bloody stool (S) Bleeding from nose, mouth, gums, and rectum
aches, go unconscious and then die. 10
(S) Bruising (S) Dehydration
Other sources note that the human body (S) Diarrhea (S) Fainting
can absorb up to 200 rad without fatal con-
(S) Hair loss (S) Inflammation of exposed areas – redness, tenderness, swelling and bleeding
sequences. A dose of 450 rad is fatal in
about half the cases while more than 600 (S) Mouth ulcers (S) Open sores on the skin
rad is almost always fatal. A person can ab- (S) Sloughing of skin (S) Ulcers in the esophagus, stomach or intestines
sorb and survive many thousands of rads (S) Vomiting blood
if they are administered carefully in con-
WITH DRALASITES
trolled doses over a long period of time.
Exposure to radiation can occur by inha- Bruising (S) Skin burns – redness, blistering
lation, ingestion, or direct contact, accord- Fatigue (S) Inflamation of exposed areas – redness, tenderness, swelling and bleeding
ing to an article on Doctor-Clinic.Org. The Dehydration (S) Optional: Extra -5% penalty when sickness results from fallout
existence and severity of tissue damage de-
pends on the amount of body area exposed (S) Weakness (S) Increased time it takes to form a limb -- usually double the normal amount
(the smaller the better), length of expo- (S) Sloughing of skin
sure, dosage absorbed, distance from the WITH VRUSK
source and the presence of protective
Changes in carapace color Dehydration
shielding. 11
Fatigue (S) Pre-mature shedding of carapace
EFFECTS AND SYMPTOMS OF RA- (S) Fainting (S) Ulcers on mandibles, antennae and/or anus

DIATION SICKNESS BY RACE 12 (S) Weakness Optional: decrease non-fatal duration by one-fourth
The following table provides lists of ra- WITH YAZARIANS
diation sickness symptoms by race purely Bruising Nausea
to provide some flavor for the purposes of
roleplaying characters with these condi- Weakness/Fatigue (S) Bleeding from nose, mouth, gums and rectum
tions. Symptoms that are indicative of a (S) Bloody stool (S) Dehydration
serious illness are designated with a (S) be- (S) Diarrhea (S) Fainting
fore the description. The tables also pro-
(S) Hair loss (S) Inflamation of exposed areas – redness, tenderness, swelling, bleeding
vide optional racial effects. Again, these
symptoms and effects are largely here for (S) Mouth ulcers (S) Nausea and vomiting
variation rather than trying to be balanced (S) Open sores on skin (S) Skin burns – redness, blistering
or fair. (S) Sloughing of skin (S) Ulcers in the esophagus, stomach or intestines
(S) Vomiting blood Optional: Temporary loss of Battle Rage and too weak to glide if S10+
INITIAL SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS
The initial signs and symptoms of treat- WITH SATHAROIDS (SATHAR AND S’SESSU)
able radiation sickness in Humans are usu- Deep bruising Dehydration – loss of protective slime, reduce movement rates by half
ally nausea and vomiting. The amount of Fatigue Inflamation of exposed areas – cracked skin, redness, tenderness, swelling
time between exposure and when these
symptoms develop is an indicator of how Weakness (S) Bleeding from skin
much radiation a person has absorbed. Af- (S) Double vision (S) Development of physical mutations – i.e permanent blistering look to skin
ter the first round of symptoms, a charac- Optional: Exposure to radiation can cause mutagenic changes. Referee may introduce mental or physical changes to
ter with serious radiation sickness may satharoid characteristics

10 11 12
“Radiation Exposure Examples,” Georgia State “Radiation Exposure,” DoctorClinic.Org, Verreault, “Radiation Sickness,” Star Frontiers-
University. http://hyperphysics.phy- www.doctor-clinic.org/injuries/radiation-ex- man Magazine.
astr.gsu.edu/hbase/NucEne/radexp.html; and posure.html; also from the “Radiation” discussion
“Radiation exposure: How does it compare?” Radiol- on starfrontiers.us. The radiation figures here have
ogyinfo.org been translated from Rems and Grays to rads.

SPRING 2021 FRONTIER EXPLORER 19

 suffered from radiation sickness. Though
SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS OF RADIATION SICKNESS (CONT.) treated several times, the damage done to his
WITH HUMMA body has resulted in him coming down with a
Bruising Dehydration malignant form of cancer that cannot be
treated.
Fainting Weakness/Fatigue
(S) Hair Loss (S) Inflamation of exposed areas – redness, tenderness, swelling, bleeding OTHER TREATMENTS FOR RADIA-
(S) Mouth ulcers (S) Open sores on skin TION SICKNESS
(S) Sloughing of skin (S) Skin burns – redness, blistering Neutrad is not the be-all and end-all
treatment for radiation poisoning in the
Optional: Serious radiation sickness causes sex change from female to male or male to neuter Frontier. Other treatments include the
WITH OSAKAR Neutrad Supplement; Anarad drugs, which
Bruising Dehydration provide some resistance to radiation; Neu-
TreX and Rad-TreX, which are both chem-
Intermittent audio halucinations Nausea and vomiting
ical solution treatments that bond with ra-
Weakness, Fatigue (S) Fainting diation particles and allow them to pass
(S) Mouth ulcers (S) Inflamation of exposed areas – redness, tenderness, swelling, bleeding through a character’s system. Advanced
(S) Open sores on skin (S) Religious experiences Frontier planets also have nano-tech treat-
ments, using nanites to correct sub-cellu-
Optional: All penalties reducedby -5 due to natural resistance to radiation; +10% STA check to avoid death lar damage that is caused by radiation. 14
WITH IFSHNIT The effectiveness of these treatments
Bruising Inflamation of exposed areas – redness, tenderness, swelling, bleeding depends upon how soon they are adminis-
tered relative to when the character was
Nausea and vomiting Weakness, Fatigue
exposed to radiation.
(S) Bloody stool (S) Bleeding from nose, mouth, gums and rectum
(S) Dehydration (S) Diarrhea NEUTRAD SUPPLEMENT
These pills are to be taken daily while a
(S) Fainting (S) Hair loss
character is suffering from radiation sick-
(S) Mouth ulcers (S) Skin burns – redness, blistering ness. It will reduce the intensity of the ra-
(S) Open sores on skin (S) Ulcers in esophagus, stomach or intestines diation contamination by 5 points for that
Optional: All penalties increased by +5 due to low mass day; intensity is the number after the “S.”
Taking multiple pills has no effect other
have a brief period with no apparent ill- to obtain a copy of “Gamma Dawn.” This than to induce vomiting. These pills do not
ness, followed by the onset of new, more is a compilation of fan-based rules that require medical training to administer and
serious symptoms. In general, the greater was edited by Bill Logan and posted on are available on most worlds.
your radiation exposure, the more rapid places such as the Star Frontiersman mag- Cost: 20 Credits for 10 tablets.
and more severe your symptoms will be. 13 azine website. These rules were created by Weight: -- 15
an unknown author and eventually posted
LATENT (LONG-TERM) EFFECTS on RPG.NET. Logan removed “obscurities ANARAD-5, -10, -20
Most radiation damage is much like and references to house rules” and Anarad is the name for an exotic drug
burn injuries, but it also harms molecular “stripped it of all things ‘Zebulon’s Guide.’” that lessens radiation damage to a degree.
structures (like DNA or essential proteins This compilation of Alpha Dawn/ A “radioprotectant,” Anarad must be taken
within a cell). This sort of damage is more Zebulon’s Guide rules will not attempt to by a character before he is exposed to radi-
difficult to quantify. Latent (long-term) ef- duplicate Logan’s work. ation. It works by scavenging up free radi-
fects include sterility, prolonged illness The long-term effects of radiation sick- cals that are created when cellular matter
and fatigue, premature childbirths, perma- ness can be a plot device for later adven- is irradiated and water molecules are bro-
nent loss of hair, internal and/or external tures. ken up; it also helps with DNA repair.
bleeding, cell death in certain tissues, and For example, Garlus Tylappar is a crusty, Anarad-5 (A-5) protects a character up
various forms of cancer. old spacer who for 20 years has been the mas- to 5 rad per hour; Anarad-10 (A-10), up to
For those wishing to delve into the fan- ter of the space freighter Gullwind. Over the 10 rad per hour; and Anarad-20 (A-20), up
ciful idea of how radiation can cause muta- years he has been exposed to high levels of ra- to 20 rad per hour. The drug can only be
tions in Gamma World® style, you may try diation on more than one occasion and administered once during a 20-hour

13 14 15
“Radiation Sickness,” Mayo Clinic, 2008 forum discussion on Radiation on the Modified from “Gamma Dawn,” p. 6.
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/ra- starfrontiers.us website, www.starfron-
diation-sickness/symptoms-causes/syc-20377058 tiers.us/node/3093

