Colin Dunn

Mankind’s Battle for the Stars Continues

Mankind’s Battle for the Stars Continues

Written By ColinDunn

Cover Art TedLindsey

Interior Art TedLindsey

BryanGibson

ColinDunn

LaurentEsmiol

Someartworkfromtheoriginal2300AD

PDF Layout HunterGordon

MattGordon(AdditionalAssistance)

Character Sheet PatrickMurphy

Playtesters JoelBenford

StephenHerron

JonCrocker

ConstantineThomas

RandyMcDonald

MarkSiefert

Boris(“kafka47”)Cibic

JonathanPearson

MichaelBrinkhues

Commando

Kaladorn

Duran_goodyear

RogerCalver

BillSeney

GJD

JeffHopper

KevinLaRoche

Aramis

TheiHoPGang:PeterHarris,MikeTotman,DustinFriel,

SteveFitzpartick,EarlWoods,JeffPitts,andScottFriel,

forpizza,playtesting,beverages,andencouragement

Based on the original 2300AD published by Game Designers’ Workshop and Traveller20

Special Thanks To AbrahamGubler,BrynMonnery,DanHebditch,and

KevinClark.AlsothankstoPeteRogan,forallowing

metousehisdescriptionoftheL-5habitat.

AlsospecialthankstoDaveMalesevichfortheoriginal

Tiranemap.

Dedicated ToToJulieGirouard,mywife,bestfriend,andpartner.

Thankyouforallyourassistance,andpatience,whileI

workedonthisbook.Icouldnothavedoneitwithout

you.

Copyright©2007QuikLinkInteractive,Inc.Allrights

reserved.TravellerisaregisteredtrademarkofFarFuture

Enterprisesandisusedunderlicense.2300isusedunder

licensefromFarFutureEnterprises.

Reproductionofthisworkinanyformwithoutpermission

fromQuikLink,exceptaspermittedbytheOpenGame

Licenseorwherepermissiontophotocopyisclearlystated,

isexpresslyforbidden.

PortionsofthismaterialarereleasedundertheOpenGame

License(OGL),acopyofwhichisavailableattherearofthis

book,alongwiththedesignationofallOpenGameContent

specifiedinthisbodyofwork.

THIS WORK REQUIRES THE USE OF THE TRAVELLER20 (T20) TRAVELLER’S HANDBOOK

(THB) IN ORDER TO PLAY.

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Table of ContentsChapter 1: Introduction SpaceTravel............................................................. 4 NationsAndPolitics................................................. 4

Colonies.................................................................. 4

Aliens...................................................................... 5

Stutterwarp............................................................. 5

Adventures.............................................................. 5

2320ADAnd2300AD............................................. 6 2320ADAndTraveller....................................... 6 2320ADAndTwilight:2000............................. 6 TheNearStarListAndStarMap....................... 6

Chapter 2: Background TheTwilightWar...................................................... 7

TheAgeOfRecovery(21stCentury)......................... 7 MajorWars....................................................... 8

TheSecondAgeOfExploration(22ndCentury)......... 8

TheSecondAgeOfCommerce(23rdCentury)......... 9

AnUnsettledTime:2300–Present...................... 11 TheFlightOfTheBayern................................ 11 TheKaferWar................................................ 11 Aftermath...................................................... 15 WarsOnEarth................................................ 15 TraditionalRivalries......................................... 15 TraditionalCooperations................................. 16

Chapter 3: Characters QuickCharacterGenerationSystem................... 17 InitialSteps..................................................... 17 AbilityScores.................................................. 17 Homeworld.................................................... 17 GravityType.................................................... 18 BodyType...................................................... 18

HomeworldSkillsAndFeats................................ 18 HomeworldFeats........................................... 18

TechLevel.............................................................. 19

QuickCharacterGeneration.............................. 19 MusteringOut................................................ 20 TurningPointBenefits..................................... 21 Aging............................................................. 21

SkillsAndFeats...................................................... 21 Skills............................................................... 21 Feats.............................................................. 22

Classes.................................................................. 24 Colonist(CoreClass)...................................... 24 Journalist(CoreClass)..................................... 25

PriorHistoryTables................................................. 26 Colonist(CoreClass)...................................... 26 Journalist(CoreClass)..................................... 27 CharacterClasses.......................................... 27

PrestigeClasses..................................................... 29 Troubleshooter............................................... 29 SpecialForces................................................. 30 AlienCulturalAndTechnologiesExpert........... 32 PrestigeClassMasterSkillList......................... 33

CharacterGenerationExample.............................. 34 Stats............................................................... 34 Homeworld.................................................... 34 StartingSkillsAndFeats.................................. 34

FirstTurningPoint........................................... 34 SecondTurningPoint...................................... 34 ThirdTurningPoint......................................... 34

Chapter 4: Rules Additions PersonalCombat................................................... 36 PersonalArmor............................................... 36 HitLocationsAndWoundEffects.................... 36

VehicleCombat..................................................... 36 Missiles........................................................... 38 Torpedoes....................................................... 40

Chapter 5: Foundations TheMajorFoundations................................... 41 AstronomischenRechen-institut..................... 41 TheLifeFoundation........................................ 42 NorthAmericanResearchLeague................... 42 Zapamoga...................................................... 43

TransnationalCorporations.................................... 43 RebcoSar....................................................... 43 Trilon.............................................................. 43 Americo......................................................... 44

TerroristGroups..................................................... 44 Provolution..................................................... 45 Coyfederacy................................................... 45

Chapter 6: Core Worlds Earth/sol................................................................ 47 TheSolarSystem............................................ 48 Earth.............................................................. 49 Tier1............................................................. 53 Tier2............................................................. 54 Tier3............................................................. 57 Tier4............................................................. 63 SeaFloorDevelopment................................... 69 Antarctica....................................................... 69 OrbitalSpace.................................................. 69 BeyondOrbit.................................................. 70

Tirane,AlphaCentauriA....................................... 71 SystemData................................................... 71 PlanetaryData................................................ 72 ColoniesAndNations..................................... 74

Chapter 7: Frontier Worlds Colonies................................................................ 80

TheAmericanArm................................................. 83 King/dm+23312........................................... 85 Hermes/muHerculis....................................... 87 Ellis/ac+481595-89....................................... 88 BotanyBay/dm+332277................................ 91 Kingsland/zetaHerculisA............................... 92 Avalon/dm-3411626A................................ 94

FrenchArm............................................................ 96 Nibelungen/neubayern................................... 96 Beowulf/queenAlice’sStar(Dm+461797)...... 99 Kimanjano/dm+342342............................... 101 Kie-yuma/xiUrsaeMajoris............................. 105 BetaCanumVenaticorum............................. 108 Joi/61UrsaeMajoris..................................... 111 Crater/henry’sStar(Dm+382285)................ 115 Adlerhorst/vogelheim................................... 117 NousVoilà/betaComaeBerenices................. 119 Dunkelheim/dm+362393............................. 122 Hochbaden/dm+2296.................................. 124 AuroreEtaBootis......................................... 125 Freiland........................................................ 128

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TheChineseArm................................................. 130 ColdMountain/deltaPavonis........................ 131 Daikoku/betaHydri....................................... 135 Haifeng/l1159-16....................................... 137 Syuhlahm/zetaTucanae................................ 139 Heidelsheimat/rhoEridani............................. 141 Chengdu/epsilonIndi.................................... 144 Kanata/dm+205046(Doris)......................... 146 Eriksson/ac+17534-105.............................. 147 KwantungTauCeti....................................... 149 Dukou/epsilonEridani................................... 151 Montana/omicron2Eridani.......................... 153 Austin’sWorld/dm-31123............................ 155 Paulo/procyon.............................................. 158

Chapter 8: Alien Space ThePentapodFinger............................................ 161 NotableSystems........................................... 161

TheBayernCorridor............................................. 161 NotableSystems........................................... 162

BetaAquilaeCluster............................................ 162 NotableSystems........................................... 163

TheKaferSphere................................................. 164 NotableSystems........................................... 164

YliiSpace............................................................. 165 NotableSystems........................................... 165

TheBackDoorRoute........................................... 166 NotableSystems........................................... 166

Chapter 9: Orbital Facilities OrbitalFacilities,OutpostsAndEnclaves........... 167 HumanEnclaves........................................... 168 Stark............................................................ 169 GammaSerpentisIii...................................... 169 AlienEnclaves............................................... 170 ThePentapodEnclaves................................. 170 SungEnclaves............................................... 170

Chapter 10: Aliens Of 2320 TheEbers............................................................. 172 FirstEncounter............................................. 172 Homeworld.................................................. 172 TheEbers..................................................... 173 GeneratingEberCharacters.......................... 175 TypicalEberNpcs.......................................... 176 TheKafers........................................................... 177 TheKlaxun.......................................................... 182

TheLittleGuys..................................................... 185 FirstContact................................................. 185 PhysicalDescription...................................... 185 LittleGuyCharacterGeneration................... 186

ThePentapods..................................................... 187 FirstEncounter............................................. 187

TheSung............................................................. 192 FirstEncounter............................................. 192 PhysicalDescription...................................... 193 GeneratingSungCharacters......................... 194

TheXiang............................................................ 195 FirstEncounter............................................. 195 XiangCharacterGeneration......................... 197

TheYlii................................................................ 197 FirstContact................................................. 197 CharacterGeneration................................... 201

OtherAliens........................................................ 203

TheAquilans................................................ 203 PhysicalDescription...................................... 203

BetaAquilaSpace................................................ 203 TheMedusaeAndTheEnemy...................... 203 FirstContact................................................. 204 PhysicalDescription...................................... 204 MedusaAndEnemyArtifacts........................ 204 TheAgraIntelligence.................................... 204 PhysicalDescription...................................... 204

Chapter 11: Technology TheBiologicalSciences........................................ 205

ComputersAndInformationSecurity................... 206 ComputerProgramming............................... 207 TheLinkNetwork......................................... 207 UserInterfaces.............................................. 207 RobotsAndDrones...................................... 207

MaterialsScience................................................. 208 Transportation.............................................. 208

