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  A Scenario for the Traveller Roleplaying Game
   
  Requires the use of the Traveller(TM) Main Rulebook, available from Mongoose Publishing 
  BEN  LECRONE
   
  
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  Author 
  Ben Lecrone 
   
  Cover Art 
  Made available via the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 license 
   
  Interior Art 
  Ben Lecrone, Paul Elliott (map), other images courtesy of NASA/JPL 
   
  Publisher in PDF format 
  Zozer Games 2013 
   
  Visit Zozer Games at www.zozer.weebly.com 
  Find me on Facebook as Zozer Games 
   
  All rights reserved. Reproduction of this work by any means is expressly forbidden. 
   
  “Traveller” and the Traveller logo are Trademarks owned by Far Future Enterprises, Inc. and 
  are used according to the terms of the Traveller Logo Licence version 1.0c.  A copy of this 
  licence can be obtained from Mongoose Publishing.  The mention or reference to any 
  company or product in these pages is not a challenge to the trademark or copyright 
  concerned. 
   
  “Traveller” and the Traveller logo are Trademarks owned by Far Future Enterprises, Inc. and 
  are used with permission.  The Traveller Main Rulebook is available from Mongoose 
  Publishing. 
  
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  CONTENTS 
   
   
   
   
   
   
  1  
  Introduction  .............4 
   
  2  
  Mars .....................13  
   
  3  
  Interlude ................34 
   
  4  
  Venus ....................40 
   
  5  
  Stuff ....................53 
   
  6     GM’s Info ................57 
       
       Map of Mars ...............61 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
  
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  1    INTRODUCTION  
   
   
   
  GETTING STARTED 
   
  Gift of the Makers is an adventure for nearly any number of players.  As it is based in the 
  world of Outpost Mars and Orbital, it would be helpful to have either of those PDFs, but 
  they are certainly not necessary.  This adventure as written is intended to be an introduction 
  and prequel to the Orbital setting which takes place three years before the official date of 
  that setting (2100 AD).  However, this needn’t be the case and with minor modifications the 
  Gift of the Makers could easily be integrated into an ongoing Outpost Mars campaign, the 
  standard Traveller setting or even 2300AD. 
   
  At the beginning of the adventure it is assumed that all of the Player Characters are already 
  on Mars and at least a little familiar with that planet.  PCs from other locations can be 
  integrated into the party but remember that without reaction drives travel about the Solar 
  System is rather slow so plan accordingly.  Furthermore as per the Outpost Mars game the 
  Players can be of almost any faction or career.  It is highly recommended that all the players 
  have hostile environment survival and vacc suit skills.  Combat skills are helpful but not 
  essential since guns are not permitted within any enclosed extraterrestrial habitat.  
  Investigative skills will also come in handy.  
   
  You will need the Traveller: Core Rulebook by Mongoose Publishing, and Zozer Games’ free 
  pdf supplement Vacc Suit would be helpful as well.  Orbital, even during the time of this 
  adventure, is Traveller Tech Level 9 but without artificial gravity, psionics or jump drive.   
   
  Orbital is a science fiction role-playing setting that makes use of the popular Traveller rules.  
  It is also a sequel to Outpost Mars and expands upon that setting by providing information 
  regarding the entire Solar System, including some of what lies beyond, as well as moving the 
  timeline forward to the year 2100.  Even more importantly, the world of Orbital looks at what 
  could have been.  The enigmatic Face that Viking took pictures of in 1976 really is an ancient 
  monument built by aliens as are the nearby Pyramids and City.  There was a renewed push 
  into space, including a return to the Moon and eventually humans on Mars.  Humanity has 
  spread throughout the Solar System, discovered life on several worlds, and confirmed the 
  existence of intelligent life beyond our own little piece of real estate.   
   
  Yet even through all of these advances human kind remains largely unchanged.  Orbital is a 
  setting that is familiar, believable, and exotic.  It focuses on exploration and adventure.  Like 
  light unable to escape from a black hole, the predicted computer intelligence ‘singularity’ goes 
  unseen.  Super intelligent computers exist but require extensive upkeep and handling while 
  lacking that spark of imagination that would allow them to become truly self aware.  Genetic 
  engineering has wiped out many diseases and extended the average lifespan, but people still 
  look and act like people.  Science and technology has created a multitude of wonders, but 
  humans remain humans.  
  
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  MISFITS ON MARS 
   
   
  Madison Cornelius swore under her breath.  Of all the damn days for my custom Aerodyne 
  MES-XXII to be getting a damn hardware upgrade..she thought to herself while tugging on 
  the sleeves in a vain attempt to relieve the itching. 
   
   
  “Is there a problem Maddy?”  Edger’s voice made Madison jump a bit inside her borrowed 
  Mars suit.   
   
   
  Madison swore again as she heard Edger chuckle over the suit-to-suit link.   
   
   
  “Go to hell, Edger.” she replied with a hiss.   
   
   
  A third voice joined the banter and cut off what would certainly been one of Edger’s typical 
  crude retorts.  “Quiet down you two.  We aren’t supposed to be this close to the exclusion 
  zone.  If an ETM patrol finds us we lose a month’s worth of salvage.” 
   
   
  Dodger was right of course.  The Martian government and Eckard Tactical Management took 
  security around the Cydonia Ruins very seriously.  All manner of alien artifacts had been 
  discovered along the edge of the exclusion zone ranging from what most believed were 
  extraterrestrial chew toys to massive egg shaped devices thought to be long dead fusion 
  power plants.  While Dodger and his crew had so far only found shards and pieces, a single 
  intact artifact could make them all very rich. 
   
   
  Madison understood Dodger’s concern.  She glanced up from her scoop of Martian soil to look 
  over at Dodger.  His head was turned away, but she could clearly see the large yellow ball 
  with a single calligraphy styled word across its center.  The word...Artful, stood out in black 
  against the yellow, adorning his vacc suit helmet with a design known to everyone within the 
  local salvage community.  Dodger was a legend.  The only man to get a partial alien corpse 
  out of the exclusion zone despite the best efforts of the Martian government, International 
  Astronomical Union, and their ETM lapdogs.  Madison smiled as she thought about the time 
  they spent together the last few nights. 
   
   
  The back of Edger’s helmet was nearly as simple.  A dagger like knife between the numbers 
  six and nine.  Arching above the knife was the word Sharpe, and down at the knife’s tip could 
  be read, Edger.  Edger wasn’t as well known as Dodger, but he had a bit of a following none 
  the less.  Despite being a perpetual wise ass, he was a likable man whose loyalty to his 
  friends had saved Madison’s bacon on several occasions.   
   
   
  Further up ahead was Edger’s girl, Indira.  The newest member of their gang she had arrived 
  just months ago directly from Earth.  She didn’t talk much, and Edger hinted that her time 
  with the Snakeheads had left her traumatized.  The back of her helmet held an intricate 
  portrait of the Hindu goddess, Lakshmi.  Lakshmi was the bringer of luck and a ward against 
  misery.  The group could certainly use all the luck they could get, especially after the deaths 
  of Soumil and Monty.  Edger, a man once unwilling to take any interest in helping others 
  beyond his core group of friends, now had a personal vendetta against the people smuggling 
  gangs collectively known as Snakeheads.  It was a recent run in with a powerful Martian 
  based gang that had forced them out of Reunion and cost them nearly all of the fortune that 
  Dodger had made upon selling the alien corpse.  Dodger had every reason to be furious, but 
  
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  he had let it go.  They took the last of their money completed repairs and upgrades on their 
  two remaining rovers and headed back to the exclusion zone.   
   
   
  Everyone was a bit more subdued now.  Monty had been a friend of Dodger’s going all the 
  way back to their childhood on the Yorkshire coast, and the two would often talk about going 
  home to hike the Moors one last time before retiring to the seaside town of Whitby.  Monty 
  had always hoped to open a fish and chip shop to compete with the Magpie Cafe, which he 
  and Dodger would laugh about for having excessively long queues.  But now their two friends 
  were dead.  Dodger was more serious than ever, Edger’s humor had grown bitter, and Indira 
  hardly spoke.  
   
   
  Madison brought herself back to the present and began to reset the portable subsurface 
  imager.    A thermal detector beeped and Madison looked up hoping to catch a glimpse of the 
  line of steam that would mark the sinkhole she was secretly looking for.  She didn’t like 
  misleading her friends, but if she found the special artifact they would be extremely rich.  Just 
  as she readied the first seismic charge, Indira began to speak excitedly. 
   
   
  “Something just registered.  Definitely not natural.” She said quickly. 
   
   
  Madison unfolded the old style flexi-screen mounted on her left forearm and quickly brought 
  up the image created by Indira’s subsurface imager; two large coffin sized objects with a 
  somewhat smaller cylinder in between them.  She stared at the image in disbelief for several 
  seconds.  It wasn’t a sinkhole vent at all!  Only Indira’s frantic yelling took her attention away 
  from the image. 
   
   
  “It’s active!” She hollered into the intercom.  “There’s a heat bloom, and, and my 
  goodness...it’s moving!” 
   
   
  Madison tried to move or scream, but the world seemed to freeze.  She watched in horror as 
  a short barreled weapon popped out of the red Martian dirt.  It swiveled menacingly towards 
  Indira and then opened fire.  As the 15mm slugs tore into her friend Madison finally found her 
  voice. 
   
   
  “Charlie-in-the-Box!! Everyone down!!”  Madison screamed into her helmet’s microphone. 
   
   
  Edger ignored her and ran to help Indira.  The motion sensing array quickly turned the 
  weapon towards this new target, and once again Madison could here the muffled noise 
  despite her helmet.  Brhuump...Brhuump...Brhuump. 
   
   
  Edger’s helmet exploded into a cloud of glass and gore.  Madison screamed again and ran 
  towards Dodger.  He stood there transfixed.  Madison tackled him just as the auto-shotgun 
  turned to fire.  As the deadly machine let loose a hail of slugs she took him to the ground.  
  Most of the slugs flew high, but one ripped into Dodger’s suit tearing away a chunk of it, 
  along with a bit of his shoulder.  Madison covered the hole with her hand as she groped for 
  her patch tape.  Within a few seconds Dodger’s suit no longer leaked air and was refilling with 
  the proper mix of O2. 
   
   
  Now stuck behind a half buried boulder, Madison looked around for a way to get clear of the 
  killing machine that continued to search for more targets.  Just an arm’s length away lay 
  Dodger’s subsurface imager.  Like her’s it was charged and ready to fire a steel piston into the 
  ground.  In normal use the rebounding sound waves would return a sonar echo that allowed 
  subsurface images to be accurately mapped.  An old fashioned but very effective tool for  
  
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  anyone looking for something hidden underground, but with the proper tampering the piston 
  mechanism could be loosened enough that it would fly off at tremendous speed.  Madison 
  checked her air supply...two hours left.  That was more than enough.  Unfortunately, 
  Dodger’s suit had lost a lot of air and a red warning light now shone on his wrist panel.  She 
  had to hurry. 
   
   
  The piston wouldn’t come loose.  Madison struggled a bit more but then glanced at Dodger.  
  His face was pale, and he appeared to be going into shock.  No more time, she thought.  
  Quickly she grabbed two fist sized rocks.  The first one she rammed into the opening right 
  where the piston would poke out to bang the ground.  Then she readied herself to stand up 
  as quickly as possible. 
   
   
  She threw the second rock away from the boulder to the area where Edger’s lifeless body now 
  lay.  The machine tracked the movement and once again opened fire.  Madison jumped to her 
  feet and fired the imager’s piston.  The rock plug exploded into a hail of fragments as the 
  shotgun turned towards her movement.  Pieces of rock peppered the automated gun system 
  knocking 
  itsÔ 
  gyro 
  out 
  of 
  alignment 
  and 
  shattering 
  the 
  motion 
  tracker.  
  Brhuump...Brhuump...Brhuump... 
   
   
  The first shot followed the imager as its’ recoil carried it out of Madison’s hands.  By the 
  second and third shot the gun’s barrel pointed skyward and had no chance of hitting her.  
  Madison grabbed Dodger’s utility strap and dragged him towards their camouflaged rovers.  
  As she walked backwards pulling the unconscious man she saw two coffin sized boxes erupt 
  from the loose Martian soil.  Both boxes opened to reveal two missiles, each one over a meter 
  in length.  She was half way back to the rover when the bright light of the rocket engines 
  caused her suits visor to darken automatically.  A moment later the roar of their engines was 
  enough to awaken Dodger. 
   
   
  “What the hell was that?” Dodger asked weakly. 
   
   
  Madison watched as all four rockets streaked southward towards one of the many small 
  settlement domes that dotted the newly opened regions around the Cydonia Ruins.  At first 
  she didn’t know what to say to Dodger, but then as she reached the rover’s airlock she 
  remembered something her old professor had told her while they were out doing field 
  research. 
   
   
  “It was a Charlie-in-the-Box.  No child wants to play with a Charlie-in-the-Box.”  Madison 
  replied in quiet sadness.    
   
   
   
   
  
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  THE WORLD OF ORBITAL 
   
  In 1989 American President George H.W. Bush presented to Congress and the American 
  people the Space Exploration Initiative.  Initial skepticism gave way after a series of closed 
  door briefings and funding was approved beginning in 1990.  A brief war in Iraq threatened to 
  derail the effort, but a quick victory followed by regime change ensured that space exploration 
  remained a major focus in the national budget. Just ten years after the conflict Americans 
  landed on the Moon once again and soon laid the groundwork for a permanent presence 
  there.  This was followed by a manned mission to Mars sixteen years later.  Assistance from 
  the ESA and Russia helped to alleviate growing financial concerns 
   
  The next few decades saw the expansion of America’s settlements on Luna and Mars.  On 
  Luna they were joined by the Chinese and several European nations.  Luna and Earth orbit 
  soon became the home for hundreds of laboratories and processing plants that fed the vital 
  solar power manufacturing plants.  The face of Luna changed over time as mining and a 
  gigantic band of solar collectors forever altered its surface.  Further out from the Sun the 
  settlement of Mars became an international effort.  Terraforming of the red planet began in 
  fits and starts despite the discovery of Martian life.  Scientists flocked to Mars to partake in 
  the terraforming or to study the long abandoned alien ruins.  Thousands moved off of Earth 
  by way of government programs, corporate projects, or privately funded space colonization 
  efforts.  By 2040 there were 22,000 people living on Luna and another 15,000 on Mars.  
  Compared to the 8.5 billion on Earth this seemed minuscule, but computer technology and 
  advanced robotics enabled those living in space to produce far more than a comparable 
  population on Earth. 
   
  History followed a familiar course and by 2044 tensions had arisen between those living on 
  Luna and their Earth based masters.  A short war, highlighted by the dropping of three mass 
  driver loads into sparsely populated desert regions as a warning, bought the newly proclaimed 
  Luna Republic its independence.  But the need for nitrogen and a few crucial vitamins ensured 
  that Luna could not totally cut itself off.  Luna struggled for a few years to form a stable 
  government and replace crucial materials no longer available from Earth.  During this time the 
  nations of Earth turned their attention back towards home.  Unfortunately, in eastern Asia this 
  attention took the form of one of mankind’s most destructive wars ever.  The East Asian War 
  pitted China, Pakistan and Indonesia against India, Russia, Vietnam and the Philippines.  
  Nearly a dozen nuclear weapons were used and millions died.  The bad years of 2044 to 2050 
  so frightened the people of Earth that support for a united Earth government reached a peak.  
  The largely impotent Union of Inter-regional Organizations was soon replaced by the Earth 
  Union. 
   
  While Earth recovered and worked towards unification, Luna took the time to build its 
  defenses.  After a few years of recovery both Earth and Luna once again turned their 
  attention towards expansion.  During the chaos of the time Mars saw extensive population 
  growth and the process of mining and settlement of the asteroid belt begun by China 
  continued unabated.  When the two major powers, Earth and Luna, moved to assert their 
  influence on the outer bodies of the Solar System they naturally came into conflict.  Luna 
  attempted to assert control over the Belters, now largely ignored by the new Chinese 
  government.  In response the Earth Union promoted the idea of a Belt centered nation called 
  Cascadia.  The newly formed Earth Union found itself ill prepared to intervene so far from 
  Earth and had difficulties coordinating the many parts of its newly united military force.   
  Emboldened by the Earth Union’s bumbling, Luna intervened in force and precipitated a 
  vicious war.  The Belt War lasted from 2052 to 2055 and saw fighting throughout the Belt and 
  
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  on Mars.  At its end Earth conceded and rescinded its support for Cascadia while keeping its 
  outpost on the asteroid 243 Ida.  Luna attained nominal control of the Belt. 
   
  In the years following the Belt War the two powers yet again invested heavily in off world 
  pursuits.  The discovery of life in the atmosphere of Venus had caught the interest of many 
  scientists and researchers, but it wasn’t until an asteroid strike in 2041 that the mineral wealth 
  that lay hidden there became exposed.  Soon Luna came to dominate the second planet by 
  building massive floating cities called aerostats as well as several subsurface cities along the 
  rim of the newly created impact crater.  Earth has but a minor presence on Venus.  Mercury 
  has become, by way of a failed Earth Union effort and the careful manipulation of the 
  resulting fallout, the personal domain of a one very wealthy and powerful man.  As a major 
  producer of solar power its resemblance to the sultanates of old does not go unnoticed.  
  Beyond the asteroid belt both sides jockeyed for position amongst the vast system of moons 
  and rings that encircled Jupiter and Saturn. 
   
  Despite the ongoing Cold War mankind flourished amongst the other planets.  The long 
  mocked Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligences (SETI) made several miraculous discoveries.  
  Life was discovered in the oceans of Europa, and powerful telescopes found signs of life 
  bearing planets around several nearby stars.  Scientists delved deeper than ever into the 
  mysteries of the aliens that constructed the vast Martian monuments.  They learned about the 
  doomed Servants and found clues hinting towards another race, the enigmatic Makers.  
  Nearly everywhere humankind looked life showed itself to be an irrepressible force, ubiquitous 
  and abundant but always possessing new tricks and traits that allowed survival in almost any 
  condition.  Yet through all the discoveries humanity remained largely constant, and after forty 
  years of tense standoffs, trade wars and diplomatic posturing the solar system slipped once 
  more towards the brink of war.     
   
  Disagreements over Titan led the Earth Union to invade and occupy that distant moon.  Earth 
  troops landed in 2095 and quickly occupied the major settlements.  Luna responded by 
  stirring up trouble throughout the Earth Union colonies around Jupiter.  Both sides accelerated 
  construction of military Deep Space Vehicles and readied for war. 
   
  It is now late 2097 and the entire solar system once more appears ready to plunge into the 
  abyss.  
   
   
   
  TECHNOLOGY 
   
   
  Basic 
  The overall Tech Level for Orbital is equivalent to Traveller Tech Level 9 but with the 
  notable absence of gravitics, jump drive and anything related to psionics.  Any piece of 
  equipment from either the Traveller Core Book or the Central Supply Catalogue that is Tech 
  Level 9 or less and does not make use of one of the three forbidden advances can be 
  incorporated into Orbital.  Computer technology can be considered Tech Level 11.  But while 
  Orbital is a setting inspired by and drawing inspiration from the almost retro feeling 
  technology envisioned in the 1970s and 80s, it is also hard tech; meaning it takes inspiration 
  from real world technological advances.   
   
  
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  Computers 
  The computers of Orbital are not bulky retro style machines.  They are sleek multi-function 
  devices where even the smallest wrist mounted computer has enough memory to store the 
  entire some of knowledge within the British Museum and Smithsonian combined with ample 
  room left over for mundane tasks like home videos.  Most ‘coms’, or wrist PDAs, combine all 
  the functions of a GPS, phone, entertainment device, video camera, translator, web browser, 
  medical monitor, and occupational assistant into one device.  All of this is managed by a 
  Smart Operating System Fragment which can seamlessly link to the owner’s larger and even 
  more complex home based Smart Operating System.  As no truly self-aware computers have 
  been successfully maintained most Smart OSs integrate a Personality Imitation Program into 
  their system to create the illusion of sapience.  Interface is via voice, touchable flex-screen, or 
  neural-scan for cutting edge computers. 
   
   
  True Artificial Intelligence remains elusive.  In order to be considered self-aware a computer 
  system must be able to not only learn but also create and imagine.  Unfortunately, this 
  requires that the device be able to integrate new code directly into its primary cognitive 
  programing.  While smart computers have done this to some degree since the 2020s, they 
  have always had trouble creating original code that goes beyond trial and error learning.  The 
  most advanced computers today can create new code, but as it is placed within the original 
  operating system problems occur.  Over time the new code fragments the original programing 
  and leads to memory loss, slower running times, and even complete changes in the AI’s 
  personality.  Defragmenting the computer will fix the first two problems but always destroys 
  any personality or self-awareness that had arisen.  This personality fragmentation process 
  occurs even more quickly to any AI linked directly to the wider internet.  Until the problem of 
  personality fragmentation is overcome computers will remain nothing more than extremely 
  smart tools.        
   