20 FRONTIER EXPLORER WINTER 2021

period and guards against radiation for a 5 still need to make a current Stamina check NANO-RAD TREATMENT
hour period. These drugs also provide with a +10 percent modifier, but then the Available at the Frontier’s finest hospi-
some benefits in reducing the effects of ra- medic successfully treated the character with tals, this treatment uses microscopic ro-
diation sickness (see the Radiation Sick- two Neu-TreX doses. The chemical knocked bots called nanites to repair sub-cellular
ness Modifier table). down Rum Rogue’s rad count by 26 rad (a damage and kill mutated cells before a can-
The costs for the Anarad drugs are as fol- 2d10 roll of 17 for treatment one and a roll of cer-like growth pattern can begin. If given
lows: 9 for treatment two). while a character is suffering from radia-
• 500 Credits for a dose of A-5 Thanks to the Neu-TreX treatments, Rum tion sickness it will reduce any effects by
• 800 Credits for a dose of A-10 Rogue’s illness was reduced to S7/R15*. His half.
• 1,500 Credits for a dose of A-20. player can make a current Stamina check with If a character has a chance of dying
Weight: -- 16 an additional +5 percent modifier. (when an asterisk "*" follows the duration
Cost: 1,000 Credits. number), they will receive a +20 percent
Total package weight: 1.5 kilograms. modifier to their Stamina rolls. If results
NEU-TREX
This drug is often used in conjunction call for death at the end of radiation sick-
with Neutrad, though it can be adminis- RAD-TREX ness' duration (when the number is fol-
tered to a character up to week after the A much more powerful solution than lowed by an exclamation point "!"), the
initial (or subsequent) exposure to radia- Neu-TreX, Rad-TreX must also be given to character can make a current Stamina
tion. A potent diarrheic, Neu-TreX comes a patient in an IV fashion over the course check with a +5 percent modifier to avoid
in a one-liter dispenser and must be given of 20 hours and the patient must be immo- dying. This treatment will reduce the like-
intravenously over a period of at least 20 bilized during this time. It can be given be- lihood of latent effects by 20 percent. It
hours. A character usually should be con- fore or after a character receives Neu-TreX can be administered up to a month after
fined to bed (or immobilized) while this so- and/or Neutrad. the character’s exposure to radiation,
lution is given. Rad-TreX removes 4d10+5 rads from a though it will then only reduce the chance
Radiation particles bond to the chemical character; it will also reduce the effects of of developing latent diseases by 20 per-
solution which then passes out of the pa- radiation poisoning by half (round any fig- cent.
tient’s system. It will remove 2d10 rads ures down) and provides a +10 percent The Nano-Rad nanites must be con-
from a character’s rad count. Neu-TreX modifier if the character needs to make a trolled by at least a level 1 computer with
will also reduce the effects of radiation current Stamina check to avoid death. If a chronocom transmitter.
sickness by one-fourth (round numbers the results of the illness still call for death Cost (excluding computer): 20,000 Cr
down), these benefits are in addition to (when the duration number is followed by Weight (excluding computer): N/A. 18
any help that Neutrad treatment provided. an exclamation point “!”), the character
If the character needs to make a current
Stamina check to avoid death, the player
can make a current Stamina check, but
without the +10 percent modifier to avoid FINAL WORDS
receives a +5 percent bonus, but it will not dying. Summing it up, radiation hazards can
help if the results of an illness is death Although multiple treatments of Neu- have a profound impact on characters or
(when the duration number is followed by TreX and Rad-TreX can be administered, non-player in the forms of radiation poi-
an exclamation point “!”). the combination of these drugs will elimi- soning. These rules offer a way on how to
Although multiple Neu-TreX treatments nate no more than 150 rads from a charac- handle radiation poisoning and how to
can be given, it will remove no more than ter during that character’s lifetime. Addi- treat characters.
50 rads total from a character during that tional treatments – after the first one – Part two of the story will look at other
character’s lifetime. Additional treatments while a character is still suffering from ra- sources of radiation – such as from solar
– after the first one – while a character is diation poisoning will not further decrease flares for characters in space – as well as
still suffering from radiation poisoning the character’s symptoms or provide any ways to protect against radiation and how
will not further decrease the character’s additional modifiers when conducting a robots and equipment are impacted.
symptoms or provide any additional mod- Stamina check.
ifiers when conducting a Stamina check. Rad-TreX comes in a one-liter dispenser
For example, the pirate Rum Rogue is suf- unit.
fering from serious radiation poisoning Cost: 3,000 Credits.
(S15/R30*). A medic successfully adminis- Total unit weight: 1.5 kilograms. 17
tered a Neutrad treatment, which reduced
the illness to a S10/R20*. Rum Rogue would

16 17 18
The name “Anarad” and its effects were created Neu-TreX and Rad-TreX are actually based on The nanite treatment was suggested by user
by the user Aramis in June 2008 on the starfron- the chemical Rad Away from the Fallout video game. SmootRK on the starfrontiers.us website.
tiers.us website. It was suggested by user Rum Rogue on the starfron-
tiers.us website.

SPRING 2021 FRONTIER EXPLORER 21

Titan rising 1

22 FRONTIER EXPLORER WINTER 2021

Titan Rising 2

SPRING 2021 FRONTIER EXPLORER 23

 ALIEN TECHNOLOGY FLOWCHARTS
BY FRONTIER NEWS NETWORK

Editor’s Note: These rules for figuring out an

alien technology were located in an internet ar-
chive for the Frontier News Network. The au-
thor is unknown.

LEVELS
In the many exploits of a group of ad-
venturers in the Frontier, they may en-
counter technology of an advanced or for-
eign nature. Depending on the type of de-
vice encountered, understanding its uses
and functions may range from easy to ex-
tremely difficult. Charts are provided for
four different levels: easy, difficult, very
difficult, and extremely difficult.

DIE ROLLS
The start circle is where the player will
begin their journey to solve the mysteries
of these devices. At each circle, a die roll is device has been fixed, you may go to back
made. This roll could be against a skill or BREAKS to the original flowchart to attempt to un-
ability or just the random whim of fate. During the investigation of an unknown cover any of the device’s secrets. If an ex-
If the roll is a skill or ability roll, then the device, it is possible to accidently break it. tremely difficult device is broken, then the
result will end up being a Success of the roll At this point, the device cannot be used GM may determine that the device is per-
or a Failure. If the roll was a Success, then until it is fixed. To fix a broken device, the manently broken or a success on the same
the S path is followed. If it was a Failure, player must achieve any success on the chart will fix the device, but not reveal an-
then the F path is followed. On a d10 roll, next most difficult flowchart. After the ything about the device.
then whatever number is rolled, that is the
LEGEND DEFINITION
path that is followed. This is continued un-
til a Success, Break, or Discharge occurs. Break Device must be repaired on the next most difficult chart
Complete Success All information about the device is now known

RESULTS d10 Roll a d10 and follow the path of the number

Each path through the chart end in some Dex Roll Roll a d100 vs Dexterity
sort of result as described in the sections Discharge Damage is taken equaling that of the stated roll
below. F Skill or Ability Failure

SUCCESSES Full Discharge Damage is taken equaling that of the stated roll
There are three types of success: full, Intuit Roll Roll a d100 vs Intuition
partial, or normal. For each success, a Logic Roll Roll a d100 vs Logic
function or capability is discovered. A par-
Partial Discharge Damage is taken equaling that of the stated roll
tial success results in a minor function, a
normal success results in a main function Partial Success A minor function is discovered
and a complete success allows the user to Skill Roll Perform a skill roll for any applicable skill
understand the full functionality of the de-
Stam Roll Roll a d100 vs Stamina
vice.
Success A major function is discovered
S Skill or Ability Success

24 FRONTIER EXPLORER WINTER 2021

 DISCHARGES
The other bad side-effect of
tampering with an unknown de-
vice is the possibility of an energy
discharge. A discharge of this type
cannot be blocked by any type of
suit or defensive shielding. The
damage stated is the damage roll
that they player will take.

ADAPTIONS
There are many adaptions that
these flowcharts may be used for.
They are mainly designed for sit-
uations that catch a GM unpre-
pared but can also be placed into
a storyline in places where it
seems a single die roll is insuffi-
cient to solve an advanced prob-
lem.

