Solo Tabletop RPG Actual Play – Starforged: Nexus of Destiny Act I

Introduction/Prologue
Act One
Act Two
Act Three

Act One

The Vigilant drops out of light-jump into the hazy Solana Clu

ster, a nebulous cloud of particles with a relatively young solar system already formed as its sun condenses all of this matter. Through the viewscreen, Kei Becker sees the gas giant Tenzin come into view and sets the autopilot for their intended course. Clearing the cloud cover of Tenzin’s upper atmosphere brings Aurora, the orbital casino resort, into view; its tall fungal stem towers reach up, some capped off like toadstools, whereas others bear the wrinkles of a morel.

The structures have been engineered to be bioluminescent, so instead of neon signage, there’s a more organic nature to the flashing images that promise heaps of credits to be won on the casino floors. Kei’s family was never one for these types of resorts, and his adult life has been so consumed by his work as an archaeologist he never really thought about spending his free time in such a place. There’s a certain appeal, he admits to himself.
“Hail Aurora Flight Control, secure clearance to dock,” Kei says as he gets up from the pilot’s seat. His co-pilot, Astrid Sutton, nods. “We want to land in the Underside?” “Correct.”

Astrid sports a new jacket, a UPA “bomber” style with the SpaceForce insignia torn off. “I’ll check on the rest of the…crew?” Kei feels strange calling them that; he doesn’t feel like a captain or in charge of anyone. All he wants to do is help the refugees at Lyra get them a ship so they can find someplace to settle down away from the war in the Old Imperium.

Kei finds Jorrun Jeffries playing holoslots on his datapad. “You know we aren’t going to have time to play any games, right?” Kei reminds him.

“Hey, howsabout if we get done early, I get like two hours to go play? I could rake in some good cash. Been honing my skills.” Jorruns suggests. He gestures with his two pairs of arms, pleading with Kei. Kei shakes his head. “Maybe another time, friend.”

Kei goes further into the cargo bay of the Vigilant, where he finds their passenger, Beren Alerest, in quiet meditation. The hood of his cloak is pulled up, but Kei can see the furry paws of the Calugar upturned as his mind focuses on somewhere distant. Kei turns around and tries to leave without disturbing Saren.

“I sense we are close, Mr. Becker?” the gravely but gentle voice emerges from within the cloak.

Kei stops and replies: “Yes, actually. Astrid is bringing us into the Underside right now. Is there anything we need to provide you with, a laser rifle or something?”

Baren gestures towards a plain-looking metal cylinder. “All I need. Thank you.” It’s clear the conversation has ended. Kei heads back to the cockpit to prepare to land.

Once off the ship, Jorruns remarks, “Whew, what a smell! I take it that it don’t stink like this up there.” He gestures to the ceiling, kilometers above them covered in a membranous mycelium that stretches as far as they can see. Unseen is the lavish resort & casino where most visitors to Aurora end up. The Underside has a musty, earthy smell. It’s slightly dingier & dimmer here, though. There are still the bioluminescent lights, but Kei gets the feeling people in the Underside are more akin to hiding what they are up to than advertising it like above.

“There was clearly a scrapped shipyard attached to the resort,” Astrid shares. “I saw it as we were flying in. Looked like a corbomite hauler was available; that would do the trick if we can find who owns it.”

Kei decides to ask as subtly as he can about who is the one to go to for used ships.
(Secure an Advantage with Heart. 9 vs 9,5 – Weak Hit.)
(When I advanced last, I chose to add Fugitive to my assets as it was clear Kei would be pursued by the UPA for multiple crimes. Use my Fugitive ability to bump that up to a Strong Hit. Hunters clock advances)

A friendly Paklin, a squirrel-like species, shares some information over a mug of oak rum: “There’s only one person who runs the ship game here in the Underside, Hybis Fegli. He can get you about anything you want if you have the credits. The harder it is to get, the more it will cost you. Be very careful in how you deal with him if you do. He’s part of the Argala Cartel, and they don’t like unnecessary attention around here. Fegli likes his transactions clean.”

Kei leads the others to Fegli’s lair, clearly one of the oldest structures in the Underside, taking up almost the entire north wing of the space. The technicians here are breaking down the light-speed drive of a pre-Nimoian era StarForce science vessel. This attracts Jorruns attention, naturally. He starts a friendly conversation with them, a trio composed of two Gakkadi and a Phaco (warthog humanoid). They appear incredulous at first but quickly get into talking shop. Kei steps over and offers Jorruns expertise while they are visiting Aurora; oh yes, and can he have a quick meeting with Fegli, he’d like to buy a ship.