  Materials 
  Material science has advanced greatly over the past 100 years.  New ceramic-metal 
  combinations have made suits and rovers capable of surviving on the harsh surface of Venus 
  possible.  Memory metals allow for tools that change shape or airplanes that alter themselves 
  during flight.  Transparent metals and one way glass have made all sorts of impressive domes 
  and space structures possible.  Advances in material sciences have made massive structures 
  on Earth like the Pacific Gyre City possible.   
   
  On Earth and most colonies, rules dictate that nearly all durable goods be “universally 
  recyclable”, meaning every part of them can either be reused or repurposed using less than 
  half the energy it took to create the object upon initial manufacturing.  Also, manufacturers 
  are obligated to collect and recycle every item that they sell.  As such (discounting food items) 
  fully 95% of all items manufactured on Earth can be reused with minimal effort.  Luna too has 
  similar regulations, but Mars lags far behind in this respect.  Some critics complain that such 
  levels of recycling have stymied innovation as nearly everything is reused, but since the 2080s 
  there have been high levels of deflation on Earth as improved manufacturing processes have 
  combined with the recyclable economy to drive the costs of goods down. 
         
  Weapons  
  Despite the formation of the Earth Union and a noticeable decrease in violent crime, weapons 
  too have seen numerous advances over the intervening decades.  All modern firearms are 
  modular, caseless, and use a electric trigger to fire their ammunition.  Military grade personal 
  weapons make use of a bullet type known as SPEED rounds.  Solid Plasma Explosive, Electric 
  Detonation rounds use an electric ignition system to fire like normal rounds, but the propellent 
  
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  is layered and when ignited behaves like a plasma providing the the round with more 
  continuous acceleration within and sometimes beyond the barrel.  SPEED rounds have the 
  benefit of being programmable in that changes can be made to muzzle velocity, rate of fire 
  and, by using memory metal, even the characteristics of the ammo being fired.  With the 
  exception of a few places on Earth and the wilds of Mars, gun control regulations are 
  extremely harsh and firearms are almost universally forbidden.  The advent of 3D printers and 
  auto-machining has made most of these laws unenforceable, and many small communities in 
  the Belt and on Mars keeps a stash of guns on hand “just in case”. 
   
   
  Military weapons beyond personal arms make heavy use of robotics, powered armor, and 
  armored vehicles.  Luna prefers electro-magnetic weapons mounted on combat robots.  These 
  robots can perform autonomously but also have built in oversight systems that allow 
  operators to take control using VR hardware or neural-scan linking.  Usually one oversight 
  officer controls two vehicle sized or four human sized bots, but for special operations the ratio 
  is often one-to-one.  The Earth Union, which has population to spare, has a large force of 
  soldiers equipped with combat armor.  Most heavy weapons are rapid firing and can use a 
  wide variety of specialty rounds.  What they lack in kinetic energy they make up for by being 
  extremely versatile.  Both sides make use of tracked and wheeled armored vehicles capable of 
  being deployed on Luna, Mars and even Titan.       
      
  Genetics and Biotech 
  In 2097 humanity looks pretty much the same as it did 100 years prior.  Lifespans have 
  increased to over 140 years on Earth and Luna as nearly all babies are treated for possible 
  genetic disorders while still in the womb.  Furthermore most congenital defects can also be 
  corrected prior to birth or very soon after.  With the exception of fixing health defects and 
  selecting gender, parents are forbidden from tampering with their child’s genotype.  
  Allowances are made for same sex couples and single parents who want to use their own 
  modified DNA to create a child.  Upon reaching the age of biological consent, set at 18 on 
  Earth and 16 on Luna, a person can elect to alter his or her own DNA.  Inserting non-human 
  DNA is not permitted, but changing skin color, sex, or other aspects of one’s phenotype is 
  permissible within reason.  Some people have made large sums of money by selling portions 
  of their DNA to those wishing to acquire a certain look, talent, or physical trait.  As one’s 
  genotype is immediately private and copy written upon birth others must pay or otherwise get 
  permission to make use of another’s DNA.  D-Jacking has become a common crime on Earth 
  as criminals attempt to acquire DNA from media stars and athletes for resale on the black 
  market. 
   
   
  Regulations are much looser for non-human animals and especially plants.  Earth has long 
  made use of genetically modified plants and animals to provide increased food yields.  By the 
  middle of the 21st Century nearly all opposition to so called “frankenfoods” had ceased as 
  nearly every fruit and vegetable had been genetically modified in some manner.  Not only did 
  this increase crop yields, reduce pesticide use, and make food more nutritional; it also 
  increased the diversity of available foods by bringing back extinct varieties and creating new 
  species.  Meat production has benefitted by being able to grow isolated muscle and fat 
  bundles without the need to raise a real animal.  While this has reduced agricultural pollution 
  and resource consumption; several species of cows, pigs and and goats have gone extinct.  
  On Mars a wide variety of genetically modified plants have been released onto the planet.  
  Lichen, moss and several variety of cacti are thriving.  The release of modified animal species 
  has been controversial, but modified arthropods, insects and martian deermice thrive around 
  Hellas and Marineris. 
   
   
  
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  THE ALIENS ON MARS 
   
  Humans have known about the alien ruins on Mars for at least 120 years.  They have been 
  exploring the ruins since shortly after landing on Mars.  Yet even now not much is known 
  about these alien visitors.  Their time on Mars goes back at least 750,000 years and perhaps 
  as far as a million years.  Their home world is unknown for certain but some evidence points 
  to it being less than 50 light years away.  It is also not known whether or not the aliens had 
  the ability to travel faster than the speed of light.  Humans do know that the aliens were very 
  adept at building robots and used them for numerous tasks including construction, 
  exploration, and possibly warfare.  The structures on Mars were built using local stone and 
  then covered in an advanced ceramic-metal mix that could be shaped similar to concrete.  
  This makes them very durable despite their ancient age.  Furthermore structures on Saturn’s 
  moons of Mimas and Iapetus point to a level of technology far beyond humanity.   
   
  Even so inconsistencies abound.  Much of the alien technology discovered on Mars seems no 
  more advanced than pre-spaceflight Earth.  Some pieces of hyper advanced technology exist 
  amongst the ruins, but the vast majority of the finds are simple items resembling common 
  household tools.  The vast majority of these items do not appear technologically compatible 
  with the numerous advanced, but long inactive, robots that have been discovered throughout 
  the Ruins.  This has led many scientists to speculate that there were at least two completely 
  different alien races on Mars.  Known simply as the Makers, the first race to arrive on Mars 
  built much of the city and the artifacts around Saturn.  Very little else is known about the 
  Makers as they left no biological evidence.  The second race were initially referred to as the 
  Servants as some early explorers thought they were directly connected to the more advanced 
  Makers.  Currently no direct evidence exists that these two races interacted in any way.    
  Most researchers refer to this second race as Hexapods, but they are still more commonly 
  referred to as the Servants.    
   
  The Servants thrived on Mars for over a thousand years and within several of the chambers 
  opened on Mars have been actual alien corpses.  It is known that they were six limbed 
  arboreal creatures that consisted on a diet mostly of meat.  They were about the size of large 
  dogs and appeared to live in large family groups based around a child bearing female and two 
  or three related alpha males.  Like humanity they evolved in an atmosphere composed 
  primarily of oxygen and nitrogen but with a higher abundance of carbon dioxide.  Their body 
  stored cellular information by way of a protein based system similar in function to but far 
  different in composition to Earth based DNA.  Several species of Martian life have been proven 
  to share biological similarities to these creatures.  It is also known that the Servants built the 
  Face and carved numerous sculptures depicting archaic hominids, but the reason for this is 
  unknown.  It is currently hypothesized that the Servants arrived at Mars thousands of years 
  after the Makers.  Given that the Makers were already gone, they occupied the City and even 
  expanded it.  They thrived for hundreds of years.  Unfortunately, some sort of accident or war 
  occurred, and all of the Servants either died or fled.  Some scientists refute this hypothesis 
  and still believe that the Makers and the Servants were directly connected.  Further research 
  is needed. 
   
   
  ***  Referees Only Past This Point!  *** 
   
   
  
  Page | 13  
   
  2  MARS  
   
   
   
  Mars draws adventurers and fortune seekers like moths to a flame.  And nothing on Mars 
  burns as bright and alluringly as the Cydonia Ruins.  Fortunes are gained and lost everyday 
  around those strange alien structures, but adventure can always be found for those who look.  
  And so the player characters find themselves on Mars.  The initial reason for their being there 
  is largely unimportant, but it would be helpful for them have a contact within the local law 
  enforcement agency, the Martian Rangers.   
   
  While going about some mundane and agonizingly boring task, the players each hear the 
  attention chime of their personal PDA.  Upon checking they find a text only message marked 
  urgent sent directly from the regional Martian Rangers office. 
   
  +++++ Urgent.  Please Read and Respond ASAP 
   
  SolNet News Feed (1st November, 2097):  Sixteen are dead after a suspected act of 
  terrorism occurred just north of the Cydonia Polis Regio.  A small habitat dome was struck by 
  two missiles just as dawn broke.  Located just inside the exclusion zone, Redhorn was being 
  constructed as part of the Open Housing Initiative championed by Mars’ Homestead Party.  
  Four missiles with high-explosive fragmentation warheads were fired from an automated 
  launcher shortly after daybreak.  Two of the four missiles struck the unfinished dome within 
  its residential district causing thirteen of the deaths.    A further three deaths occurred when a 
  portion of the uncompleted dome collapsed.  As the dome had not yet been sealed and 
  pressurized all buildings were independently sealed, thus preventing complete catastrophe.  
  Authorities believe that notable terrorist group Red Legion carried out the attack using one of 
  their notorious Charlie-in-the-Box automated weapon systems.  The Martian Rangers are 
  heading the investigation with help from Eckard Tactical Management and freelance 
  operators. (SolNet Services) 
   
  Could use your help here.  Transportation to Cydonia has been pre-paid and along with a 250 
  MC consulting fee can be downloaded to your Mars Credit chip from account number CPR022 
  using the password 8Mincemeat4Zozer.  Meet me at Drexels, NE corner of the Great Hall of 
  Goeria, at 19:00 local time.  Others have been notified.  You may well recognize some of 
  them.  I’ll owe you. 
   
  MR +++++     
   
  Each player receives the same message, and it doesn’t take them long to realize the initials 
  stand for Mariana Rupali.  Rupali is a member of the Martian Rangers and once worked in the 
  Mars capital of Reunion.  As such she made friends with a wide variety of people both native 
  and new to the Red Planet.  Recently she received a promotion and was transferred to the 
  growing Cydonia Polis Regio.  Her main duties have largely consisted of keeping the peace in 
  the newly opened Great Hall of Goeria and patrolling the borders of Cydonia Exclusion Zone.  
  Rupali works closely with employees of the private security firm, Eckard Tactical Management, 
  but there is some friction between the two groups. 
   
  
  Page | 14  
   
  The 
  trip 
  to 
  Cydonia 
  is 
  largely 
  uneventful, but upon reaching the city 
  famous for its alien ruins the players 
  find themselves in a very different 
  world.  After a journey of several 
  hours the suspended monorail passes 
  through the airlocks leading into the 
  inner portion of the A-Frame shaped 
  Cydonia Central Station. Because of 
  the unbreathable Martian air the 
  monorail pulls entirely into a large 
  airlock, and passengers disembark 
  into a second airlock waiting area.  
  Once 
  everyone 
  has 
  cleared 
  the 
  monorail the waiting area doors open 
  up into a large well-lit hallway.  
  Carved right through the Martian rock 
  the hallway leads gently downwards 
  with walls covered colorful murals 
  depicting all sorts of scenes out of 
  famous works of science fiction.  After 
  a 200 meter walk the hall ends and 
  opens up into the Cydonia Round 
  About.    
   
  Gone is the business like 
  attitude that 
  pervades in 
  Reunion.  Also absent are the 
  ruff and tumble miners and 
  hard working but tight lipped 
  immigrant families.  Instead 
  Cydonia 
  bustles 
  with 
  an 
  atmosphere 
  that 
  is 
  part 
  college 
  campus 
  and 
  part 
  science 
  fiction 
  convention, 
  and as soon as the characters 
  come fully into the Round 
  About they are approached 
  by numerous people trying to 
  hand 
  them 
  religious 
  pamphlets or sell them the 
  latest New Age alien miracle 
  device. 
   
  The 
  streets 
  of 
  Cydonia are paved with the 
  non-stick resin common to 
  roads throughout the solar 
  system, but the center of the 
  Round About is composed of 
  red cobblestones laid out in 
  an intricate design.  At its 
  centre is a large open-sided 
  pyramid that doubles as a 
   
  SolNet 
  The 
  Solar 
  System 
  Information 
  Dispersion 
  Network, 
  better 
  known 
  as 
  SolNet, 
  was 
  established in 2066 by the Earth Union as way to 
  enhance communication between the inner 
  planets.  Initially, consisting of just a few large 
  communication satellites SolNet has expanded 
  over the years into a network of large multi 
  spectrum communication arrays that disperse 
  and 
  relay 
  radio, 
  microwave, 
  and 
  laser 
  broadcasts.  Each satellite also acts a data 
  fortress, travel beacon and emergency aide 
  station.  Entertainment and information services, 
  both paid subscription services and free non-
  profit broadcasts, are also dispersed through 
  SolNet.  SolNet, and the entire solar system uses 
  Greenwich Mean Universal Time as its official 
  method of keeping time.  As of 2097, SolNet 
  reaches as far out as Jupiter and its many 
  moons.  
                                 Aerial view of Cydonia 
  
  Page | 15  
   
  central gazebo and much of the area around the pyramid is covered in food carts, portable 
  mini-shops and information kiosks.  The area is crowded but the people are friendly if a bit 
  odd.  
   
  Cydonia like nearly every Martian city is a mix 
  of clear domes and subterranean spaces.  In 
  this case it means that the Round About and 
  most of the city proper is under ground, but 
  high overhead stands a large clear dome that 
  lets in natural light.  Heading out of the Round 
  About are four wide boulevards going north, 
  south, east, and west.  West heads back to the 
  monorail station.  North dead ends after four 
  hundred meters and consists of the primary 
  residential district.  Heading southward is 
  Grand Boulevard which leads directly to the 
  alien ruins.  Both sides of Grand Boulevard are 
  lined with shops and restaurants for over a 
  kilometer before hitting the Exclusion Zone.  At 
  the border of the Exclusion Zone EMT has an 
  elaborate security station that includes anti-
  vehicle barriers and automated perimeter 
  defenses.  The eastern most street is called 
  Fellowship Boulevard.  It is lined with a mix of 
  apartments and small shops for several 
  hundred meters before these give way to bare 
  rock and unfinished pavement.   
   
  From the Round About the players need to hail 
  a taxi to take them from the center of Cydonia 
  to the Great Hall, which lies at the far end of 
  Fellowship Boulevard...15km away.  This is a 
  relatively difficult task as Cydonia’s recent 
  population growth combined with an onerous 
  taxi cab registration and licensing system has 
  led to a severe shortage in available taxis.  
  After waiting for some time the players may 
  notice a van-sized taxi approaching the Round 
  About close to where they are standing. An 
  Average 
  awareness 
  related 
  task 
  check 
  followed by a Difficult athletics check will get 
  them to the taxi quickly. 
   
  Even if one of the players sees and gets in the taxi very quickly the driver will wait for nearly 
  twenty minutes or until all ten of the vehicle’s seats are taken.  He is required to by law, and 
  the players are not late enough yet to make it worth bribing the drive to leave early.  This is a 
  chance for all the player characters to come together as a group.  Nothing brings people 
  together like being stuck on some manner of crowded public transportation. 
   
  As the entirety of Cydonia City, the Boulevards, and the Great Hall are pressurized the players 
  have no need for bulky suits.  Most people though, choose to wear an emergency skintight 
  Mars undersuit, known locally as tighties [see Stuff, pg.53].  During the drive the Players will 
  Mars     B420585 
  N,S 
  De Po NI 
  The first human to set foot on Mars was 
  American Kyle Schaffer.  The twelve 
  person international mission that he led 
  planted 
  the 
  groundwork 
  for 
  future 
  colonisation. 
   
  The 
  first 
  permanent 
  population consisted of scientists and 
  engineers and was in place by 2020.  
  These early pioneers were soon followed 
  by “average people” who sold nearly 
  everything for a chance to move to the 
  Red Planet.  By settling around the 
  automated MARVIN in situ resource 
  processors these intrepid people made 
  use of the resources provided by the non-
  profit Frontier Foundation.  Mars is also 
  the site of alien ruins thought to be nearly 
  a million years old.   
   
   
  Mars gained its independence in 2068 but 
  is still dominated by the pro-terraforming 
  Greens.  Conflict between the Red Legion, 
  a group dedicated to removing humanity 
  from Mars and ending terraforming, and 
  the current government continues as a 
  low level guerrilla war and occasional acts 
  of terrorism.  The people of Mars are still 
  mostly scientists who partake in the 
  terraforming effort or study the alien 
  ruins, and miners who extract resources 
  from the Martian rock.  Mars is 
  predominately Euro-American, but there 
  are large Indian and Native American 
  minorities which make up a combined 
  15% of the population.  Despite the 
  unrest and dysfunctional government, the 
  population of Mars continues to grow at 
  the highest rate in the solar system.  
  
  Page | 16  
   
  see the local scenery, which inside the unfinished tunnels leading to the Great Hall is rather 
  uninteresting.  This is a time for the player characters to get acquainted and realize that they 
  all got the exact same enigmatic message from Mariana Rupali.  
   
  The drive to the Great Hall takes just under half an hour and comes to an end just inside the 
  hall.  The cab stops at a large prefab building that the Players might notice is both cheaply 
  made of local tin and bolted to the floor.  Upon exiting they are hit by a powerful smell that 
  combines the iron filled clay of Martian dirt with strong hints of curry from Indian cooking.  
  The Hall is filled with tents and prefab buildings giving the place a distinctly temporary feel.  
  Far away at the center of the Hall is the Central Pillar.  Despite the distance the Players can 
  see that it has been lavishly decorated for the upcoming Christmas Season with colorful lights. 
   
  After a short wait, during which they are pestered constantly by panhandlers, Church 
  members and local salesmen, they see Mariana Rupali approaching.  The Players might notice 
  that she looks worried.  Once the other people notice her approach those pestering the 
  Players quickly disperse.  Rupali will immediately approach and greet any Players who have 
  chosen to have contacts within the Martian Rangers.  After all introductions are made Rupali 
  will pull the Players away from the Taxi building to a find a quiet place near one of the lesser 
  pillars.  Once away from the crowds she immediately begins speaking quickly and with a 
  strong Hindi accent.  Some Players may find it difficult to follow what she’s saying.  A Task 
  Check might be appropriate. 
   
  “Less than a day ago a small settlement dome was hit by a Charlie-in-the-Box.  Four missiles 
  fired, thankfully only two connected.  Even so the damage was pretty bad.  Fifteen people 
  were killed.    I think.  Really, it could have been a lot worse but everyone there had their 
  tighties on, because the dome wasn’t fully completed and had yet to get it’s habitation cert. 
   
  “I got called in right away.  Even though we’re kind of close to the edge of the Zone, 
  not much happens around here.  The Church of the Heavenly Stigmata, the Facers and ETM 
  do a pretty good job of keeping the lid on things.  Most of the crime is still down the tunnel in 
  the city.  So this incident has everyone all shook up.  ETM claims it was the Red Legion.  
  Ranger headquarters isn’t ruling out anything, but some higher ups fear that the Lunatics 
  might be stirring up trouble to distract the EU from Titan. 
   
  “So shortly after the strike I oversaw a drone walk through.  Wasn’t sure what had 
  occurred and some reports claimed it was a static bombing.  Just to be careful I sent in six 
  Overseers, four Sniffers and four Rescuebots.  The Sniffers confirmed by way of chemical 
  analysis that the dome had been hit by missiles.  Too much solid propellent mixed into the 
  residue to be a static bomb.  Plus they found bits of rocket shroud.  Anyway, while the 
  Rescuebots helped in search and rescue, the Overseers circle overhead. 
   
  “Fifteen dead.  I have the images right on my PDA.  Some were pretty messed up, but 
  crime scene analysis software confirmed and reconfirmed that there were only enough body 
  parts for fifteen people.  Three of them kids no more than eight for Ares sake.   
   
   
  “I went in person to Redhorn just four hours after the attack.  When I get there they 
  have sixteen body bags out, and the local med-techies had already bagged most of the 
  deceased.  I can understand not wanting dead loved ones lying about like upended litter, but 
  it’s a bloody crime scene.  The damage already done, I reviewed each DNA record and 
  matched it to those on file with the Redhorn med-bank.  After a bit of work and three 
  warrants, I finally got all fifteen bodies tagged by the Overseers identified.  But there was an 
  extra. 
   