SPRING 2021 FRONTIER EXPLORER 25

26 FRONTIER EXPLORER WINTER 2021
 AN INDUSTRIOUS LIFE
A LOOK AT THE LIFE OF THE AVERAGE VRUSK
BY DR. XANADOS SPAIN (AKA OSCAR RIOS)
Across the Frontier, a number of things are today’s lecture we will cover the basic struc- of two. Cognitively, young Vrusk develop
commonly known about Vrusk, the hard- ture of a well-lived Vrusk life. about 10% faster than humans.
working sentient insect race: they are dedi-
cated to their companies, they are pragmatic
and diligent, and enjoy and often collect PREGNANCY & BIRTH CHILDHOOD AND
There are no unwanted or surprise preg-
EDUCATION
things of beauty while seeking serenity and
balance in all things. nancies in Vrusk. This is because female
But just how does all this work? Vrusk can store sperm within their bodies Vrusk children are raised together in
What are Vrusk families like? for up to three years at a time. This allows groups, in Nurturing Centers run by the
How do they get hired to these companies? them to choose the proper moment for be- companies their parents work for. Here
How do they find mates and raise their chil- coming pregnant. A female Vrusk can also they’re given well balanced meals, physical
dren? choose to expel a male’s sperm or absorb it exercise, taught basic social skills, and re-
What happens when they grow too old to into her own body where it is digested. ceive a fundamental education (reading,
work, and how do they handle and tend to While Vrusk can and do have sex for en- writing, math, language, etc.). The workers
their dead? joyment, reproduction is a very serious raising these children are company em-
To most non-Vrusk, even those with Vrusk matter. The details of reproduction are ployees, and often care for children in the
friends or co-workers, these things remain a worked out in contracts, between the male same Nurturing Center they themselves
mystery. parent, the female parent, and the compa- attended. These are very important posi-
My name is Dr. Xanados Spain, I am a nies they work for during their Pair-Bond- tions in Vrusk society and competition for
xenoanthropologist at the University of ing negotiations. We’ll talk more about them is fierce. Earning a job working at a
Zebulon. While I now live on the planet An- these contracts later. Nurturing Center requires top educational
ker, in the Zebulon system, I was born on the Vrusk are born alive to a Vrusk female. marks in primary school. Those who are
other side of the Frontier. I am originally from While Vrusk do lay eggs, these are hatched selected for them gain great respect and
Kir’Kut, in the Solar Minor system. It is one of inside the mother’s body. Because of this generous pay. In Vrusk society, preparing
only three planets jointly populated by Hu- whatever a Vrusk female eats, drinks, or young for formal education is key to main-
mans and Vrusk. My parents worked for a otherwise takes into her body has no influ- taining a society’s foundation.
Vrusk company. I was born into their com- ence over her offspring while she is preg- Young Vrusk spend about half their day
pany and grew up alongside Vrusk. I went to nant. Therefore, Vrusk females increase at a Nurturing Center, and the other half
school with them, shared important mile- their caloric intake, watch their diets, and at home to be raised by their parents. Par-
stones in their lives and came to understand get a lot of extra sleep in the months lead- ents with children this age are granted re-
them in ways most non-Vrusk never will. In ing up to becoming pregnant. This ensures duced work hours to allow them to spend
that her young have the more time with their offspring. After five
best, highest quality years in a nurturing center, young Vrusk
yokes within their eggs, begin primary school.
giving them the greatest In my case, being human, I didn’t graduate
probability of being born from the Nurturing Center until I was six.
healthy. Since this was Kir’Kut, everyone learned to
Gestation of a Vrusk is speak both Vrusk, Human, and Pan-Galactic.
always four hundred days Unlike the Vrusk children, I did not graduate
after conception. Young with the children I entered the nurturing cen-
are born as fully formed ter with, but a year later.
miniature versions of Formal Vrusk education begins at the
their parents. They can age of five and lasts between thirteen and
walk and grasp objects twenty-two years depending on the career
within a day or so of their path. In the Solar Minor and Triskar sys-
IMAGE BY TOM VERREAULT

birth. Most Vrusk are able tems, this is extended to between fourteen
to talk within six months and twenty-four years, so Humans and
of birth, and fully master Vrusk can graduate together. This is not a
language around the age matter of a difference in intelligence, but

SPRING 2021 FRONTIER EXPLORER 27

more of a maturing Vrusk being able to re- JOINING THE COMPANY the company or trade house they work for.
tain and absorb information faster than a Most Vrusk accept positions in the same There is no “I” in team; to a Vrusk the only
maturing human. Once reaching maturity, company their parents worked in, the “I” is in industry.
the cognitive difference between the races same company that helped raise and edu- However, this is hardly the whole story.
vanishes. cate them. For Vrusk companies, the best Despite such dedication, a Vrusk still has
Because of this, Vrusk from Solar Minor way to ensure high quality loyal employees time for personal pursuits and expressions
and Triskar have a higher rates of artistic is by creating them yourself. To Vrusk, a of individuality. Such things are just kept
expression, with many becoming talented company is a family, an entity unto itself, separate from work. In a Vrusk company
artists, musicians, authors, or performers and each employee is a cell within that there are no such things as dress down,
alongside their professional training. This body. Young Vrusk graduate from formal crazy socks, or ugly tie days. However,
is because the Vrusk fill the extra time at training somewhere between the ages of once a Vrusk’s shift ends and the workday
school with more formal artistic educa- twenty-one and twenty-four, although is completed they can, and do, show a
tion. Vrusk from these two systems make gifted students could graduate as early as whole separate side of themselves.
up only 33% of the total population of eighteen years of age. At this time, they are
Vrusk of the frontier, yet they account for
67% of Vrusk working as in the arts and
offered a formal contract with the com-
pany. The vast majority of them accept it.
LEISURE PURSUITS
entertainment industries. Some negotiation is expected and even When Vrusk complete their work for the
Vrusk Primary Schools, like Nurturing encouraged, with new hires pushing for day they become more informal. After
Centers, are run by the companies their things like higher pay, better housing, work co-workers often use nicknames for
parents work for. There are open schools, more vacation time, and so forth. In the one another, reflecting that their company
for the Vrusk children of civil servants, or- rare case a graduating student is gifted in identity and off-the-clock personality are
phans, and those who do freelance work an area where that company has no job for two separate things.
outside of a formal company. The Vrusk them (such as a gifted botanist raised in a After work it is common for Vrusk co-
education system is demanding, even for Vrusk mining company), the company workers to attend sporting events or
Vrusk. Much of the education includes partners them with another company will- holovid shows, go out drinking or to din-
testing to see what a student has aptitude ing to hire them. All graduating students ner, find a place to enjoy live music and
in. Because of this testing, school curricu- of a Vrusk primary school have jobs wait- dance, or grab of hot beverage at a café and
lum is tailored to the individual Vrusk. To ing for them. While incredibly rare, some enjoy a poetry reading. But, unless you
Vrusk, the best path is the one of least re- young Vrusk refuse these job offers and work for the same company, don’t expect
sistance. It is better to find what a child is strike out on their own. These Vrusk are to see this side of them, especially if you
good at and shape those natural tenden- known as Ky’ki, and we’ll discuss them fur- are non-vrusk.
cies into a suitable career path. ther in a bit. Vrusk enjoy personal time and most
A Vrusk child who shows a gift for math In my graduation class of seven hundred have several different art forms they’re
will have their education steered in that di- and twenty-eight children, there was not a passionate about. These range from things
rection, and by the time they graduate may single Ky’ki. This is remarkable considering like handicrafts and gardening, music and
well be an engineer, astronomer, or star- the class was nearly 40% human. But the ed- cooking, painting and sculpting, competi-
ship navigator. A Vrusk with a more ag- ucation system, so in tune with our natural tive games (both intellectually, with things
gressive temperament might have their gifts, offered everyone a job that was very ful- like chess, or physically, with things like
education focus on self-defense and weap- filling. wrestling) and individual sports (like rock
ons training, and graduate as a soldier or
as a member of the company’s security
force. Vrusk who show promise in social COMPANY LIFE
skills might be trained to become a diplo- This is the part of Vrusk
mat or counselor, while those with good culture most outsiders
judgment educated with a focus on politics know about. Vrusk find joy
or management. and comfort in the security
For myself, my teachers reported that I of their companies and the
“had a fascination with and a knack for un- work they perform they. To
derstanding cultural differences and similari- a Vrusk, having purpose
ties between alien races,” and shaped my edu- means having peace; having
cation accordingly. Thirty wonderful and ful-
IMAGE BY TOM VERREAULT

focus brings clarity to one’s

filling years later, after having crossed the existence. To a Vrusk, they
galaxy as a xenoanthropologist, I can only be are what they do and who
grateful for their judgment. they work for; their self-
worth tied to the success of