Chapter 12: Equipment WildernessSurvivalGear.............................. 210 Tools............................................................. 212 SpecialEquipment........................................ 213 Sensors......................................................... 214 ScientificEquipment..................................... 214 MedicalEquipment....................................... 215 Communicators............................................ 215 Satellites....................................................... 216 Computers................................................... 217 PersonalPower............................................. 218 IndustrialEquipment..................................... 219 Explosives..................................................... 219 Miscellaneous............................................... 219 RobotsAndDrones...................................... 221

PentapodEquipment........................................... 224 Weapons...................................................... 226 Firearms....................................................... 226 PlasmaGuns,Man-portable(Pgmps)............ 234 Non-lethalWeapons..................................... 235 RocketLaunchersAndMortars..................... 236 GrenadeLaunchers....................................... 237 HandGrenades............................................ 237 GuidedOrdnance......................................... 238 PersonalArmor............................................. 239 ArmorMaterials........................................... 240 HelmetAdd-ons........................................... 241

Chapter 13: Cybernetics Surgery................................................................ 244 SurgicalModifications.................................. 244 ChemicalModifications................................ 246 Cybernetic/prostheticModifications........ 246

DnaModification................................................. 251 KingMassiveWorlderModification.............. 251 Zero-gSpaceAdaptationModification.......... 252 Thinair.......................................................... 252

Chapter 14: Vehicles LandVehicles....................................................... 254 CivilianVehicles............................................ 254 CargoHandlingEquipment.......................... 260

Aircraft................................................................ 261

Watercraft........................................................... 265

RailTransportation............................................... 266

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MilitaryVehicles................................................... 268 MilitaryWatercraft........................................ 270 MilitaryAircraft............................................ 272 CombatWalkers........................................... 275 VehicleOrdnance................................................. 278 Missiles......................................................... 278 Torpedoes..................................................... 279 Bombs.......................................................... 280 RocketPods.................................................. 281 VehicularWeapons....................................... 281 CombatWalkerWeapons.................................... 281

Chapter 15: Alien Technology Eber.................................................................... 283 EberWeapons.............................................. 283

Kafers.................................................................. 284 KaferEquipment.......................................... 284 KaferWeapons............................................. 285 KaferVehicles............................................... 286 KaferSpacecraft........................................... 286

Pentapod............................................................. 289 PentapodEquipment.................................... 289 PentapodWeapons...................................... 289 PentapodServitors(Biots)............................. 290 PentapodVehicles........................................ 290 PentapodShips............................................. 291

Sung.................................................................... 294 Weapons..................................................... 294 Vehicles........................................................ 294 Spacecraft.................................................... 294

Ylii .................................................................... 297 Equipment.................................................... 297 YliiWeapons................................................ 297

AquilanTechnology............................................. 300

LittleGuys........................................................... 301 ModernLittleGuyTechnology...................... 301

MedusanArtifacts............................................... 301

EnemyArtifacts................................................... 302

Chapter 16: Space Travel InterfaceTravel.................................................... 303 BeanstalkOperations.................................... 303 SpaceplaneOperations................................. 303 RotonOperations......................................... 304 RocketOperations........................................ 304 CatapultOperations..................................... 305 TimeToOrbit............................................... 305 ReentryAndLanding.................................... 305 TravelTime................................................... 305

SystemShips........................................................ 306 Zero-gravity.................................................. 306 ArtificialGravity/SpinHabitats....................... 306 Radiation...................................................... 307 Stutterwarp.................................................. 307 StarshipOperatingCosts.............................. 310 CharterRates............................................... 311

Passengers.......................................................... 311 InterfaceCosts............................................. 311 StarTravel..................................................... 311 ComfortLevel............................................... 312

StarshipCombat.................................................. 312 ChangesToBasicStarshipCombat............... 312

Chapter 17: Starships And Spacecraft

StarshipComponents.......................................... 316 Sensors......................................................... 316 TargetingSystems......................................... 317 Defenses...................................................... 317 Weapons...................................................... 317 Powerplants................................................. 317 Thrusters...................................................... 318 Roton........................................................... 318 SolidFuelRockets......................................... 318 Liquid-fuelRockets....................................... 318

InterfaceVessels.................................................. 320

CommercialStarships.......................................... 327

SurveyVessels...................................................... 330

SystemShips........................................................ 333

Tugs.................................................................... 334

MilitaryVessels.................................................... 336

Fighters............................................................... 337

Warships............................................................. 338

MissilesAndDrones............................................. 340 Missiles......................................................... 340 SensorDrones.............................................. 340 OtherDrones................................................ 340

SpaceStations..................................................... 342 ModularSpaceStation................................. 342 StationExamples.......................................... 345

Chapter 18: Starship Encounters CoreEncounters.................................................. 346 OuterSystemEncounters.............................. 346 InnerSystemEncounters............................... 346

FrontierEncounters.............................................. 348 SystemEncounters....................................... 348

Chapter 19: Animals And Npcs Non-playerCharacters......................................... 351 Section1:Civilians........................................ 351 Section2:StarshipCrews............................. 353 Section3:Military......................................... 355

Animals............................................................... 357

Chapter 20: Gm Guide CampaignTypes.................................................. 361 ExplorationAndAlienContact...................... 361 GroundCombat........................................... 362 SpaceCombat.............................................. 362 TroubleshootingCampaign........................... 363 TradeAndCommerce................................... 363 Counterterrorist............................................ 364

CharacterGoalsAndMotivations........................ 364 SourcesOfConflictIn2320AD..................... 364 GoalsAndMotivations................................. 365

2320ADAlternatives............................................ 366 Technology................................................... 366 OtherRules.................................................. 366 ModificationsToD20m/d20fSkillsAndFeats367 2300adTo2320ADConversions................... 367

Bibliography........................................................ 370

Character Sheet..................................................... 373Open Game License.............................................. 375

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IntroDuctIon In theyear2320,humanity isattempting toclaim the

stars as his own. Despite nearly destroying himself in the

TwilightWar,despiteallthewarssince, includingawarfor

survival against a genocidal alien race, humanity has held

on,andkeptthedreamalive.2320AD isthestoryofthatdream,ashumanity, thoughstill retrenchingafter the long

yearsoftheKaferWar,reachesbackouttothestars.

In2320AD,humanityhassettled33inhabitableworlds,andhasoutpostsonmanymore.Humanspaceisdividedinto

threeArms:French,American,andChinese(namedforthe

dominant nation exploring it). The shape of these Arms is

dictatedbythelimitationsinherentinstutterwarptravel:the

7.7 lightyear range,and travelbetween theworldsat the

centerandtheworldsoftheedgecantakeweeks,oreven

months.

AtthecenterofHumanspacearetheCoreWorldsof

EarthandTirane.TiraneisthehabitableplanetofAlphaCen-

tauri,andisaneartwintoEarthinclimate,gravityandatmo-

sphere.Thesetwoworldstogetherhavenearly90%ofthe

Humanpopulation,with90%ofthattotalresidingonEarth.

FormostpeoplelivingoutintheFrontier,theworldsofthe

Coreareasdistantandstrangeasanyalienhomeworld.

2320ADgamesrangefrominterstellarexplorationandinterstellarwar,downtothegrittystreetsandthemega-cities

ofthehumanCore.Thisisagameaboutpeople,andtheir

risetothestars.Aliensareapartofthe2320ADmilieu,andcanbeusedasPlayerCharactersifdesired,butthefocusof

thegameisonHumans.

2320ADstrivestoobeythelawsoftheuniverseasweknow them.The stutterwarpdrive, the technology thatal-

lowshumanitytotravelfasterthanlight,isthesoledeparture

fromthis.Someoftheothertechnologiesbendthe lawsa

little,butthat’sfromthestandpointofhere-and-now.Three

hundredyearsinthefutureisalongtime.Therearenoblast-

ersorlaserswordsin2320AD,nomagicanti-gravityorar-tificialgravity–justgunsandhelicopters,spinhabitatsand

spaceplanes.Atthesametime,though,2320ADisagame,notahard-and-fasttechnicalsimulation.

SPACE TRAVEL Forover150years,humanityhashad the freedomof

the stars, but the hardest part remains getting into space.

Stutterwarpdrivesareused tocross thevastgulfbetween

stars,asitallowsFTL(faster-than-light)travelatspeedsupto

5lightyearsormoreperday.Fortravelwithinastarsystem

only, so-called system ships use low-power variants of the

standardstutterwarpdrive,whichstillprovideveryhighef-

fectivespeedswithinasystem.

NATIONS AND POLITICS In 2320AD, national interests continue to dominatepolitics, though the influenceof transnational corporations

(TransNats)andtheFoundationsispronouncedaswell.Many

of the nations of today are still recognizable in this future

world,includingAmerica,Britain,France,Germany,Canada

andAustralia,alongwithmanyothers.Foundationsarenon-

governmentorganizations,usually self-funded, thatpursue

theirownagendas,usually in supportof science, coloniza-

tion,humanitarian,orenvironmentalcauses,whiletheTrans-

Natspursuemoremundanegoalsofprofitandpower.

COLONIES Humanity has 52 colonies on 33 worlds, along with

scatteredoutposts,enclaves,miningcampsandsciencesta-

tions.Theoff-worldpopulationisasignificantfractionofthe

Earth-boundpopulation,andforsomenations(France,Brit-

ain,Germany,Australia)theoff-worldpopulationisactually

greater.Thesecoloniesexistforanumberofreasons,butone

ofthemostimportantisnationalpride–onlymajornations

havecolonies.Coloniesarealsousedtoproviderawmateri-

alsforhomenationindustries,andmarketsfortheproducts

of those industries,andalsoserveasasafetyvalve for the

massivepopulationof Earth. For thosewhocanno longer

standthesurveillanceandcontrolappliedtosuchlargepopu-

lations,thecoloniesofferahaven,freefromtheever-present

camerasandconstantmonitoring.

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ALIENS In 200 years of star travel, humanity has encountered

eightsentientraces,witharcheologicalevidenceforatleast

threemore.Humanityhasgonetowarwithtwooftheserac-

es.Thefirstwar,versustheSung,wasanabsolutevictoryfor

thehumans,lastingonlyafewweekswithminimalcasualties

onbothsides.Thesecond,against theaggressiveandhor-

rificallyviolentKafers,lastedforfifteenyearsanddevastated

anentirearmofHumanspace.Thoughhumanityeventually

triumphed,theenemywaits,heldatbaybutstilldangerous.