  “Med-techs and locals say they found her lying near an inner airlock.  No tighties, just 
  wearing some high end active wear.  Died of asphyxiation.  I guess she didn’t make it to the 
  airlock in time.  I went back over the Overseer images.  She’s not there.  Sure there are a lot 
  
  Page | 17  
   
  of shadows, and it was pretty early in the morning, but my dronies know their stuff.  She 
  came out of no where.  No DNA on file.  Not on Redhorn, not on Mars, not on Earth.  Luna 
  hasn’t responded.   
   
  “The Med-techs had already cleared out her pockets.  Some hard credits...untraceable, 
  a pocket knife, a ring...real Venusian diamond, half of a business card, and an encrypted data 
  chip...two terrabytes of data.  But the damn chip has a double super-prime lock.   
   
  “But if she weren’t dead she’d be a real beauty.  I have her a klick and a half away 
  near the lift.  I can’t pay much.  Ranger’s don’t pay consultants much, but I have something I 
  can give you.  Help me out, please.”         
     
   
  While it’s possible for the Players to say no thanks and go grab a pint at the local prefab pub, 
  there’s no fun in that.  Saying yes will make Rupali grateful and put a bright smile on her face.  
  Given the lack of transportation within the Great Hall, besides the numerous llamas, yaks and 
  peddle cars, the group will have to walk to the far end where Rupali has the women’s body.  
  The walk takes another half hour and reinforces the slow pace of things in the rural portions 
  of Mars.  For those used to the hectic cities of Earth or the crowded warrens of Luna, the 
  Great Hall will test their patience, but they do have time to grab a bite to eat.  Food stands 
  abound and the Indian-influenced cuisine is excellent.  As they walk Rupali informs them that 
  the Green controlled government wants the incident to go away.  They don’t want to draw 
  undue attention to Mars while Earth and Luna are on the brink of war.  The Rangers are 
  allowing Rupali to pursue the case further, so as to assert their independence from the 
  dysfunctional central government, but does not have the resources to lend much direct 
  assistance.  
   
  Upon getting to the north end of the Hall, Rupali will direct them to her small ground car.  It is 
  painted the bright red, yellow and white of the Martian Rangers with a bar of red and yellow 
  lights across the top.  Rupali activates a thumb print - voice recognition lock to get into the 
  vehicle’s rear cargo compartment.  After a bit of rummaging she holds up a small data chip.   
   
  An Easy Task Check using the Computers skill or even basic Electronics will reveal that the 
  data chip is a generic design that can be purchased nearly anywhere for just a few credits. 
   
  The data chip fits all standard computer inputs, but attempts to read it only reveal a popular 
  children’s audio book, Spacer Sam’s Super Special Spacesuit.  A difficult computers task check 
  will confirm that the chip contains a lot of highly encrypted data.  Protected behind a dual 
  super-large prime key encryption matrix, the chip is unhackable given the players’ current 
  gear.  They need help.  Furthermore the players may want to examine the dead woman’s 
  body or the damaged dome.  If so allow them to do as they please.  As the woman’s body is 
  near by in a medical van it is the logical place to start the investigation, but just make sure 
  they hack the chip last. 
  
  Page | 18  
   
   
   
   
  THE MECH-HARE 
   
  Despite having little in the way of an expense allowance, Rupali does have a way to 
  compensate the Players.  She offers them a cutting edge robot known as the Gregor 
  Technologies Mech-Hare.  Anyone with a knowledge of computers or robotics will have heard 
  about the Mech-Hare.  It is an advanced prototype smart robot with a learning neural net and 
  personality imitation program.  To many mechanics and engineers the Mech-Hare has become 
  the robotic equivalent of the Holy Grail.  Rupali got the Mech-Hare from a Gregor 
  Technologies executive whose life she had saved while working in Reunion.  It has received all 
  the recent software updates. 
   
  Rupali is not mechanically inclined and has kept the robot in her car’s trunk for over a month.  
  She offers it to the Players in lieu of payment.  The Mech-Hare would retail for Cr12,000, but 
  due to shortages and the software improvements this Mech-Hare is worth about Cr20,000. 
   
  The Great Hall of Goeria 
  Despite having a length of nearly 2.0 kilometers, the Great Hall of Goeria was only 
  recently discovered in 2093.  Goeria is a vast open hall, 750 meters wide at the widest 
  with an overall oval shape, held up by two rows of nine pillars.  In the center is the 
  Central Pillar, a huge column now covered in bolted on housing units often consisting of 
  nothing more than modified cargo containers.  At the north end of Goeria is a gigantic pit 
  250 meters across and estimated to be nearly 1km deep.  It is filled to overflowing with 
  junk and debris from the aliens.  Thus far nearly everything discovered is either so badly 
  weathered as to be unrecognizable, or it is nothing more than trinkets that are worthless 
  to anyone except collectors and scholars.  Just above the pit is a small opening to the 
  Martian atmosphere as the Pit was once part of a natural sink hole.  Now soil and debris 
  cover so much of the opening that it went unnoticed until some explorers fell through to 
  the cavern below.  Just weeks ago Goeria was connected directly to the rest of Cydonia 
  by way of a subterranean tunnel through which rovers can travel.  The entire Hall is now 
  pressurized as a dome was installed over the sinkhole entrance and air locks were placed 
  at all surface entrances. 
  
  Page | 19  
   
  Any tech-minded people within the group will be ecstatic about getting their hands on a 
  Mech-Hare.  If the group is not yet, or does intend to remain, a team it would behoove the 
  group to work out a way to compensate those who do not get the Mech-Hare by having the 
  techies pay them their share based on the robot’s worth. 
   
  Upon activation the robot rabbit will hop around playfully and immediately seek to assist the 
  Players in some way.  If some sort of mechanical device is within its reach (waist high or less) 
  it will immediately grab the item and tinker with it.  After about half an hour the Mech-Hare 
  will return the device in top repair and any future uses will incur a +1 DM.  The Mech-Hare is 
  very helpful and for a robot very cute.  Play it up, and make the Players fall in love with this 
  little bot. 
   
  After agreeing to accept the robot as payment the group must then begin the investigation.  
  Looking over the body of the deceased mystery woman would be a good place to start. 
   
   
  MEET JANE FROST 
   
  The broken and battered body of the mystery woman has been placed in a coroner’s bag and 
  is lying in the back of a medical van.  Opening the bag will immediately alert the local medical 
  examiner as well as the ETM officers on the scene.  They will arrive within a few minutes as 
  they are very near by.  Either the Players or Rupali will need to confront and somehow 
  convince the medical examiner that they have authority to examine the body.  As the group 
  confronts the medical examiner it takes an Average Task Check to notice that she is nervously 
  fingering a silver necklace that has a pendant shaped like a mobius strip placed just below an 
  oval aquamarine.  If pressed by Rupali she will admit that she took the necklace off of the 
  woman’s body.  The threat of reporting this to her superiors will make her quickly hand the 
  necklace over.  
   
   
  ETM will need to be headed off as the Martian Rangers do not want the mercenary company 
  expanding their authority beyond the Exclusion Zone.   
   
   
  Upon opening the bag the Players see that the mystery women truly was beautiful.  Her hair 
  is a stark white color, but her features are those of a woman no older than her mid-twenties.  
  Her eyes are pale blue and skin is very pale.  Further examination will reveal numerous scars 
  on her back and thighs that look like whip and claw marks.  Her clothing, which has been 
  removed, is stuffed at the bottom of the bag.  Examination of the clothing reveals nothing 
  except that it is very well made and of an expensive label.  Looking at the body reveals two 
  tattoos; one at the nape of the neck depicts a blue oval on which there is a black circle 
  bisected by two perpendicular black lines, the other one her right ankle is that of a mobius 
  strip.  A difficult Task Check using an appropriate History, Archaeology or Philosophy skill will 
  remind the Player that the circle and line symbol is the old astrological symbol for Earth.  Any 
  Player with a notable interest in science fiction or collectibles can with an Average Task Check 
  recall that the symbol, especially when placed on a blue oval, also represents the fictional 
  Solar Union from the old Commander Quantum videos. 
   
   
  If any Player thinks to take a picture of the corpse and run a internet based photo match, 
  they will come up empty.  This is a bit surprising.  A more thorough search using special 
  software to access portions of the Marsnet not open to the public will bring up more 
  information.  With a successful Computers Task Check the Players will discover that the 
  woman is named Jadismarine.  She was reported missing and surprisingly there was a 
  
  Page | 20  
   
  substantial reward posted for her return.  A Very Difficult Advocate Task Check will reveal that 
  the wording for the “reward” is very similar to the murder contracts organized crime issues to 
  hit men.        
   
  THE BROKEN SNOW GLOBE 
   
  Redhorn appears to be a half buried snow globe that has been cracked open by a tremendous 
  force.  The dome is very near a newly opened portion of the city at Cydonia.  As it is a small 
  settlement nearly everyone living there knew everyone else.  Despite their suspicious nature 
  some of the residents will talk to the group and it will be rather easy to determine that no one 
  knew the woman.  If they assist the struggling community in some way and show sympathy it 
  will be easy for the group to learn that the woman was not present during the attack and her 
  body somehow mysteriously showed up very soon after.  No one knows how this came about 
  but they suspect government or church  involvement.   
   
  As the group moves about the dome security cameras and locals with coms capture video and 
  images of them.  These soon find their way onto the Marsnet and so very quickly word 
  spreads by way of informants, SIGINT and the notoriously leaky Martian government that this 
  woman has been found and she had something very important.  It also becomes common 
  knowledge that the Player Characters are snooping around and asking a lot of questions.     
   
  PRIMES FOR A PRESENT 
   
  Cracking the data chip is no easy task.  The chip uses a dual massive prime encryption key 
  system which will take time to get past.  It requires a very good computer capable of being 
  used by two people working in tandem.  If one of the Players is very good with computers 
  they can give it a try while working alongside a smart Intrusion program provided by Rupali.  
  This is Very Difficult and the Intrusion program only counts as skill level 0.  Barring an 
  exceptional failure they will notice that the chip makes no attempt to erase the encrypted data 
  even after repeated attempts at hacking.  What the group needs is a Data retrieval expert.  
  After a bit of time and frustration the Players will be able to crack the chip’s encryption.  After 
  doing so the group will uncover a large amount information concerning a pair of alien 
  artifacts.  It will take several hours to sift through the data, but those with Investigate skill 
  can shorten this with an Average Task Check. 
   
  Besides the information about the alien artifacts there are several diary entries made by the 
  enigmatic dead woman.  An observant Player will quickly notice that it’s a bit odd that these 
  are written diary pages and not the far more common video entries.  In fact beyond a few still 
  images there is nothing on the chip that shows the woman.  There is also nothing that gives 
  her name or any other personal information.  A Player with knowledge about undercover work 
  will realize that this too is strange; normally a cover identity will be created, especially on 
  Mars where the influx of immigrants makes it one of the few places besides Earth where 
  human spies can be used effectively.   
   
  Also within the diary pages in a cryptic entry that reads...”While once Mars held possession of 
  both gifts, it is said that he gave one to his lover.  The second gift now resides with her.  Only 
  by possessing both gifts will one have great power.”  
   
  
  Page | 21  
   
  She goes on to call one of the artifacts, the Red Box, and the other one is referred to as the 
  Green Box. The dead woman has put further information on the chip.  It refers to a group of 
  rovers that discovered a similar alien box several years ago.  Despite the extreme difficulty 
  involved they were able to open the box.  Unfortunately, the box held a decidedly deadly 
  booby-trap.  As soon as the artifact was opened an advanced swarm of nanobots erupted 
  forth and proceeded to strip the flesh from their bones.  For some death came quickly but for 
  a few standing further away from the artifact death was slow and painful.  The nanobots 
  consumed their bodies from the inside out and they died writhing in pain over the course of 
  several days.   
   
  Constructed of extremely advanced hardened carbon ceramet; the boxes are nearly 
  impossible to open without industrial grade plasma cutters.  If the Players insist on taking a 
  peek led them go on a wild goose chase to find a plasma cutter, but harry them with angry 
  rovers, tele-operated bots, government agents, corporate operatives or anyone else who 
  might want to obtain the artifacts.  Eventually they should get back on track, and the boxes 
  will remain unopened 
   
  The final few files on the chip are in the form of an intelligence report detailing a Rover group 
  called the Rosalindas.  Rupali has heard of this Rover band but knows very little about them 
  since she is new to Cydonia.  She does know someone who is familiar with the local Rovers. 
   
  MEET MS. CHIN 
   
  Rupali reluctantly takes the team to a small tent bar at the northeast end of Goeria.  There 
  they meet Tessa Chin.  Given the way Rupali and Chin behave towards each other an Average 
  Carouse Task Check will reveal that the two know each other well but their relationship is 
  strained.  A Difficult Task Check gives them the impression that the two women once had a 
  relationship.  They are correct, Rupali and Chin dated for over a year before splitting.  
  Because of that the two will be cold towards each other and over time begin to bicker.  It’s 
  possible that some of the Players will begin to find the two women very annoying. 
   
  If the group did not have a computer expert along, don’t worry, Ms. Chin can fill in.  Chin is a 
  computer wizard but does not make use of these skills in her current job.  If the Players were 
  unable to crack the chip’s encryption then Chin will offer to help.  The fact that she does not 
  get to use her impressive computer skills frustrates her a lot and so she often takes side jobs.  
  Many of them are not totally legal.  This is what caused Rupali and Chin to split up, and while 
  the two still have strong feeling for each other, Rupali has always been uncomfortable with 
  Chin’s border-line legal and often illegal activities.  Chin feels Rupali needs to get off her high 
  horse, especially since many of the activities she does are legal elsewhere and are only illegal 
  on Mars because the Green Party fears political dissent. 
   
  Chin has numerous contacts within the Rover gangs of Mars due to her side jobs.  One of her 
  closest set of associates are the Rosalinda’s, the very Rover group Rupali and the Players 
  need to meet up with.    
   
  If allowed to look at Jadismarine’s report concerning the Rosalindas, Chin will say that she 
  knows of that rover group.  She also knows that they usually camp a few kilometers outside 
  of the Exclusion Zone.  Chin also discovers, by way of code words in the report, that the 
  woman had contact with the leader of the Rosalindas.  Rupali insists that they find the 
  Rosalinda’s and make personal contact with them.  To assist in this endeavor she radios the 
  Ranger base in Cydonia City and has two Overseer drones tasked to look for the Rosalindas.  
  
  Page | 22  
   
  Furthermore since Rupali’s auto cannot handle the Martian terrain, they will need to take 
  vehicles made or modified to travel on Mars.  So long as the Players and Ruplai agree to take 
  her along, she is desperately bored with her current job, Chin helps them purchase some old 
  mono-track motorbikes and a used Mars rover. 
   
  OVER THE HILLS WE GO... 
   
  Rupali pays for the used vehicles, a beat up Mars rover and several new tracked motorcycles.  
  Any Player with an appropriate Drive skill of 1 or more will be allowed to drive.  They head out 
  to find the Rover band known as the Rosalindas.  The terrain on Mars is dusty and dangerous.  
  Terraforming has made the geology and weather on the planet unpredictable.  Referees 
  should feel free to add some problems such as a sinkhole or a dust storm.   
  All players will be lent a standard Mars suit if they don’t already have one.  See Zozer Game’s 
  Vacc Suit PDF for details; it’s free and will be very helpful.  Anyone riding a track cycle will 
  need to wear the full suit.  Persons within the rover, which can hold eight in tight quarters, 
  should have their suit on but can forgo the helmet and gloves. 
   
  The group heads out even before the Overseers can get a confirmation as to the location of 
  the Rosalindas.  The group must rely on Chin’s informed guess and if anything goes wrong 
  Rupali will badger her, thus sparking another round of annoying bickering.   
   
  Less than an hour after starting out an Average Task Check will reveal that they are being 
  followed though only a small dust cloud gives their pursuer away.  Shortly after that they are 
  buzzed a small spy drone.  Players with military or police backgrounds will identify the drone 
  as an RPV and it’s likely that it’s being controlled by the vehicle that is following them.  Chin 
  recommends that they speed up to get away, but Rupali doubts that they can outrun the 
  drone. The Player characters may think to split up and rendezvous once the Overseers report 
  in.  The Players may have other plans in mind to avoid the tail. The terrain is very rugged and 
  they are now over 25km from their starting point.   
   
  Either way the small spy drone will be followed by three larger recon/patrol drones.  Unlike 
  the spy drone these drones are armed and have a little armor.  Unfortunately, except for 
  Rupali, none of the Players have lethal weapons.  They may have short ranged stun weapons, 
  melee weapons or non-lethal grenades.  The larger armed drones, Aerodyne Sky-Wasp 
  Security Drones, will strafe the Players with small caliber automatic weapons but they prove to 
  very bad shots.  Harass the players, but allow them opportunities to think of ways to fool or 
  even destroy the Sky-Wasps.  With a Difficult Task Check allow Players with military 
  knowledge to realize that the drones may be missing on purpose.  The enemy Mars rover 
  remains out of range and will retreat if the Players get at all close. 
   
  After a half an hour of cat and mouse chasing the Players will receive word from Rupali, and 
  she will down load the coordinates for the Rosalinda’s current base camp.  As the Players 
  head there any surviving Sky-Wasps will follow.  As they near the coordinates high power rifle 
  fire will drive the drone off or bring it down. 
   
   
   
   
   
  
  Page | 23  
   
  CIRCLE THE ROVERS 
   
  As the Players come over a small ridge they will note that they’ve entered a large crater.  At 
  its center, positioned around a small central peak, are nearly a dozen Mars rovers and an 
  equal number of trailers.  Most of the rovers look as used and worn as the rover the Players 
  have access to.  As soon as they enter the crater they are flanked by six track-cycles.  Each 
  one holds a rider and a passenger, and the passengers all have very large rifles slung over 
  their shoulders. 
   
  Very quickly they will notice that both Rupali’s and Chin’s track-cycles are already parked 
  nearby.  A Difficult awareness based Task Check will cause a Player to notice that the tracks 
  made by Chin’s track cycle are already filling a bit with the fine Martian sand that blows 
  through the crater.  A good estimate would be that they are at least 20 minutes old.  Rupali’s 
  tracks could not have been made more than a few minutes ago. Obviously this only happens 
  if the party split up.  
   
  The Players will be greeted politely but a bit coldly.  The Rovers don’t care much for 
  strangers.  They are only being civil because Chin vouched for them.  If the players are 
  reluctant to trust the Rovers; they really have little choice.  Their air is running low and a dust 
  storm is coming. 
   
  
  Page | 24  
   
  The group is cycled through the airlocks and enters a large modified Mars trailer.  The RV 
  sized enclosure can easily seat fifteen people.  Besides Rupali, Chin (who seems to have been 
  shot) and the Players; there are four Rosalindas.  Momma Rosa is an elderly lady with a warm 
  smile.  She knows Chin well but is reluctant to have the Players stay longer than absolutely 
  necessary.  An Average medical or awareness Task Check informs the Player that Chin’s 
  wound does not look much like a drone-inflicted  bullet woundas she claims.       
   
  After a bit of talking the leader of the Rosalindas hands over another data chip that tells how 
  there are actually two artifacts, one of which is still on Mars.  The second artifact, known as 
  the Green Box, was stolen very recently and taken by persons unknown. 
   
  Chin knows that some of the enigmatic wording within the encoded files refer to an area on 
  Venus where those known as Betabackers look for diamonds and other valuables. 
   
  With the information gained from the Rovers the team now has the evidence they need to 
  recover the Red Box and look for the second artifact.  The Rovers warn them that the people 
  who stole the Green Box took it from the Grinch and now the Grinch is very mad.  They are 
  unsure if the Grinch has the Red Box, but it’s the best place to start looking for it.  The Grinch 
  is some sort of large creature that lives under ground just inside the Exclusion Zone.  Every 
  few months it emerges from its layer to steal supplies and terrorize any Rovers it comes upon.  
  The only two ways to get into the Grinch’s layer are to find the primary entrance, which is well 
  hidden and may be very well guarded, or to enter through a narrow sinkhole that links to the 
  Grinch’s hideout by way of a long set of natural caves. 
   
  Momma Rosa, Rupali and the other members of the Rosalindas all recommend taking the 
  route through the sinkhole.  If the Players insist on looking for the main entrance they will 
  waste at least a day and still find nothing. 
   
  Also, as the group is getting ready to leave Rupali reveals that her Overseer drones spotted 
  an abandoned martian rover not far from the sinkhole.  Tire tracks, now a day or so old, 
  reveal that there were originally two rovers in the area but now only one remains.  There is 
  also evidence of the remains of the Charlie-in-the-Box, which is common when those systems 
  self destruct; and, most disturbing, two bodies lay on the ground near the Charlie-in-the-Box.   
   