28 FRONTIER EXPLORER WINTER 2021

climbing or fishing). Vrusk also enjoy col- Hospitality Service. Others can be quite Manager, and a witness of honor for both
lecting the things they are passionate large, contain dozens of teachings. These parties. Terms of a pair bonding typically
about. Most Vrusk homes have things like form numerous philosophical belief sys- last for seven years, with five-year exten-
libraries, art and sculpture collections, tems governing how Vrusk can lead a vir- sions filed after-wards. If offspring are
computers with thousands of hours of tuous life. produced the terms are automatically ex-
their favorite music recordings, and Companies and Trade Houses have sto- tended until the youngest offspring
holovids, trophies and awards commemo- ries, passed down for hundreds, even reaches seven years of age.
rating their victories in various competi- thousands of years, detailing the deeds of While all may seem impersonal and un-
tions. model employees, the founders of their romantic to outsiders, Vrusk do not find it
Here's a tip, never play ping-pong, against companies, or histories of when a trade so. Vrusk find these proceedings to be im-
a Vrusk. Don’t even get me started on rac- house was nearly ruined but recovered portant life events, milestones on par with
quetball… I’ve still got scars. That quiet but through hard work and perseverance. their first day of work. During a pair bond-
hard-working office clerk by day could very These stories form the stories and legends ing ceremony both parties traditionally
well be an eight-legged demon of the court af- of Vrusk mythology, the heroes and vil- wear new clothing, retain the pens they
ter work. lains of their cultural heritage. sign their documents with (often becom-
Vrusk collections are reflections of ing family heirlooms), frame their Pair-
themselves and therefore incredibly per-
sonal things. Only a Vrusk’s closest friends PAIR BONDING AND Bond contracts, and hold grand celebra-
tions afterwards. These parties are at-
are ever permitted to see them. If asked
about these things, Vrusk are proud and PARENTHOOD tended by the couple’s family, friends, and
all of their co-workers. While it is not con-
happy to discuss their collections, but Between the ages of thirty and sixty (late sidered necessary for a successful union,
never brag about them. Much like no two maturity and early middle age) Vrusk are ex- many Vrusk who Pair-Bond do have love
eyes have the same pattern of facets (or in pected to pair bond and reproduce. This is for one another.
human terms - no two fingerprints are alike), how companies and trade houses ensure a If you are ever lucky enough to be invited to
no one Vrusk’s collection is superior to any steady supply of new employees. Most a Vrusk Pair-Bonding reception, don’t miss
other’s. companies offer salary bonuses and other out. It’s a wonderful spectacle, especially the
perks, such as extra time off and improved elaborate business suites and the traditional

CHANGING JOBS housing, for employees who pair bond and

produce offspring.
nineteen course feast. I had the honor to
stand as witness to a co-worker’s pair bond-
While it is rare, Vrusk can and do change Companies encourage partnerships be- ing, a Vrusk classmate named Kar’Kenzit.
jobs. Larger companies often look to steal tween their employees, often having en- Both her and the groom’s family insisted I
personnel from smaller, newer companies tire departments dedicated to making pro-
if an individual shows promise. Most often spective matches based on similar per-
companies handle the exchange without sonal interests, genetic compatibility, and
the employee knowing about it. This is job performance scores. Companies even
similar to sports teams trading players, pay for dates and Courtship Vacations
but for Vrusk it could be anyone. New em- while couples get to know one another to
ployees acquired this way are treated with explore their compatibility. While couples
a great deal of respect in their new compa- can and do meet by other means it is esti-
nies. Often entire departments are ac- mated that 85% of Vrusk Pair-Bonds are
quired this way, and in extreme cases en- formed through the ac-
tire small companies are absorbed into tions of and incentives of-
larger ones, all in an effort to acquire a few fered by the companies
valuable new employees. they work.
Once two individuals

SPIRITUALITY agree to become a couple,

there is a pair-bonding rit-
Very few Vrusk have a belief system ual where the terms of
which includes a divine creator governing their relationship and fu-
their reality through supernatural means. ture parenting duties are
This doesn’t mean Vrusk lack a faith sys- clearly defined. This con-
IMAGE BY TOM VERREAULT

tem. Each company and trading house has ference is presided over by
its own dogma, a collection of philosophies a company official, repre-
making up their mission statement. sentative mediators for
Some can be small, like the Nine Rules of both partners, the com-
Commerce or the Seven Tenants of pany’s Personnel Resources
SPRING 2021 FRONTIER EXPLORER 29
joined them for the traditional wedding din- location become places for all Vrusk work- However, combined with that pity comes
ner. I didn’t think it was possible to gain so ing at that company to come and reflect on as hint of admiration and hope.
much weight in one sitting. the course of their lives. Vrusk come to Se- Most Vrusk at one time or another have
Both male and female Vrusk share par- renity Spaces to contemplate the reality wished to break out of the mold they’ve
enting responsibilities, with clear terms that their journey through life will one day been cast into. If even for only for a mo-
laid out in their Pair-Bond agreements. also come to an end. ment, the majority of Vrusk ponder doing
Vrusk parents are typically given reduced Some Serenity Spaces can be vast and beau- something daring, like following a dream
workdays, allowing them to spend more tiful places, taking up several square kilome- that defies logic and pragmatism. Very few
time with their offspring, until they are old ters. Most are truly stunning places of natural Vrusk ever do it, and most who do so lead
enough to attend primary school. The ed- beauty, with growing and blooming things lives of struggle and mediocrity. However,
ucational test scores of an offspring are a from across the Frontier. For a place to con- almost universally, every truly great Vrusk
reflection of the couple’s parenting skills. template death, Serenity Spaces are celebra- walked the dangerous path of the Ky’ki.
Sometimes an offspring’s test scores are tions of life, which I think is the whole point. Every Vrusk who ever founded a new
factored into their parent’s overall em- company, took a risk on a new unproven
ployment performance reviews.
STEPPING OUTSIDE THE technology, started an innovative venture,
labored towards making a groundbreaking

OLD AGE AND DEATH SYSTEM, THE KY’KI

discovery, or established a new fashion,
music, or artistic style, was a Ky’ki.
Old Vrusk often work as long as they’re The word Ky’ki translates to madness in The vast majority of Vrusk don’t under-
physically and/or mentally able. Compa- Vrusk. When used to describe a person it stand this drive, as logically they expect it
nies assign their elderly employees less means “One who is insane.” Vrusk who leads to ruin. When it instead ends in true
and less demanding work as the weight of step outside of the carefully structured so- greatness Vrusk see it as something magi-
their years settles on them. To Vrusk em- cial system and choose to follow a differ- cal and miraculous. Such Ky’ki Vrusk be-
ployers, it would be cruel and disrespectful ent path in life are considered insane by come legendary, universally admired by
to fire or force into retirement an elderly most Vrusk. They are pitied, as most Vrusk their people as daring renegades, creators
employee after a lifetime of service. feel their reckless choices can only lead of something new, and forces which have
Most elder Vrusk work until they’re no hard times and short, unfocused lives. enriched their society as a whole.
longer able to be productive, and then
honorably request retirement. Very few
Vrusk work so long as to become a hin-
drance to their companies, as such selfish
an act would dishonor everything their
culture stands for.
Elderly Vrusk are looked after by their
companies in Tranquility Houses, beauti-
ful communal living facilities where con-
stant care is offered. Such Vrusk want for
nothing and are given compassionate care
befitting a lifetime of service. Residents
are taken on seasonal outings, weekly live
entertainment is brought in, and daily ex-
ercise, trivia, and puzzle games are pro-
vided to keep the venerable Vrusk both
physically and cognitively sound.
When death comes to a Vrusk they’re
honored by their companies. While it dif-
fers from system to system, most dead
Vrusk are composted, with their remains
used to nourish special company parks and
gardens. These sites are called Serenity
Spaces, and the names of every Vrusk,
IMAGE BY TOM VERREAULT

along with their position it the company,

is memorialized here in some fashion (of-
ten on monuments, memorials, or in-
scribed bricks in a wall or pathway). Such

