Preface to Zebs Guide to the Humma

The common complaint against Zebulon’s Guide (ZG) material is centered on its rush to market and the immediate discontinuance by the corporation owning the IP. It has been justly maligned as poorly executed and an incomplete product. While this criticism is near universal many if not most fans of the Star Frontiers game still use pieces of the guide; new equipment, the outline of a corporate war, corporations and cadres and etc. So while the product is on one hand maligned, no one that I know of has torn up their hard copy or deleted the PDF copy from their computer.

The purpose of this work is to rehabilitate Zebulon’s Guide material to eliminate the common complaint against it. That said the goal is simply rehabilitation not a rewrite or remake, though some areas may require those measures. As much as possible the spirit and details of the original material will be maintained. However, as areas of inconsistency come to light then changes will be considered.

The brain storming phase of this document will be conducted at the www.starfrontiers.us site in the Zebulon’s Guide Expanded project in an effort to illicit input form the Star Frontiers community. As the project lead, I will endeavor to harmonize the original material and comments from the community and package it in a coherent whole that is usable and devoid of the classic criticism against ZG materials. This of course means I have editorial control over the final document. My desire is simply a finished product that is complete, comprehensive and readily usable but one that remains true to the spirit of the original material.

The scope of this particular guide is the humma race, its society, history, home system, and its relationship to the Frontier civilization at large. I will be harmonizing the original ZG material, the Star Frontiersman issue 15 article “The Humma Hop Back”, and topic threads from the Zebulon’s Guide Expanded project. This guide will be laid out in three sections. The first will cover the race extensively, the second will deal with their home system and the third will offer encounters and adventure ideas for game masters.

Humma Physiology


Characteristics

 Average Size
 2.5 meters tall
 Average Mass
 90 kilograms
 Average Lifespan
 210 years
 Reproductive System
 hermaphroditic,
viviparous
 Body Temperature
 38 degrees Celsius

Physical Structure
The body of a humma is pear shaped with a short neck, narrow shoulders, unusually short arms, a stocky trunk, and wide hips with powerful legs. Their heads and face tend toward a scruffy look and a mustached muzzel. The body is covered with matted fur, usually dull brown. Their hands are hairless and have a semi-retractable dew claw that acts as an opposable thumb. Their feet are long and tough.

The humma dew claw is located mid way up the inside of the forarm, between the elbow and palm. This claw functions as an opposable thumb for holding tools. It allows the humma to grasp objects and hold onto them till they decide to release them. It is difficult to break free from the grasp of a humma (-15% to the attempt) and success results in the humma's punch score in damage.

Humma walk on the balls and toes of their feet, which gives them their extra height. They are able to jump an incredible distance. Their short arms can hold a rifle but are not suited to melee weapons. They have evolved with an agile and strong prehensible tail with which they can deliver a sound blow or use melee weapons but not grenades.


Senses

Humma hearing and sight are equivalent to human standards. Their sense of smell and touch are not as acute as most other races, while their sense of taste is completely dull. This lack of smell and taste, combined with their tough diestive system, means they can eat almost anything that is vaguely edible.

Speech

The Humma language is an ugly one, full of grunts and guttural noises. It is not an easy languagle to learn; vursk and ifshnits, particularly, have a difficult time with it.

Humma Sexuality and Reproduction

Humma don't understand gender like the humans, vrusk, and yazirians.  To them a normal being goes through stages and that's that.  To be stuck in one stage (male or female) is just ludacris and stupid to a humma and he will tell you so in no uncertain terms.  Humma don't even have words that properly translate to male or female because "you are just you" and the stage you are in does not change who you are.  Humma think of it more like, "I've reached fertility" (female stage), and "I've become virile" (male stage), and "I am old" (neuter stage).

Sex because of love is not on the menu for a humma.  Procreation is what you do to be better than the next humma.  If you win the privilege to mate with a fertile humma then that is points for you and not the next grunt.

Having a litter is a right of passage for the fertile humma.  Everyone does it and it revolves around status.  Fertile humma have spent years positioning themselves to attract the "right" virile humma.  There is great status to be gained by getting the most prestigious, the most popular, and the most honored to compete for the mating privilege. The same is true for the virile humma seeking to mate.  They are seeking to gain mating privilege with the best placed fertile humma in society.  This is not about love, it is about status.  Competitions must be won and prices paid.