(Compel with Heart. 5 vs. 7, 9. Pay the Price: A new enemy is revealed)
Kei is granted a meeting with Fegli and pointed towards a pair of double doors. He enters where Fegli sits at his desk, snacking on a seaweed-like substance kept in a spherical bowl nearby. Fegli’s head cap is wide, sloping down in the back. His front has a series of red spots that Kei knows are Gakkadi eyespots, more advanced than the eyespots on less evolved creatures. Fegli wears a high-collared red and white cloak; one armstalk reaches for the seaweed while the other taps impatiently on the desk.

“They tell me you want to buy a ship,” Fegli gurgles. “Well, we sell them.”

Kei explains what he wants, but commotion erupts outside the workshop. Both Kei and Fegli hurry to see what it is. Jorruns is carefully removing a device that was inside the old light-speed drive. One of the Gakkadi shouts, “Bomb!”

(Defy Danger with Edge. Burn Momentum. 6 vs 5,5)
Kei grabs Jorruns and Fegli, pushing them behind an old Renkat Interceptor chassis as the blast rocks the workshop. He also notices an emergency extinguisher control on the wall racing towards it, barely dodging a burst of flame from another smaller explosion, slamming his fist on the large red button. Foamy white extinguisher rains down from the ceiling, putting out the fire and leaving charred smoking ship parts in its wake.

“You have saved my life,” Fegli says. “Now I have to make a deal with you.”

“Any idea why there was a bomb inside that drive?” Kei asks. “You have a lot of enemies down here?”

Fegli lets loose a wet laugh. “Too many to keep count of, boy. There are many jealous of the Argala Cartel and our business successes. Vebes!”

The Gakkadi lets loose a high-pitched sound as close as they get to whistling. From the smoke of the workshop, another of his kind emerges. Aldor Vebes. He wears black armor, partially grown into his own mushroom skin. Vebes head is an ebony cap, two slight indentations implying eyes, head surrounded on each side by a red hardened web, his collar a cluster of white sacs. Vebes already has a sawed-off Gakkadi pulse rifle, the green indicator showing it is loaded and ready.

“Yes, boss,” Vebes speaks, less wetter than Fegli’s voice but stickier.

“Round up some of your soldiers, go on a little hunt for me, yes?” Fegli orders. Vebes doesn’t say another word, just a slight nod, pausing to take in Kei and Jorruns and then disappearing into the smoke of the now-extinguished fire.

“Follow me, boy,” Fegli says to Kei. “Let us see what is in stock for you.”

Kei and Jorruns are taken on a lift to an observation deck overlooking the shipyard. The raging storms far below on Tenzin create a light show of swirling colors: reds, greens, and yellows. Shuttles zip between ships for sale; they carry mechanics doing diagnostics, ensuring the vessels remain in good shape until they can be sold. Fegli slaps an armstalk on the glass window and an overlay appears, readouts of the ships before them scroll by.
“You said you were moving a lot of…what was it?” Fegli asks.

“Raw ore, just some carbonate rock for process,” Kei calmly shares the cover story.

Fegli taps the window a few times and then zooms in on an industrial hauler. “The Mutara, her callsign. This one should do the job for you, eh?”

Kei responds, “That definitely looks like it would suit the bill. How much?”

“Not one for chit-chat,” Fegli chuckles. “I like people that get to the point. I am thinking maybe 3 million credits?”

Kei has not been authorized to pay that much but can’t show his hand too quickly. “You have a way to come up with a discount on that?” he asks, keeping his calm.

The old Gakkadi thinks about this for a moment. “Whoever planted this bomb, I would guess they do not know you. This makes me think you could poke around and ask some questions. Maybe you could get me names. Vebes is more aggressive, hot-headed, and sometimes forgets to ask. I think you are a clever one, yes?”

A deal is reached where Kei will bring what intel he can while Fegli prepares The Mutara. Depending on the quality of the information, a price negotiation will occur. Jorruns stays behind, helping in the workshop as a sign of goodwill. Kei returns to Astrid and Saren back on the Vigilant, sharing the terms of the deal.

(Gather Information. 7 vs. 5, 5. Strong Hit)
(Gather Information: Leads to a distant or unfamiliar place.)
After a couple of hours poking around the dives that pepper the Underside, Kei starts a conversation with a drunken Osyrran freebooter. His green skin bears the dark patches that come when his species gets intoxicated, particularly on their favorite, Lenardi spice wine.

“I seen the news vids about that attack on old Fegli.” The Ossyran takes another long gulp. “I’d bet it has to do with that derelict hidden near Karna.”

“The star?” Astrid asks. “A ship hidden by the sun?”

The Osyrran nods. “I came out of jump about a week ago. I’d parted with my old crew, bringing my spoils to make it even bigger. Fucking beamcycles. They told me ‘Stargrave’ was a sure bet, y’know?”

“Back to the derelict,” Astrid prompts the man.