STUTTERWARP Thefaster-than-lightstutterwarpdriveisfurtherdetailed

inChapter 16: Space Travel,buthereareafewbrieffacts:

Stutterwarpbecomeineffectiveatabout0.11G,orap-

proximatelygeosynchronousorbit, andarenot suitable for

interfaceoperations.Attemptingtooperatewithinthisrange

risksdestroyingtheship.Thestutterwarpdriverequirestan-

talum,oneof the rarestelements inknownspace, though

eachdriveonlyrequiressmallamounts.

Stutterwarpvesselsbuildupachargewhilethedriveis

operating and moving in unstressed space. The buildup of

thischargelimitstherangeofstutterwarpvesselsto7.7light

years.Exceedingthisrangecancausethetantalumcoilatthe

heartofthedrivetodecayandemitdeadlyamountsofradia-

tion,usuallykillingthecrew.

Until relatively recently, stutterwarp drives could only

becalibratedandbroughtonline in stressedspace, that is,

regions of space within the 0.0011 G limit of a planet or

star.Thedrivecalibratorchangedthat,allowingdrivestobe

broughtonlineindeepspace.However,thefirstgeneration

ofthesecalibratorswasfartoolargeforconvenientuse.In

2299,thesecondgenerationdrivecalibratorwasdeveloped,

allowingthecreationofthefirstusablestutterwarptugs.

Stutterwarp tug technology isdesigned to subvert the

normal range limitation. Todo this, one vessel, the carried

vessel,musttakeitsstutterwarpdriveoffline.Theotherves-

sel, the tug, thengrapples to it. The tug carries the vessel

outtoamaximumof3.85lightyears,halfthetug’srange.

The tug then brings the carried vessels drives online using

thedrivecalibrator,andreturns.Thecarriedvesselcanthen

travelanother7.7lightyears,foramaximumrangeof11.55

lightyears.Notethattoreturntheremustbeatugonthe

otherend.Ifthecarriedvessel’sdrivesarenotoffline,itwill

buildupachargeasitiscarriedalongbythetug,andsuffer

adrivebreakdownandirradiationoftheshipasitpassesthe

7.7lightyearlimit.

ADVENTURES 2320AD is an adventure-oriented game. Players cantakeon anumberof roles, from freelance security experts

to hotshot smugglers. While the organizations outlined in

Chapter 5: Foundations, Corporations and Terroristscan

certainlyplayalargerole,charactersdonotneedtobebe-

holdentothem.Asmallgangoffreelanceinvestigators,ora

groupoffriendsharingoffintothewildsonatreasuresearch,

isjustasviableasagroupoftroubleshooterscontractedby

a TransNatwhogo fromworld toworld solvingproblems,

andgettingintotroubleontheside.Theemphasisofthese

adventuresisuptoeachgrouptodecide.2320ADcanbehometohighadventure,with lotsofgun-fights,desperate

chasesandswingingoverravinesonropes,aswellasmore

cerebral pursuits suchas researchingEber ruinsorhacking

databases.

ALIENS:Thetablebelowprovidesaquickoverviewofthealienracesin2320ADRace Description NotesEber Big,withlongarms,veryceremonial Destroyedtheirinterstellarcivilizationinawar.Sung Short,reptilianflyers,almostonparwithhuman-

ityintermsoftechnology.LostabriefwarwithHumansovertheXiang.

Xiang Artisticandveryalienspider-likecreatures. EnslavedbytheSunguntilfreedbyHumans.Kafers Big and strong, with complicated, frightening-

lookingmouthsandaturtle-likecarapace.Violent and hostile. Star-faring. Get smart whenthreatenedorhurt.

Klaxuns Intelligent,near-sightedplants. NearlydestroyedbyKafers.Primitive.LittleGuys Short, furry dog-faced humanoids with four

arms.Nearlydestroyedthemselvesinsystem-widewar.

Pentapods Short,vaguelyresemblea5-limbedoctopus. Masters of biotechnology. Even their starships areorganic.Star-faring.

Ylii Raceisactuallyseveralseparatespeciesthatliveandworktogether.

Advancedandpacifistic.Have lostmanyworlds totheKafers.Star-faring.

AGRA Extra-dimensional entityofunknown,buthigh,power.

Rearranging the Pleiades for some unknown proj-ect.

Aquilans Vanishedraceofunknownappearance. Interstellar civilization seemingly abandoned, butfilledwithtraps.

Medusae Small,somewhatresemblea10-limbedflea. Advancedtechnology,vanishedEnemy Appearanceunknown. Advancedtechnology,vanished.EnemyofMedusae

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2320AD AND 2300 AD 2320AD is an adaptation of the 2300 AD game,originallypublishedbyGameDesigners’Workshopin1988.

2320ADisasourcebookforusewithTraveller D20,andrequires the Traveller’s Guidebook or the Traveller’s Handbook. The character generation system uses mostoftheClasses,Skills,andFeatsoutlinedintheTraveller’s Guidebook.

2320AD AND TRAVELLER Despite making use of the Traveller D20 rules,2320ADisnotTraveller.Itissetinauniverseofitsown,without any relation to the Official Traveller Universe(OTU). 2320AD is much smaller in scope as well, dealingwitha“mere”33settledworlds,comparedtothe11,000of

theOTU.Thelevelsandtypesoftechnologyarelikewisedif-

ferent,inparticularthemethodoffaster-than-lighttravel,as

wellascomputersandvehicles.Therearesimilarities,how-

ever.Bothareaboutpeopleinfar-futuresettings,wherestar

travelisubiquitous,bothfocusonthepeopleinvolved,rather

thantheirequipment,andbothstrivetomaintainarealistic

worldview,takingintoaccounttheirhistoriesandtechnolo-

gies.

2320ADisgrittierthanT20,withmoreofanemphasison“realistic”technology.Thestarshipsalsotendtobealot

smaller.Insteadof50,000dtoncruiserssocommoninT20, 2320AD has 900 dton cruisers, with the absolute largestshipsbeingaround20,000dtons.

2320AD AND TWILIGHT: 2000 2320AD is the future of Twilight: 2000. 2320ADglossesoverthetimelineoftheTwilightWar,sothewarcould

stillbeinourfuture,ortheuniverseofTwilight: 2000and2320AD could be an alternate one (the approach takenin the later revisionsofTwilight: 2000 itself).Twilight: 2000isoneofthereasonsfortheapparentlyslowpaceoftechnologicaladvancementinthe2320ADgame,asmuchenergywasspentonrebuildingEarthaftertheWar,andthen

thatenergywentintodevelopingandperfectingthestutter-

warpdrive.Colonialeffortsalsotookagreatdealofenergy,

timeandresources,withmostscientificadvancescomingin

thevenueofspacetravelandthetrialsoflivingandworking

inhostileenvironments.Wehavedeliberatelyleftituptothe

playersandGMstochoosethetimingoftheTwilightWar,

whether it occurs in1995-2000, as in theoriginal version,

or2005,or2020,orwhenever.However, theTwilightWar

didhappen,anditseffectsareimportanttothehistoryand

characterof2320AD.

THE NEAR STAR LIST AND STAR MAP Oneof themore interesting (andoccasionally conten-

tious)partsofthegameistheNearStarList(NSL).Thiscom-

prehensivelistofstarswithina50lightyearradiusofEarth

wasbasedonthe1969Gliesestellarsurvey,whichatthetime

theoriginalgameof2300 ADwaspublished,wasthemostaccuratestarlisteverproducedforagame.Mostofthestars

arenamedbytheircataloguenumber,nameslikeDM+4123.

Thecitizensofthestarscirclingtheseworldsusuallygivethe

staranothername,butfewgovernmentsrecognizethese.

The list isused togeneratea3-D starmap.All stellar

coordinates in2320ADaregiven in the formatx,y,z,withtheSolsystembeingat0,0,0.

2320AD stilluses theold1969Gliesecatalog, ratherthanthenewerGlieseII,HipparcosorRECONScatalogs.This

wasdonetoensurecompatibilitywiththebackgroundand

historyofthegame.

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BAcKGrounDTHE TWILIGHT WAR The Twilight War started over 300 years ago, and re-

mainedconventionalforabouttwoyears.Thenthemissiles

andsuicidenukesstartedtostrike.Withinanotherthreeyears

nearlyhalfthepopulationofEarthlaydeadordyingfroma

combination of nuclearwar and its brethren of panic, dis-

easeandstarvation.Thenationalgovernmentsinmostcases

collapsed,orunderwentschisms.Manymilitaryunitsfound

themselvescutoffandontheirown.Somerebelled, some

triedtheirbesttoobeytheirlastorders,somemerelytriedto

gethome.Fewnationsretainedanysortofcentralcontrol.

Francewasoneofthefewthatdid,andthiswouldbeoneof

themostimportantpoliticalfactorsforthenext300yearsof

humandevelopment.

THE AGE OF RECOVERY (21ST CENTURY) The destruction of the Twilight War encompassed the

entireglobe,anddidnotendwhenthebombsstoppedfall-

ing.Thedownwardslidecontinuedfortwodecadesafterthe

warended.Thoughthephysicaldestructionwaslargelylim-

itedtothewarzone(NorthAmerica,Europe,theIndiansub-

continent,andChina),theeffectswerefeltworld-wide.Just

asdestructiveasthebombswasthecollapseoftheworld’s

economy, and the global transportation and distribution

network.Ocean shippingwas vulnerable tonaval action

throughout thewar,andneutrally-flaggedshipswereno

exception.Thelossofmuchoftheworld’sindustrialcapac-

itypreventedmaritimeshipping frombeing rebuilt,even

aftertheendofthewar.OnlyJapanretainedavestige

ofamerchantfleet,anditdominatedwhatwas

leftofworldtradeintheimmediatepostwar

years.

The21stcenturywasmarkedbythree

importantevents: the FuelCrisis (and the

end of dependence on fossil fuels), the

FrenchPeace,andtheMelbourneAccords.