When the a fertile humma finally goes into heat the time for competition is up.  Those who have gained enough status and see this particular humma as a good choice to gain more status fight it out in a public event.  The fertile humma is the prize.  This is where houses and families come in.  Houses have great sway in the whole status evaluation of mating candidates.  Back room deals, honor bound allegiances and other feudal responsibilities and obligations come into play and must be observed.  After the deciding fight, the winner ritually fights the fertile humma.  The fight ends with a brief mating.  Then the two part ways and may never see each other again.  In rare cases the fertile humma may actually fight back to defeat the winner and possibly runners-up until the desired candidate is reached and then a ritual fight is performed ending with a mating.  That is the closest that the humma comes to love in a mating relationship. However, the female fighting back can also be due to honor, status, and other obligations too.

A pregnant humma traditionally spends the months of pregnancy shoring up and finalizing negotiations about the care of the offspring.  At birth the kittens are placed with the families or houses of the mating pair to meet obligations and win favors.  The fertile humma then transitions to the virile stage soon after the birth and may never see the kitterns again.  There is little emotional attachment.  Humma value their offspring for their accomplishments and status that they bring.  An accomplished or famous offspring may bring status and help win future mating contest rights.

Historically, humma kittens had poor chances of survival before the modern feudal system of houses and obligations. The kittens were expected to fend for themselves and follow the family as best they could.  Think of the historic family as more of a pack or herd.  The modern system a family is less tied by genealogy than the historic family and more of a cooperative unit that grew up together. Kinda like orphan gangs that society has placed controls on for the betterment of society.  All kittens taken into a house born about the same time become a family and are overseen by elders who see to their "proper" education. 

Houses grew out of the ancient herd or packs. Some houses are more concerned with proper blood than others. Proper blood houses tend to be the older houses and tend to take whole litters together as families rather than mixing the kittens. Typically proper blood houses are proper blood because they have the status and position that allows them to afford the luxury of siblings in families. This is a luxury because the siblings are expected to fight it out and deaths do occur.  In more contemporary houses the families are picked and assembled so as to best grow the house with successful members. It is much like trying to pick a better sports team.

Humma Physiology part 2

Gender Stage and Age Table
GENDER
  AGE RANGE
 Fertile or Female
 0-25
 Viril or Male
 26-170
 Old or Neuter
 171-210

The age ranges given above are flexible not hard and fast. Females generally come into heat between 20 and 25 at the latest. Males will transition to neuter around 170.

The average adventuring humma or player character humma is male. Its likely that the beginning player character humma still fairly young; 25 to 50 years of age. Referees should restrict female humma to non player characters as except under special circumstances.

Determining Litter Size
To determine a litter size on the quick and dirty a referee can roll 1d5 for the number of surviving kittens. Its likely that the original litter size was at least twice that number but infant mortality has been extremely high among the human until modern times. There has been a modern trend to limit infant mortality, at least among urban houses. The more traditional and or rural lineages tend to follow the more brutal practices of the past; allowing kittens to fight for dominance and eat the weak. Naturally a referee will need to adjust the numbers according to the situation.

The following table is provided for more detail, roll 2d10 and add the dice.

 Litter Size Table
 
 Dice Roll
 Litter Size
 Survivors
 2 8-1201
 3 10 6
 410
 5
 5 10 4
 6 9 5
 7 9 4
 8 93
9 8
5
 10 84
 118 3
 12 7 5
 137 4
 1473
 15 6 4
 1663
 176
2
 185
 3
 195
 2
 20 1 1

1. When zero survive its usually because of defects and the tradition of eating defectives. These occurances are quickly hushed up due to the loss of face that is involved but word does get out. A humma that birthed such a litter is usually barred from ever competing in a mating combat and can expect to be ignored as a neuter for election to house leadership.

Special Abilities & Characteristics

Special Abilities

Poison Resistance
Humma are unaffected by any poison that they eat or drink.

Prehensile Tail
The tail of the humma is 2 meters long and has a grip stronger than a human hand. The tail is capable of holding an item or swinging a melee weapon. When holding an item, the humma can use its two arms normally. When using the tail to wield a weapon, the humma must concentrate on it and connot use its arms to operate anything else. The tail can only wrap around hilts, handles, etc., but cannot throw grenades or operate devices. The tail itself is treated as a rifle butt for damage. It is strong enough to support a humma's body, but only for a number of turns equal to the humma's Stamina divided by 10.