“Oh yeah, well, I came out of jump, see. My sensors went absolutely wacko. Radiation, not just the sun’s either. Something weird, my ship couldn’t make heads or tails out of it. I got scared and thought maybe it was bandits or running a scrambler. I kicked the engines off, ran cold to get my bearings. I saw a UPA ship floating out there, peeking out from behind a solar flare. And then I saw one of Fegli’s ships, this Gakkadi loader. I guess they were trying to figure out how to tow the thing in? Then, a flash, and of all the bloody things, a mining extractor comes out of light. It starts opening fire on the Gakkadi loader, which then jumps to light a few seconds later. Only one person around here is doing any scrapping, and that’s Fegli. So’s that was one of the ships, but I don’t know what beef the mining extractor had with him or why any of them gave a troglit’s ass about that derelict.”

Kei, Astrid, and Saren all exchange quiet looks. They know this is where they need to head next. Kei pays the Ossyran’s tab and for his next three drinks in advance. They leave while the space pirate still rambles to whoever will listen about how close he was to being set for life on those beamcycle races.

Before leaving Aurora, Kei contacts Jorruns on a secure channel, letting him know about the excursion and to alert them if anything strange goes down in the workshop. Kei also does his best to draw as little attention as possible from Fegli’s eyes and ears around the Underside.

(Defy Danger with Shadow. 7 vs. 9,3. Weak Hit. Suffer Move)
(Lose 1 Supply)
Kei leaves behind most of the repair equipment for Jorruns to use, feeling slightly worried about what happens if they sustain significant damage. Fegli and his people seem caught up in repairing the workshop and searching about the Underside to notice when Kei, Astrid, and Saren leave.

The Vigilant comes out of jump in view of the young star Karna. It’s just begun to take the shape of a star over the last three million years, still nestled in its molecular cloud. There’s a solar flare branching off like a tendril, the location the Ossyran gave them for the derelict ship. Kei guides the ship closer. Astrid notices sensor readings going wild.

“The computer is detecting high levels of an unknown radiation,” she chimes in. “Guessing that will be our mysterious ship.”

The Vigilant clears the towering solar flare, and there is a UPA pennant class command ship. Unlike most ships, this color scheme is predominately black with red accents. It sits there lifeless, save for a few lights still on, one of them illuminating the ship’s callsign: The Inferno. A quick run through the StarForce registered ships database comes back with nothing.

“There is no Inferno officially in the fleet,” Astrid shares.

Kei takes this in. “The question now is why would they want this ship hidden and what Fegli’s people wanted with it.”

Saren stands behind them, stoically taking it in. Kei notices the bear-man’s eyes close for a moment. “I sense life, yet no life at the same time. Curious?”

(Undertake an Expedition with Wits. 8 vs. 2, 6. Strong Hit)
It looks like they have everything they need. Astrid says she’ll stay onboard the Vigilant and watch the sensors if anyone else shows up while they are here. Kei and Saren slip on the zero suits (made for zero gravity and zero oxygen environments) and prepare. Saren isn’t much for conversation, and Kei feels his stomach flip a little, thinking about going into the strange vessel. Astrid lines up the Vigilant’s docking port with the Inferno’s; the pressure seal sounds through the speakers inside the zero-suit helmets.

Zone: Access Port – Airlock
Kei watches floating metal debris brush against the front of his helmet as he steps into the Inferno. The gravitational compressors are clearly offline from the detritus floating through the air. Saren points out that this airlock’s missing two out of four zero suits. A ship of this size would have around a dozen separate airlocks.

“Maybe we’ll meet some new friends,” Kei says jokingly. Saren’s look speaks nothing but focus on what lies ahead. And then something strange happens.

Zone: Engineering – Coolant Tanks

“Um, Astrid, you know ship schematics better than me,” Kei begins, confused about the shift in his surroundings. “Do airlocks often lead into the coolant tanks of a ship like this?”

A moment. Then. “No, why would you ask that?” Astrid’s voice comes over the comms.

“We just stepped from one into the other,” replies Kei.

(Explore a Waypoint. 4 vs 2, 2. Strong Hit)
(Opportunity: Chance to restore power or function)

Kei looks around at the computers and notices links to the gravity compressors and life support systems. There is an open panel with wiring hanging out and tools lying on the ground. Someone was trying to construct a new circuit to get the ship operational again.

Kei asks Saren if he can sense anyone else on board right now.
(Secure an Advantage with Heart. 6 vs. 3, 4. Strong Hit)
Something in the air shifts as Saren closes his eyes. He extends one of his gloved paws out into the air. Kei feels the hair on the back of his neck stand. “Two souls, further into the ship. I can see crates stacked. Cargo bay.”

Zone: Production – Raw Materials Storage.
A few steps through the coolant tank room, the pair are in the cargo bay.