The Fuel Crisis:WorldWar IIIdestroyed theworld’soilrefineriesandoilfields,butitsgreatesteffectwasthede-

structionoftheworld’soildistributionnetwork.OnceWorld

War IIIwasover, theoil distributionnetworksweregradu-

ally reestablished,butgreatprogress towardalternative fu-

els hadbeenmade in the interim. The valueof petroleum

asachemicalfeedstockwastoogreatbythemiddleofthe

centurytocontemplatesimplyburningit.Thedeclineinoil

reserves,coupledwiththeneedforpetrochemicalfeedstock,

pushed theadaptationofalternative fuels.Rationingofoil

and restrictionson its usewere requiredduring the transi-

tionperiod,butby2090,mostoftheworld’sindustrialized

nationshadestablishedtheirownhydrogendistributionnet-

works,andmostoftheworld’sindustrialpowerwassupplied

bysolarpowersatellitesorbitingtheEarth.

The French Peace:Intothepowervacuumwhichfol-lowedWorldWar III steppedtheonlyEuropeannationnot

devastated by the fighting: France, which had withdrawn

fromNATOand sealed its borders at the start of theWar.

Withitsnumerousandfar-flungterritoriesontheAfricancon-

tinentandinthePacific,Francereestablishedacommercial

interestinpeacefulworldtradeandcalminternationalrela-

tions.Frenchpowerwasprojectedtoresolvedisputesamong

quarrelingnations,butFrenchnationalpolicywasnotovertly

imperialistic.By2060,theFrenchwerepoliticallyinvolvedin

virtuallyeveryregionintheworld,andFrenchmilitaryforces

imposedpeaceinthoseregions,albeitsometimesaveryun-

easyone.

The Melbourne Accords:Theworldreturnedtospaceinthe2040swithlimitedsurveillance,weather,

andcommunicationsatellitelaunches,andfollowedin

the‘50swithmannedmissions.Bytheendofthecen-

tury,near-Earthorbitwasclutteredwithsolarpower

satellitesandorbitalfactories.Theconquestofspace

naturally produced disputes concerning territoriality,

access to orbits, and the appropriateness of specific

targetsinconflicts.Acontinuinginternationaldis-

cussion culminated in a series of treaties and

agreements collectively known as the Mel-

bourne Accords (first signed at Melbourne,

Australiain2099).

TheMelbourneAccordshad threemajor

provisions: Certain orbits around Earth

were demilitarized, power satellites prop-

erly operated and certified were classified

asciviliantargets(ratherthanasmilitarytargets),andother

worlds(atthattimetheMoon,Mars,Mercury,andtheJovian

satellites)weredeclaredopentocolonizationbyallnations,

andplaced limitsonsuchcolonization.TheMelbourneAc-

cordsboundsignatoriestoitsprovisionsonlywithrespectto

othersignatories.Manysmallernationssignedimmediately;

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holdoutsamongthemajorpowersincludedtheESA(France,

Bavaria,Britain,andAzania, the successor toSouthAfrica)

andCanton.Cantonsignedin2108whiletheESAdidnot

signuntil2163.

MAJOR WARS ThewarsofthecenturyfollowingtheTwilightwarwere

characterizedbystrugglesfortheresourcesneededtosurvive

andrecover.MexicoseizedportionsoftheAmericansouth-

west, including Texas, parts of New Mexico, Arizona and

southern California, for their resources, both mineral and

technological.Americawastoobusyfightinganewcivilwar

tointervene.Themulti-national,French-ledforcethatoccu-

piedSaudiArabiaprovidedanothergoodexampleofthissort

ofwar,shortandintense,withaclearpurpose.Likewisethe

warbetweenCantonandIndochina20yearslaterwasover

oil,andtheill-fatedattemptbyRussiatoconquerUkrainein

2065wasforthelatternation’sresources.Thesewarswere

instrumental indecidingwhichnationswouldprosper,and

whichwouldn’t.

THE SECOND AGE OF EXPLORATION (22ND CENTURY) Theconquestofspaceopenedanewfron-

tiertoEarth,and,naturally,anageofexplora-

tion followed. Expeditions to Mars by France

and,later,Americawerelaunchedearlyinthe

century, along with expeditions to Mercury

conducted by Manchuria. Later expeditions

visitedtheasteroidsandthemoonsofJupiter,

buttheSecondAgeofExplorationwouldhave

died ratherquickly if ithadbeenconfined to

justtheSolarSystem.

In2086,thetheoreticalbasisforapractical

stardrivewasestablished,andby2100,severalre-

searchestablishmentswerewellontheirwaytodem-

onstratingaprototype.Theraceforastardriveoccupiedthe

technologicalabilitiesofthemajorworldpowersforthefirst

halfofthe22ndCentury.

During the race to perfect a working star drive, the

majornationsweregainingconsiderableexpertise in space

travelwithintheSolarSystem.Itwasduringthistimethatthe

firsttruespacehabitatswereestablishedattheEarth-Moon

LagrangepointsofL4andL5.Thesespacehabitatswereto

providethemodel for thespace-based interstellaroutposts

tocome,whilethesettlementsontheMoonandMarsgave

themuch-neededexperienceforbuildingtheground-based

outposts,andevencolonies,thatweretofollow.

The first working starship was produced by the Euro-

peanSpaceAgency in2136; itsmembers (France,Bavaria,

Great Britain, and Azania) developed the technology and

jointlyoperated the shipand its successors. Thefirstexpe-

ditiontoAlphaCentauridiscoveredagardenplanet,which

waspromptly claimed for themembernationsof theESA.

Withinshortorder,Argentina,China,andAmericabuiltand

launchedtheirownstarshipsonexpeditionstoAlphaCen-

tauri,Barnard’sStar,andWolf359.

The Eclipse of France:UndertheFrenchPeace,thenationsoftheworldwereabletorecoverandprosper.Inevi-

tably,somecametoresentFrenchdomination,andasthey

becomemorepowerful,theycompetedforpowerandinflu-

encewithFrance.At the same time, theburdensofworld

leadershipprovedverycostlytoFrance,already

economicallystretchedinmountinginter-

stellarexplorationmissions.

By 2150, French power in the

worldwasdecaying;othernationswere

quicktosideagainstFranceinminordis-

putes.IntheAlphaCentauriWar,Argen-

tinaanditsalliesdefeatedtheFrench-led

ESA.Thishumiliationmarkedalowpoint

in Frenchprestige, andbroughtabouta

col- lapse in the French government, as well as

reorientationofgovernmentpolicies. Itwas

theendoftheFrenchPeace,andthebe-

ginningofaneweraofglobalconflict.

Stellar Exploration: Expe-d i t i o n s over the rest of the century explored to

The Alpha Centauri War: TheAlphaCentauriWarwasaboutnothinglessthanthe right of all nations to settle the new worlds being

foundbeyondEarth’ssolarsystem.WhentheESAdiscov-

eredthegardenworldorbitingAlphaCentauri,themem-

bernations immediately claimed it all.Argentinaand its

alliesobjected,andsentarmedships to thesystem.The

warwasa long,drawn-outaffair,aseachsideanxiously

awaitedinstructionsfromtheirgovernments. Intheend,

the ESAnations capitulated, andfinally signed the Mel-

bourneaccords.

The Tantalum War: TheTantalumwarof2142betweenIndonesiaand

Bengalwasn’tjustastruggleforthetantalumnecessary

toconstructstutterwarpdrives,butalsoastruggletode-

terminewhichnationwouldbeabletogotothestars.

Indonesia won the war, and though the tantalum find

wasnotas richas theyhadhoped, theyused tobuild

amerchantfleet thateventodaycarriesaconsiderable

fractionofallfreightmovedinHumanspace.

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about twenty light-years fromEarth, and settlementswere

establishedonabouttenextra-solarworlds.Worldscloseto

Sol sprouted many national colonies; the diversity enabled

coloniestoconcentrateonspecificindustriesandtradewith

the others for their needs. But as nations explored farther

fromEarth,eachwasabletocolonizewholeworldsandex-

ploitthemwithoutcompetitionfromothernations.

Theopeningofthestarstocolonizationmovedmuchof

Earth’s conflictbeyond the solar system.Conflictsbetween

themajor(thatis,thestar-faring)powerstookplaceoncol-

onyandoutpostworldswheretheyfoughtforrightstoprime

territories, access to markets, or proper treatment of their

ownnationals.WaronEarthwaseitheranextensionofthese

extra-solarconflicts,orminorwarsbetweennonstar-faring

nations.

By2199,theSecondAgeofExplorationwasdrawingto

aclose.Earthhadexploredpartsofasphereouttotwenty

light-years andestablished coloniesdedicated toexploiting

theresourcesofmanyvirginworlds.

THE SECOND AGE OF COMMERCE (23RD CENTURY) Explorationbreedscommerce;territorialdiscoveriesnat-

urally revealproducts thatcanbemarketed.Evenwith the

highcostof interstellartravel,therearealwayssomeprod-

ucts,services,metals,andinformationthatcanstillbecarried

ataprofit.Withthediscoveryandsettlementofstarsystems

beyondEarth,the23rdcenturywasaneraoftrade.

Thestar-faringnationsbuiltfleetstoservicetheircolo-

nies.Evenaself-sufficientcolonyisuselessifitcan’tprovide

feedback,products, information,or resources to itsparent.

Hullscarryingcoloniststothestarsaremostefficientwhen

they carry products and rawmaterials on their return voy-

ages.

Early in the 23rd century, France began to re-exert its

powerinselectedregionswhereitsinterestswereimportant:

Africa,thePacific,andtheMid-East.Avoidingdirectconfron-

tationwithrivalssuchasArgentina,Mexico,andManchuria,

Francewasabletorebuilditsmilitarystrengthandreputation

overthecourseofdecades.WhenFrancefoughtbattles, it

won;whenitnegotiated,italsowon.Whatitcouldn’twin,

itscrupulouslyavoided.By2250,Francewasnearlyasuper-

power.

Developments on Earth, however, did not come to a

standstill because of interstellar exploration. International

rivalries,populationpressures,andideologicaldisputescon-

tinued.ThenationsofLatinAmericastruggledthroughthree

RioPlataWarsasArgentinaandBrazilfoughtforsupremacy

ontheircontinent.Vietnam,asourceofcheaplaborearlyin

the century, industrialized to thepoint that itwas aprime

plumcovetedbybothCantonandIndonesia.TheCanton-In-

donesianWar(2264to2268)turnedSoutheastAsia intoa

warzoneandmadethe IndochinaPeninsulaarestiveCan-

tonesepuppet-state.