Spring Charge:
The humma have a special spring charge that allows them to move, by jumping, before and after a melee attack. The attack is done with the tail and maximum distance of 25m cannot be exceded on that turn. The humma gets to move attack and move without his opponent being able to attack back. The opponent can move and engage the humma on his initiative but good tactical use of this ability can prevent an opponent from ever striking back.

The spring charge is best employed by large numbers of humma circling a victim and springing to attack in round robin. This tactic, known in Pan Gal as the carousel attack, was so named by a human witness.

Humma Characters
Ability Scores
 STR/STA +10
 DEX/RS +0
 INT/LOG +0
 PER/LDR -10







Movement
 Walk 
 Walking 10 meters/turn
Running35 meters/turn
 Hourly 6 kilometers/hour
 Leaping* 
 Walking 25 meters/turn
 Running 50 meters/turn
 Hourly N/A












*Leaping can be maintained only 10 turns, and must be followed by 30 minutes of rest.

Special Abilities
insert table of spec abilities

Humma Society

In primitive humma society each humma of property ruled an estate. These estates eventually became the property of the lineage and were ruled by an elected leader. The head of the lineage, called the Hum, was chosen by tradition from among the neuters over the age of 170. Most ruled till death but a lineage that suffered a set back might elect a new leader from available candidates. The response of a deposed leader ran the gamut from suicide to political machinations to aggressive attacks on the causes of his downfall, within or without the lineage.

Houses developed when several lineages banded together or landless lineages swore fealty to a successful one. In ancient and times it was not unheard of for a house to fracture as infighting erupted within its ranks but this event has become exceedingly rare in modern times.

Houses allied in a constantly shifting web of alliances, loyalties, and feudal obligations with the leaders of preeminent houses being named High Ones, Higher Ones and eventually the equivalent of king, Highest One. Humma history prior to the First Sathar War has been described as one long brawl. While the houses eventually stabilized the web of alliances between them was always prone to fracture until the advent of the sathar. Some sociologist predict a return to civil strife should the threat of the sathar ever be removed.

Modern hummarin society is still feudal. The threat of the sathar and their intense hatred for the worms has frozen in place the kingship and feudal titles with the houses holding them at the time of the SW1. This present situation may not hold but the house holding the kingship of the star system has used the crisis of genocidal attack by the sathar to solidify its position and shore up control of the system. More and more its rivals are finding that they may never be able to challenge the royal house as it funnels tax revenue into a military organization that only bears fealty to the king, and not to any house including his own.

All humma take the fealty they owe to their superiors as a very serious matter. Some actually add the name of their lineage or house to their personal name (Glaxchild, Kuld of Arius, etc.).

The gender roles within society are vastly different but with the unifying theme of preservation of the species. Since fertile females are always in limited supply traditional hummarin society focused on protecting those that survived infancy and effectively used them as markers for keeping score. Modern practices have relaxed some but the expectation remains that a fertile humma has an obligation to perpetuate the species and few if any buck the system.

The role of the virile male has traditionally been that of warrior. Some sociologists believe that the warrior role played an important role in humma society in controlling the burgeoning male population. With the average female mating at around age 20 years and most humma spending another 150 years as a male a disproportionate portion of the population is always male. It may have been that the evolution of the warrior ethic was a societal strategy to relieve the pressure produced by the gender imbalance. It had the dual effect of focusing male energies and thinning the male population.

For the males that reached old age or the neuter stage their role transitioned to that of leader. The reduced population that reaches this gender stage become the “keepers of the tribal wisdom” as it were and oversee the care for the young, administration of their houses and lineage, and plotting the advancement of the house of lineage. The most significant achievement of a neuter is playing a role in securing a seat among the royalty for his house or lineage.

Customs

Sociologist have endlessly speculated about war being a cultural imperitive among the humma, a way of thinning out the herd. However, their love for war and conflict seems to be rooted in the fabric of thier genetic code. The primal humma concern has been attaining status for himself, his lineage and his house. Modern Hummarin society has seen a shift in this quest for status. The pride and honor that humma have traditionally assigned to feats of war have come to include accomplishments in technical, scientific, and exploration endevors. There is even a house, Platget, that now sends out its descendants to become Star Law Rangers. The paradigm shift that has seen status being assigned to pursuits other than acts of martial prowess has had the side effect of creating a population boom. The humma have begun to dominate and develop three planets in their home system.