30 FRONTIER EXPLORER WINTER 2021

 IR MASKING SKEINSUIT & MILITARY ISSUE TOXYRAD
GAUGE
IN THE MINZII MARKEPLACE
BY TOM VERREAULT
Scott just knew this new lieutenant don their gas masks. Unfortunately, the developed with a flip-down cover and a vi-
would get him killed. The by-the-book, sathar, who had apparently slithered close, bration setting. Additionally, there are two
pain-in-the-posterior lieutenant had as- began firing on every light from every tox- small switches on the side of the device
sured them this ambush would work flaw- yrad gauge of every trooper in the ambush. that toggle the vibration and light display
lessly. Scott had been in the military long Scott was hit several times before he settings off and on.
enough to know that assurances like that even finished donning his gas mask. As his The goal is to not have the soldier killed
meant nothing against the law of Murphey consciousness slipped away, he chuckled because the enemy detected the automatic
which stated no plan survives contact with ironically, the damn lieutenant had indeed notification light of the device or heard its
the enemy or junior grade lieutenants. killed him. warning tone.
A dark cold wind passed over Scott’s soul Cost: 30 Cr
like a premonition of impending doom. He Weight: n/a
hated that feeling, it almost always pre-
ceded bad things happening. He hoped the TOXYRAD GAUGE,
MILITARY ISSUE
lieutenant was right that their prepared
positions along the path of regular sathar IR MASKING SKEINSUIT
patrols would bag the entire sathar patrol. There were many incidents in previous This item functions as a standard mili-
He hunkered deeper into his position and military operations where the sathar tary skeinsuit (50 pts). However, it is de-
waited. tossed or fired poison grenades at con- signed to mask the IR signature of its
He did not have to wait long as he soon cealed UPF forces and then targeted the wearer and does so with an 85% chance of
heard the distinctive “foom” of a grenade light emitted from a toxyrad gauge worn effectively making the wearer from IR sen-
rifle launching, followed by three more, by UPF troops. sors.
and then the crack and hiss of poison gre- Some troops quickly learned to ditch Cost: 450 Cr
nades. The sathar clearly had an idea of the this item of equipment. In response, a mil- Weight: 1 kg
position of the ambuscade despite the IR itary version of the toxyrad gauge was
masking
skeinsuits they
were wearing
since the gre-
nades all landed
along the line of
prepared posi-
tions. Immedi-
ately, every-
one’s toxyrad
gauge, which
was clipped
high on their
combat har-
nesses, as or-
dered by the
lieutenant, be-
gan flashing a
IMAGE BY AARON O’ BRIAN

light for poison.

Training took
over as every-
one began to

SPRING 2021 FRONTIER EXPLORER 31

 THE EXPANDED MEDKIT
BY TOM VERREAULT

Special thanks to contributors on the character’s movement from being halved

Star Frontiers Alive and Well Facebook
page: Oscar Rios, Jack David Hofmockel,
and from suffering a -10 to all ability and
skill checks? RETHINKING THE
ORIGINAL MED KIT
David Kingsley, Ruben Rivera, Trevor Hol- Finally, the idea of injectable drugs that
man and to my brother who is a wicked works as advertised on 4 distinctly differ-
smart and devious RPG player. ent species from four different ecologies The water pack was not part of the med-
The Star Frontiers Medical toolkit was and evolutionary trees is a bit farfetched. ical tool kit and the rules don’t go in for IVs
designed for role-playing game play but is However, there is always the “it’s just a and saline solution, but the water pack can
it realistic? Years ago, I was picking my game” justification and handwavium sci- be immensely useful. As mentioned, water
brother’s brain about potential “field expe- ence lets you do whatever you like. dilutes an acid, so if the party is being
dient” uses for items in the game’s medkit. For myself, I’ve grown into the idea that sprayed by acid from some creature a
Tim was an infantry medic at the time and Frontier science developed nanite technol- medic will use the 1 bottle of acid neutral-
notorious for his non-standard use of ogy that, merged with pharmacology, al- izer in his kit then resort to the 8 one-liter
equipment. lowed for the development of injectable water pouches in his water pack.
His reaction to the acid neutralizer was, drugs where the nanites adjust the drug to Any time there is a chance that a charac-
“with enough water I can water down any the desired effect in whichever member of ter might contract an infection, the medic
acid to the point of neutralization AND the core four species it is injected in. After character can claim he is using one of the
since I make everyone in the unit carry ex- all it is just a game and tracking how much one-liter water pouches for wound irriga-
tra saline solution in the same place on Dralasite vs Human biocort you have on tion to help prevent infection. The Referee
their equipment, I always have plenty of hand would get tedious. will have to rule on this, but at the very
water around.” His theory was if every least this action combined with the anti-
man in the unit was carrying one liter of septic spray should garner a bonus toward
saline solution, he would always have preventing an infection.
plenty for an IV, eye wash, wound irriga-
tion, or etc. His troops didn’t like it ini-
tially but were won over with how fastidi-
ous he was about their care.
We had an interesting conversation, but
I wasn’t able to harness many ideas that
translated well to the game. In addition,
I’ve always felt that this tool kit has some
real blind spots.
The pharmacy portion of the original
med kit is thin, but it did include a limited
truth serum for interrogating NPCs in a
brute force sort of way. This is indicative
of contents geared for game play. I did like
that the telol drug was limited to 5 yes or
no questions before the interrogated
passed out for a long time, preventing
abuse by players- “Let’s just dose every
NPC with telol and learn all we need.”
There was “local anesthetic” but no nar-
cotic like pain killer. The game has a pain
penalty applied to all activity including
IMAGE BY TOM VERREAULT

movement once a character is down to ½

STA so the local anesthetic could be used
locally to one injury to dull the pain but
how long does it last? Would not a nar-
cotic-like drug work better to keep the

32 FRONTIER EXPLORER WINTER 2021

 Local anesthetic was clearly intended for patching material or weld plating over the They come in patch form and work for a
the medic’s surgery subskills. However, it hole until proper repairs can be made. week.
might be employed to prevent a character My gut feeling is that these are the kind
from feeling the pain penalty for ½ STA.
This presupposes that the medic can’t just NEW MEDICINES AND of thing you handwave in a game. I assume
that any dralasite has access to them and

TOOLS
do first aid or surgery to heal the lost STA keeps a one to three month supply on hand
for some reason. The benefits would be and that the cost is subsumed in the cost
that a character is not hampered with of living rule where ½ the character’s in-
slowed movement or missing shots in SED-DOSE come is consumed through taxes and cost
combat from a -10 penalty. Sed-dose is a broad-spectrum sedative of living.
Another item to look at is the micro-for- that is used when an NPC is agitated, upset However, if the cost of these drugs is re-
ceps, not just modern-day forceps but “mi- and “psychologically disturbed”. It is only quired its 5 Cr per patch or 20 Cr for a GST
cro” forceps. I would argue for their use in administrable by a character with medical month. Remember, dralasites have 3 gen-
picking up something small in tight situa- skill. ders: male, female, and neuter. The neuter
tions or pulling a wire in a maze of machin- For 5 hours it will sedate and calm a dis- form of the drug is probably the most com-
ery and wires. turbed character although that character mon.
Truth serum in the real world is a con- can make a current STA check to reduce
trolled substance. Many medical special- the effect by half to 2.5 hours. OPOSSOM-DOSE
ists in the real world would likely be If used in conjunction with a character Opossum-dose is an injectable drug that
against its use. It’s a part of the game so we with Psych-social skill attempting the Psy- allows a character to play “dead” with no
can’t just get rid of it, but I think we can cho-Pathology subskill, that skill attempt “apparent” life signs. If a medic with a med
introduce an Anti-coercion Oath into the receives a +15% bonus. scanner attempts to scan the “corpse” for
setting where individual medical special- Cost: 5 Cr/ dose or 10 doses for 50 Cr life signs the skill check has a -60% pen-
ists, due to philosophical reasons refuse to Weight: n/a alty.
use Telol and replace it in their medkit To use this drug the medic rolls a skill
with 10 more doses of Biocort. Biocort is NARCO-DOSE check to attempt to tailor the amount of
far more useful and the Anti-coercion Narco-dose is an injectable pain killer dose against the biology of character and
Oath smacks of the Hippocratic Oath that neutralizes the effects of the pain their weight and can try to get the dose to
without trying to introduce the actual Hip- penalty for 10 hours. work for a specific amount of time 1-5
pocratic Oath. It is only administrable by a character hours. A failed roll means the referee shifts
Plastiflesh (spray can) closes up wounds with medical skill. This is by design as the “wake up” time to a different hour or
and heals burns. Yet we don’t know exactly many colonies in the Frontier have strict he can randomize the hour.
the effect it has on a burn. I would rule that controls on narco-dose in pill form to con- A character waking up from Opossum
one can of plastiflesh can heal 6 to 10 STA trol abuse of the drug. In addition, most dose must pass a STA check to be able to
(1d5 +5) per day of burn damage. This ac- medical authorities do not like the carry- function immediately. Otherwise, they
tion is limited to one can per day. ing of narco-dose in pill form in a medkit needs a number of rounds to shake off the
Example: Jax has been barbequed by a as it makes the medkit a target for theft. effect and should be treated as if stunned.
flame thrower for 35 STA of damage but the The pill form is generally found in hospi- The number of rounds this stun effect last
medic cannot just use cans of plastiflesh until tals and pharmacies. is 100 minus the STA of the character and
all 35 points are cured but rather just the one NOTE: the opioid crisis in the real world is divided by 10 with the result being the
can for 5-10 STA and the balance of the burn a very real and ugly thing. I would not intro- number of turns. Round down when mak-
damage will have to be cured by natural heal- duce this item to my game if someone sitting ing this calculation.
ing or another treatment with plastiflesh on a at the table has had their life touched by this If someone is observing a character try-
subsequent day. issue and might be made uncomfortable by ing to shake off the effects of opossum-
I would also not allow surgery for the this. This is a game and the point is to have dose, they get an INT check to realize the
healing of burn wounds but first aid sub- fun. character is not dead.
skill (injection of 1 does of biocort) could Cost: 10 Cr/ dose or 10 doses for 100 Cr Additionally, opossum-dose can be in-
be used to heal a burn. Weight: n/a stantly neutralized with an injection of
Plastiflesh might also be used as a tem- Stimdose from the standard med kit. This
porary hull patch for a small holing of a DRALASITE GENDER CONTROL is very much a specialty item and may not
ship’s hull in the 20 to 25 mm or less MEDICATION be widely available for general purpose.
range. It’s not permanent but could work Dralasite gender control meds were Cost: 25 Cr/ dose
for up to an hour ( 1d6 x 10 minutes) and mentioned in the dralasite player charac- Weight: n/a
give the PCs time to obtain proper ter description in the Alpha Dawn rules.