The Rio Plata Wars:ConflictonEarthduringthiscen-turywasdominatedbyaseriesofwarsbetweenBraziland

Argentina,thoughtheconflictintheCentralAsianRepublic

hadfargreaterconsequences.TheRioPlatawarswerewar

forterritory,andsee-sawedbetweenthetwonationsinthree

warsthatcollectivelyspannedovernineyearsandtensions

thatspannedoverfifty.BytheendoftheThirdWar,Argen-

tinawasabletocreatetheIncanRepublicinanattemptto

reduceBrazil’spowerinthenorthernpartofSouthAmerica.

ThetermsofthefinaltreatysawBrazillosetheheadwaters

oftheAmazontothenascentnation,acalculatedmovede-

signedtohumiliatethem.

Gene Protests:Thedevelopmentof theDNAmodi-fication technology late in the22nd centurywas a triumph

of biotechnology. However, as the full ramifications of the

technologybegantobeunderstoodbythegeneralpopula-

tion,oppositiontohumanapplicationsbegantogrow.The

Kingmodificationinparticulararousedtheireofthepopula-

tion,asthenewcitizensofKingswereveritablesupermen,

andthedrawbacksofthemodificationwerenotfullyunder-

stoodatthetime.TheGeneProtestsgrewintoaworld-wide

movement, and resulted in virtual moratorium on further

DNAmodificationprojects.Atleastofficially,allhumanDNA

modificationexperimentsceased.

First Contacts: Given the number of inhabitableworlds, itwas accepted as inevitable that humanity would

meetotherintelligencesamongthestars.Duringthesecond

halfofthe23rdcenturyandearlyyearsofthe24th,Human

explorersencounteredatleastsevenintelligentspecies,four

ofthemspace-faring.Evidencewasalsofoundtosuggestat

leasttwoormorealienraceshadinhabitedtheregioninthe

past,withareal, if remote,possibilityof their return.With

thesefirstcontactscameincreasedculturaldiversityintothe

increasing convergent human culture. Academic investiga-

tionofthesealienculturesprovidednewinsightsintoEarth’s

cultures,bothpastandpresent.

The Slaver War: The Slaver War was the first warfoughtbyHumanityagainstanalienenemy.TheSung,first

contacted in 2257, were a race that, much like humanity,

wasdividedupintonationsandspecial-interestgroups.They

wereadvanced,withextensiveoperations throughout their

solarsystem.However,theylackedknowledgeofthestutter-

warpdrive.TheAkcheetoonnationwasthemostpowerful

oftheSungnation-states,andhadacolonyonthehabitable

moonofthesystem’slargegasgiant.Thiscolonywasprimar-

ilyaminingcolonyusingwhatwereatfirst thought tobe

localanimalsforlabor.Itwasn’tuntilfurtherexaminationby

aNorthAmericanResearchLeagueundercoverteamthatis

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waslearnedthatthese“animals”wereinfactanintelligent

race,theXiang.

ThisledtopublicoutcryonEarth,anddemandsthattheslavesbefreed.Humanrequests,andthendemands,upon

the Sung tohalt their activities on thegardenmoonwere

ignored,thoughtheSungremainedfriendlyinallotherdis-

courses.

Finally, fleet elements from Canada and Manchuria

movedin,andweremetbyAkcheetoonwarships,whore-

fused to surrender. Though the Human warships were not

travelingatFTLvelocities, theywerestill farenoughoutof

thegasgiant’sgravitywelltobeabletorunringsaroundthe

Sungvessels.ThesmallHumantaskforcewasabletodestroy

themassedalienfleetwithnolosses.Humaninfantryunits

werethenlandedonthemoontoisolateandreduceSung

securityforces,whilediplomaticeffortsontheSunghome-

world resulted in the isolationandeventual capitulationof

theAkcheetoonnation,andeventuallytheentireworld,to

Humanforces.

Economic Stagnation:Amongthecolonialpowers,thematurationoftheircoloniesledtoaneconomiccrisis.The

economiesofmanyoftheTier2andTier3nations(seep.

54)hadbeenstructuredalongmercantilistlines,wherethey

purchasedrawmaterialsfromthecoloniesandinreturnthe

coloniespurchasedfinishedgoodsfromthehomenations.By

themiddleofthe23rdcentury,however,manyofthecolonies

ontheAmericanandFrenchArmswerelargelyindependent,

orconductedtheirtradewithothercolonies.Thisdisrupted

thebalanceof trade,as themothernations stillpurchased

raw materials from the colonies, but the colonies for their

parthadlessneedofthefinishedgoodsthemothernation

couldprovide.Thiseconomicslumpaccountsforthelackof

colonialeffortsbymanyoftheestablishedTier2andTier3

powersduringthisperiod.Mostofthecolonizationprograms

ofthesecondhalfofthe23rdcenturywerebyemergingTier

3powerslikeBrazilandCanada.

The Decline of Nationalism: Easy travel on andoffEarthenabledmanypeopletomaintainmobilelife-styles

without a permanent residence. Some people (explorers,

starship crew, and orbital industrial workers) found them-

selvestaxedonthebasisofgeography,butnotreceivingany

real benefit from those taxes.Others founddeferenceand

statuscamewithnationalcitizenshipratherthanmerit.Some

interest groups created their own non-territorial “nations”

to better protect their interests. Others rejected nationality

completely.

Atthesametime,morepeoplecametophilosophically

rejectnationalism,findingmoreincommonwithethnic,re-

ligious, ethical, or professional values. The proper national

citizenship remainedaconvenience (awrongonecouldbe

ahindrance),butmanypeoplehadcometofeelthatthere

werehighervaluesthanmeregeographicallegiance.

The Central Asian War: The Central Asian War(2283-2287)eventuallyinvolvedFrance,Bavaria,Russiaand

Japan arrayed against the imperial armies of Manchuria.

Manchuria lost thewar,butFrenchprestigewasbrokenas

theywereforcedtoacceptJapaneseassistancetodrivethe

ManchurianforcesoutoftheCentralAsianRepublic.

War of German Reunification: France’s loss ofprestige led directly to the War of German Reunification

(2292-2293). The German province of Hanover, sensing

Frenchweakness,movedtoreunitethescatteredprovinces

ofGermany,separatesincetheTwilightWar,intoonecohe-

sivewhole.Franceresisted,andGermantroopscrossedthe

RhineandmovedonParis.Onlyaquicksurrenderprevented

theGermansfromsailingtheirhovertanksundertheArc de

Triomphe.

The French Empire:ThecostlyFrenchvictoryintheCentralAsianWarin2287producedwell-groundedcharges

ofpoorsupportandsupplyforthearmy.In2289,thearmy

stagedacoupwhichthrewoutthe12thRepublicandestab-

lishedasystemofmonopoliesinvitalindustries.Thesemo-

nopolieswereprofitable for thecontractors,but inefficient

sourcesofsupply;andwithtypicalmilitarythinking,thejunta

printedmoneytopaynationaldebts.Theresultwasrunaway

inflation and tremendous social unrest. When the armed

forcescouldnotstoporwintheWarofGermanUnification

ortheFlemishWarofIndependencewhichfollowedin2293,

thearmywasforcedtoallowfreeelections,whichwerema-

nipulatedtobringNicholasRuffin,aprominent industrialist

andfree-marketadvocate,topower.Underhispolicies,the

The Rise and Fall of the German Nation: Forcenturies,theGermannationsofEurope(Bavar-

ia,Hanover,Westphalia,Saxony,andBrandenburg)were

content to live in the shadow of France. French-domi-

natedBavariaenjoyedmembershipinESA,flewstarships

underitsownnationalcolors,andcolonizedworldsun-

derothersuns.TheotherGermanstatesalternatelyal-

liedwithFranceandBavaria,withotherpowers,orchose

theirownpaths.

Inthe2280s,withgrowingsentimentforreunifica-

tion,alltheGermannationsbutBavariaacceptedacall

byHanovertounite.TheythenmobilizedtobringBavar-

ia into theGermannation.Frenchobjectionsproduced

theshortWarofGermanReunification,inwhichFrance

wasdefeatedandforcedtoacceptthecreationofanew

Germanstate.ThatFrancewasdefeatedonlyduetoher

heavyinvolvementacrosstheglobeandonhercolonies

isnotoftenmentioned.Continuedinternalstrifeinthe

newGermannation,inparticularintheformerBavarian

colonies,createdschismsinGermansocietythatresulted

inmanyofthesecoloniesgoingoffontheirown.

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Frencheconomyreboundeddramatically.Carefulmediahan-

dlingintheyearsleadinguptothe2298electionproduceda

Frenchpopulationreceptivetotheideaofestablishinganew

empire.Inclusionofthequestioninaplebisciteattachedto

the2298electionsledtotheformationoftheThirdEmpire,

withRuffinastheEmperor,bylate2298.

The Kafer War: Theotherwarfoughtagainstanalienracedidnotgonearlysowellforhumanity.Thewarstarted

withanunprovokedattackontheHumanresearchoutpost

orbiting the star Arcturus in 2297, and eventually encom-

passedmostofwhathadbeen the richest,mostpopulous

coloniesinHumanspace.

AN UNSETTLED TIME: 2300 – PRESENT ThewaragainsttheKafersdominatedthefirsttwode-

cadesofthenewcentury.Evenwiththeirpartialdefeat,the

effectsoftheirinvasionandthesubsequentdevastationwill

continuetobefeltfordecadestocome.Thelatterpartofthis

period,however,ismarkedbyincreasinghumanexploration,

bothinscopeandinspeed.Partofthisisduetoadesireto

findresourcestorepairthedamageofthelastwar,andpart

istomakesurenothingelseisouttheresneakinguponhu-

manity.

THE FLIGHT OF THE BAYERN OneofthemostsignificantendeavorsofHumanitywas

theflightoftheBayern,whichopenedawholenewregion

of space to human exploration, the so-called Bayern corri-

dor,atwistedlineofstarsreachingover200lightyearsinto

spacefromtheHumanworlds,thoughstoppingwellshortof

thePleiades.TheBayernwasthemostadvancedexploratory

starshipeverconstructed,builtbytheAstronomischen Re-

chen-Institut,aBavarian(nowGerman)sciencefoundation.