Since ancient times warring houses would clash in an endless brawl in the quest for status. Alliances and fortunes could change overnight. The leadership of these institutions had to be ever vigilent. This role almost always fell to the neuters who were less volatile then the younger males. Old age carries none of the stigma sometimes seen in other species. The neuter humma no longer have to prove themselves as they have a lifetime of accomplishment and are generally respected for having lived until this milestone in their lives. After this change in their bodies the ambitions of the neuter humma change from personal status to concern for his legacy and the status of his house and lineage. This is not to say a neuter humma gave up warfare as many continued in the ranks but generally serving as officers.

Under the feudal system the humma fought in units based on lineage and house. They evolved customs of wearing house or lineage colors and emblems, standards or "flags", and royal seats awarded based on status. These practices persist.

In prehistoric times the hummarin lineages maintained a lineage totem. This totem bore stylized representations of the lineage founder at the top and over time significant leaders would have their heads added in relief beneath that. To be immortalized on the this pole is a high honor. House poles are slightly different, they bear the heads of all the founders of all lineages within the house. In addition if a humma's accomplishments are so great he may be accorded a place on the house totem but generally he is granted the formal priviledge to establish a new lineage within a house and thus have his head added to the totem.

Tail rings for formal occasions and neck rings for everyday wear are commonly etched with designs from the house or lineage poles. Unless a humma is disgraced he can expect that his neck ring will be displayed in the house or lineage's estate. A great honor is for the most accomplished to have their ring attached to the house or lineage totem.

A simplified version of the totem was carried into battle called a house or lineage standard. It is a light weight pole with a hollow metal head and streaming wind sock (called the tail) behind it. The head is crafted to represent the founder of the lineage or house but with an open mouth. Its fluted and vented for sound as air passes into the mouth and out the trailing wind sock. The sound is typically a roar.

A charging humma bearing this standard creates a repetative series of roars and pauses as he hops into combat with each hop; the roar occuring on forward bounds. The rythm of this roar allows a commanding officer to control a large group of humma in their famous carousel attack. Even when an officer halts his standard bearer will continue to swing the standard in a figure eight pattern. Standard bearers are choosen from the largest and toughest warrior with the highest stamina neccessary to swing and carry the standard throughout a whole battle.

While the customs surrounding mating combat are ritualized and formal and they are hold themselves honor bound to their warrior codes they essentially have no rule or custom reguarding warfare in particular. Rather they believe that there are no rules in warfare. The humma are amoung the most vicious and dangerous opponents in the Frontier.

This has led to some problems with regiments of humma in the service of the Rim and United Planetary Federation as humma are quite fond of despoiling the bodies of vanquished enemies and eating them. The UPF has tried to enforce a uniform code of military conduct which regulates such activities but most non humma commanders have learned to look the other way.

The practice of eating enemies is ancient in origin and has seen a resurgence since the First Sathar War. Since the humma's hate for the sathar is only exceeded by that of the ifshnit it is not surprising that this custom has returned. For the humma, eating a vanguished enemy is the ultimate expression of his contempt. All humma refer to the sathar as "meat" and its probably just as well for the sathar that they perfer suicide to capture.

Government

Humma society is feudal with the equivalent of a king (called the Highest One) and royalty (Higher Ones, High Ones, and so forth). These positions are chosen by election within the house (rarely lineage) that has the status to hold one of these seats. Hummarin society has been an every flowing web of alliance and jockying for these positions.

The advent of the sathar changed all that. By convention the First Sathar War is called "first" because it was Frontier wide encompassing the Rim and Frontier. It was not the first sathar incurssion in the Rim, the sathar having previously attacked at the Osak and Capella systems. Despite long and tedious negotiations by the osakar and the ifshnit to bring the humma into an alliance for protection from the worms the humma viewed these other species as lacking enough status to entice them into an alliance. During SW1 the worms swarmed the Osak system destroying its space infrastructure and invaded Fokrik, the humma's home system. The devastation wrought by the sathar rocked hummarin society to its core and for the first time in history all humma banded together in one cause, destruction of the sathar.

