Game Modes #

Campaign #

Several players create characters and pursue their own goals in a star cluster sketched out by a referee. Ideally, the referee follows the players' lead and responds to them, not the other way around. Over the course of several sessions or more, find out together what happens to the characters and the worlds.

The characters might start without a ship of their own, scraping by to make their way from world to world. If they do start with access to a ship, they’ll be looking for patrons and trade routes to cover their monthly payments.

A campaign might also be more tightly framed. For example, the players could decide ahead of time to be a group of explorers, religious pilgrims, or a mercenary company.

Quickplay #

When time is tight and prep is light, a referee can roll up a single world and outline an opportunity for profit. Use the rules for time, encounters, etc to see what happens next. Roll up new worlds as needed. Great for unplanned sessions or one-shots.

Solitaire #

Grab your favorite solo ttrpg oracle, create a character (or a few!) by yourself, and shove them out into the universe. Lean into encounters and reactions, and keep a log of your journey. Solitaire play is fun on its own, but can also be used as a way to detail a cluster before refereeing a campaign. Additional generators and tools like the excellent The Perilous Void will be particularly handy here.

Module #

Use Night Tripper’s rules to run any classic 2d6 sci-fi adventure module, or an adventure for another system you feel comfortable converting.