  As Rupali reveals this information Momma Rosa looks a bit nervous.  A Difficult Carousing 
  check and some good role-playing will get her to reveal that the group recently gave aid to a 
  beautiful blonde woman who drove through in a Mars rover.  The blonde made a strong 
  impression on Momma Rosa as she had one green eye and one blue eye and spoke with a 
  strange accent.  She had with her a man who had been injured by shotgun fire and suffered 
  minor decompression injuries.  She was reluctant to tell the Players this because she had 
  taken a liking to the girl and did not want her to get in trouble with the Rangers.  If the 
  Players do a very good job earning Momma Rosa’s trust she will also tell them that the blonde 
  was looking for another woman whose picture matched the picture of the mystery woman the 
  Players know as Jadismarine.  But the blonde referred to this white haired woman as Zwei 
  Blau. 
   
  A quick Marsnet search for the name Zwei Blau will turn up tens of thousands of hits.  Zwei 
  Blau, though, was the young blue-eyed, white-haired crack pilot of the Tomorrow Team.  She 
  was a close companion to the heroic fictional character, Commander Quantum.  Zwei Blau’s 
  picture, while a different woman  to the images from the long-running TV series found, do 
  look a lot like the mystery woman. 
   
  
  Page | 25  
   
  It is relatively easy to find information concerning Commander Quantum and his intrepid 
  Tomorrow Team, but information concerning a real life woman named Zwei Blau is non-
  existent on the Marsnet. 
   
    
   
   
   
  DOWN THROUGH THE CHIMNEY 
   
  Now that the characters have learned where the Red artifact is they need to go and get it.  
  Besides the Players, two others will be traveling towards the artifact site.  They are Rupali and 
  Martin Brant, a member of the Rosalinda’s who is curious about the Aliens in general.  The 
  group can leave Brant behind if they wish, but if they take him along the Rovers will offer 
  them use of one of their spare rovers as well as numerous supplies.  After spending the night 
  with the Rosalindas the team will head off to find the Grinch’s layer.   
   
  The drive over to the sink hole is uneventful, unless the Referee wishes to add a complication 
  or two.  It is highly recommended that one of the rovers experience critical mechanical 
  trouble so that the Mech-Hare can prove its worth by quickly finding and fixing the problem.  
  Make sure at least one of the Players develops an intense attachment to the little robot and 
  takes it everywhere they go.  It’s small enough to fit in a modified back-pack, and with its 
  little head and solar panel ears sticking out it looks pretty cute! 
   
  As the group gets ready to find the Grinch, Brant gives the team two Ball Guns (see chapter 
  5, Stuff), a TL9 motion sensor, two 100 meter lengths of smart rope, several dozen glow 
  balls, and several high intensity flashlights.   
   
  The entrance to the sinkhole is very near to the location given to the group by Momma Rosa 
  and it’s location can be seen for nearly a a kilometer due to the pillar of steam rising out of 
  the ground.  A third set of tracks, unseen a day ago while the Overseers flew overhead, is 
  now visible around the area.  The exterior of the stranded rover has been stripped of anything 
  useful and the tracks lead up and then away from the edge of the sinkhole.  The bodies are 
  also missing.   
   
  Once up close to the hole it proves to be a small dark pit barely wide enough to fit a single 
  person in a vacc suit.  Rupali is nervous and reluctant to descend through the sinkhole, but  
  The Grinch   
  Said to be a large alien creature or robot, the Grinch has been terrorizing the local Rovers 
  for several years.  It emerges from a hidden underground layer every few days, usually 
  during windstorms when the Rovers dare not go outside, and steals anything it can from 
  the exterior of their vehicles or habitats.  It has caused no deaths directly but several 
  people have died or gone missing while attempting to track the beast.  Over the past 
  decade or so the Grinch has taken on near legendary status.  Many Rover children warn 
  that if they stay out too long or do not properly stow their belongings at night then the 
  Grinch will come for them.  The Grinch is said to be a sickly greenish grey color with a long 
  neck and two glowing eyes.  Its’ back writhes like sea urchin and it growls and hisses as it 
  moves about the surface of Mars.  Some have suggested mounting a large hunt to destroy 
  the creature but no Rover gang wants to expend the resources or kill off a legend.  
  
  Page | 26  
   
  Martin Brant might offer to step into her place.  After twenty meters of a dark cramped 
  descent the sinkhole opens up into a wider cavern.  If anyone thinks of it it might help to drop 
  a glow ball or two down into the hole.  An Average recon Task Check will reveal that the floor 
  seems to be moving a bit. 
   
  Upon reaching the floor after a further fifteen meters of descent the Players will find 
  themselves in a large circular chamber over twelve meters in diameter.  They see a small 
  passageway leading out of the chamber.  And they are surrounded by Martian creatures 
  known as Crawlies.  This is not a scene for the queasy, especially since two corpses are also 
  at the bottom of the sinkhole.  The corpses are covered in Crawlies and the creatures are 
  slowly consuming them.  It doesn’t take a genius to realize that these are the two bodies seen 
  by the Overseers.  Someone, or something, has dropped them down the sinkhole like pieces 
  of garbage. 
   
  Players with medical or military experience will, after pushing the Crawlies out of the way, be 
  able to determine that the people died less than three days ago due to gun shots at close 
  range.  Once chased off their food source the Crawlies will begin to leap onto the Players.  
  They are not attacking or looking for food; they just want to benefit from the heat source that 
  exists on the back of every Mars suit.  Of course the Players do not know this and may react 
  however they wish.  Unless they have somehow smuggled a real firearm along with them, 
  they have only non-lethal weapons.  Electro shock weapons will stun the Crawlies, but their 
  natural shell protects them from a lot of blunt damage and they can survive having up to five 
  of their eight limbs cut off.  Any loud noises will startle the Crawlies and cause them to whip 
  about the sharp hooks at the end of their hunting arms. 
   
  Referees are encouraged to make this as chaotic and scary as possible.  Crawlies will launch 
  themselves onto the Players’ suits and drop from the ceiling.  Geothermal heating will create 
  false readings and steam will begin to cover their suits’ visors.  Motion sensors will be 
  worthless in the tight space of the chamber, and the alarmed Crawlies will begin to chirp and 
  trumpet in a manner sounding very much like the ill begotten offspring of a bullfrog and a 
  barn owl. 
   
  Crawlies 
  These multi-limbed masters of camouflage are the largest alien creatures able to survive 
  on the surface of Mars.  Originally confined to the deep tunnels and caverns, Crawlies 
  have begun to come to the surface as terraforming makes Mars warmer and wetter.  
  Crawlies look a bit like a cross between an octopus and a turtle.  A circular shell-covered 
  body radiates eight flexible legs and the underside of each leg is covered in motion and 
  heat sensing hairs.  The legs are strong and have very good dexterity.  This allows the 
  creature to crawl over almost any surface; they are particularly fond of resting on 
  anything warm such as a habitat’s power unit or even a space suit’s heat regulator.  
  Crawlies are omnivores but prefer meat.  As the amino acids used by the aliens and Earth  
  life are very similar, Crawlies can eat Earth organics and be eaten by animals from Earth.  
  Crawlies kill by hooking small animals with a poisonous barb located at the end of each 
  limb.  The animal dies very quickly and then the creature consumes it.  Crawlies have 
  never been known to attack humans, but they have been found in large numbers eating 
  humans who have recently died through other means.  Oddly, Crawlie poison causes a 
  temporary increase in strength, dexterity, and awareness in primates as it affects the 
  pituitary system and increases the production of adrenaline.  After the boosts the 
  character will crash and suffer several penalties for over an hour.  
  
  Page | 27  
   
  Once the Players get free of or clear out the Crawlies they will notice that the floor of the 
  chamber is littered with debris ranging from broken computers to emergency ration packets.  
  If the Players take the time to look around the Referee may allow them to find a few useful 
  items.  Think of it as a high-tech treasure trove left behind by some sort of Martian monster.    
   
   
  THE CAVES OF MARS 
   
  As there is but one exit from the sinkhole chamber the Players have little choice.  That being 
  said now is the time for them to make use of the Ball-Gun and some of their Mappers.  This 
  will give them a basic idea of the layout of what proves to be a rather expansive system of 
  caves.  Further exploration will show that the caves are largely natural, but after a few 
  kilometers of winding labyrinth like passages they open into larger corridors and chambers.  
  An Average geology Task Check determines that these portions are definitely man or even 
  alien made. 
   
  Exploring the caverns could easily become a long term adventure itself.  They hold quit a bit 
  of life; some alien, in the form of the Crawlies and several smaller critters, and some brought 
  from Earth and modified to suit the martian environment.  This Earth life consists primarily of 
  lichen, moss, cacti, insects and small arthropods.  If the Players are observant they will 
  perhaps catch a glimpse of a small rodent.  This is the fabled martian marmot.  Careful 
  observation may also note that the Crawlies are more than capable of killing and eating said 
  marmots.  Video of such an event could be worth a lot to the scientific community and even 
  more if sold to one of the many nature oriented channels on Earth or Luna.  Skills in Biology 
  and Xenology would be very helpful here. 
   
  It is recommended that while 
  traveling through the caves that the 
  Referee play up the tension.  A few 
  possibilities are hearing strange 
  sounds 
  like 
  growling, 
  flooded 
  portions of the tunnel fed by 
  melting 
  subsurface 
  water 
  and 
  obnoxiously persistent Crawlies that 
  continuously attempt to hitch a ride 
  on the back of the Players’ Mars 
  suits. 
   
  Eventually the Players will reach the 
  portion of the caves that open up 
  into wider passages ways.  The 
  walls will become smooth and it will 
  be easy to see signs of excavation.  
  Life persists in this region but in a 
  much smaller amount; fewer places 
  to hide make it more difficult to survive.  After a further twenty meters or so the Players may 
  notice wiring and pipes upon the ceilings and walls.  An Average Engineering Task Check 
  confirms that these are of human design.  A Difficult check notices the small seismic sensors 
  tucked into notches in the wall. 
   
  
  Page | 28  
   
  Continuing into the man made portion reveals an large underground bunker.  Beyond an 
  airlock there are numerous rooms with small metal bunks and lockers.  One large room is 
  obviously a mess hall and another looks to be an exercise room.  There is also a room with an 
  incredibly solid door and no visible lock.  Any attempt at opening that door will fail since the 
  Players have nothing more powerful than stun grenades or wrist mounted cutting torches.  
  They can try for a while if they wish, but nothing will open the door. Let it irritate them. 
   
  Everything seems rather incomplete.  Someone with a knowledge of history or military affairs 
  can deduce by way of an Average Task Check that the facility was built during the later stages 
  of the Belt War but while occupied for some time, it was never completed. 
   
   
  YOU’RE A MEAN ONE    
   
  As the Players are exploring the abandoned bunker they will hear a static filled crackle.  It is 
  not coming from their suits, and a Difficult Task Check reveals that the old ceiling mounted 
  speakers are coming to life.  After a second or two of white noise a loud voice will speak. 
   
  “Leave my caverns or suffer the consequences!”  The voice says.  Oddly, the voice changes in 
  mid sentence as if it were spliced together using clips from multiple recordings. 
   
  Of course the Players should opt to continue onward.  After a bit the lights will flicker, and 
  they will begin to hear scary noises, including screaming and doors creaking.  All of these 
  sounds come from the afore mentioned speakers, and a Difficult hearing or perception check 
  will reveal that they are most likely recordings not live broadcasts. 
   
  Just as the characters are reaching the end of the military bunker and can easily see a large 
  airlock vehicle ramp a shape rumbles out of the darkness.  The Grinch does indeed growl and 
  hiss as it moves, due to its worn out gears.  It is an ugly green-grey in color since moss and 
  lichen are now covering most of its once white body.  And the waving arms of the numerous 
  crawlies that seek warmth on its back make it move and squirm in an unsettling fashion. 
   
  Check to see if the Players are surprised with a Difficult perception check.  If they are 
  surprised give them a free action to fire blindly, scream or cower.  The Grinch is as large as 
  Rupali’s car but with an odd periscope like head.  Anyone can with a knowledge of the history 
  of space exploration, robotics or Martian history can make an Average to Difficult task check.  
  If they succeed they will realize the following... 
   
  ++++ Landed on Mars in 2016 the Mars Meteorology, Aerology and Biology Advanced Mobile 
  Laboratory was a joint American-Canadian-British follow-on to the highly successful Curiosity 
  mission.  Better known as Ingenuity, the rover carried a plethora of sophisticated laboratory 
  equipment as well as two smaller wheeled rovers known as Hawking and Sagan.  Fitted with a 
  long endurance radioisotope thermoelectric generator Ingenuity did much to pave the way for 
  the 2017 manned landing on Mars.  While astronauts did pay visits to Ingenuity in 2019 and 
  2027, mainly to retrieve sample collections and repair its solar collectors, the rover was all but 
  forgotten once terraforming commenced and public attention turned elsewhere.  Even so 
  Ingenuity continued its mission for a further eighteen years before all communication with the 
  rover was lost.  The official reason for its loss was put as power loss but no attempt was 
  made to confirm this assertion.++++ 
   
  
  Page | 29  
   
  Of course the Players are now aware that Ingenuity was not lost.  It’s a bit kooky and very 
  lonely but in surprisingly good repair.  The Players should be able to ascertain from talking to 
  the rover and by good role-playing that the rover was found and taken by elements of the 
  pro-Earth Martian militia during the Belt War.  Several grad students specializing in computers 
  and robotics who were volunteering in the militia spent their free time fixing and upgrading 
  Ingenuity.  The rover is now able to tap directly into the base’s geothermal power supply to 
  recharge its batteries.  It can also use its built-in wireless connection to access the base 
  computer and control the few parts of the base that still work; this includes the vehicle 
  airlock, lights, loud speakers and both internal and external sensors. 
   
  Unfortunately, all is not well for Ingenuity.  Despite having access to power it is dying.  
  Several of its subsystems are breaking down, its has dust and grime throughout its moving 
  parts and it has lost Sagan while Hawking is stuck and unable to deploy.  The rover is covered 
  in moss and lichen as well as at least a half dozen crawlies.  The poor thing while quirky, its 
  voice consists only of pieced together clips of Carl Sagan, Stephen Hawking and Neil 
  deGrasse-Tyson, is really very pathetic.  If the Players don’t think of it have Martin Brant 
  suggest that they allow the Mech-Hare to work on the rover in exchange for information 
  regarding the dead bodies and the Red Box. 
   
  The Mech-Hare will get to work right away and very quickly have several of Ingenuity’s joints 
  working much smoother.  Ingenuity will admit that it knew about the Charlie-in-the-Box but as 
  it lacked a long range radio it did not report it.  Besides its dedicated orbital relay satellite is 
  no longer in place.  It also confesses that it dumped the two bodies in the pit and can even 
  replay a recording of the attack made by the Charlie-in-the-Box.  If the Players are paying 
  close attention they will catch a glimpse of a woman wearing an ill fitting mars suit that 
  matches the description of the woman Momma Rosa told them about.  She and an injured 
  man leave in the missing mars rover.  It might be wise for the Players to get copies of this 
  footage as it will move on Rupali’s investigation and proves that the people in the missing 
  rover were victims not the attackers. 
   
  
  Page | 30  
   
  Finally, if the Players broach the subject matter, Ingenuity will at first deny that it knows 
  anything about the Red Box.  Any Players with computer skills can make an Average check to 
  notice that somehow the rover is lying.  The Players can then try to trick the rover into 
  revealing what it knows.  Treat this as a Difficult task.  Eventually, Ingenuity will let slip that it 
  has the Red Box.           
   
   
  MECH-HARE, RED COFFIN 
   
  Ingenuity views the Red Box as its most precious possession.  It will refuse nearly every offer.  
  Every offer that is but one.  If someone brings up the idea of trading the Mech-Hare for the 
  Red Box Ingenuity will go very quiet.  After a few moments it will finally say in Stephen 
  Hawking’s computerized voice ...”We should seek the greatest value of our action.”  After that 
  it will extend its long sample arm as if to shake on the deal. 
   
  Of course not everyone will be happy with.  Those who have grown to like the Mech-Hare will 
  be reluctant to see it go, but the harsh reality is that without the Mech-Hare’s help Ingenuity 
  will soon die, and the Players will not get the Red Box.  This should convince the hold outs.  
  Of course the other Players may need to find a way to compensate them and smooth the 
  transaction over for them.  
   
  Once the transaction is made 
  Ingenuity will take the Players 
  over to the un-openable door.  
  Using an unnoticed pin hole in 
  a hard to reach location the 
  robot rover will unlock the 
  door.  Lights will come on  
  automatically, and the Players 
  will be able to see the interior 
  of the what was once the 
  base’s armory. 
   
  The left wall is set up to hold 
  about fifty assault rifles and 
  their ammo.  Only six remain.  
  The right wall has twelve 
  lockers.  In side of them are a 
  few random articles of clothing 
  and a few personal items 
  including combs, tooth paste 
  and other toiletries.  The far 
  wall is lined with shelves.  
  These 
  shelves 
  now 
  have 
  numerous 
  biological 
  and 
  geological samples collected 
  by Ingenuity.  There is also a 
  pile of older style computer 
  wafers dating back to when 
  the militia still occupied the 
  base.  On these wafers is 
  
  Page | 31  
   
  nearly twenty years worth of data collected by Ingenuity.  The robot rover implores the 
  Players to take these wafers, along with a full data dump of its internal computer, with them 
  to hand over to NASA.  Poor Ingenuity is unaware that NASA no longer exists.   
   
  Also on the disks are numerous research papers and diaries written by the grad students who 
  were living in the base.  Several of these papers would be of great interest to scientists and 
  corporations alike.  Two of them are especially important; Multi-Level Neural Net Buffering to 
  Counter Smart Computer Fragmentation, has the possibility of revolutionizing the field of 
  artificial intelligence, and Towards A Unified Ecosystem: Finding A Stable Mix of Native, Alien 
  and Terran Life for Mars, which details why  terraformers should use all types of life to create 
  a habitable Mars.  As the authors of these papers are now dead the Players could claim them 
  and make a lot of money.  Less morally grey would be for the players to reveal the truth so 
  that the surviving family members of these militia members could have closure.  
   
  At the very bottom of the shelf is a large coffin-sized Red Box.  Despite the lack of handles 
  two Players should be able to carry the box with a little difficulty.  Getting the Red Box back 
  through the caves and up the sinkhole would be near impossible so Ingenuity agrees to open 
  the vehicle airlock to let them out. 
   
  Finally, if Ingenuity is asked how it got the Red Box it will say...”The gifts have always been 
  with Mars.”  If it is asked about the rumored second gift, it will say...”Mars chose to give the 
  Green Box to his lover [Venus] long ago.”  If asked how it knew that the robot will go into a 
  detailed account about finding evidence of this occurrence long ago while traveling about the 
  martian wilderness.  Given the scientific nature of Ingenuity’s programming this rambling, and 
  rather unrevealing, story will seem strangely out of place.  It further pressed Ingenuity will 
  become sullen and reply with an angry...”I just know!  That’s how I know!”...in a strange 
  voice.  A Very Difficult task check might clue the Players into the fact that this fourth voice is 
  none other than Tessa Chin.        
   
   
  GET YOUR ASS TO VENUS 
   
  The long hike back to the sinkhole opening will take over an hour.  An observant Player might 
  catch a glimpse of a Crawlie basking on some martian rocks.  This is difficult to do since the 
  crawlies can change color to blend into their surroundings.  (See the cover for how this 
  encounter might look.) 
   
  Upon meeting back up with Rupali, who is anxiously waiting at the sinkhole, she will give 
  several of them hugs and tell them that Tessa Chin is in better shape.  If the Players are 
  suspicious of Ms. Chin they may want to reveal this to Rupali at this point.  Rupali will react 
  very angrily but since they need to return to the Rosalinda’s for assistance she won’t do 
  anything about it in the short term; besides Chin has not really done anything wrong as there 
  is no evidence that she was in any way involved in the attack on the dome. 
   
  At this point the Players should realize that they are part of something bigger than finding out 
  who Zwei Blau / Jadismarine / Jane Frost is.  They should also know that their next step is to 
  get to Venus to find the second Gift.  Rupali refuses to leave Mars as she can not do so as a 
  Martian Ranger, but she does offer to hold the Red Box for them.  This is a sincere offer, but 
  the Players should say, no thank you.  Tessa Chin, mostly healed from her injury, will go 
  along if the Players need computer assistance but would rather stay on Mars as well.  Martin 
  
  Page | 32  
   
  Brant, who hasn’t really done anything yet, would love to go along and could act as a good 
  love interest for any one of the Players if the Referee saw fit to add that to the adventure. 
   
  If Tessa Chin is confronted about her voice being used by the Grinch she will initially insist 
  that the Players misheard the robot.  If further pressed will offer up the explanation that 
  perhaps the Grinch / Ingenuity recorded her radio transmissions during the track-cycle chase.  
  If they continue to press her she will refuse to assist them any further. 
   