With a unified planet the Highest One had the power to institute other changes, levying system wide taxes, government funded military organizations, changes in legal, educational, and medical systems. By universal acclaim all seats of royalty were frozen in place till the threat of the sathar was removed. The Highest One used the crisis to solidify his position and that of his house while remaking his society in response to the crisis. Many of the houses holding royal seats were relieved that they would not have to defend their positions but have now realized that the Highest One's power has surpassed them exponetially. With the economic might of the second most populated system in the Rim at his disposal his position is assured for decades to come.

Attitude

Most Frontiersman do not like the humma, and even their fellow Rim dwellers are not overly fond of them. That is fine with the humma, because they do not care for the other races either. Humma are rude, crude, lewd, pushy, and arrogant. The only races they enjoy working with are the yazirians (humma admired their battle rage) and osakar (because no one likes them either).

The hummarin view of the ifshnit is complicated. In the early days of contact between these races the ifshnit, in the agency of the Capellan Free Merchants, the races readily traded. The humma desirous of new technology and motivated to boot strap themselves into space while the CFM were interested in expanding new markets. The market that the humma represented was so strong that the CFM established an enclave on the planet Larg in the Fokrik system to better serve their operations. The aggressive exploitation by the ifshnit in Fokrik led to their undoing. Willing to sell advance military technology to any buye, rivals attacked the CFM and a short interplanetary war resulted. The CFM lost heavily in material (they were forced to abondon their enclave on Larg) but the humma lost heavily in casualties. With the osakar playing peace makers the war ended and relations stablized.

Only one other time has a hummarin house dared to attack a CFM vessel trading with a rival. On that occassion the CFM not only struck back with extreme prejudice but they also sold at whole sale prices arms, weapons, and equipment to the rivals. Between the reprisal by the CFM and the rival's "sensing food in the larder" the offending house was wiped out. Since that time the humma have noted the object lesson well and CFM vessels are left alone.

There is a second sentient race that co-evolved with the humma, the boon'sheh. The humma being humma have hounded this race to near extinction. Their name for the boon'sheh is indicative of the humma attitude toward them, beck (it translates literally as excriment). Largely seen as lacking any status for their inability to successfully fight back most humma are largely ambivelent toward the boon'sheh. They were driven into the most inhospitable locals on the planet Hum then most were forcibly relocated to Larg in the quest to claim resources to fuel the growing space industry.

A few houses and lineages believe that the boon'sheh should just be exterminated once and for all but there may be economic motives for this attitude as even now the perservations on Larg have been shown to harbour important natural resources. The Highest One has legislated protections for them due to pressure from the osakar and the ifshnit.

Houses and Lineages in Humma Society

House Arius holds a seat of Higher One and is allied to the royal house. Its leadership has chafed under the political status quo but cannot break publicly with the king. The lineages in House Arius turn out the best spacers and figure prominently in the Fokrik Defence Fleet. (+10% to one spacer skill, chosen at the time of acquiring the first spacer skill)

Lineage Eruditi produces war priests, who are fervent to the point of zealotry. They are identifiable by their clean outward appearance, their hair being clean and scented with pleasant oils. Their Hum, quite unusually, holds the title High One, a seat generally only held by a house. The Eruditi believe that the surge of adrenaline during combat is actually the spirit of a humma from a past battle taking over the body. They follow even the slightest impulse, deeming it the “will of the spirit.” This makes them very dangerous even to their allies though strangely effective. (Eruditi gain +10 to melee combat but must make a LOG check every 5 rounds or attack an adjacent ally as an enemy but with no +10 bouns)

House Falsguck is another house that holds a seat of Higher One and is the main rival of the royal house. It publicly supports the king but plots privately to change the status quo. Its members are noted for their ability to read a “tell” and react quickly to erupting combat. (+1 initiative modifier)

Lineage Glax is a very traditional, some say backward lineage, holding to ancient ways and practices. It produces few warriors as few of the young born to its members survive infancy. They live very close to nature. (+5% to stealth and concealment)

House Globulos, has turned its efforts to theatre and literature gaining Frontier wide fame by its innovative adaptations of significant literature from other races, the most critically acclaimed being “Last of the Mohicans” as a stage production. (+10 to creative and performance skills)