(Explore a Waypoint. 7 vs. 6, 3)
(Opportunity: Helpful vehicle or transport)

“I’m not seeing anyone, Saren,” Kei says after they look over the cargo bay. There is a StarForce shuttle in the docking bay.

(Gather Information. 8 vs. 6, 7. Strong Hit)
(Gather Information: Involves an unusual ability or power)
Saren reaches out again: “They are here. The same space but a different time, yet I feel them as if they are right with us. We cannot see each other; they are unaware of our presence. I cannot tell if they are from the past or future, though.”

Kei checks out the shuttlecraft and finds it is not registered with the Inferno. Its registry has been intentionally encrypted.

Zone: Operations – Security.
A few steps, and the pair are now in the security hub of the Inferno. A three-dimensional holographic map of the Solana Cluster is on. Kei points out their location, and Tenzin with Aurora orbiting it. He notes two more planets in the system: Silex, a rocky wasteland, and Cyrus, which looks to be shattered into fragments.

(Explore a Waypoint. 8 vs. 8, 7. Weak Hit)
(Displays reveal a new threat.)

“Fellas,” Astrid’s voice crackles over the comms. “A mining extractor just came out of jump and is on a course to rendezvous with the Inferno. I am running things cold here, so they don’t know about us. That’s going to flip shortly. Close to being done?”

Kei is still determining if they can find their way back but assures Astrid they are rushing.

Zone: Research – Cold Storage
Kei checks the readout panel on the door of a massive cold storage unit. Plant vines have grown underneath the door, roots trying to crack through the flooring. The panel lists “Crystal samples” with toxic indicia on them and other biological samples. Saren grabs Kei’s shoulder as the latter contemplates trying to crack the security protocol on the door.

(Explore a Waypoint. 7 vs. 10, 2. Weak Hit)
(Threat: Fragile vault holds a dire threat.)
“No,” Saren says. “We must keep that door closed. Keep moving.”

Kei listens but doesn’t ask follow-up questions.

Zone: Engineering – High Security.
The door to this space has been blown off its hinges with timed explosives.

(Explore a Waypoint. Burn momentum. 10 vs. 9,9. Strong Hit)
Something about the ship stabilizes momentarily, and Kei realizes the signage on the walls finally makes sense. He notes they are close to the living quarters for the crew. Astrid buzzes in that the extractor is still booking it for the Inferno. She’s managed to patch into the vessel and get the lifts operational again to help speed up the evac when it is time.

Zone: Living – Commander’s Dining Room
It looks like a meal was being served that was never eaten. Strangely, half the items on the table have spoiled while the other half look fresh out of the oven.

(Explore a Waypoint. 7 vs. 4, 2. Strong Hit)
Kei notices storage compartments lining one side of the room. After poking around, he produces a datapad that indicates it was the property of Captain Maslow. It’s encrypted, so that will be something to work on later.

Zone: Living – Kitchen.
The pair enter the kitchen, which is connected to the dining room. Music plays over hidden speakers. Some old Terran classical tunes. A glow comes from the food storage area.

Zone: Living – Food Storage
The music continues to play here, too. The air has a strange rippling effect.

(Explore Waypoint. 5 vs. 1, 10. Weak hit.)
(Peril (from Oracle: Follow Humanity)
A person in a zero suit suddenly appears before them. He doesn’t seem to perceive Kei & Saren running past them. An energy pulse emerges from thin air, striking the figure in the back, and they collapse to the ground. Kei & Saren take cover, but no more fire. Inspecting the body, they find the person has been turned into ashes inside their zero suit while the suit has sustained only a light scorching on the back.

“Farpoint Mining Colony,” Saren points out the patch on the front of the suit. “Do you recall anything from the system map about a mining colony nearby?”

“We’re certainly going to find out when we get back to the Vigilant,” Kei responds.

The comms crackle. Astrid: “We need to go right now; they will know I am here in about fifteen.”

(Finish an Expedition. Burn Momentum. 6 vs. 7, 5. Weak Hit)
(Suffer move: Suffer 1 stress)

Kei & Saren book it back to the airlock and are in the Vigilant with only five minutes to spare. As the Astrid guides the Vigilant using its thrusters as far from the approaching extractor, Kei looks out the viewscreen and notices large purple crystals that have torn through the Inferno’s hull. He only has a little time to observe them as the ship jumps.

Aboard the bridge of the extractor, one figure speaks; his voice is distorted by the bulky helmet he wears. He sits at a control panel.

“Harrow, a ship just made a jump a few kilometers away from the Inferno. Track and pursue?”

Another figure sitting in the captain’s chair of this dim & dingy bridge wears a similar protective outfit. “They will have the energy traces on them, making it easy to track. Were they with Fegli?”

The first figure responds: “No. It’s not a Gakkadi ship, just a personal jump ship. Gawkers, mebbe?”

Harrow: “We shall see.”

End of Act One