  Once it is decided who is going to Venus, Momma Rosa, Chin and Rupali will get together to 
  find transportation for the Players.  The Players are forced to hand over their track-cycles and 
  Mars rover as payment for the trip into orbit.  After two days of waiting they reluctantly 
  announce that the Players will be traveling to Venus aboard the S.U.S.V. Prometheus. 
   
  The Players will then get to meet Commander Quantum.   
   
   
   
  AND EVERYONE YOU MEET... 
   
   
  Mariana Rupali - Rupali, she is almost never called by her first name, is a decorated Martian 
  Ranger.  She spent five years in Reunion where she gained a reputation as a friend to the 
  Rover and mining communities.  This was not because she had any close connection to these 
  groups; instead it was because she wasn’t willing to use them as scapegoats for the ills 
  caused by the ruling political elite.  This garnered her friends in all the wrong places and a 
  year ago she was forced to transfer out of the capital.  She resents this but is getting along 
  well in the Cydonia Polis Regio.  The laid back attitude of the local Ranger office bothers her 
  at times as does the condescending attitude of the ETM agents she is often forced to work 
  alongside. Rupali lacks a good sense of humor but is slow to anger.  She is of Indian descent 
  but is a true Martian native.  Due to a manpower shortage, and the reluctance to bring in 
  ETM, she is the only agent involved in investigating the mystery woman known temporarily as 
  Jane Frost.  She can call on other Ranger assets if her work coincides with the larger 
  investigation into the terrorist attack on Redhorn dome. 
   
  Use the Detective NPC given on page 84 of the Traveller: Core Rulebook. 
   
  Tessa Chin - Chin is a contractor for Cyrethean Benthic, a subsidiary of Benthic Deep.  
  Benthic Deep is a large Earth based corporation that builds deep ocean facilities and habitats 
  and Cyrethean Benthic is their foray into building habitats for use on the surface of Venus.  
  She knows a lot of people on Venus but is now working a job on Mars to examine whether 
  deep ocean remotes could be used to explore one of the major Martian aquifers that is 
  rumored to have significant macroscopic life.  Chin is also a very experienced computer 
  operator.  She uses these skills to pursue secondary employment; not all of which is 
  technically legal.  Chin dated Mariana Rupali for over a year, but the two had a falling out due 
  to Chin’s criminal connections.  The two still have feelings for each other but often fight.  Chin 
  is a petite woman of Hispanic and Asian descent.  She is quite pretty but is very subconscious 
  about an ocassional stutter and the large scar across her left shoulder.  Unknown to the PCs 
  she is also a member of the Infinite Circle. 
   
  Use the Experienced Tech NPC given on page 84 of the Traveller: Core Rulebook, but increase 
  her Computers skill to 4. 
  
  Page | 33  
   
  Momma Rosa - The Rosalindas are a Rover gang that is over fifty years old.  They are well 
  known in the Rover community and with the long haul road train drivers, but less known in 
  the cities of Mars.  That is because they have largely kept out of trouble.  The Rosalindas 
  make their money doing seasonal work, providing transportation to out of the way places or 
  providing security for research teams.  They have made numerous enemies within the Red 
  Legion faction because they have foiled numerous terrorist attacks against terraformers.   
   
   
  Momma Rosa is one of their current matriarchs.  She is an tall woman with dark brown skin 
  that makes her bright white smile stand out like a beacon.  She is quick to smile and provide 
  encouragement, but if one of her fellow Rovers is hurt she is known to become 
  uncompromisingly vindictive.  Like most members of the Rosalindas she has no love for the 
  Reds, but she harbors a special hate for them since they killed her son four years ago.  Thus 
  she will give aide and assistance to anyone working against that group.  
   
  Use the Diplomat NPC given on page 85 of the Traveller: Core Rulebook.   
   
  Martin Brant - If one thing can be said of Martin Brant it’s that he’s enthusiastic.  Brant was 
  born to a rich family and raised by an overbearing nanny.  When he was nineteen he left 
  college and travelled around the world.  Two years later he got bored with Earth and moved 
  to Mars.  His intent was to join the Red Legion in order to fight for a “Free and Pristine Mars” 
  but grew disillusioned after witnessing one of their terror attacks kill seven young children.  
  He turned in the rest of his Red Legion colLegions and then fled for his life.  His dislike of the 
  Reds made him a natural fit with the Rosalindas.  Brant is a very handsome young man of 
  Mohawk descent and has a deep dislike of the Reds.  Unfortunately, his enthusiasm  is not 
  complemented by a solid set of skills, but he is extremely loyal and has the secret backing of 
  a very large trust fund. 
   
  Use the Young Noble NPC given on page 85 of the Traveller: Core Rulebook, but remove the 
  servitor robot and replace it with Cr5,000 immediately available and ten times that available 
  within 72 hours.  
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
  
  Page | 34  
   
   3   INTERLUDE 
   
   
  The trip to the Mars spaceport at Reunion is uneventful, despite the large Red Box they have 
  to tote along.  So too is the spaceplane they take into orbit.  However, on the small Orbital 
  Transfer Vehicle they are forced to take from the Mars space station to the S.U.S.V. 
  Prometheus, they do have problems.  These problems stem from their large package that 
  barely fits in the cargo hold.  They are instead forced to pay a bit extra, thus using some of 
  the allowance given to them by Rupali. 
   
  Commander Quantum is a large man who looks very much like the television hero he has 
  become.  Quantum is outspoken, bombastic, and extremely charismatic.  He will take the time 
  to meet and speak with every Player who boards his space vehicle.  A noticeable aspect of the 
  Commander is that he speaks with an unidentifiable European accent.  A Player with language 
  skills will be able to tell with a Difficult Task Check that the accent is a fake ‘Mediterranean’ 
  accent with a touch of Italian, Greek and French.  This may make the Commander seem a bit 
  goofy, but to women he is charming and a bit flirtatious and when dealing with men he 
  quickly acts like a fellow team-mate who shares common interests.  Some might find it 
  disturbing, but he truly seems to believe that he is in fact Commander Quantum.  Only three 
  things will make Quantum outwardly angry; endangering his crew, showing sympathy towards 
  causes that would hurt mankind, and expressing doubt that he is truly the Commander 
  Quantum.  One mildly irritating personality quirk is that Commander Quantum is prone to 
  tirades that proclaim the innate greatness of humankind and dramatic pauses before making 
  important decisions. 
   
   
  THE S.U.S.V. PROMETHEUS 
   
  Commander Quantum’s space vehicle is 
  one of a kind.  Anyone with more than 
  passing knowledge of space vehicle 
  technology will realize on an Average 
  Task Check that the Commander either 
  has close connections in the one of the 
  major space military organizations or 
  within a major government, most likely 
  both.  The Solar Union Space Vehicle 
  Prometheus began life as a used deep 
  space vehicle and has been extensively 
  modified.  The exterior makes use of the 
  white and blue color scheme common to 
  the Solar Union space vehicles of the 
  Commander Quantum shows and movies.  
  The interior has been redone to resemble that of the movie version of the Prometheus.  It is 
  clean and high tech with handsome wood trim and tasteful blue highlights.   
  
  Page | 35  
   
  The general layout of the vehicle consists of twelve circular floors stacked along the long axis.  
  Each floor is three meters high with a meter more of storage and crawl space between the 
  floors.  This makes the overall length of the inhabited portion of the craft about 48 meters.  
  The craft is 18 meters wide with the inner 2.5 meters taken up by the central elevator shaft.   
   
  Since the floors are perpendicular to the direction of thrust passengers and crew gain the 
  illusion of gravity whenever the vehicle is accelerating.  The primary personnel elevator runs 
  through the center of the vehicle while two secondary access tubes run its length along the 
  outer hull.  These secondary tubes consist of ladders and pull ropes.  The Prometheus has no 
  spin gravity so the crew wears smart stick shoes and resistive clothing that provides low level 
  exercise as the crew members move about the craft.  The Players are given their own sets of 
  this special clothing soon after they board the vehicle. 
   
  The forward-most deck consists primarily of avionics, communications and sensors.  Access is 
  by way of a small hatch leading to a three by three metre maintenance room.  There is also a 
  small lounge known as First Forward that can seat eight people around two small tables.  A 
  large window constructed of transparent metal dominates one wall and the ceiling, and there 
  is a small drinks and snack dispenser recessed into another wall.  For some reason this is the 
  only place on the entire craft to get good coffee. 
   
  Deck Two, they count going from the nose to the rear of the vehicle, consists of two halves.  
  One half is the primary flight deck and has stations for six crew members; commander, 
  primary weapons controller, pilot, secondary pilot, sensors operator, and mission specialist.  
  The names assigned to these positions do not necessarily match what these positions would 
  be called on board other space vehicles since they are meant only to match the old movies.  
  The mission specialist is a unique crew position that acts as a science advisor and jack of all 
  trades.  There is large view screen at the “front” of the flight deck as well as touch screen 
  displays at every work station.  Players with any knowledge concerning space travel will notice 
  the differences within the Prometheus and anyone making an Easy Carouse check will soon 
  realize that the man acting as the craft’s pilot is very new to the job. 
   
  The other half of Deck Two consists of a flare shelter capable of holding twenty-four people 
  for five days and a briefing room.  The briefing room can comfortably seat sixteen people and 
  is dominated by the large holo-display tank that sits of to one side. 
   
  Deck Three is divided into three parts.  One half is the crew lounge and mess, while a quarter 
  of it consists of a small kitchen and food prep area.  The other quarter consists of the 
  infirmary and is home to the craft’s doctor.  The infirmary has room for four reclining patients 
  along with two top of the line auto-medic emergency stabilization booths.  The crew refers to 
  these booths as rent-a-coffins. 
   
  Deck Four is devoted almost exclusively to the Commander.  Half of it is his personal bedroom 
  and lounge.  A quarter of it is a well appointed office from which the Commander conducts 
  daily business, and the remaining quarter is the arms locker. 
   
  Decks Five through Nine consist almost exclusively of crew and passenger quarters.  Each 
  floor is divided into eight small rooms; six of which are crew rooms.  Each crew member gets 
  his or her own room, a rarity on board a space craft.  The other two rooms consist of a 
  maintenance room, which double as flare rooms, and a storage locker.  Personal facilities 
  consist of a fold away toilet and sink which are in every room.  Deck Five is slightly different in 
  that the two non-crew rooms are actually airlocks that lead to the vehicle’s two space plane 
  
  Page | 36  
   
  landers.  Deck Nine also replaces the two non-crew rooms with airlocks, but these lead only to 
  the exterior of the craft and the outer service tubes. 
   
  Deck Ten is the only “open space” floor on the vehicle.  It consists of a large torus shaped 
  room that is used for training, exercise, and crew gatherings.  Folding tables and chairs can 
  pop up from the floor and there is even a large movie screen on the wall.  A large portion of 
  the wall consists of smart glass and can become transparent at the push of a button.  
  Furthermore the ceiling can also project displays ranging from stars to a blue cloudless sky.  
  With drop down walls in place, an entire portion of the room can act as an interactive VR 
  room and another portion can actually fill part way with water to form a swimming area.  
  (When coasting the water forms into a large ball that floats about the room.  People can then 
  push off from the wall to dive into or through the ball of water.)  This is only done if there is 
  an ample reserve of reaction mass, which for the Prometheus consists of...water.  The crew 
  refers to this floor as the Romper Room. 
   
  Deck Eleven consists of a green house that takes up half of the space and an equal sized 
  portion that is off limits to the Players.  The off limit portion is the craft’s primary weapons’ 
  bay.  Despite regulations limiting the armaments available to non-military craft, the 
  Prometheus carries six large Combat Drones and twenty hypervelocity ASATs under a triple 
  missile launcher.  There is also a pop-up double laser turret and a chaff/flare dispenser.  
  Within this area are the work stations for a further three crew members. 
   
  Deck Twelve houses the engineering facilities as well as a machining shop and several 3D 
  printers.  Raw materials are carried on the outside of the craft and can be moved into the 
  craft using a dedicated airlock and one of two robotic arms.  Work stations exist for six crew 
  members.  
   
   
  IN SPACE FOR THE HOLIDAYS 
   
  The voyage to Venus from Mars will take about fifty days.  Quantum is burning a lot of 
  reaction mass to get to Venus as quickly as possible.  During this time the Players will be 
  stuck on board a rather small vehicle in the middle of deep space.  Most professional spacers 
  have a second job that they do during the long down times while drifting between active 
  thrusting.  The Players can try to earn money by writing or programing.  This can then be 
  sent off to Earth or Luna, and they might even get paid before they reach Venus. 
   
  There are also a few mini adventures the Players can have while stuck on board the 
  Prometheus. 
   
  The Video Room:  On a vehicle the size of the Prometheus it is often difficult to sneak 
  around without being seeing, but it is not impossible.  If the Players wait for the crew to hold 
  one of their regular hand ball tournaments in the Romper Room a few of the Players may be 
  able to sneak away without being seen.  Or one or more of the Players could create a 
  distraction, but if it causes too much trouble it will not be appreciated by the Commander or 
  his crew. 
   
   
  If the Players are able to sneak into Commander Quantum’s quarters they will find a well 
  appointed but sparse bedroom.  Next to the bedroom is a comfortable lounge.  Normally 
  nothing separates the two areas but an emergency door can be lowered into place if there is 
  a hull breech.  The lounge has a large comfortable chair and ottoman.  Like all the furniture 
  
  Page | 37  
   
  on the Prometheus they are bolted to the floor.  The chair faces a wall which is dominated by 
  a large 3D video screen.  To either side of the screen is a set of shelves.  The left-hand 
  shelves are a deep green color but are completely empty.  There is an oval plaque above the 
  shelving which has a circle broken by an equatorial line and a meridian line.  A Player with 
  knowledge of the old Commander Quantum show will recognize this as the symbol for the 
  Solar Union. The right hand shelving is red in color and empty as well.  An Easy Intelligence 
  based Task Check will allow the Player to notice that the red color of the shelves matches the 
  color of the Red Box.  This may bring up even more questions, but ransacking the 
  Commanders’s quarters is not a good idea. 
    
  There is a good chance that the Players will be invited into the Commander’s office for a 
  personal conference.  As the office is adjacent to the lounge the Players could catch a glimpse 
  into the lounge and see the shelves that way.  Whether they sneak in or just look while in 
  Quantum’s office, the personal conference would be a good time to ask Quantum about the 
  shelves.  Quantum will be evasive and it will take a Very Difficult Carouse task check to tell 
  that he is lying.  Either way he will not tell them the truth regarding the Two Gifts.  As the 
  Referee feel free to have Quantum make up some excuse regarding the color of the shelves 
  and the Red Box.    
   
  A Tale of Two Daughters:  If the Players still have the necklace taken off the mystery 
  woman then at some point someone may notice that they have it.  If a Player is openly 
  wearing the necklace or worse yet trying to sell it; there will be a confrontation.  Every crew 
  member recognizes the necklace as having belonged to their old pilot, Zwei Blau.  There is a 
  very good chance that a fight will occur if the Players don’t immediately hand the necklace 
  over.  If need be let a fight break out.  Eventually, the Players will be subdued, but tension 
  will remain for much of the trip.  If the Players hand the necklace over without a fight the 
  crew members will quickly accept them as part of the crew. 
   
  Once the necklace is handed over or taken it will be given to Commander Quantum.  If the 
  Players are there when this occurs, a likely event, then they are likely to notice a few tears 
  run down the Commander’s face.  If the hand-over happened peacefully, then Commander 
  Quantum will tell them personally why it is important.  If a fight broke out the Players will 
  have to talk to the crew members to get the story.  In that case the story may be a bit 
  inaccurate.  The Referee should decide what the Players learn in that case. 
   
  After getting the necklace Quantum will personally thank the Players.  With his eyes still full of 
  tears he tells them that the necklace belonged to his adopted daughter, Zwei Blau.  He will 
  not go into Zwei’s background, saying only that...”No child sure endure such horrid times.  
  She was a strong and loving girl despite what they did to her.”  He will say that Zwei was on 
  Mars visiting a friend who was moving into the Redhorn Dome when she received information 
  concerning the existence of a powerful Maker artifact.  Somehow the artifact was still in 
  working condition and possibly had the power to destroy an entire planet.  Rumors ranged 
  from a immensely powerful anti-matter bomb to a device capable of creating artificial black 
  holes.  Realizing that as a member of the Tomorrow Team it was her duty to track down the 
  device and make sure it was secure, she began to gather information concerning the artifacts.  
  Unfortunately, she was killed in a Red Legion attack, and Quantum now believes that the Red 
  Legion is after the artifacts as well. 
   
  If asked further questions, the Commander will admit that he also has a biological daughter 
  named Madison.  Madison left the Prometheus years ago and Quantum fears for her safety.  
  When shown a picture of Madison by the Commander an Average memory check allows them 
  to realize that the beautiful blonde mentioned by Momma Rosa sounds a lot like Quantum’s 
  
  Page | 38  
   
  daughter and matches the picture taken from Ingenuity’s recording.  If they reveal this to 
  Quantum he will be both relieved and worried.  He is happy to hear that Madison may have 
  been in the area near her adopted sister.  He even goes so far as to convince himself that 
  Madison was either looking for her sister or perhaps even working with her to find the 
  artifacts.  There is no evidence to support these conjectures, but Quantum wants very much 
  to believe that his two daughters departed as friends and not the rivals they had been.    
         
  Meet Thy Makers:  As the Players spend time on the Prometheus they will notice that 
  besides the ever present symbol of the Solar Union, many crew members have jewelry or 
  tattoos depicting mobius strips.  Early on if they ask about this they will be ignored, but 
  eventually someone will mention that the mobius strip is an infinite circle.  After the Players 
  pester a lot of crew members, Commander Quantum will intervene and reveal that the Infinite 
  Circle is a group dedicated to investigating the Makers and determining where they came from 
  and why they came to Mars.  He depicts the organization as a concerned group of scientists 
  and researchers who wish to educate the public about the aliens.  Their reasoning is that 
  educating the public will prevent the rise of conspiracy theories and increase the open flow of 
  knowledge regarding the aliens.  He says he fears that some nations or corporations are 
  hiding information from the public and hoarding artifacts.  The Infinite Circle believes that all 
  alien technology and artifacts should be shared with all human kind. Of course the Players 
  may, at the Referee’s discretion, learn the truth about the Infinite Circle.  If they do they may 
  find themselves invited to join the secretive organization.  
    
  A Friendly Game or Two:  Games and sports are common on board the Prometheus.  
  Anyone with a skill level in gambling may wish to join the games played in First Forward.  It is 
  possible that the players might even win a bit of money, but any attempt at cheating will not 
  be taken well.  Zero-g hand ball and football (i.e. soccer) are popular in the Romper Room.  
  Every month the crew holds a talent show which the Players are encouraged to a part of.  On 
  line VR gaming is popular as well and several members of the crew have created their own VR 
  world known as “Stealing Fire” which is set in classical Greece and pits mortals and demigods 
  against monsters and angry gods. 
   
   
  THE CREW OF THE CRAFT 
   
  Commander Quantum is an enigma.  He is a good leader both in the personal sense and in 
  the military sense, but he may be a bit crazy.  He either truly believes that he is Commander 
  Quantum, or he is a very good actor. Use the Naval Officer NPC given on page 85 of the 
  Traveller: Core Rulebook but add Advocate 2, Diplomat 3, and Persuade 3. 
   
  The rest of the crew can be formed by using the following NPCs.  These are all found on 
  either page 84 or 85 of the Traveller: Core Rulebook. 
   
  1 x Scientist (the above mentioned Mission Specialist) 
  1 x Belter (the new Pilot) 
  1 x Old Spacehand (the Co-pilot) 
   
  Other positions can be filled using the Technician, Experienced Technician, and Crewman 
  NPCs.  There are also four security specialists on board who can be represented by the 
  Experienced Guard NPC.  To add flavor to the NPCs role on the Random Traits table found on 
  page 76 to customize them. 
  
  Page | 39  
   
           
    
   
  Humans have only been a space faring society for about 90 years.  So while there are 
  several million people living off of Earth they have had little time to develop distinct 
  cultures and societies.  Some may argue that the warren dwelling Lunars or those living 
  high in the clouds of Venus are no longer real Earthlings, but they don’t really differ too 
  much yet.   
   
   
  Most of the planets, even the Luna Republic which boasts of its non-Earth culture, mimic 
  the home planet in regards to holidays and traditions.  Once exclusively national holidays, 
  such as Boxing Day or Thanksgiving, have become internationalized within the Earth Union.  
  These holidays have carried over to the other planets to such an extent that it is said that 
  on Mars, “Every day is someone’s holiday.”  Each planet, besides Earth, which now has 
  Union Day as a global holiday, has First Landing Day as a world holiday; though it is 
  usually nothing more than an excuse to take the day off from work.  The one holiday that 
  has become truly system wide in its’ celebration is Solstice Mass.  This holiday borrows 
  heavily from Christmas, Boxing Day, Saturnalia and various New Year’s Festivities.  For 
  most holidays throughout the solar system, especially religious ones, the standard Earth 
  dating system is used to determine when they are to be celebrated.  
   