House Jorah is the largest house with over 60 lineages. Its members are statesmen, diplomats and its Hum is a Higher One. They have played both sides of the political divide concerning supporting the king. Their status makes them effective leaders among the humma. (+10 to LDR instead of -10)

Lineage Kro is one of the strangest of all humma lineages. Its members shave all fur and cover themselves with tattoos. Due to years of selective breeding, members of this lineage are larger then the average humma (3.5m tall). They are also very warlike and not to bright. (STR/STA +15, LOD -10)

House Platget now sends out its descendants to become Star Law Rangers. (+15% to interrogation attempts)

House Recksill is the Royal House and holder of the seat, the Highest One. It has astutely maneuvered to solidify control of the planet since SW1. Its members are noted for their intuition. (+10 INT)

History of the Humma and Fokrik System

place holder text

Humma Weapons

Melee Weapons

Tail.
The humma tail counts as a rifle butt.

Tail Blades, Spikes and Weights
. These are actually distinct weapons but the difference between them is insignificant for game purposes. These items are worn and doing so decreases the dexterity of the humma's tail -10% to any action that requires holding an item or the referee rules requires some dexterity (holding or operationg another weapon for instance). They cannot be effectively put on or removed during combat. These weapons are not permitted during mating combat.

Foot Blades. Foot Blades are worn on the feet to increase damage but can be hindering (-1 IM). While a humma generally attacks with both feet in a typical snatch and rake while supported by his tail attack there is only one attack and damage roll for this weapon. This weapon is not permitted during mating combat.

 Weapon Melee Mod
 CostWgt.
Damage
Ammo
SEU
 Defense
 Tail -10 -- -- 2d10 -- -- Inertia
 Tail Blades
 +10 20 1 Kg
 3d10 -- -- Inertia
 Foot Blades
 +10 20 1 Kg
 3d10 -- -- Inertia

Raqnged Weapons

The humma can use standard rifles despite their short arms as they make up for their physical short commings with their prehensible tail. However the popularity of tail spikes, blades and weights create a hinderance to using long rifles. This has led to the development of carbine rifles in the Fokrik system. The carbine class of rifle is a shorter rifle but it is better suited to cavalry and the humma's springing attack style. A typical humma carbine has a cresent shaped stock that braces across the chest with two pistol grips mounted to either side of the weapon.

Blast Carbine. A blast carbine is a longer version of the blast pistol. Developed on Forge in the Fokrik system as a response to cost and manufacturing difficulties of laser weapons. In fact on few Rim worlds, few beam weapons specialist are sporting the latest laser weapon. They carry blast carbines.

Its bulky but packs a wallop. When fired, the energy from a standard SEU clip is focused through a inexpensive crystal membranes (where some of the energy is wasted and dissipates in the form of heat). The energy releases in a rather large, nasty red blast that sounds thunderous rather than elegant. After the sho, there is a few seconds of high pitched whine while the crystal membranes perform a regeneration (thus the slow rate of fire for a beam weapon). It is not a stealthy weapon.

The blast carbine drains 2 SEU per shot and causes 4d10 points of damage. It uses a standard 20 SEU clip but does not come equipped with a power port for the connection of an external beltpack or powerpack. An albedo suit or screen defends against the blast carbine.

Automatic Carbine. An automatic carbine looks like a shortened automatic rifle. It fires in semi-automatic (3 single shote per round) and full auto (1 burst per round). A single shot causes 1d10 points of damage. A burst fires 10 bullets, and has a +20 modifier to hit. It can be aimed at up to five adjacent targets in a 10 meter wide are. A burst causes 5d10 points of damage, plus 1d10 for every additional target after the first. Only one roll is needed to hit all the targets, but any negative modifiers that could apply to one target apply to the entire group. For example, if one target has soft cover, all of them are considered to have soft cover. The damage from a burst is divided as evenly as possible between all the targets. Skiensuits and inerita screens reduce the damage by half.

Needler Carbine. A needler carbine is a shorter version of the needler rifle. It makes a very soft, coughing noise when it is fired. Needler carbines magnetically propel a cluster of needles at high speed. Two types of needles can be used: barbed needles that caused 3d10 points of damage per shot, and anesthetic needles that put the victim to sleep for d100 turns. An individual can resist the anesthetic by passing a current Stamina check. Needles will not penetrate skeinsuits or intertia screens. Neither the suit, screen, or individual is damaged.