The shipwasdesigned to reach thePleiades,a star cluster

nearly400lightyearsawayfromEarth,andemployedmul-

tiple,disposabledrivesalongwithamassivedrive tuner to

bridgeagapnearthestartofitsjourney.Thegapwas15.1

light yearsacross, and required thevessel todumpadrive

coreanduseanotherindeepspace,usingthedrivetunerto

bringitonline.

At the beginning of its journey, the Bayern traveled

through alien Pentapod space, getting the first Human

glimpseofthePentapodhomeworld,andmappingoutthe

smallclusterofstarsknownasthePentapodFinger.Along

thewaytothePleiades,theBayernencounteredthreealien

races: the so-called“LittleGuys”, the entity knownas the

AGRAIntelligence,andanunknown(andhostile)starshipor

spacestationinanotherwiseuninhabitedsystemalongthe

way.

The1-meter tall, four-armed“LittleGuys”were survi-

vorsofasystem-widecivilizationthathaddestroyeditselfin

awarthatdwarfedeventheTwilightWarinscale.Withthe

realizationthatEarthhadonlynarrowlyescapedasimilarfate

itself,theplightofthe“LittleGuys”generatedagreatdeal

of sympathy from Earth, even as the French Arm suffered

increasingdestruction.Thediscoveryofabrowndwarfthat

provideda linkacross the15.1 lightyeargapbetweenthe

PentapodFingerandtheBayernCorridor,coupledwithstut-

terwarptugsoperatedbytheTriloncorporation,allowedthe

firstreliefexpeditionsthroughinthemid-2310s.

Thoughthe“LittleGuys”hadveryhumanconcernsof

survival,theentityknownastheAGRAIntelligencewasut-

terlyunfathomable.ThePleiades star clusterappears tobe

the location of a vast engineering project for this being,

or perhapsgroupof beings. Thepurposeof this project is

unknown,but it involvesmovingand linking stars in some

mannerofmulti-dimensionalconstruct.Theexactnatureof

AGRAisunknown,butitisthoughttoexistasahigher-level

entity,anextra-dimensionalbeing.

The lastalienspecies,anunknownraceof theBayern

corridor, dubbed Argyle 692 after the system they were

encountered in, is further discussed in Chapter 8: Alien

Space.

THE KAFER WAR TheKaferWarisgenerallyacknowledgedtohavelast-

edfrom2298to2313,andconsistedoftwomainphases.

Thefirstbeganin2298,whentheKaferleader(orSuzerain)

known as Triumphant Destiny attacked the distant colony

worldofAurore.TheHumandefendersinspacewerewiped

out,and thousandsof troopswere landed.TheKaferfleet

waseventuallydrivenoff,onlytoreturn in2301withrein-

forcements.FromwhatinformationtheHumanintelligence

serviceswereabletoobtain,itappearsthatTriumphantDes-

tinywas able to recruit allies in the regionnowknownas

theKaferSphere,andreturnedin2301.Kaferforcesfound

adisorganizedHumanityonlybarelypreparedtofacethem,

andenjoyedgreat success for thefirst sixmonthsor soof

the war. One of the most devastating losses of this phase

wasthecolonyworldofHochbaden,aworldofdomedcities

andspacehabitats.BeforetheKaferattacks,Hochbadenhad

over4millionpeople.Afterwards,notasinglesurvivorcould

befound.

TheKaferfleetswereeventuallystoppedatQueenAl-

ice’sStar in2302bytheTerranReserveFleet,consistingof

warshipsfromAmerica,Britain,France,Germany,Australia,

Canada,Argentina,Azania,andJapan.TriumphantDestiny

Stutterwarp Tugs: Stutterwarptugsareamethodofbypassingthestrict

7.7 light year limit on stutterwarpdrive vessels. Further

detailscanbefoundinChapter16:SpaceTravel.

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waskilledinthebattle,andtheremainingKaferforceswere

scattered.Foratime,Humanitythoughtthewarwasover.

Contactwith thealien raceknownas theYlii eventu-

allyprovidedmoreintelligenceabouttheKafers,andHuman

planners realized that thewarwas far fromover.Very few

oftheKafer leadershadbeeninvolvedintheattackledby

TriumphantDestiny.Thosewhoremainedwereboundtobe

frightenedbytheresults.ThefleetledbyTriumphantDestiny

hadbeenthelargestfleetunderoneleaderassembledbyany

Kafer,andithadbeendefeated.Armedwiththisrealization,

theKaferOver-Suzerain(Humanintelligencewasneverable

to learn itsname)wasabletogetfleetandtroopcommit-

mentsfromalmosteveryotherSuzerain.Noneofthemcom-

mittedtheirfullstrength,however,toowaryofeachotherto

striptheirholdingsbare.

TheKaferfleet,consistingofover150capital-classves-

sels,invadedHumanspacein2305.Thisfleetoverwhelmed

thepicketshipsatArcturus,thenmovedontoDM+182776,

bypassing Eta Bootis and her determined defenders. This

wouldeventuallyprovetobeacostlymistakefortheKafers,

astheshipsatAurorewereabletoraidtheKaferrearforthe

nextfiveyearsof thewar.The tacticsof theOver-Suzerain

weremuchmoreconservativethanthoseofTriumphantDes-

tiny,andtheprogressoftheKaferfleetwasslow.Progress

was further hampered by the rate of mutiny on the Kafer

warships, which would go off on independent raids when

theircrewsgotbored.Thoughtheywereoftenaproblemfor

theKaferHighCommand,theseindependentraidsdidkeep

theHumandefendersoff-balance.

OneoftheprioritiesfortheOver-Suzerainwastocontrol

any world encountered that was suitable for Kafer habita-

tion.Thisusuallyhada largepartof thefleet remaining in

orbitaroundtheworldtoprovidesupportwhiletroopswere

landed.Theremainderofthefleetwouldconductreconnais-

sance-in-forceofthesurroundingsystems.Atypicallanding

saw15,000troopsandtheirequipmentgodown,witheven

moreonworldssuchasNousVoila,BetaCanum,andKiman-

jano.

Thesetacticswereslow,however,andgavetheHuman

defenderstimetoregroup.TheHumanfleetwassplit,with

elementsatEarth,QueenAlice’sStar,andAurore.SansSouci

wouldlaterplayaroleasastagingareaforFrenchforces.

Humanitywasforcedtoplayawaitinggameagainstthe

Kaferforces,andhopethatinternalstrifeintheKaferfleet,

combinedwith thedifficulties ofmaintaining an extremely

longandtenuoussupply linewouldgiveHumanitytheop-

portunitytheyneeded.

Kaferreconnaissanceforceswentintoeachnewsystem

withthetwingoalsofsurveyingalldeployeddefenses,and

alsoofcausingasmuchdamagetothosedefensesaspos-

sible.Often theywere forced tofleeHumanmainfleetel-

ements,but theHuman forceswereunable to follow,due

to theoverwhelmingnatureof themainKaferfleet.These

reconforcesoftenwereabletoorbitthecolonyworld,and

usedthetimeto landscoutingforcesandbombard impor-

tanttargets.

ThemostinterestingtacticemployedbytheKafersdur-

ing thewarwas theuseof so-called infiltrator forces. The

infiltratorswereatacticnotseenbefore,usingaclassofship

heretoforeunknown.Thecrewsoftheinfiltratorshipswere

allelitetroops,andthesmallvesselslandedonworldsweeks

priortoinvasion.TheinfiltratorsmadegooduseofYliienvi-

ronmental technologies toremainunseenastheygathered

intelligence.Thestealthyinfiltratorvesselswerealsousedto

conduct deep-penetration raids, either to damage supplies

andequipment,orsimplytosowpanicamongHumanforces

andcivilians.

Infiltrator raidswere responsible formuchof the refu-

geetraffictoleaveDunkelheim,NousVoila,Vogelheim,and

BetaCanum,manyofwhomweretrappedintheKimanjano

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systemwhentherecon-in-forceofearly2307destroyedthe

world’sorbital infrastructure,settingthestagefor the later

massedattackinmid-2307.

By2309,themainKaferfleet,muchreducedinsize,had

bypassed Beowulf and was making a drive for Earth. Only

the colony of Nibelungen stood in its way, along with the

expandedTerranReserve Fleet, ledbyAdmiralof the Fleet

Dame Samantha Warkington. In addition to those nations

that had contributed vessels to the original Reserve Fleet,

severalmorehadcontributedvessels, includingManchuria,

Indonesia,Freihafen,andWellon.ThecombinedHumanfleet

stoodat94maincombatants,plusahostoffighters,drone

fighters, and converted civilianmissile carriers.Against this

forcewere72capitalshipsoftheKaferfleet,withtherest

scattered back to Kafer space to protect their supply lines

fromHumanraiders.

Attheendofthebattle,theOver-Suzerain,alongwith

twootherSuzerains,wasdead,alongwithnearlyhalfofthe

Kafervessels.TwoSuzerainslivedtofleethebattlefieldwith

thetatteredremainsoftheirforces.TheHumanforceshad

sufferedalmost30%casualties,exceptfortheconvertedci-

vilianmissilecarriers,whichhadsufferedcloseto100%ca-

sualties.Thelattervesselshadbeencrammedwiththenew

smartmissiles,whichrequirednoHumancontrollers.Though

manyof theseweapons simply failed,ormissed, theypro-

videdanelementofconfusionfortheKafervessels,allow-

ingthemoreaccurateremote-pilotedmissilesthrough.The

convertedmissilecarrierswereabletomaintaintheirfirefor

overanhour,untilhuntedanddestroyedbyKaferfighters

andinfiltrators.

AfterthevictoryatNibelungen,theHumanforcesthen

wenton the counterattack, andmoved to liberate theoc-

cupiedcoloniesoftheFrenchArm.ThemainKaferfleethad

broken,andoffered little resistance to thiseffort.Only the

infiltratorvesselsputupanysortoffight,andcontinuedto

harassHumanvesselsevenwellaftertheendofthewar.

TheKaferfleetbrokeandfled,carryingwordofthede-

featbacktotheworldsoftheKafersphere.Severalofthe

shipsdroppedtheirtroopsatKimanjanoandDunkelheimon

thewayout, butmost dropped their remaining troopsoff

atNousVoila,whichhadbeenearlier devastatedbyKafer

orbitalstrikes.