SPRING 2021 FRONTIER EXPLORER 33

TRC poultice when traditional medical supplies PHARMA FANNY PACK
TRC, or Temporary Restorative Coma are not handy. The pharma fanny pack is small pack
dose, knocks out character for 20 hours that can be affixed to a belt, an equipment
GST. It requires medical monitoring by a
medic for 20 hours, BUT the character
NEW AUXILIARY MEDKITS harness, a backpack or a medical tool kit. It
holds 30 doses of drugs. A medic must de-
wakes up with 4x the STA he would have PHYCHKIT cide what they want to stock it with.
gotten from just resting 20 hours. The Psychkit is a kit maximized to aid Cost: 20 Cr
Should the medic need to revive the psycho-social skills. The kit includes: a Weight: n/a
character immediately, he can apply Stim- med scanner, a hypo spray, 10 doses of
dose from original tool kit and the charac- Sed-dose, 5 doses Telol (note any character
ter is up and, as long as he has had 5 hours that subscribes to the Anti-coercion Oath UNIVERSAL MEDICAL
in TR coma, he gets the standard 1 STA for will have exchanged the Telol for Sed-
resting and forfeits the bonus STA but can dose), 10 doses of Narco-dose, and a hyp- CATALOG
function, move, and even fight if neces- nosis focus tool. The table below lists all of the medical
sary. A psycho-social specialist will need one drugs that were discussed in this article as
Cost: 15 Cr/ dose level of medical skill to use the hypo spray, well as in the original rules or other fan-
Weight: n/a thus this kit is for the character with both zine articles. It includes the form of the
psycho-social and medical skills. The kit is drug, its cost, as well as reference for
HYPNO DETECTION SCANNER small and fits on an equipment belt. where to find more information.
The Hypno Detection Scanner is a tool Cost: 200 Cr.
employed by a character with psycho-so- Weight: 1 kg
cial skill to detect sathar hypnotism and
subversion.
It takes about an hour of questioning COST PER
PHARMACUTICAL FORM SOURCE
and monitoring a subject to make a deter- DOSE
mination. It is prone to giving a false neg- Antibody Plus Pharmaceutical, Injectable Alpha Dawn 5 Cr
ative (the skill check is -20). Sathar agents Antitox Pharmaceutical, Injectable Alpha Dawn 5 Cr
are known to react violently when they are
unmasked. Biocort Pharmaceutical, Injectable Alpha Dawn 10 Cr
Cost: 350 Cr. Omnimycin Pharmaceutical, Injectable Alpha Dawn 5 Cr
Weight: 1 kg Staydose Pharmaceutical, Injectable Alpha Dawn 5 Cr
Stimdose Pharmaceutical, Injectable Alpha Dawn 5 Cr
HYPNOTISM FOCUS
A hypnotism focus tool is an oscillating Telol Pharmaceutical, Injectable Alpha Dawn 10 Cr
light or mechanical device that provides a Rage Dose Illegal Street Drug, Injectable Star Frontiersman #18 20 Cr
psycho-social practitioner a +5% to their Death Juice or Dose of Last Resort Illegal Street Drug, Injectable Star Frontiersman #18 250 Cr
attempts at hypnosis.
Sathar Submission Serum Illegal Sathar Tech, Injectable Star Frontiersman #18 300 to 600 Cr
Cost: 10 Cr.
Weight: n/a Polophromalene XT-7 Illegal Neurotoxin Star Frontiersman #18 50 Cr
Mitocelenyne Legal Toxin Star Frontiersman #18 20 Cr

OTHER SOURCES Void Spider Venom

Ikochi Venom
Black-market Toxin
Illegal, Venom
Star Frontiersman #18
Star Frontiersman #17
65 Cr
45 Cr
Star Frontiersman #18: “The Magic of
the Frontier” has injectable drugs that Hydro-gel Pharmaceutical, Gel Frontier Explorer #11 25 Cr
were intended to be found treasure in the Traditional Yazirian Athelor Cream Pharmaceutical, Cream Frontier Explorer #11 8 Cr
category of “potions”. The same issue has Athelor 4 Pharmaceutical, Cream Frontier Explorer #11 5 Cr
the “Frontier Toxicological Report” and
details 3 poisons found in the Frontier. Sed Dose Pharmaceutical, Injectable This Article 5 Cr
Frontier Explorer #11: “Medical Sup- Pharmaceutical, Injectable &
Narco-dose This Article 10 Cr
plies in the Minzii Marketplace” has some Pill
medicinal creams and new high-tech med- Dralasite Gender Control Pharmaceutical, Patch This Article 1 Cr
ical tools. The same issue has an article
Opossum Dose Pharmaceutical, Injectable This Article 25 Cr
called “The Power of the Poultice” which
introduces rules for a medic using a Temporary Restorative Coma
Pharmaceutical, Injectable This Article 15 Cr
Dose- TRCD

34 FRONTIER EXPLORER WINTER 2021

 STARBUCKAROOS
A STAR FRONTIERS CARD GAME
BY ANDREW CAMPBELL
which is laid face up in front of the player. Planets equal double their face value (1-
Editor’s Note: Starbuckaroos was located in an
The other player can take an opponent's 10) in points.
internet archive for lost web pages.
cards (Planets and Moons) by playing a If teams play, they must bid for points as
Comet of equal or higher value to a Planet in Spades. If they go over their bid, they
REQUIREMENTS or Moon, play a Planet or Moon them-
selves, or pass. (they can also play a trump
only get face value in points for all cards
including Planets; if they go under their
This card game is played with a 32-card - see below). Note that a Comet can only be bid, they get points for what they take but
deck. There are 3 ten card suits (Planets, played against a single Planet or Moon at full value; if they fail to take any points
Moons, and Comets) plus 2 trump cards card, not multiple ones! (equivalent of a Spades "nello"), they get
(Novas). The game is played for points like Play continues until the deck has been 100 points. Games are usually played to
Spades or Hearts, and can be played either exhausted no further cards can be drawn. 500 points.
two players or with two 2-player teams. When the last card is drawn from the deck, Use Starbuckaroos as an entertaining di-
players continue until their hands are ex- version in your Star Frontiers game.

RULES pended or until they reach an impasse

(such as both players having nothing left
A hand of Starbuckaroos starts with but Moons and/or Planets). Points are USING AN EARTH DECK
each player being dealt a starting hand of then tallied. For terrestrial players who want to play
5 cards. A player can draw one card per Trump - if a player plays a Nova (trump Starbuckaroos:
turn, with a maximum hand of 10 cards. If card), they take ALL planets and Moons on • Moons = Clubs
two teams are playing, either 2 decks can the table - including their opponents and
• Planets = Spades
be shuffled together, or one deck is used their own. This is the only case where a
• Comets = Diamonds
with a player's maximum hand reduced to card can take multiple cards.
• Novas = Jokers
5 cards instead of ten (house rules as to
which).
One player or team deals, and the other SCORING CARD ARTWORK
player or team plays first card. The first Moons equal their face value (1-10) in
card played must be a Planet or Moon, points,