   
  On Mars Solstice Mass occurs twice a year as the Martian year is nearly two standard years 
  long.  First Mass is celebrated in a manner similar to traditional Christmas.  Gifts are 
  exchanged and families get together to celebrate the holiday.  For children Red Claus 
  travels around the planet handing out presents to those who have been good.  His sleigh is 
  pulled by four large yaks, and he lives deep in a cave under the north pole.  On Mars 
  Santa’s toys are built by little green martians.  First Mass is generally a three day affair and 
  accompanied by numerous festivities.  Later in the martian year is Second Mass.  Second 
  Mass is a far more sombre affair and is closely tied to the Church of the Heavenly 
  Stigmata.  Church members are expected to repaint the helmet of their Mars suit black and 
  offer their assistance to those in need.  A handful of young women are selected to be Red 
  Hoods and as such paint their helmets red and travel about the planet telling stories and 
  spreading encouragement in order to counter the Devil’s temptations. 
   
   
  Venus initially followed Earth’s lead concerning holidays despite pressure from Luna.  
  Several holidays on Venus carried over from Australia due to the large number of 
  Australian immigrants such as Boxing Day and Anzac Day.  Recently Venus has begun to 
  develop its own holiday traditions.  One of the most popular of its indigenous holidays 
  comes around the same time as Solstice Mass, but is referred to as Gifting.  Gifting started 
  when Mother Pandora began her rounds in late 2082.  This was a decade after a vicious 
  undeclared war known as the Crater Conflict drove hundreds of independent miners out of 
  the 2041 impact crater and into the region known as the Betaback.  Initially consisting of 
  one very generous woman who drove about in a beat up Venus rover giving odd gifts to 
  other miners, it has grown to become an important tradition in the Betaback.  During the 
  twelve days of Christmas all Betabackers turn on their long range communicators, 
  broadcast Christmas Carols and allow themselves to be found so that the selected Elves of 
  Pandora can deliver presents to them.  In exchange they give presents to the Elves who 
  then deliver those presents to yet more people.  The original Mother Pandora continues to 
  participate, but during the off season she disappears.  This idea of chain gift giving has 
  caught on in the aerostats of Venus as well, and even some rover groups on Mars have 
  begun to celebrate Gifting. 
  
  Page | 40  
   
    4    VENUS 
   
   
   
  The Prometheus reaches Venus slightly 
  ahead of schedule after only forty-five days.  
  The craft docks directly at Cyprus Station 
  and the Players disembark a few hours 
  later.  The Players are to catch a space 
  plane flight to Morning Star Aerostat, but 
  first they must wait in the holding and 
  transfer area of Cyprus Station station 
  which is a cramped but bustling place.  
  Video screens dot the wall and spout out a 
  continuous loop of information regarding 
  Venus and emergency safety procedures.  
  Unfortunately, the place is too noisy for any 
  of this to be heard and the wireless 
  headphone connection requires a prepaid 
  fee that they were unaware of.  The 
  Players, along with Martin Brant and Tessa 
  Chin (if they didn’t piss her off previously), 
  will sit for several hours in this holding area.  
  After nearly three hours of boredom, broken 
  only 
  by 
  the 
  nearly 
  deafening 
  announcements 
  regarding 
  Venus 
  spaceplane flights to various Venus locales 
  or up to Eros, they will finally hear the 
  announcement concerning their flight to 
  Morning Star Aerostat.  
   
  They are going to Morning Star Aerostat 
  based upon information given to them by 
  Tessa Chin.  She claims that some of the 
  encrypted data on Zwei Blau / Jane Frost’s 
  data chip pointed to Morning Star as the 
  place where the thieves initially took the 
  Green Box.  As this is the group’s only lead 
  they 
  proceed 
  to 
  Morning 
  Star.  
  Unfortunately, Morning Star Aerostat has 
  had a few problems recently.   
   
   
      
   
   
   
  Venus    C8B0525  
  De  NI 
  The second planet out from the sun, Venus 
  is 
  a 
  hellish 
  world, 
  but 
  despite high 
  temperatures and pressures the planet is 
  home to nearly 125,000 people.  The 
  settlement 
  of 
  Venus 
  is 
  due 
  almost 
  exclusively to two separate factors.  Firstly, 
  life was discovered within the planet’s 
  atmosphere and researchers were followed 
  by corporations as ways were found to use 
  these 
  lifeforms 
  in 
  numerous 
  industrial 
  processes. 
   
  Today 
  much 
  of 
  Venus’ 
  population resides in large floating aerostat 
  cities which oversee the nearby atmospheric 
  industrial processors.  The second factor 
  leading to the settlement of Venus was the 
  2041 asteroid impact that exposed huge 
  veins of precious metals and massive 
  diamonds.  Fully one fifth of the planet’s 
  population 
  lives 
  within 
  the 
  large 
  underground warrens that make up the 
  mining towns.   
   
   
  Venus is dominated by Luna, but there is 
  one Earth held aerostat.  Many of the 
  settlers from Luna are actually immigrants 
  from Australia who have left their homeland 
  due to ruinous economic sanctions.  There 
  are also a large number of people from 
  southeast Asia and North America, especially 
  within the Earth held Eagle City.  Despite the 
  presence of native life there have been no 
  alien artifacts discovered on Venus.  Of note, 
  Venus now has a moon as the large Near 
  Earth Asteroid, 433 Eros, was moved into its 
  orbit several years ago.  Eros is now a major 
  space manufacturing center for the Luna 
  Republic.  
  
  Page | 41  
   
  SWAGGIE CLIMBS ABOARD 
   
  If the Players ticked off Tessa Chin enough so that she refuses to accompany them to Venus 
  use this section.   
   
  As the Players are departing the waiting room to head for the space plane boarding area they 
  are flagged down by a young man they recognize from the Prometheus.  The man is Paul 
  Irwin.  He serves as an engineer on the Prometheus but decided at the last minute to take 
  some time off to visit his brother who recently moved to Venus.  Some of the Players may 
  recognize him from the poker games in First Forward or as a frantic handball player from the 
  Romper Room tournaments. 
   
  Paul is a nice guy but really twitchy.  He can get overly excited and it shows as he tries to 
  convince the Players to take him along on their adventure.  He’s pretty good with computers 
  and and in a fight.  His outgoing personality will quickly clash with Martin Brant’s similar 
  demeanor and the two will not get along well at all. Use the Technician NPC given on page 84 
  of the Traveller: Core Rulebook, but add Computers 3 and Melee (blade) 3.  
   
   
  INSIDE THE BOUNCY HOUSE 
   
  The Players’ spaceplane is barely half full and the entire crew seems a bit on edge.  Just after 
  boarding the large spaceplane they will be informed that a successful docking at Morning Star 
  Aerostat, AKA the Bouncy House, depends entirely upon local weather conditions.  Despite the 
  ability of the Venus spaceplanes, known as Darts, to transform into an airship, docking at the 
  Bouncy House during high winds is too dangerous.  Luckily, the weather is calm.  The crew is 
  visibly irritated by this as they begin docking procedures.  Anyone near a window will notice a 
  large robotic arm slide out of the upper portion of the hanger to catch the Dart as it comes to 
  a halt relative to the aerostat.  As soon as the hanger door closes and the green safety light 
  comes on, the crew opens the spaceplane exits and begins disembarking passengers.   
   
  The Players may notice that there is almost no interaction between the crew of the Dart and 
  the people working the aerostat hanger.  Luggage is unloaded very quickly if a bit roughly, 
  and the Players are rushed out of the vehicle as soon as they have any personal items in 
  hand.  Once inside the hanger proper a small quiet woman wearing blue coveralls with the 
  words Luxor Resorts above her breast pocket will hurry them into a separate room.  The 
  instant the door leading back into the hanger closes the main hanger door begins to open.  
  The Players will need to show some photo ID but it is barely looked at.  Anyone with police 
  experience will notice that security is very lax and most of the security cameras don’t appear 
  to be active.   
   
  The Players will need to store the Red Box somewhere safe while the look for the Green Box.  
  Luckily, there are storage lockers located at the lowest floor of the Bouncy House just beneath 
  the old Hotel.  They cost 50 credits per day for one large enough to hold the artifact, but 
  Quantum has vouched for their safety.  If the Players are reluctant to leave the box they can 
  lug it around but its heavy and draws a lot of attention.  Martin Brant offers to stay with the 
  locker, and if he's present Paul Irwin offers to pay for the locker.  The lockers look pretty 
  secure and only open using a combined thumb print, voice code, key card locking system.  
  Leaving the Red Box there is the best idea but the Players can do as they please. 
  
  Page | 42  
   
   
  The instructions from Quantum were to proceed to the main promenade that cuts through the 
  center of the entire aerostat.  Once there they are to find the little ice cream shop called 
  Scoops of Fun.  They will need to take a large elevator up to the centere of the main sphere 
  and then walk several hundred meters to the ice cream shop.  The elevator looks as though it 
  was once nice but is now worn and smelly.  It stops a few times before reaching the place 
  where the Players are to exit.  None of the handful of people on the elevator speak to the 
  Players.  Upon reaching the central atrium the Players find themselves on a large wrought iron 
  bridge with a floor made of grating that gives them a view of the pond many meters below.  
  They are in a large spherical garden, and despite its wild overgrown appearance the plants 
  are thriving and it is filled with beautiful flowers, butterflies and small birds. 
   
  Unless the Players take their time to look around and explore a bit, the walk to the ice cream 
  shop will only take a few minutes.  They will see a lot of people walking around on the 
  promenade, but no one pays them any attention.  Attempts to speak to people will get results 
  ranging from a curt “Get lost!” to the blank stare of a tripping drug user.  It is possible 
  someone, probably one of the young Erie Chemtech employees, might point them to Scoops 
  of Fun, but no one will offer any further help or information.  An Average awareness check 
  will bring to their attention the fact that nearly everyone is armed.  It’s too bad they were not 
  allowed to take any weapons with them on the spaceplane.  They might be feeling a bit 
  vulnerable at this point.            
   
  The Bouncy House 
  Built initially to be a family friendly 
  amusement 
  park 
  floating 
  within 
  the 
  picturesque clouds of Venus; the Luxor 
  Morning Star Amusement Aerostat proved a 
  very costly failure.  Very few families could 
  afford or wanted to travel to Venus for 
  vacation, and except for the view the 
  Morning Star offered very little that could 
  not be found much closer to home at far 
  lower prices.  Those living on Venus, mostly 
  miners and corporate executives, were 
  totally uninterested in family entertainment.  
  So while the Morning Star was completed 
  out of sheer stubbornness; it immediately 
  bled money.  The entertainment giant Luxor 
  spent several years trying to make a profit, 
  but in 2090 they finally gave up and sold 
  the aerostat to Erie Chemtech, a mid-sized 
  chemical 
  company 
  based 
  on 
  Earth.  
  Pressure from Luna made the transfer expensive for both parties, and by 2092 the Morning 
  Star had begun to suffer mechanical and electric failures.  Added to that, squatters began to 
  make use of the facility as a stop-over for long haul dirigible runs between the other 
  aerostats. 
   
   
  In 2097 the aerostat is more commonly known as the Bouncy House because in 2095 it’s 
  primary vertical stabilizer failed.  The aerostat now bounces up and down uncontrollably 
  during heavy winds.  A modified cargo crane allows dirigibles and other VTOL aircraft to dock 
  during windy weather, but it requires a skilled pilot and skilled crane operator working 
  together.  Space planes can only dock during calm weather.  The current population is about 
  
  Page | 43  
   
  2,500 but no accurate count exists.  Corporate technicians mix with squatters, criminals and 
  other colorful people and security is surprisingly light.  The major industry on the Bouncy 
  House is currently software programing, consulting services, cargo warehousing, and Venus 
  mapping.  Rumors have it that Erie Chemtech plans on forming a new division called Morning 
  Star Service Tech based around the local industries that have arisen in the Bouncy House.  If 
  so it’s likely that they will hire many of the people already living there.  This is way relations 
  between the disparate groups are so good.  
   
   
  The Bouncy House is a giant sphere just over 750 meters in diameter.  On the outside in large 
  letters are the words, Luxor Resort.  The word, Luxor, is crudely painted over and replaced 
  with the word, Bouncy.  Dangling below the sphere is a large blimp dock with several 
  hangers.  There is also an observation deck with an expensive restaurant hanging below the 
  hangers.  Below these structures are the remains of the broken vertical stabilizers. 
   
   
  Unlike most aerostats the Bouncy House is built with a layer of four nesting spheres instead of 
  separated pie shaped sectors.  The inner sphere is 100 metres in diameter and holds an 
  extensive botanical garden and atrium.  The the bottom of the sphere holds a large fish pond.  
  It is said a 65kg catfish named Goliath lives within its murky waters.  The next sphere 
  provides the largest amount of floor space and is 650 metres in diameter.  The bottom portion 
  contains the Water View Hotel which has many rooms that look right into the central pond.  
  Due to a lack of maintenance most of these windows are covered with a thick coat of algae.  
  Above the hotel is the amusement park, a cinema and the remains of a small zoo.  The zoo 
  has been emptied of animals but several species of birds, small primates and snakes have 
  escaped into the inner and outer spheres.  The next sphere holds very little except for the 
  small dormitories meant to house the staff.  The final circle is the outer hull and holds 
  numerous high-end condos that look out into the skies of Venus. 
   
   
  A large central promenade runs through the sphere along its center.  It is lined with small 
  shops and restaurants.  At either end of the promenade are large observation bubbles.  Many 
  of the areas have been extensively modified since Luxor sold the aerostat.  The Water View 
  Hotel is occupied by most of the non-criminal squatters, while the staff dormitories are filled 
  with the criminal elements.  Erie Chemtech has plans to hire a mercenary outfit to clean up 
  this area.  The luxury condos in the outer shell are only partly occupied because of their high 
  level of security.  A few have been filled by Erie Chemtech executives, but most are empty.  
  Rumors persist that several of these condos are occupied by reclusive billionaires.        
   
   
  ICE CREAM AND THE MAN 
   
  Scoops of Fun is an anomaly among the shops that line the central corridor; it is clean and 
  well kept.  The old fashioned ice cream shop motif has been lovingly maintained, and its soda 
  machine is still in working order.  That being said its customers look completely out of place.  
  Scoops of Fun is filled with all sorts of unsavory characters.   
   
  In order to find their contact, an unspecified person who knows Commander Quantum, the 
  Players will need to talk to some of these people.  Don’t make it easy on them.  Most of the 
  people there want very much to be left alone, and some of them are in the middle of working 
  out some sort of agreement pertaining to illegal activities.   
   
  Eventually, the Players will either make their way to the bar or if trouble brews; they will 
  approached by one of the shop’s employees.  A man wearing a white apron and a small white 
  
  Page | 44  
   
  hat will approach the Players.  He is a giant of a man with huge arms and a very serious look 
  about him.  The only thing he says is...”Come with me.”  He then leads the players down a 
  hall past the restrooms to a small office.  After opening the door and allowing the Players to 
  file into the office he quickly pulls it shut.  There are not enough chairs and most of the group 
  will be forced to stand.  Behind the large desk that fills up most of the office sits a very small 
  dark skinned man.  His hair is tight curls and bright blond, but his teeth are darkened a wine 
  red color very similar to the drink that fills the glass in front of him. 
   
  After signing a few papers he looks up at the Players and shakes his head.  He goes on to 
  explain that he owes Commander Quantum a favor which is the only reason he’s helping the 
  Players.  The man, who never takes the time to give his name, explains that the item they are 
  looking for was briefly in the Bouncy House.  It was moved several years ago to parts 
  unknown, but he’s sure that a friend of his named William Martin will know who took it and 
  where they went.  Any Players with Investigation or Carouse skills can make a Difficult Task 
  Check to determine that the man is being less than truthful.  If the Players try to pressure the 
  man in any way two men armed with shock batons will rush in and beat up the Players.  Treat 
  them as Dangerous Thugs from page 84 of the Traveller: Core Rulebook. 
   
  The Players are forced to leave either because they’re kicked out or to go find William Martin.  
  Martin lives in the lower level of the Water View Hotel.  They are told that he works out of his 
  room so there is a very good chance that he will be home no matter what time they go and 
  look for him.  His room number is 333.  
   
  At this point the Players may also want to try to get hold of some weapons.  This requires a 
  few Difficult Task Checks using Streetwise as well as some very good role-playing.  Non-lethal 
  and melee weapons will cost 1.5 x the price listed in the Core Rulebook and lethal firearms 
  will cost 3x the price and require a Very Difficult Task Check. 
   
  The Water View Hotel is like most other hotels except that with the atrium pond taking up 
  most of its centre, it is shaped like a donut.  The halls are still in good shape but many of the 
  doors now have improved security or have been strongly reinforced.  Many of the doors also 
  have small business signs on them as they now serve as home offices.  Once again talking to 
  the locals will be unproductive.        
   
  WE THREE MOOKS 
   
  As soon as the group gets to the third floor of the hotel they should make a Difficult Task 
  Check to see if they become aware of a wiry man trailing them.  Once they notice the man or 
  make any attempt to approach him he will speak into a wrist mounted com and then run.  
  He’s not very fast so it is likely that they can catch him.  After he uses his com the players 
  only have ten turns before the Three Mooks show up.  This should give the Players just 
  enough time to realize that the last room on the third floor is number 332. 
   
  The men known as the Three Mooks are triplets.  All three of them saw time in the Earth 
  Union military but never made NCO because of their sadistic natures and constant fighting.  
  Their real names are Tim, Tam and Tom.  If any one of them is killed the survivors will 
  become enraged and stop at nothing to kill the Players. The Three Mooks are armed with 
  autopistols and have combat armor.  Use the Experienced Guards NPC from page 84 of the 
  Traveller: Core Rulebook. 
   
  
  Page | 45  
   
  The Mooks are tough and will be accompanied by a number of Petty Thugs.  The Thugs 
  should number about 2 times the number of PCs depending upon how combat oriented the 
  Players are. 
   
  An added problem is that the wind picks up just as the chase through the hotel gets started.  
  This means the Bouncy House begins to live up to its name.  Once every D6 turns the 
  aerostat either jumps up or drops down 1D6 x 20 centimetres.  This will impose a -3 DM on all 
  task checks and any movement over one meter has the added chance of causing a light injury 
  such as a sprain or bruising.  Make the Players really enjoy their time on the Bouncy House.  
   
  Very quickly the Players will realize that they are out numbered and out gunned.  If they 
  made any friends while looking for guns or information one of these people may hear through 
  the grapevine that the Players are in trouble.  If so the Players will receive an anonymous tip 
  via their com that directs them to the emergency evac pods.  Otherwise a series of Difficult 
  awareness checks will allow them to notice the small emergency procedure signs that still 
  hang on a few of the hotel walls. 
   
  Unlike the drones that attacked them on Mars, these men are serious.  To drive this home 
  have one of the NPCs like Martin Brant get killed; even the PCs could end up wounded or 
  dead.  These people are playing for keeps and will do anything to prevent the Players from 
  finding the second gift. 
   
  Eventually the Players will have to work their way down to the lowest level of the hotel.  Once 
  there they will discover numerous evacuation pods.  Each pod can hold twenty people in a 
  circular set of seats and then float away from the aerostat by way of a self deploying balloon.  
  If the balloon fails a parachute will allow the pod to land safely on Venus’ surface.   
   
  The gun fight continues as the Players attempt to board the pod.  Once they get on board the 
  Mooks shoot at the pod.  Their small caliber guns do little more than scuff its bright white 
  surface.  As soon as they are seated and strapped in they can pull the yellow and black 
  release lever and the pod will drop away from the aerostat.  Damage has prevented the inner 
  door from shutting, thus leaving the aerostat open to the Venus air.  This does not bring an 
  end to the gun fire though.  The Bouncy House floats a full 50km above the surface of Venus.  
  At this altitude atmospheric pressure is just about 1.0 atmospheres, the same as sea level on 
  Earth, and temperatures range from 0 to 50 degrees Celsius.  Given that the air from Venus 
  and the air within the aerostat will mix at slow standard rate, the Mooks have more than 
  enough time to get off several more shots as the pod moves away from the aerostat. 
   
  The Players should remember to contact Martin Brant if he was left behind to watch over the 
  storage locker.  Once contacted he will make an all out effort to drag the Red Box out of the 
  storage locker and meet them at a predetermined location.  As he is already in the lowest 
  level this location should be near a suitable evacuation pod.  If the Players took the Red Box 
  along with them then let them suffer as the Bouncy House begins to bounce.  Those carrying 
  the artifact will have their movement speed halved and have an increased risk of injury.  They 
  should soon regret dragging that big box around. 
   