In late 2311, human invasion fleets crossed the Kafer

frontier.Thehumanfleetswereaidedgreatlybytheturmoil

that had enveloped the Kafer sphere following the defeat

oftheOver-Suzerain’sfleetatNibelungen.Thatbeing’spre-

sumeddeathdidmuchtofosterthechaos,astheremaining

rivalSuzerain’sviedforpower.

The front-lineKafer worlds hadowed fealty to Trium-

phant Destiny, the leader of the original Kafer invasion in

2297,anditsdeathandthedestructionofmuchofitsfleet

in2303hadstrippedtheworldsofmanyoftheirdefenses.

Infightingover its succession, and aprior conflictwith the

Over-Suzerain, left these frontline worlds largely bereft of

theirdefensivefleets,whilethemoredistantworldsignored

thedefenseoftheSphereinpursuitoftheirowngoals.

Eschewing the slow tactics favored by the Kafers, the

HumanfleetsmadeadashforthehomesystemofGamma

Serpentis,whichwasanaturalchokepointbetweentherest

oftheKaferSphereandHumanspace.

In 2312, German Konteradmiral Wilhelm Lutke was

chargedwithscoutingouttheloopofworldsjustpastArc-

turus,offthemainpathofthehumanfleets.Theseworlds

wereoncethefiefofTriumphantDestiny,and,asnotedpre-

viously,werelargelystrippedoftheirfleets.Followingthein-

structionsoftheFrenchGrandAdmiralGeorgesMont-Clair

andLordAdmiralWarkington (thecommandersof thehu-

maninvasionfleet),LutkelandedtroopstodetermineKafer

preparednesstogroundinvasion.TheKaferswereverywell

prepared,andLutke lostagreatmanyofhis troops in the

initial landings.Enraged,andrespondingto intelligencere-

portsthattheseworldshadoncebelongedtothebeingthat

had destroyed Hochbaden, Lutke used his ships to bomb

theworld flat, usingnuclear and kinetic deadfallweapons

tocommitgenocide.Theextensiveorbitalhabitatssuffered

muchthesamefate,asLutkereenactedtheMassacreofHo-

chbadenuponthealiens.Lutke’sflagship,theBrandenburg,

was a new class of vessel, a planetary control cruiser, and

wasexpresslydesignedfororbitalbombardmentandsurface

control.AFrenchcourierattachedtoLutke’sfleetfledback

tothemainfleet,bearingthenewsoftheKonteradmiral’s

actions. The other habitable worlds in the loop were sub-

jectedtothesametreatment,andLutkeignoredordersfrom

Mont-Clairtostanddown.TheKafersnotkilledintheinitial

attacksperished later fromthecombinedeffectsof starva-

tion,nuclearwinteranddisease.Atleastoneoftheworldsof

theloopwassuitableforHumancolonization,butanysettle-

mentwouldhavetowaituntilsurfaceconditionsstabilized.

Once he was finished with the worlds of the Loop, Lutke

rushedhis squadron to join the attackon theKafer home

system.

Orbital Drop Assaults: A new tactic pioneered in the Kafer War with the

adventofbettercontrol technology,theorbitaldropas-

saultprovidesawaytoquickly insertcombatgroupsup

tocompany-sizedanywhereonaplanet,andthenback

them up with conventional assault landers later. Orbital

dropassaultsareconductedwithdropcapsules,eachcon-

tainingeitheratrooperandhisweapons,adecoy,remote

missiles,oracombatwalker.Timefromorbittogroundis

lessthan10minutes,andgivesthedroptroopersanele-

mentofsurpriseintheirattacksonKaferdefenses.

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AtGammaSerpentis, theKaferhomesystem,theHu-

man invader’s encountered very heavy resistance, though

notasheavyas they feared.TheotherKaferSuzerainsdid

not provide any ships to aid in the home world’s defense,

andthoughthesystem’sdefendersfoughtfanatically,itwas

tonoavail. IftheyhadhadsupportoftheotherSuzerains,

theymayhavebeenabletorepeltheHumaninvaders.Asit

was,theotherSuzerainsweretoobusyfortifyingthemselves

against the Humans or each other. Despite a 35% loss in

ships,includingDameSamantha’sHMSS Hood, theHuman

fleetgainedorbitalsuperiorityoverbothinhabitedworldsof

theKaferhomesystem.

Lutke’ssquadron,withBrandenburgatthelead,arrived

inorbitovertheKafercolonyworldofGammaSerpentisIV

asthemainbattlewasjoinedoverGammaSerpentisIII,the

Kaferhomeworld. The squadronquickly subdued the few

orbitalassetsovertheworld,acolonyofover500,000Kaf-

ers,andLutke’sfleetbeganabombardment.BoththeAmeri-

canandFrenchcommandersmovedtointervene,andfinally

LutkewasputunderarrestbythecommanderoftheGerman

contingent,AdmiralHorst vanGubler.Hewas immediately

shippedofftoEarthfortrial.

Thepuzzleofwhat todoabout theKaferworldshad

longbeengnawingatthemindsofbothmilitaryandcivilian

planners.OnefactionfavoredLutke’sapproach–genocide.

The other faction felt that the masses of Earth would not

stand for aHuman-created Twilight against an alien, intel-

ligent race, even with the destruction wreaked upon the

worldsoftheFrenchArm.

IncooperationwithasmallgroupofFrenchandBritish

officers,thePentapodsprovidedasolution.By2310,aPen-

tapod/Humanteamofmedicalresearchershaddecodedthe

biochemicalbasisforthepara-adrenalresponse,themeans

bywhichKafersgot“smart”whenthreatenedorconfronted

withviolence.By2311theyhaddevelopedameanstoinhibit

thepara-adrenalresponse.Theirsolutionwasaviralplague,

which could be spread through the Kafer population. The

Kafer lackofanyrealmedicalsciencefurther increasedthe

oddsofsuccess.ArmedwiththisPentapodweapon,theHu-

manofficersdevelopedaplanwithouttheapprovaloftheir

politicalleadership.

ThefirstwaveoftheHumaninvasionoftheKaferhome-

worldappearedtobeascoutingmission,andinawayitwas.

Someofthetroopswhowentdownwerespecialforces,who

remainedbehindtoprovideintelligenceandsupportforthe

landingthatwouldfollow.Mostofthetroops,though,were

volunteers,hailingfromworldslikeAurore,NousVoila,Beta

Canum,Dunkelheim,andKimanjano,worldsthathadseen

severedamageatKaferhandsthroughoutthewar.Afewof

thevolunteerssecretlyagreedtobe infectedwiththePen-

tapodvirus,whichhadnoknowneffectsonHumans.Most,

however,knewnothingof thevirus,or thepurposeof the

raid.Afewof theassaultboats,emptyof livingcrewsbut

carrying a cargo of the virus, “crashed” under automated

control,allconvenientlynearthelargestKafercities.TheHu-

manreconforcelandednearthelargestcityandtheworld’s

mainspaceport.Withinamonthofthelanding,mostofthe

populationoftheKaferhomeworldhadlosttheabilitytoget

“smart”and themostpopulousworld inKaferSpacewas

plungedintochaos.

Thenextwaveoflandingswasmuchlarger,andmuch

more successful.Humanity succeeded in establishingbases

ontheKaferhomeworld,whiletheworldtoreitselftopiec-

es.ManyKaferswerelargelyunaffected,beingpermanently

smart,andasmallnumberactuallyappearedtobeimmune,

buttheywerenotenough.TheycontinuetoharasstheHu-

manoccupationtroops,however,resultinginasteadytrickle

ofcasualtiesandcorpsesreturningtoHumanspacefromthe

KaferSphere.

Wordofwhathadhappenedonthehomeworldfiltered

outtotheremainderoftheKafersphere.Fearofthis“curse”

served tokeep the remainingKafer shipsand troopsaway

from Gamma Serpentis, and an uneasy, undeclared truce

exists.A fewKafer ships slippast theblockadeatGamma

Serpentis, while occasional human raiders likewise go ma-

rauding inKafer space,butneither side is currentlywilling

to take the risks necessary to attempt all-out conquest. In

addition,thelossoftheOver-Suzerain,andthesubsequent

collapseoftheKaferhomeworld,hasplungedtheremainder

oftheKaferSphereintoconflict,astheremainingSuzerains

struggletoattaintheresourcesneededforsurvival.

It is readilyapparenttomostmilitaryanalyststhatHu-

manitycouldhavewonthewarwithoutPentapodinterven-

AGRA and the Kafers: Intheearlyyearsofthewar,therewasconsiderable

pressureexertedbythepublicto“dosomething”about

theKafers.Genocidewasopenlydiscussed. Thenover

the course of five years, from about 2307 on, public

opinion shifted to support of a policy of containment.

In2307, theBayern returned from itsvoyage,and the

existenceofAGRAwasmadeknowntoselectnational

governments and Foundations. Several of the Founda-

tions voiced concern that, now that Humans had the

attention of AGRA, exterminating another intelligence

species might be a bad idea. If nothing else, no one

wantedtogivetheimmenselypowerfulbeingsrenovat-

ingthePleiadesanyideas.TheLifeFoundation,aidedby

theNorthAmericanResearchLeagueandseveralothers,

beganacampaignof“reprogramming”publicopinion

tofavorcontainmentratherthanextermination.Thesuc-

cessofthisprogramhasalarmedthenationsthatwere

alsoprivytotheoperation,astheyracetoduplicatethe

concept.

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tion.Once theHumanfleet controlled theorbital spaceof

GammaSerpentisIII,thewarwaseffectivelywon.Whatthe

Pentapodweapongavehumanitywastime,astheremaining

KafersintheSpherearetoofrightenedoftheweapon’sef-

fectstotryandretakethehomeworld,atleastuntiltheyget

theirinternalproblemssortedout.

AFTERMATH The Decline of France:ThefailureoftheFrenchNavytoadequatelyprotecttheFrenchcolonyworlds,inparticular

aftertheinvasionbytheKaferOver-Suzerainanditsalliesin

2306,challengedFrance’spreeminentroleinhumanaffairs.