SPRING 2021 FRONTIER EXPLORER 35

36 FRONTIER EXPLORER WINTER 2021
 SOARING TO NEW HEIGHTS OF ADVENTURE
AT HAKOSOAR
EXAMINING HAKOSOAR, HISTRAN, AND SCREE FRON
IN THE STAR FRONTIERS SETTING
BY TOM VERREAULT
A word about canon sources: generally
Alpha Dawn and Knight Hawks are widely HISTRAN TIMELINE ENTRIES
considered definitive but Zebulon’s Guide This world is the location of the UPF • 94PF - Scree Fron system discovered by
does not have the same universal respect. outpost that keeps an eye on the Mechnan Yazirians.
This is due in part because Zeb’s Guide was system, the Lesser Morass, and that sector • 32-26PF - Thirtytwo exploration ves-
an incomplete and rushed 2nd edition with of the Vast Expanse. sels are lost trying to map the Lesser
a radically reimagined view of the Star Morass. Only the area between Scree
Frontiers setting fraught with logical in- UNIVERSAL HOUSEHOLDS Fron and Zebulon is mapped.
consistencies and outright contradictions. Often referred to as UniHo, this mega- • 70FY - The Mechanon civilization on
Though many of those problems crop up in corp specializes in three distinct areas: tex- Volturnus undergoes an upheaval. The
the Zeb’s timeline, we have provided time- tiles and clothing, household furnishings, majority of peaceful Mechanons migrate
line entries below for thoroughness. and buildings. into the undeveloped space between
Their synthetic apparel resists grime Scree Fron and Dixon's Star.
and wear and is inexpensive. Therefore,
WHAT THE CANON UniHo made sure it controls the fashion
industry; though made to last longer, their WHAT WE CAN INFER
MATERIALS CAN TELL US clothing goes out of style yearly.
Scree Fron is a red/orange star. There UniHo furnishings are usually made of FROM THE ABOVE
are some differences in the planetary cata- plastic or plasteel and are modular in de-
logs between the Alpha Dawn Rules and sign. Any piece of valuable furniture, such PLANET HABITABILITY
Zebulon’s Guide that are easily explained as real wood pieces, are made by a sub-con- Scree Fron has two planets in the inhab-
as changes representing the system at dif- tractor. itable zone. We can presume that
ferent periods in time. The table below UniHo buildings are prefab dwelling, of- Hakosoar with its agricultural economy is
gives the relevant data from these two fices, industrial and professional facilities, in the most favorable orbit for agriculture.
sources. and so forth. Specialty buildings are ex- This means that while Histran is inhabita-
pansive and are designed and constructed ble, it is either too hot or too cold for ex-
HAKOSOAR by architectural engineers. tensive agriculture which also explains its
This world is headquarters for Universal Headquarters: Hyyay, Hakosoar outpost population status.
Households, the apparel, household fur- Chief Executive: K'an Ku (vrusk) For myself I lean toward Histran being a
nishing, and housing megacorp. UniHo de- Subsidiaries: Two massive ones: Plane- colder world, but my choice should not
veloped the city of Hyyay as its operations tary Structures Inc., and Kotiz Fashions limit other referees. It has received some
base. Inc. terraforming by GODCo supporting some
yazirian plants and animals that are

WORLD COLONIZERS POPULATION LEVEL ECONOMY GRAVITY DAY SPACE STATIONS MOONS & USE
ACCORDING TO ALPHA DAWN
Hakosoar Yazirian Light Agriculture and Industry 0.9 50 hours n/a 5 moons
Histran Yazirian Outpost 0.6 25 hours n/a 7 moons
ACCORDING TO ZEB'S GUIDE
Hakosoar Yazirian Moderate Agriculture and Industry 0.9 50 hours n/a Inti (research)
Infi (mining)
Histran Yazirian Outpost Education and Research 0.6 25 hours n/a A-G

SPRING 2021 FRONTIER EXPLORER 37

 adapted to colder climes. The two planets exploration vessels lost in the area sug-
are close enough for regular shuttle flights gests that it became a nexus for explora-
to bring in food and commodities. tion. The fact that there were more than
32 vessels lost suggest that there were sub-
JUMP ROUTES stantially more operating in the area.
There is almost certainly a jump route
from Scree Fron to Mechano and from UNIHO PRODUCTS
Mechano to Volturnus, but neither are It is highly unlikely that UniHo over-
public knowledge. The Mechanons will looks the possibility of marketing prefab

IMAGE BY SCOTT MULDER

know both routes and the UPF military buildings and exploration base camps to
may know both or only one. the various exploration services operating
The most likely jump routes to the Star- out of Scree Fron. They will surely have a
mist system (assuming you place Starmist whole line of barracks, labs and base camp
in this part of the Frontier as the Zebulon’s related structures that are modular, light
Guide map does and not over between weight, easily assembled and packed for UniHo, a megacorp headquartered on a
White Light, Madderly’s Star, and K’tsa- interstellar shipping. yazirian colony, has a vrusk CEO?
Kar as specified by the module itself) are Hakosoar is a long way from any of the
through Araks or Scree Fron. Araks is not AGRICULTURE vrusk colonies. K’an Ku was a bit of a
all that friendly toward non-yazirians and The agricultural side of Hakosoar’s econ- square peg not fitting into vrusk society.
with the presence of a UPF outpost on His- omy is devoted to yazirian foodstuffs that His love of beauty was expressed in the art-
tran and its stated mission, it seems most are shipped widely to Hentz, Hargut, and istry of fashion and design and he left his
likely that this outpost also monitors Star- elsewhere in exchange for resources to vrusk trade house to pursue a career as a
mist after its discovery. All official UPF feed the industrial side of the economy. “lifestyle” designer. His business was
traffic headed to Starmist is likely to route UniHo accounts for a large percentage of founded in Port Loren on Gran Quivera.
through Scree Fron. the gross system product and it is the lion Hakosoar, looking to attract industry and
share of the economy. investment to their small struggling col-
UPF PRESENCE ony, was offering free land and tax incen-
The UPF outpost on Histran is almost
certainly a joint base involving Spacefleet, RECONCILING DETAILS tives which induced K’an Ku to move his
business to the Scree Fron system where it

BETWEEN ALPHA DAWN

Star Law, and the UPF Exploration Service would rise to megacorp status.
to be able to meet its assigned mission.
There is likely a strong Spacefleet pres-
ence in Scree Fron and the lack of a militia AND ZEB’S GUIDE MUSINGS ON HISTORY
force may be in part because of the strong Zeb’s Guide names two moons for The Family of One and the government
Spacefleet presence but also because of the Hakosoar and ignores the fact that 5 were of Hentz controls the GODCo megacorp, a
low population levels in system. listed in AD. The simple answer is there are large militia force, and its citizenry
five moons and Zeb’s simply supplied 2 of through with near tyrannical power. There
EXPLORATION the names. Looking at the names; Infi are no sathar start circles (in the Knight
Scree Fron has been a staging area for could be short for infinity and Inti could be Hawks campaign game) anywhere near the
exploration: mapping the Lesser Morass short for integer which could mean that Araks system that would justify a large mi-
Nebula, exploring Starmist, and 32 the other three names could derive from litia force and there are no historic space
Math concepts like Sine, Cosine (Cosi) and battles in the system (historic battles
Tangent (Tang). would be any Knight Hawks encounters
Histran’s moons are designated A-G, the published in the Dragon, Ares, and Polyhe-
first 7 letters of the English alphabet. Be- dron magazines taking place in Araks).
cause of the theme in Star Frontiers of us- This large militia force is likely meant for
ing the Greek Alphabet, the official names projecting force beyond the borders of the
of these moons will be the first 7 letters of system. Combine that with the strict rules
the Greek alphabet: Alpha, Beta, Gamma, enforced for Hentz’s society and the po-
Delta, Epsilon, Zeta, & Eta. These are not tential to withhold terraforming support
glamorous names they simply reflect a from GODCo for struggling yazirian colo-
IMAGE BY SCOTT MULDER

quick survey of the system that was filed nies, it is easy to see Hentz and Family of
and forgotten and over time the alphabetic One as the heavies and bullies of the
designations stuck in the popular imagina- yazirian sector of the Frontier.
tion of the inhabitants.