   
   
   
   
   
  
  Page | 46  
   
  A SNOWBALL’S CHANCE IN HELL 
   
  Just as the rescue balloon deploys from the top of the pod the Players will hear a loud ripping 
  noise followed by a loud metallic SNAP.  The Players very quickly realize that they are falling 
  down to the surface of the planet.  After several agonizing seconds of terror the pod jolts 
  upward as the emergency parachute deploys.  Barring some unforeseen problem, like damage 
  from being shot or hitting a particularly jagged outcropping of rocks, they should survive the 
  descent and land in one piece. 
   
  Allow the Players to sit and stew for several nerve wracking minutes as their pod gently floats 
  down into the bone crushing, lead boiling recesses of Venus’ lower atmosphere.  The pod 
  lands safely, and unknown to them an emergency beacon has been transmitting since the 
  moment they pulled the lever that released the pod.  Of course given that none of the Players 
  had time to get into a Venus suit they are effectively stuck in the ball until some sort of rescue 
  arrives. 
   
  Also unknown to the Players there is an angel upon high looking out for them.  Commander 
  Quantum, having been informed of the Scoops of Fun owner’s betrayal has contacted an 
  associate of his.  They are relatively near to the pod’s landing site and have access to an air-
  locked structure large enough to hold the pod while the Players are off loaded.  Of course the 
  Players do not know this, and unless they are dumb enough to open the pod, something that 
  means instant death for everyone inside; they will have to wait for rescue.  The pod has 200 
  man days worth of water and foul tasting rations.  There is also a very unpleasant fresher 
  facility that makes the entire pod smell, and they should enjoy knowing that most of the 
  water they drink is their own filtered urine.   
   
  While the group waits for death any number of things could happen.  Allow it to play out 
  however the Players wish.  If they can keep their wits the six day wait won’t be too bad.  On 
  the other hand this situation could become a mini-horror adventure as one of the PCs or NPCs 
  goes all The Shining on the group.  Add to that the fact that who ever sent the Mooks also 
  had the ability to track the pod’s descent.    
   
   
  MEETING MOTHER PANDORA 
   
  After six days of fun in the pod the Players will hear noise outside.  A tap, tap occurs on the 
  hatchway and then quickly stops.  A few minutes later the pod will begin moving as it is 
  dragged along the ground.  This is not a pleasant experience, and the Players will need to 
  buckle back up in order to avoid getting hurt.  Over forty minutes later the pod will stop 
  moving and they will hear the sound of a large metal door closing.  A little while after that 
  someone will finally open the hatch. 
   
  Looking into the pod is a kindly looking middle aged woman.  She is very attractive with long 
  dark hair that is only just beginning to show wisps of gray.   
   
  “Well get out of that stink hole.”  She says as she climbs down from the hatch way to give 
  them room to exit. 
   
  
  Page | 47  
   
  She is patient as the Players exit the pod.  The Players quickly notice her long green robe 
  made of brushed leather with white fur along the hood and at the end of the sleeves.  An 
  Average Task Check for anyone with any skills regarding off Earth society will allow them to 
  recognize Mother Pandora.  Anyone with connections to Mars or a fondness for the holiday 
  season will find it difficult to stifle an excited squeal...”Mother Pandora!  Oh my goodness, it’s 
  really you!” 
   
  Mother Pandora will smile and nod.  She will then tell the Players that she received 
  information from a mutual friend regarding their predicament.  After giving the Players time to 
  clean up and eat some real food she will recommend that they get moving.  She has recently 
  heard of an old prospector friend who received a very strange gift during Gifting last year.  He 
  is willing to give Mother Pandora the item in return for vintage DVD copies of Ghostbusters, 
  Die Hard and The Princess Bride.  Luckily, Mother Pandora has just been gifted the last of the 
  needed movies, Ghostbusters.  Now they just need to find Mr. Fletcher, the man with the 
  Green Box.    
       
   
  FINDING THE SECOND GIFT 
   
  During Gifting all of the independent prospectors, researchers, explorers, and miners turn on 
  their long range radios and broadcast Christmas-themed music, readings or comedy.  This fills 
  the airwaves with a cacophony of holiday noise.  Using advanced filter programs the Elves of 
  Pandora are able to separate out distinct radio signals and use triangulation to find every 
  participating broadcaster. 
   
  Mother Pandora knows the playlist that Mr. Fletcher uses each year and has her computer set 
  to find his broadcast.  Mother Pandora’s rover is an overly large affair as large as the largest 
  Earth based RV.  It has room for a dozen people and all the amenities of home.  In fact it is 
  home to Mother Pandora, and she much prefers it over the dimly lit bunker that they are 
  leaving.  Looking around the rover’s interior they will see all the signs of home.  Pictures, 
  holiday decorations, knick-knacks and an extensive snow globe collection.  An observant 
  Player will notice that one very old looking snow globe has place of pride on her rover’s 
  dashboard.  If asked why that is so she will show the Players the snow globe.  It shows 
  Earth’s Grand Canyon, but sunlight induced fading and a strange discoloration  in the water 
  makes the entire scene look like something from the yellowish landscape of Venus.  Even the 
  “snowflakes” have turned yellow, thus making them look a lot like the burning acid that falls 
  as rain on this planet.  She shakes the globe a few times and then watches it quietly.  “It 
  reminds me of someone I once loved, as well as the planet that I now call home.” 
   
  After getting settled in her well furnished rover the group leaves the small underground 
  bunker and sets out to find Mr. Fletcher.  It takes only a few hours of driving to pinpoint his 
  broadcast.  As the computer automatically triangulates its location Mother Pandora puts it 
  over the rover’s internal speakers. 
   
  “...heard of people under extreme duress speaking in strange tongues.  I became conscious 
  that a steady torrent of obscenities and swearing of all kinds was pouring out of me as I...”   
   
  It is very likely that there is no way the PCs will know where this line comes from or what it 
  means even if the Players recognize it.  If asked even Mother Pandora will just shrug and say 
  that Mr. Fletcher has a fondness for old 2D cinema.  Despite this everyone in the rover quiets 
  down to listen to the broadcast as it details the Christmas adventures of one young boy 
  
  Page | 48  
   
  obsessed with obtaining the present of his dreams.  More than likely the Players can relate.  
  Soon the rover begins to smell like hot chocolate and spiced cider.  Mother Pandora instructs 
  the Player sitting furthest to the rear of the rover to serve the drinks that she had the 
  computer auto heat.  Several other Players are asked to get cookies and biscuits out of the 
  under seat storage bins.  As they continue to drive Mother Pandora begins to hum a carol; if 
  they are so inclined the Players may join in to start a festive round of caroling.   
   
  It takes nearly ten hours of driving before the rover’s computer announces that they are 
  approaching the location of Mr. Fletcher’s rover.  During that time they will hear the same 94 
  minute long story almost seven times.  By the time they reach Fletcher’s rover they will be 
  quoting the show and may even have used the spotty quality Venusnet to download it in full 
  video form.  As they get close Mother Pandora will hail Fletcher using a short range comm 
  channel.  He will immediately respond and switch to video.  Mr. Fletcher does not look at all 
  like a grizzled old prospector.  He is young man in his early thirties with an impeccable 
  American english and exceedingly good grooming.  He greets Mother Pandora with a dour 
  attitude despite being told that they have the movies he requested.  Mother Pandora is 
  puzzled but backs the rover’s air lock up to the air lock on Fletcher’s rover.  The two doors 
  automatically latch together and a strong chemical sealant oozes out to make sure the 
  connection is air tight.   
   
   
  RUN, RUN, ROVER 
   
  Just as the airlock opens Fletcher screams a warning.  He is cut off by the sharp crack of a 
  strong electro-shock weapon.  If the Players win initiative they are able to close their airlock 
  before two men in Venus suits force their way into Mother Pandora’s rover.  If they loose the 
  men get into the inner part of the airlock but are stopped at the second door.  Realizing the 
  problem Mother Pandora tries to pull away, but her rover is held tight by the connected air 
  locks. 
   
  If Tessa Chin or Paul Irwin are with the group they will suggest an audacious plan.  Using the 
  still synched video conferencing links they will hack into Fletcher’s rover and put the vehicle in 
  neutral.  Once that is done they will be able to drive off pulling that rover along with them.  
  From there they should be able to find someone sympathetic who can help them get rid of 
  their attackers.  While this is a decent plan there is no one around for over a hundred 
  kilometers.  By that time the men will have broken into Mother Pandora’s rover and killed 
  everyone. 
   
  There are six full Venus suits stored in Mother Pandora’s rover.  Furthermore she has several 
  Cobras and some plastic-explosives  The Cobras are close range weapons that shoot out a 
  metal piston with such force that they can easily crack a hard suit, but they won’t puncture a 
  rover’s hull unless repeatedly fired at the same spot at very close range.  Either the Players or 
  Mother Pandora will suggest that the Players suit up and disembark using the secondary roof 
  mounted airlock.  From there they will be able to assault the other rover, retrieve the Green 
  Box and separate the two vehicles. 
   
  This should be played as a desperate fight in a very hostile atmosphere while atop moving a 
  moving vehicle.  If the Players can confirm that Fletcher is already dead and no other 
  innocent people are in his rover they are able to breach his rover’s hull with impunity.  Doing 
  so will startle the attackers and give the Players the edge for several crucial moments.  Other 
  tactics may work as well.  Let the Players be creative.  Regardless of the tactics used the 
  
  Page | 49  
   
  battle should be a hectic brutal affair fought in close quarters as the vehicles bounce along 
  Venus’ rocky terrain.  
   
  During the fight the Players will realize that the attackers are none other than the three Mooks 
  who nearly killed them on The Bouncy House.  In the end the Players should be victorious.  
  The Mooks are killed, though leaving one unknowingly alive may be a good way to give the 
  Players a recurring enemy.  Both rovers are badly damaged.  Mother Pandora’s rover is 
  especially damaged since it’s engine may have burned itself out pulling the extra weight of the 
  other rover.  Fletcher’s rover is also trashed, but thanks to an ingenious central blast door the 
  breached portion can be sealed off from the rest of the rover.  Even if the front is damaged 
  the rover can be driven remotely from a computer station towards the rear of the vehicle.  
  With the proper gear from both rovers’ tool kits and by stripping parts they should be able to 
  get Fletcher’s rover in good enough condition to drive back to Mother Pandora’s bunker.  This 
  will take a few hours and all the while they’ll wish they still had the Mech-Hare. 
   
  While fixing Fletcher’s rover they will find evidence that Fletcher had bragged on the Venusnet 
  about having received a strange green box.  This alerted the Mooks and they hoped to obtain 
  both the Red and Green Boxes all at once. 
   
  After fixing Fletcher’s rover Mother Pandora will tell the Players that she needs their help.  In 
  exchange for a way off of Venus and the right to keep the Green Box, they must help her 
  retire.  To do so the entire group gets in Venus suits and transfers to Fletcher’s fixed up rover.  
  They then drive Mother Pandora’s rover into a nearby ravine.  Inside her rover are the bodies 
  of anyone killed in the recent fight. 
   
  The Players might notice that besides some computer wafers, credits and clean clothes; they 
  only thing she keeps from her rover is the old Grand Canyon snow globe. 
   
   
   
  GIVING THE GIFT OF PEACE 
   
   
  With the Green Box retrieved from Fletcher’s rover, the Players now have both Gifts of the 
  Makers.  Shortly after returning to Mother Pandora’s bunker a blimp arrives with agents from 
  the Earth Union government (or the Luna Republic if that’s where the Player’s loyalties lie).  
  These agents were told by Rupali that they had gotten hold of a very valuable set of alien 
  artifacts.  The agents ask nicely for them to hand both boxes over.  The agents also inform 
  them that the Mooks were sent to kill them by the rival government which wanted the 
  artifacts no matter the cost.  If the Players refuse the agents threaten to use missiles to 
  destroy the bunker and then retrieve the artifacts after everyone was dead.  They are not 
  immune to ironic hypocrisy. 
   
  An Average perception check is required to notice that all the government agents, even the 
  ones who descend to collect the Boxes, are female.  Also, the blimp is highly customized and 
  bears a strange mark that a Difficult knowledge check reveals to be the astrological symbol 
  for Venus or Aphrodite.   
   
  Despite the odd nature of the Blimp and its’ operators, the Players have no real choice.  To 
  them it seems as though the government gets the Gifts of the Makers.  Perhaps emboldened 
  by their acquisition but realizing it may be years till the artifacts can be of any real use, the 
  
  Page | 50  
   
  government decides to concede a few points concerning the Titan Crisis.  No point starting a 
  war now with an uncertain outcome when in a few years it might be possible to ensure 
  victory.  Of course this won’t be known for several days as it takes a little time to change the 
  course of governmental affairs. 
   
  On the surface it seems as though the Players end up with nothing, but what they may or 
  may not realize is that they have helped to prevent a major war.  Their trip across the inner 
  solar system proved a distraction to the intelligence services of both Earth and Luna.  The fate 
  of the Red and Green Boxes became more important than a few square kilometers of frozen 
  methane on some distant moon.  Their adventure ensured that there would be a happy New 
  Year.  
    
   
  HALF WAY TO ANYWHERE 
   
  With the return of Zwei Blau’s necklace and the rescue of Mother Pandora, Commander 
  Quantum will happily pay for the Players to travel to Venus orbit from any local spaceport.  
  This will involve a rather uneventful trip via a Venus space plane.  The space plane docks at 
  the Venus transfer station and then moves on to Quantum’s deep space vehicle by way of a 
  rickety old Orbital Transfer Vehicle.  Mother Pandora, having lost her home, accompanies the 
  Players. 
   
  To tie things up the characters may want to know a bit more about Zwei Blau, despite a curtly 
  worded video message from Rupali complaining about the case being closed by the Martian 
  Rangers.  Quantum will refuse to talk about it, but Mother Pandora will take the Players aside.  
  She explains that Zwei Blau was indeed on an extended vacation on Mars visiting a friend, but 
  her friend was in Cydonia Polis proper and did not have anything to do with Redhorn.  During 
  the trip she recieved two anonymous messages.  The first one told of a powerful pair of alien 
  artifacts that could not be allowed to fall into the hands of the Red Legion, and the second 
  message warned Zwei that she had been marked for death by a local Red Legion cell.  Sure 
  enough several days later Zwei was killed by mysterious double suit and airlock malfunctions.  
  Her body showed up a few days later at the site of the Redhorn attack. 
   
  Quantum blames himself for her death and is having difficulty coping with the loss.   
   
  Quantum himself will meet the Players after they cycle through the airlocks.  He gives each 
  one a hardy handshake and presides over an impromptu medal ceremony.  After a short 
  speech the Players are rewarded with Cr5,000 Credits each and offered a trip via the S.U.S.V. 
  Prometheus to anywhere in the solar system. 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
  
  Page | 51  
   
  MORE PEOPLE THAT YOU MEET 
   
  Mother Pandora - Born on Earth during the Belt War, the woman known only as Mother 
  Pandora has done a good job of hiding her past.  It is known that she moved to Venus in 
  2080 following the death of her fiancee.  He was a geologist working on the Grand Canyon 
  Restoration Project when he was murdered.  His side job was designing systems to dam the 
  Valles Marineris once terraforming progressed to where there was running water in the old 
  river beds.  Pandora believes he was killed by elements of the Red Legion.  After he moved to 
  Venus she severed all ties to her past life and made a living prospecting for diamonds.  It is 
  rumored that she found a tremendously large diamond just months after arriving on Venus 
  and has been set for life.  In 2082 she added the honorary, Mother, to the front of her name 
  and developed the persona of Mother Pandora.  She has become a beloved figure on Venus, 
  and although thought dead by the people of Venus, the tradition of Gifting will continue. 
   
   
  If the Players think to do some research they can cross reference geologists who were 
  murdered in the late 2070s with engagement announcements.  From there they will find that 
  Mother Pandora was actually Liraz Shahaf, a young Jewish woman from a wealthy New York 
  family.  She held no job beyond volunteer positions within local charities and the anti-Earth 
  Union, the American-Liberty Party.  The investigation into her husband’s death was halted 
  prematurely by the pro-EU federal government, and she left Earth shortly thereafter.   
   
   
  EPILOGUE 
   
   
  SolaNet News Feed (31st December, 2097):  A spokesperson for the Luna Republic has 
  confirmed the recent announcement by the Prime Minister’s office that an agreement has 
  been reached regarding the status of Titan and the Maker artifacts orbiting Saturn.  Earth 
  Union forces currently on Titan will remain, and Luna has agreed to suspend its military 
  support of the group calling itself the White Tigers.  In return Earth has opened access to 
  Mimas and Iapetus to a joint research team headed by the IAU.  An IAU spokesman has 
  confirmed that once again ETM will take the lead in providing security for the two alien 
  facilities.  Both Earth and Luna have agreed to post only minimal space assets in the region of 
  Saturn while providing ETM with, “...any and all assistance required for them to protect and 
  preserve the alien artifacts.”  Furthermore in exchange for exclusive access to Saturn’s 
  helium-3, the Earth Union has agreed to allow increased trade with Luna, end the IP tariffs, 
  and drop all sanctions against Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia and Fiji.  The EU government 
  has already announced a timetable for returning control of the Woomera and Port Moresby 
  space ports to their respective governments.   
   
  British Prime Minister Philip York, who worked doggedly to get American and Chinese 
  support for this deal, praised today’s announcement and said he felt confident that it would 
  pass both the Luna Republic Demos and the EU World Council.  York added, “I can think of no 
  better way to begin the New Year than throwing off the dark spectre of war that has for too 
  long cast a pall over the entire solar system.” 
   
  On a sadder note, beloved Venusian folk hero, Mother Pandora, has been pronounced 
  dead after being missing for several days.  Her heavily damaged rover was discovered just 
  days ago at the bottom of a deep ravine.  Several, as yet unidentified, bodies were in or near 
  the...” 
   
  
  Page | 52  
   
  “Video off.” A man’s voice said abruptly.   
   
  The video screen went dark and the words ended mid-sentence.  Without the glow of the 
  video the entire room was as night.  The only light was the twinkle of artificial stars that 
  seemed to dance across the ceiling. 
    
  As the door opposite the video screen opened a cascade of light flooded the room, 
  temporarily blinding the man.  The door shut and as his eyes adjusted once again to the 
  darkness, he could hear the soft shuffle of a person unaccustomed to stick shoes walking 
  across the room.   
   
  “You sound like a cat on ice, my dear.”  The man said kindly. 
   
  “I’m used to gravity and pressure.  Lots of pressure.”  The woman said as she reached the 
  large chair the man still sat in.  She let out a soft laugh as she plopped herself down into the 
  man’s lap.   
   
  “Not much gravity and not much air.  I can’t crush you.” She said jokingly as she hugged the 
  well muscled man and gave him several soft kisses.  “I’ll miss my home.  But at least this 
  vehicle has a bit more room.” 
   
  “I’m sorry.”  He replied.  The true sound of regret was in his voice.  “We both gave up 
  something we loved.” 
   
  The woman could see a look of deep sadness in the man’s eyes, but in a flash it was gone.  
  Reluctant to break the mood as the two held each other, they remained quiet for several 
  minutes.  Finally the man called for the lights to come on. 
   
  Immediately the woman turned her eyes towards the sets of empty shelves that flanked the 
  large video screen.  One set was dark green, and above them was mounted a circle bisected 
  by meridian lines set against a lighter green oval.  The other shelves were dark blood red 
  above which there was a bright red polygon adorned with a set of sharp triangle like symbols.  
  Only a closer look revealed that a small silver necklace with an aquamarine gemstone sat on 
  the top red shelf, while a small extremely discolored snow globe graced the uppermost green 
  shelf. 
   
  “It is New Year’s Eve my dear.”  The man said after the moment of silence.  He gave her a 
  quick hug and another kiss.  “Perhaps the Solar System will find peace in the coming year.  If 
  we are lucky that will be the true gift of the Makers.” 
   
  Pandora smiled.  “Yes, my love.  We may yet find reason for joy this holiday season.” 
   
   
  
  Page | 53  
   
  5  STUFF 
   
   
   
  GEAR 
   
  Programmeable Daily Assistant - PDAs are the Martian name for coms, or Configurable 
  Operations and Messaging devices, or Coms.  They are small devices usually measuring 
  140mm x 65mm x 5mm and weigh 100 grams.  Because of their small size they are equipped 
  with a fold-out touch screen that can expand to 250mm x 190mm.  They are TL9 devices with 
  Computer/2.  Improvements in storage and programing allow for incredible amounts of data 
  to be held on one’s PDA.  So while a Computer/2 may only be able to run one rating 2 
  program this is often its core operating system.  On top of the OS the computer can still run 
  numerous rating 0 programs which can be nearly anything.  Some examples include; 
  encyclopedia database, global navigation, telecommunications and messaging, communicator, 
  and gaming.  They have full wireless capabilities but it is short range (2 km).  
   