France’sEarth-boundpowerhasdiminished, thoughnot in

the way its off-world prestige has. Several French colonies

haveeitherattemptedtodeclaretheirindependence,orhave

been effectively destroyed by the war. French casualties in

thewarweresevere,withmorethan10milliondead,and

millionsmorerenderedhomeless.Thisperiodalsomarksthe

beginningoftheendoftheFrenchPeace,asFrance’sinability

tocontrolitswaywardcoloniesleadstoitsroleonEarthbe-

ingchallenged.Sofar,theFrenchresponsetothesereversals

hasbeenincreasingintoleranceofdissent,witharmedforce

increasinglylikelytobeusedtoquellcivilunrest,andamili-

tanthandinitsdealingswiththecolonies.

Refugee Crises: Thedestructionof somuchof thecolonialinfrastructureoftheFrenchArmhasledtoahumani-

tariancrisis,astheabilityofreliefagencies likeZapamoga

andtheRedStarsocietytocopeislimited.Manyoftherefu-

geeshavebeenresettled,particularlyalongtheChineseArm

ofspace,fosteringresentmentamongboththeoriginalcolo-

nistsandtherefugeestowardstheterrestrialgovernments.

The Rise of America: The KaferWarwasfoughtagreatdistancefromAmericanholdings,andatnotimewere

Americanterritorieseverthreatenedbythewar.YetAmerica

tookonthetaskofdefendingworldsnotherown,andpaid

thepriceinshipsandpersonnel.Theyalsotookupaleader-

shiproleinthewar,alongsidetheBritishfleets,astheFrench

and Germans seemed too concerned with establishing the

chainofcommandtofightthewar.ItwastheAmericanbat-

tleshipColumbia,theprideofherfleet,thatturnedthetide

atBeowulfin2303,andAmericanshipsthatledthewaypast

Arcturus intoKafer space in2311.Castingaside the isola-

tionistroleithadplayedforthepastthreecenturies,America

isonceagainontherise.

Colonial Dissent: The period of 2309 to 2320 hasalso seen an upsurge in independence movements among

thecolonies, inparticular those long-settled,or thosewho

believe that theywerebadly treated in theKaferWar and

its aftermath. Following the war, Heidelsheimat officially

declared its independence from Germany, as did the pros-

perouscolonyofNibelungen.Germanydidlittletoattempt

topersuadethecoloniestoreturn,astheGermannational

consciencewasstillwrestlingwiththeactionsofLutkeand

hisfleet,alongwiththedestructionofsosuchofthenation’s

colonialinfrastructure.

ThingswentdifferentlyforFrance,however.Thedecline

in Frenchprestige following theKaferWar stung their no-

toriousGallicpride,andtheattemptsofafewcoloniesand

outpoststosecedestungfurther.Francehasreactedtoany

colonial dissent with force, and has so far thwarted rebel-

lionsatSerurier,Nyotekundu,KimanjanoandAurore.These

rebellionshaveservedtostrengthentherisingmilitarism in

theFrenchEmpire,andfuelednewexpeditionstofindnew

worlds.Ofthethreeold-timeEuropeancolonialpowers,Brit-

ainhasgonerelativelyunscathedbytherecentupswing in

colonialunrest,saveforthecolonyatCrater,withitstraitor-

ousgovernorandanuprisingamongtheminers.

WARS ON EARTH Asidefromtheover-archingmenaceoftheKaferWar,

therewerethreefurtherwarsonEarthinthistime.

Second Central Asian War: In2309,withFrance’sattentionfocusedelsewhere,Manchuriaagainattemptedto

invadetheCentralAsianRepublic.WithFranceandGermany

outofthepicture,theManchurianforcesfelttheycouldhan-

dletheforcesoftheCARandanyRussianalliestheymight

bringtothefray.Theywerewrong,andtheresultwasthree

bloodyyearsofwarbeforetheManchurianforcesfellback

intoTibet.

Second Mexican Civil War:Earlyinthenewcentury,festeringresentmentinMexicoattheperceivedexcessesof

therulingmilitary-industrialeliteexplodedintoviolencewhen

securityforcesfiredintocrowdsoffood-shortageprotesters

inMexicoCityandLosAngeles.Thisprovidedaflashpoint

forthewholenation,andtheriotsbecameopenrebellion.

Contrarytoexpectations,therebelswonthewar,andagain

contrarytoexpectations,actuallydeliveredontheirpromise

offreeelectionsin2316.

Fourth Rio Plata War:In2319,thelong-simmeringresentmentandhostilitybetweenBrazilandArgentinaflared

tolifeagain.TheKaferWarhaddivertedthesetwooldan-

tagonists,buttherivalryneverwentaway.Asof2320,the

twonationshaveturnednorthernUruguayintoabattlefield,

andforeignobserversarewatchingwithgreatinteresttosee

how the military lessons of the Kafer War play out in war

betweenHumanopponents.

TRADITIONAL RIVALRIES Historyhascreatedtraditionalrivalriesbetweencertain

Humannations.

Franco‑German Rivalry:Bavariahad,untilrecently,beenanallyofFrance,helpinghertorestoreworldorder,and

participatinginESAprograms.TheWarofGermanReunifi-

cation(from2292to2293)changedallofthis.TheGerman

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victorythencausedtheFrenchtoloseprestigeandnational

pride,andneithernationislikelytosoonforget.

Argentine‑British Rivalry:Withdisputesdatingbackhundreds of years, the Argentine and British governments

haveoftenbeenatodds.Their rivalry solidifiedbecauseof

theAlphaCentauriWarandtheBritishdenouncementofthe

Inca Republic (although the Republic has since become an

embarrassmenttoitsArgentineandMexicanpatrons).

Argentine‑Brazilian Rivalry: The Rio Plata Warswerefoughtforreasonsrangingfromaneedforresources

to a quest for economic and political supremacy in South

America.

Manchurian‑French Rivalry:WhenManchurianin-tervention intoCentralAsia erupted inwar, the French (as

world peacekeepers) became their main adversaries. Many

ManchurianslivingoffEarthdonotharborresentmentover

this,but forTerranManchurians, theFrench-solicited Japa-

neseinterventionwasaninsulttheywillnotforget.

Manchurian‑Japanese Rivalry: The two majorpowersofAsiahavehada long-runninghistoryofhostility

towardsoneanother.Thecurrentfrictionbetweenthetwo

nationsstemsfromJapaneseactioninthe1stCentralAsian

War,whentheirinterventionhaltedtheManchurianadvance,

andeventuallyturnedthewarinthefavorofFranceandher

allies.

American‑Mexican Rivalry:Mexicancontrolofpor-tionsofwhatwasonce theAmericansouthwestcreateda

strong dislike among Americans for Mexicans. Though it’s

beenthreehundredyears,olddislikesdiehard.Therecent

changeofgovernmentandpolicies inMexicohassoftened

officialdislikeofthenation,butitisstillfartooearlyinthe

reformprocesstodeterminewhatwillhappennext.

TRADITIONAL COOPERATIONS Theeventsofhistoryhavealsoprovidedsomelong-lived

friendshipsbetweennations thathave traditionallyworked

togethertowardcommongoals.

American‑Australian Cooperation: Since theywere both among the latecomers to the extraterrestrial

scene, America and Australia combined their space efforts

fromtheonset.Asaresult,anentireexploratoryarmisvirtu-

ally dominated by their works, an accomplishment neither

nationcouldorwouldhaveaspiredtoseparately.

Canadian‑British Cooperation:BritainandCanadahavealongtraditionofcooperation,andcurrentlyenjoyfa-

vorabletraderelationsandclosecooperationbetweentheir

militaries.ThisfriendshipwasprimarilyanEarth-boundone

untiltheKaferWar.

The ESA: ThemembernationsoftheEuropeanSpaceAgency, France,GreatBritain,Bavaria (nowGermany),and

Azaniahaveatraditionofcooperationinbothterrestrialand

extraterrestrialmatters.EventhesplitbetweenGermanyand

Francehasdonelittletobreakthisparticularbondoffriend-

shipat leastamongeachnation’soff-worldcivilianpopula-

tion.

The French Empire: TheFrenchEmpirebindstogetherlandsandpeoplesfromallovertheEarth.FromCentralAfrica

toSouthAmericatoEurope,allsubjectsoftheFrenchEmpire

feelanelitistcamaraderiewhichbindsthemtogether.

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cHArActErS Character generation follows the T20 Traveller’s Handbook(THB),thoughwithsomeimportantdifferencesasoutlinedhere.

Careers in 2320AD are taken from the THB, and allcareersareavailable,with theexceptionof theNoble,TAS

Reporter and the Big Game Hunter. The Barbarian class is

onlyavailabletotheEberNomadsandcertainprimitivisthu-

man cultures, both on Earth and on a few colony worlds.

2320ADalsoaddstwonewCoreclasses,ColonistandRe-porter, and threenewPrestige classes (p.29): theTrouble-

shooter,theAlienCulturalandTechnologiesExpert,andthe

Special Forces soldier. Many of the classes from T20 havechangestoreflectthe2320ADsetting,andthesechangesareoutlinedonp.27.

Characters in2320AD donotusually start as raw1stlevelcharacters.Theywillhavesomeexperience,andcanbe

generatedeitherwiththeQuickCharacterGenerationsystem

here,orwiththePriorHistoryCharacterGenerationfoundin

T20.

QUICK CHARACTER GENERATION SYSTEM 1.CharacterConcept

2.RollAbilityScoresincludingEducationandSocialStand-

ing

3.ChooseaHomeworldandGravityType

3.1ChooseHomeworldSkills

3.2ChooseHomeworldFeats

4.BackgroundSkills

5.BackgroundFeats

6.Rollforturningpoints

7.UsetheXPgeneratedtocreateacharacter

8.ClassSkillsandFeats

9.MusteringOutandRetirementBenefits

INITIAL STEPS Thefirststepincreatingacharacteristocomeupwithacharacterconcept;aplanofhowtheplayerwantsthechar-

actertoendup.Therandomfactorinthecharactergenera-

tionprocesscanchangethis,butitisagoodstartingpoint.

ABILITY SCORES AbilityscoresaregeneratedasnormalforT20,withhu-mans having a range of 3-18, modified by Body Type and

Gravity.TitlesofnobilityarisingfromSOCarenotgenerally

used, though thegeneralSOC level is still a valid indicator

ofone’splace insociety.Characters fromsocieties thatstill

possessapeeragemayelecttousetheappropriatetitle,with

GMapproval.Thesestatsaregenerate