38 FRONTIER EXPLORER WINTER 2021

 Despite the fact the Family of One’s be- major Medical Services Organization lab adventure and to the ships’ crews lost in
lief system labels clan war as a sin, the was added to the base. this endeavor.
Family has practiced clan war virtually Overall command of UPF forces in sys- It is a monumental spire styled after tra-
wiping out a clan on Hakosoar but under tem usually resides with the commander ditional yazirian shrines. Some yazirian
other excuses related to religious and so- of the Spacefleet patrol group stationed explorers will come and burn incense here
cial issues that no one really believes. The here. Command of Histran has generally before launching out into the unknown as
truth was strictly avarice. This made been by a Spacefleet officer but could the- a sort of prayer for safe return.
Hakosoar leery of the government on oretically end up in the hands of a Land- There is an attached museum and ar-
Hentz, causing it to court friends with fleet or Scout Service officer. chive making this monument a center for
power to counterbalance the influence education and research. The museum is
that Hentz wielded without offending the IKO'S LANDING dedicated to the spirit of exploration and
powers that be in Araks system. This is a minor little outpost on Histran the archives house ships logs, personal
With the megacorp, UniHo, to counter- which doubles as a civilian landing field logs, and such, not just from the ships
balance the power of GODCo and the large (only rudimentary services), some bars, based out of Scree Fron but from across
Spacefleet presence permanently sta- and off base entertainment for the mili- the Frontier. It has made Hakosoar the ep-
tioned in Scree Fron, the government of tary at Histran Base. It is the point of ac- icenter for research on exploration with
Hakosoar has effectively insulated itself cess for reaching the isolated yazirian many researchers travel to Hakosoar to
against the heavy hand of Hentz without monasteries and outpost on Histran. consult the archives from time to time.
antagonizing that regional power.
Because of the need to monitor both MONASTERIES CHISHOLM DEPOT
Starmist and Mechano, Spacefleet now There 3 yazirian monasteries on His- The depot is a Landfleet base with large
maintains a larger than normal patrol tran. To one degree or another they repre- stockpiles of equipment maintained in sta-
group in Scree Fron. It is usually led by a sent divergent beliefs to Family of One. sis fields in underground bunkers to pre-
cruiser (large or small), and also contains a Their opposition to the Family of One is vent the effects of entropy from degrading
couple of frigates and a half dozen assault less militaristic than what you would find the equipment before it is called upon
scouts, with 2-3 of them at the Histran on Yast in the Athor system. Their general again for the defense of the Frontier.
outpost. From time to time there is talk of philosophy could be summed up as “pre- It is staffed with a small maintenance
basing a squadron of fighters at Histran. ferring peace over being right.” crew and training cadre. During times of
These monasteries strive for self-suffi- peace Landfleet does not require nor can
ciency through growing what they need the UPF afford to maintain a large stand-
PLACES OF INTEREST but they also produce hand-crafted furni- ing army. The training cadre is ready to fa-
ture, vessels, and yazirian brandy of ex- cilitate the rapid expansion of Landfleet
HISTRAN BASE quisite craftsmanship that make their way should the sathar invade again and the
This is a joint UPF base on Histran that into high end showrooms and stores that stockpiles are ready to arm the new army
includes a full military starport hosting are subsidaries of UniHo, or into the hands formations.
Spacefleet, Star Law, and a scout service of Cappellan Free Merchants that land at Some Star Law intelligence reports sug-
contingent. After pathogens struck the Iko's Landing looking for rare trade items. gest that the sathar will target such Land-
Frontier from the Starmist system, a fleet facilities with sabotage as a prelude to
THE CITY OF HYYAY another invasion, thus security is gener-
This is a major city of Hakosoar which is ally high at this facility but there have been
a company town and headquarters incidents of lax vigilance in the past. The
founded by UniHo. It features a company megacorp, A.I.P.S. runs a nearby nuclear
star port and a major industrial complex. reactor under contract to Ground Fleet.

HAKO'S LANDING
Hako’s Landing is the seat of govern- ADVENTURES IN SCREE
ment for Hakosoar and the center of agri-
cultural activity on the planet. It has a FRON
small starport and “The Spirit of Explora-
tion” monument. THE MECHANON ANGLE
THE LOST EXPLORERS MONU- A MECHANON DELEGATION
IMAGE BY SCOTT MULDER

MENT Delegates from Mechano are travelling

Also known as The Spirit of Explora- through Scree Fron to the Council of
tion, this monument was established as a Worlds on Gran Quivera (possibly on the
tribute to the spirit of exploration and occasion of their petitioning the UPF for

SPRING 2021 FRONTIER EXPLORER 39

recognition). There are elements that A MECHANON ATTACK
don’t want this to happen: the sathar have Evil mechanons are angered at the UPF
had an ongoing campaign to subvert the monitoring their movements and launch a
Mechanons to their cause and the Silver strike at the Spacefleet patrol group and
Death Cult is flatly against their being rec- Histran Base (with or without sathar al-
ognized by the Council of Worlds. Sabo- lies). This could be a straight up KHs en-
tage and assassination attempts could be counter but could also have an AD compo-
the order of the day in an Alpha Dawn and nent with Histran Base being hit by landed
Knight Hawks style campaign. troops.

VISITING MECHANO OF EXPLORING AND KITTY LITTER

A Star Law expedition to Mechano is be- (ERR I MEAN SANDBOXES)
ing launched from Histran Base. Can the An exploration campaign is usually con-

IMAGE BY SCOTT MULDER

player characters navigate the Byzantium sidered a sandbox campaign. However,
like politics of the Mechanon society? Will both of the modules Sundown on Starmist
they survive the secret sathar plot to sub- and Bugs in the System are located in the
vert the mechanon leadership? This could vicinity of Scree Fron. A referee can use
involve AD and KHs action. them to support a sandbox style campaign.
Another exploration adventure seed archives at Hako’s Landing has discovered
A SUBVERTED MONASTARY could be that a yazirian crewed exploration clues to a mystery and the answers could
A yazirian NPC acquaintance of the ship crashed on a distant planet more than be in the ship long since abandoned on the
player characters has invited them to ac- a decade ago. Recovery efforts were made moon. He is now looking for explorers to
company him for a thrill-seeking trip to but in the end the ship was written off as a go and investigate.
enjoy gliding (or paragliding) in the 0.6 total loss. A researcher at the exploration
gravity of Histran.
Unfortunately, a win-
ter storm blows up and
forces them to take shel-
ter at a monastery. Unbe-
knownst to them an evil
mechanon, ostracized
from the rest of mecha-
non society has taken
over a yazirian monas-
tery and turned the
monks into slavebots. It
is aided by a sathar co-
conspirator, hence the
presence of slavebot
technology.
In the Sundown on
Starmist module there is
a list of harmless Fron-
tier plants and animals
that the sathar have se-
cretly re-engineered to
be harmful in some way
as a sort of biological
trap. These can be pep-
pered throughout this
mystery that should play
like the famous Dun-
geons & Dragons mod-
ule: Ravenloft. This will
be an AD style adventure.

40 FRONTIER EXPLORER WINTER 2021

 REAPING NEW STAR FRONTIERS MINIATURES FROM
REAPER
THE FRONTIER IN MINIATURE
BY TOM VERREAULT
I’m always on the lookout for manufac- jewelry like a necklace or a polyvox around
turers that do Star Frontiers miniatures the neck. The one with the mop of hair, I
“with the serial numbers filed off” allowing cut off the head and sculpted a dralasite’s
them to skirt the Star Frontiers IP. I came head in its place.
across a few from Reaper Miniatures in the
Chronoscope line. They can be found by a
search in Reaper’s fig finder for Illyrian,
Korkosan or Argamite. I bought three of
these miniatures to paint and review.
Reaper is a major player in the miniature’s
hobby, you can locate their fig finder at
https://www.reapermini.com/.
The Chronoscope line seems to still be
all metal figures which are the best at
holding detail. Reaper has been converting
their lines to plastic: Reaper Bones is PVC
plastic and very bendy, but Bones Black is ARGAMITE
a more rigid plastic that performs better The Argamite (pictured above right) is a
with paint than the PVC plastic. Metal of great figure. Clearly inspired by Star Fron-
course costs more but it is my personal fa- tiers. The facial features are a little differ-
vorite when it comes to miniatures. ent from a dralasite but not too much. The
best part is that he’s wearing a space suit

ILLYRIANS and no modification is necessary to use

him as a dralasite. You can see my painted
There are actually two Illyrian’s (as pic- figure in the images to the right.
tured below.
The one with the helmet and magni-
goggles is perhaps the easiest to press into
service as a dralasite. I would file down the
mouth and perhaps cover it with sculpting
compound maybe creating an item of

SPRING 2021 FRONTIER EXPLORER 41

 Unlike yazirians, he has a full prehensile
KORKOSAN looking monkey tail. It is not a major detail
The Korkosan is their yazirian equiva- and you only see it if you are looking at the
lent. back of the miniature. His pataquin wing
flaps are very correct for the yazirian. The
sungoggles are on top of his cap which
looks like a bi-plane era flying cap which is
kind of cool.

BASES
I like all of these figures. My main gripe
about them are the bases. Reaper provided
them with a very plain “slotta” base which
provides a miniature’s enthusiast the op-
portunity to do a custom base. However,
these days I’ve been fairly lazy about bas-
ing, using Star Wars Legion - Premium
Trooper Bases as they are excellent looking
and work out to about .40 cents apiece on
a package of 32 for $13. FINAL THOUGHTS
These are great “in production” replace-

SIZES ments for Star Frontiers miniatures that

have been long out of production. There
The figures conform, in size, to the 28- are quite a few figures in the Chronoscope
32mm industry standard. That means line that can be used in sci-fi or Star Fron-
they do dwarf some of the original Star tiers gaming, you just need to look. I give
Frontiers miniatures produced by TSR (see them a solid four dralasite thumbs up on
photo below). this review.

42 FRONTIER EXPLORER WINTER 2021