  Emergency Undersuit - Known as “tighties” these form-fitting suits are worn by nearly 
  everyone on Mars.  On Venus they are worthless.  Treat as an Emergency Softsuit as per the 
  Supplement 4: Central Supply Catalogue, page 140.  As they are generally TL 9 there have 
  been a few improvements.  They provide Protection 1 against damage and 2 against 
  radiation.  They have a five hour supply of air, a small battery (recharged by kinetic 
  movements), a mini radio with a 2.5 km range and integral heating and cooling.  They can be 
  plugged directly into one’s PDA which increases its usefulness by granting a +2 on all Survival 
  checks.  Tighties come in all sorts of colors and are custom fitted to the wearer.  The cost is 
  Cr1,100. 
   
  Stick Shoes - Developed using smart glues and by studying the feet of geckos, stick shoes 
  are very common in space vehicles and space stations.  They allow the wearer to stay planted 
  to the floor even in zero-g.  A penalty of -1 DM is imposed on all athletics and melee roles 
  involving running and kicking.  They cost Cr100. 
   
  Smart Rope - This is an advanced rope made from high-grade carbon fibers with a memory 
  plastic inner core.  It can hold up to 1,000 kg and can be controlled by way of a downloadable 
  PDA mini-program.  It can untie itself, change its length by 25%, and even crawl back to its 
  owner.  It costs Cr1,000 for a 200 meter length. 
   
  Glow Balls - These items are small 60mm diameters balls that, when tapped, light up.  Their 
  soft white light fills an area as large as 5x5x5 meters and if left will last 30 days.  Further taps 
  turn them off and on.  They can also serve as wireless repeaters to enhance the PDA 
  messaging range.  A small flat area on one side is covered in smart glue so that the glow ball 
  can be hung on a wall or ceiling.  Their weight is less than 20 grams, and they cost Cr10.  An 
  infrared version exists that provides heat instead of visible light.  They last only 20 days and 
  cost the same amount. 
   
  
  Page | 54  
   
  ROBOTS AND DRONES 
   
  Aerodyne Sky-Wasp Security Drone - Designed as a low cost surveillance and military 
  drone, the Sky-Wasp is a common sight in police agencies around the solar system.  It is 
  capable of limited independent operations but only as Computer/0.  The drone has a 
  wingspan of 1.25 meters and masses 32kg fully loaded.  It can be launched by hand but more 
  often a purpose built catapult is used.  The Sky-Wasp is armed with dual autopistols each with 
  150 rounds of ammunition.  It has a top speed of 200km/hr and a range of 450km.  Hull 1, 
  Structure 1 and Armor 4. 
    
  Gregor Technologies Mech-Hare Repair Bot -  The Mech-Hare is a cutting edge 
  prototech robot.  It has an advanced Computer/2 loaded with several skills; Engineer 3, 
  Computers 1, Mechanic 4, Electronics 2 and Medic 2.  The Mech-Hare moves in a rabbit like 
  gate but can stand up to 1.2 meters high.  It has a top speed of 30km/hr but rarely goes this 
  fast.  Its ears double as communication arrays and solar panels.  The front paws have 
  numerous built in tools and can even work with near microscopic items.  Every Mech-Hare 
  develops its own personality over time and becomes very loyal to its owners.  The Mech-Hare 
  can curl up into a ball no longer larger than .4 meters in diameter and weighs only 10kg.  
  Count it as having Hull 1, Structure 2 and Armor 2. 
   
  The Grinch - Properly known as Ingenuity, the Grinch is a large but very old robotic rover.  It 
  is 2.9m long x 2.7m wide x 2.2m high.  Its advanced RTG has a life span of about 84 years 
  but has lost power substantially over the years.  This is supplemented by solar panels and 
  rechargeable batteries that can draw power from other sources.  The Grinch has top speed of 
  25km/hr and can carry 50kg of cargo.  It has a camera system fitted with lowlight, infrared, 
  x100 magnification and video recording.  It is also fitted with a long robotic arm capable of 
  lifting 20kg and had two small wheeled drones that are fitted with cameras and a radio link.  
  The Grinch is capable of orbital communications and short ranged wireless with a TL8 
  Computer/2.  It has Hull 2, Structure 3 and Armor 2.   
   
   
  VEHICLES 
   
  Matsuyama Basilisk Trakcycle (Tracked Motorcycle, TL9) 
   
  Vehicle 
  TL 
  Skill 
  Agility 
  Speed 
  Range 
  Crew/ 
  Pass 
  Cargo 
  Open? 
  Hull 
  Structure 
  Cost 
  Ship 
  Size 
  M/Cycle 
  9 
  Drive 
  +2 
  150 
  500 
  1/1 
     50  
  - 
  10 
  10 
  607,000 
  10 t 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
  Armour 
  4 
   
  Equipment/Modifications:                                                           
   
   
   
  Basic Navigation, Very Distant communications (satellite uplink), Increased Hull, 
  Increased Agility (due to advanced flexible tracks)    
   
  Mars Rovers (Wheeled ATV, TL9)  
  The Mars rover is essentially a Tech Level 9 version of the ATV depicted in the Traveller: Core 
  Rulebook, page 103.  Being wheeled it has a top speed of 150km/hr.  It has accommodations 
  for eight, has 240 man days  worth of supplies, and uses a combination Stirling engine and 
  RTG for power.  Tracked versions do exist that are slower but with better off-road capabilities.  
  All TL9 rovers have two airlocks and self repair abilities.  Armor rating is 4.  They cost about 
  Cr500,000 new and as low as half that for used models.  Beware, you get what you pay for.   
  
  Page | 55  
   
  Many TL8 versions still exist with a top speed of 125km/hr and has only 160 man days worth 
  of supplies. TL 8 rovers have only one airlock and cannot self repair.  These rovers cost as 
  little as 50,000 credits.  Armor rating is 3. 
   
  Venus Rovers (Wheeled ATV, TL 9)  
  Venus rovers are almost exclusively wheeled vehicles, giving them a top speed of 150km/hr.  
  This is because wheels are easier to replace or repair and need far fewer holes in the hull in 
  order for them to be mounted on the rover.  Venus rovers have two airlocks, redundant 
  emergency beacons, self repair abilities and 320 man days worth of supplies.  For power the 
  rover uses a combination stirling engine, RTG and high capacity batteries.  New models can 
  cost as much as 800,000 credits and even the rarely-used rover will sell for as high as 
  650,000 credits.  Armor rating is 6.  
   
  Mother Pandora’s Rover (Wheeled ATV, TL9)  
  Mother Pandora’s rover is an enlarged Venus rover with numerous extras.  It has a top speed 
  of 175km/hr and 400 man days worth of supplies.  Her rover has also been fitted with an 
  advanced computer control system that can drive the vehicle, use the appliances and play 
  chess.  This custom rover would easily fetch 2.0 million credits.  It has an Armor rating of 7. 
   
  Notes on Rovers 
  Except for a few short range rovers and bare bones bottom-of-the-line models, all rovers have 
  numerous extras.  Bunks, Navigation, Sensors, Freshers, extra storage, vacc suit racks, 
  kitchenettes, entertainment centers and even small holo-viewers are common features in 
  these vehicles.  Most Rover gangs live in their vehicles and as such they have become the 
  mobile homes of Mars and Venus.  Custom paint jobs are common as well.  On Mars a smaller 
  vehicle such as a track-cycle is often mounted on an external rack for short range travel.  
  Also, every rover can pull an auxiliary trailer.  These trailers can have their own power plants, 
  storage and living space.  They can be connected by a pressurized walkway but this is rarely 
  used on Venus.  Trailers cost 50% of a comparable rover and have the same armor rating. 
   
   
   
  WEAPONS 
   
  T-Stormer (Gyrojet Revolver, TL9) Skill: Gun Combat (Zero-G Weapons) 
  Constructed like an oversized revolver, the T-Stomer fires 12mm gyrojet rounds.  It is a semi-
  automatic pistol capable of firing several different types of ammunition.   All T-Stormer 
  ammunition is essentially recoilless and can independently track targets thus providing a +2 
  DM to the users weapons skill. 
   
  Range  
  Damage 
   
  Magazine 
  Auto Recoil Cost Mass Ammo Cost 
  Shotgun 
  3d3 flechettes  
  6 
   
  no 
  - 
  350 
  3kg 
  85 
   
  Numerous special rounds exist with the Blitzer and Tracker being the most common. 
  Type  
  Damage 
  Ammo Cost Notes 
  Blitzer   
  2d6+3 Stun 
  110 
   
  gives strong electric shock, heavy armor halves  
  effect 
  Tracker 
  1d6-2 Stun 
  110 
   
  leaves behind a tracker disc (v. difficult task to  
  remove) with a range of 20km 
   
   
  
  Page | 56  
   
  Ball-Gun (Grenade Launcher, TL8) Skill: Heavy Weapons (Launchers) 
  The Ball-Gun began as an improvised non-lethal weapon but proved so useful that 
  manufacturers on Mars began to produce them for law enforcement and the militia.  It fires a 
  variety of 60mm balls at varying speed using a spring and compressed gas.  The range can be 
  set using an integral laser range finder.  It is semi-automatic and uses a pump very much like 
  those seen on some shotguns. 
   
  Range  
  Damage 
   
  Magazine 
  Auto Recoil Cost Mass Ammo Cost 
  varies  
  varies  
   
  6 
   
  no 
  -1 
  300 
  2kg 
  varies 
   
  Numerous special rounds exist for the Ball-Gun.  Any type of grenade listed in the core 
  Rulebook can be found as Ball-Gun ammo and even Glow Balls can be fired from the weapon. 
   
  Type  
  Damage 
  Ammo Cost Notes  
  Mapper 
  none  
  150 
   
  range of 500 meters, uses LIDAR to map an area  
  as it travels, gives a +3 DM to Navigation Task 
  Checks. 
  Hard Ball 
  2D6+2 Stun 
  20 
   
  pistol range, can bounce into a target  
  Storm Cloud 2D6 Stun 
  110 
   
  shotgun range, erupts into numerous capacitors  
  that create a floating cloud of electro-stunners 
  that last for 15 turns. 
   
   
   
  Cobra (Staff, TL8) Skill: Melee (Bludgeon) 
  The Cobra is a strange weapon that consists of a 1.5 meter long staff, but out of one end it 
  can project a .5 meter shaft at incredibly high speeds.  This shaft strikes with enormous force 
  and can shatter rocks or bone.  An integral rechargeable battery can launch the shaft over 
  fifty times before it needs to recharge.  It needs only to be pushed back in to reset and be 
  ready to fire again.  It can also be used as a standard staff weapon or even a walking stick.  
  Some fancy cobras are even covered with a wood veneer and ornately decorated (x3 cost).  
   
  Range  
   
  Damage 
   
  Heft 
   
  Mass Cost  
  Melee (bludgeon) 
  4D6 
   
   
  - 
   
  3kg 
  250 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
  
  Page | 57  
   
    6  GM’s INFO 
   
  This adventure is intended to be an introduction to the  world of Orbital, but it also a 
  Christmas-themed adventure and as such should probably have a happy, heart-warming 
  ending.  As this may not be suitable for some gaming groups the Referee should feel free to 
  modify the deadliness and tone of the adventure....   
   
  During the course of the adventure the Players may begin to suspect or question the motives 
  of many of the people working with or against them.  It is true that while many of the 
  supporting cast have secret agents and hidden motives most of them are not working directly 
  against the Players.  Tessa Chin, Commander Quantum and Mother Pandora are members of 
  the group known as the Infinite Circle, and as such they act in a way to further that group’s 
  agenda.   
   
       
  INFINITE CIRCLE 
   
  Even before it became publicly known that Mars really was the home of ancient alien ruins 
  there were numerous conspiracy theories regarding the activities of visiting aliens.  Once it 
  was reveled that real alien ruins existed on the Red Planet, these theories became more 
  focused and formed the basis for new religions and ideologies.  Within the scientific 
  community these new memes were met with scorn, but some scientists began to fear the long 
  term repercussion of alien contact.  Some remembered the words of the late Nobel Laureate, 
  Stephen Hawking, regarding alien contact... ”I think it would be a disaster. The 
  extraterrestrials would probably be far in advance of us. The history of advanced races 
  meeting more primitive people on this planet is not very happy, and they were the same 
  species. I think we should keep our heads low.” 
   
  With this in mind they got to together to discuss ways to protect humanity.  Despite the solar 
  system wide Cold War, scientists, scholars, journalists and politicians from nearly every planet 
  joined this secret network of concerned persons. At first they merely exchanged notes and 
  ideas, but soon they were sharing all information regarding the aliens including government 
  secrets.  Over time the group grew more structured and powerful.  The current organization 
  was formed just a decade ago, and the group took the name the Infinite Circle.  It already 
  has contacts within the governments of Venus, Earth and Mars.   
   
  The location of its home base is unknown and its membership remains secret.  Some rumors 
  have begun to emerge concerning the group.  It is said that they have a living alien or have 
  resurrected one using cloning.  This is almost certainly untrue.  More likely to be on target is 
  the rumor that the Infinite Circle has the largest database of knowledge concerning the 
  Makers and Servants anywhere in the entire solar system.  The group’s symbol consists of a 
  simple silver mobius strip. 
   
   
  
  Page | 58  
   
  THE OVERALL PLOT 
   
  The Infinite Circle did not plan or launch the attack on Redhorn.  Instead they used contacts 
  within the Martian Rangers to deduce where the next attack would come from based upon 
  threats made by factions within the Red Legion.  Upon learning that an attack was imminent 
  in the Goeria region they set their plan in motion.  The untimely death of Zwei Blau gave 
  them the bait, and Commander Quantum helped to have her body moved there after her 
  death.  As planned Rupali and the Players took the bait.   
   
  The goal was to get the two gifts into the hands of either the Earth or Luna government.  
  Fear of the weapon that these gifts contained would be enough to drive both governments to 
  the negotiating table and thus resolve the Titan Crisis peacefully.  Very likely this will work as 
  both sides were already looking for a way to resolve the crisis in a way that saved face.  Fear 
  of the alien weapon became a primary motivator to push for peace, albeit one unknown to the 
  public.   
   
  Again the Referee should feel free to tweak the adventure.  Perhaps the Infinite Circle is a bit 
  more ruthless and launched the attack themselves in order to put their plan in action.  Or 
  maybe not warning the innocent people living in the dome about the attack has caused a split 
  in the organization. 
   
  Overtime the Players may learn that neither government got ahold of the Boxes.  Instead they 
  were taken by an independent group known as the Legion of Aphrodite.  Unaffiliated with the 
  Red Legion, they are nonetheless portrayed by some corporations and the Luna Republic as a 
  terrorist organization.  Their taking the Boxes was not part of the plan, but it worked to make 
  the governments of Earth and Luna even more paranoid about the Makers.    
   
  So no matter how the Infinite Circle is portrayed the plan has worked, though how much the 
  presence of the aliens actually ended the crisis is open to debate.  Either way the Titan Crisis 
  is resolved by the beginning of the New Year, and the Earth Union will soon see a change in 
  government.  Fighting will continue on Titan, but there will be no system wide war nor the 
  massive casualties such an affair would have caused.   
   
  For the Infinite Circle this is a start.  Someday they hope to see a united humanity ready to 
  stand against any alien threat that may emerge.   
   
   
  SO WHAT’S IN THE BOXES? 
   
  The adventure ends with the two gifts going missing and the governments being worried 
  about what they hold inside.  So what’s really in them? 
   
  Obviously, they are fakes.  The boxes were built over many years to match as closely as 
  possible the construction style and techniques of the Makers.  Upon completion they were 
  filled and then sealed using advanced technology to make them seem as though they were 
  solid blocks.  Inside there are no alien weapons... sort of.  The Green Box contains the entire 
  collection of Commander Quantum action figures.  The Red Box holds the entire collection of 
  Alien Adversary, Quantum’s unyielding foes, action figures.  They are mint in box, and to the 
  right collector would be worth over Cr50,000 per set. 
  
  Page | 59  
   
  They had been collected over the course of many years by Quantum’s daughter, Madison, and 
  Zwei Blau.  Upon Zwei’s death Quantum gave them up right before the boxes were sealed.  In 
  a way they are the ultimate inside joke.         
   
   
  TRAVELLER & 2300AD 
   
  Gift of the Makers was written as an extended scenario for Orbital, but it is a simple task 
  to modify it for use in the Traveller Universe or even in 2300AD.   
   
  Gift of the Ancients - In the Imperium the first day of every year is designated an Imperial 
  Holiday. This very nicely coincides with the Terran concept of New Years Day even though the 
  two calendars make use of differing starting dates.  Have the adventure start just as the 
  Imperium approaches the Imperial Holiday. This will retain the Holiday feel, or if you wish 
  jettison the holidays and just set the adventure whenever you want it to occur.  Instead of the 
  Makers the two Boxes are obviously Ancient artifacts of great importance.  In that case the 
  scenario can be set either Behind the Claw, where the Players struggle to bring yet another 
  Frontier War to an end, or deep within the Solomani Rim, where they rush to prevent a 
  disastrous Second Rim War.  Instead of the Infinite Circle it is like that either Norris or Adair 
  are behind the scenes as unseen patrons. Perhaps even the Emperor himself knows a bit 
  more about these Gifts than anyone could ever imagine.  The slow travel time experienced by 
  nuclear-thermal rockets is easily substituted for week long jumps between Imperial worlds.  
  Maybe the enigmatic Commander Quantum has a strange tattoo normally only seen on the 
  vaunted Sylean Rangers.  Just pick your favorite world with a hostile super dense atmosphere 
  and a low gravity world with a very thin atmosphere and plug them in.  Change a name or 
  two and you’re good to go.  
   
  Gift of the Medusa - Like Orbital, 2300AD has mysterious alien ruins and rival nations on 
  the brink of war.  The major difference is that the setting is interstellar instead of 
  interplanetary.  This is not a major concern.  Days spend in stutterwarp transit between 
  worlds is similar to the time spent by nuclear rockets as they cruise between planets.  The 
  major difference is that while stutterwarping the vessels of 2300AD are incommunicado but 
  this is not a major issue for this scenario. Gift of the Makers can be set nearly anywhere in the 
  2300AD setting, but I strongly recommend the French Arm for several reasons.  Colin Dunn’s 
  excellent update of the old 2300AD adventures has recently come out on PDF as the French 
  Arm Adventures. This gives a good overview of the French Arm and illustrates how an  
  adventure set in that region can be played.  Also, the French Arm is the most tense and 
  militarized arm of human space.  This makes it ripe for adventure. From there it is easy to 
  make a few adjustments.  
   
  Instead of Mars perhaps the adventure starts on a Mars-like world.  Hochbaden would work 
  well, but I recommend Beowulf’s moon, Hrunting.  Hrunting is not mentioned in Mongoose’s 
  2300AD, but in the original setting it is a moon orbiting 342,400 km from Beowulf.  Hrunting’s 
  gravity is about .37, and it has an atmospheric surface pressure of .36 atmospheres.  This is 
  similar enough to Mars that domes are needed and environmental conditions will be similar 
  between the two planets.  To make it fit within the scenario either rename some of the locales 
  and locals to fit the fact that the colony was founded by Europeans, or perhaps more 
  interestingly plop Cydonia City (now New Cydonia of course) and the Great Hall of Goeria 
  right onto Hrunting as is.  Who says there isn’t a Native American / Indian enclave there that 
  happens to use a mish-mash of Martian and mangled Sindarin to name some their towns?  It’s 
  
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  also nice that Hrunting is said to have an ancient alien outpost on its surface.  What a great 
  place to begin an adventure! 
   
  Commander Quantum can be from any major foundation, though the North American 
  Research League makes the most sense.  Of course things could get interesting if it turns out 
  that the Royal Society or the Transhuman League is somehow involved.  The Brits have a very 
  strong interest in ensuring that the French Arm remains peaceful and the Transhumanist want 
  to further the cause of all mankind and not watch humanity plunge itself into violence. After 
  spending some time on a Mars-like world, the Players need to head for a dense atmosphere 
  world.  There are several in human space and even a few along the French Arm.  Pick your 
  favorite, Limbes in the Alpha Centauri system would work, and its possible that the aerial life 
  are remnant species from a time when Limbes had far more life.  It’s not hard to imagine that 
  a world within the Core that has strange aerial life would attract an eclectic population of 
  miners (tantalum anyone?) and researchers.  Even more probable is that the Australian and 
  American influences remain even if it irks the majority population of Europeans who live there.  
   
  So why the ruse in the first place?  Perhaps something has occurred to bring France and 
  Germany once again to the brink of war. Maybe Manchuria is supplying the Elysians with 
  advanced space weaponry and France is mobilizing.  Either way a major international conflict 
  could so weaken the nations of the French Arm that Earth its self would be threatened by any 
  Kaefer advance.  No matter how or where you run the scenario remember the final 
  goal...Peace on Earth and Good will to Men. 
   
   
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SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Traveller/08 - Mongoose Traveller/Third Party Materials/Adventures/Orbital - Gift of the Makers.pdf