Gyrojet Carbine. A gyrojet carbine is a shorter version of the gyrojet rifle. It shoots miniature, self propelled rockets that cause 3d10 points of damage when they explode. A gyrojet carbine is not effective at very short range, because the rocket is still accelerating. Thus the short range modifier is used even at point blank range. Skeinsuits and inertia screens halve damage.

Weapon
Cost (Cr)
Wgt (kg)
Damage
Ammo
SEU
Rate
Defense
 Range
 Blast
Cabine
 300 3 4d10 SEU 2 1 Gauss
A-S
 10/25/-/-/-
 Auto
Carbine
 250 2 1d10/5d10 20 rounds
 - 3(1) Inertia 10/30/80/120/240
 Needler
Carbine
 300 2 3d10/
1d10+sleep
 10 shots
 - 3 Inertia 5/15/30/60/120
 Gyrojet
Carbine
 250 3 3d10 10 rounds
 - 3 Inertia -/5/60/120/240

Racial Description: Boon'sheh

Physical Description
The teal-skinned boon'sheh are slim, tall bipedals, usually standing at least a head above humans. Their skin is soft to the touch, and they're completely hairless except for patches of fur on their shoulders and forearmes.

Their faces are unexpressive and almost skeletal, as they have very little muscle in them. Their noses are square, with tiny nostrils, and their ears are pointed and long.

Boon'sheh bodies are built for running, and as such they have little mass compared to other sentient species. Whatever physical weakness they have as a consequence, they make it up with their great speed.

 Characteristics
 
 Average Size
2.0 m
 Average Mass
 55kg male
60kg female
 Average Lifespan
 75 years
 Reproductive System
 heterosexual,
viviparous
 Body Temperature
 39 Celsius

Senses
Boon'sheh senses are very well developed: particularly, their sight, hearing and sense of smell. Its believe that these senses were hieghtened as survival traits in their native environment. Tests performed at the University of Zebulon indicate that the zones of the boon'sheh's brain that deal with these three senses are in a permanent state of overdrive, and that their sensory organs are always absorbing more data then the conscious brain can process. This has resulted in the boon'sheh developing a 'danger sense', their unconscious selves picking up warning singals from eyes, ears and nose, and forcing their bodies to act before they notice what's going on. While some individuals tend to think of the boon'sheh as 'fidgety' (or even paranoid), their dander sense has saved them and their colleages from certain death more than once.

Speech
Boon'sheh speak in high pitched tones, and their native language is very dependent on them. They also use many palatal and alveolar clicks when talking. While their language appears to be complicated at first, most people can learn it in two or three weeks.

Their names commonly have two or three syllables and are always preceded by the prefix "Boon-" which stands for 'person', as in Boon-Shube or Boon-Gurenn. This prefix is usually dropped in informal converstation.

History, Society and Customs
Sharing the same world with the humma, the boon'sheh have been pushed close to the brink of extinction  during their tragic history. Despite a brief period in their history where they formed a significant landed civilization the boon'sheh have largely been nomadic wanderers. If the history of the humma can be characterized as one long brawl the history of the boon'sheh can be characterized as one long flight from that brawl.

During a particularly barbaric time in humma history the boon'sheh managed to establish a landed civilization with cities and became more advanced technologically than the humma. This could not last, as the humma came very close to unifying themselves in an effort to take them down. For two centuries incessent attacks for first one Hummarin house then another wore the boon'sheh down and eventually the Boon'Klash civilization collapsed and the survivors were scattered. In the aftermath most cities were razed but a few were appropriated by the humma and exist still today.

At the time of first contact with the ifshnit and osakar the boon'sheh had effectively maintained a territory in the most desolate wastes on Hum for generations. However, the visitation of interstellar neighbors kicked off the Hummarin Space Age. In a short time satellites began to reveal the mineral richness of the Boon'sheh lands and encroachment commensed anew.

Eventually, it was decided by the Highest One that the boon'sheh should be relocated for their own good (and to make way for his house to grab the krik share of their vacated land). Where to move them too became a topic of hot debate but eventually the decision was made to forcibly relocate the bulk of them to the planet Larg and set up a preservation for them.

Some boon'sheh clans scattered and have continued to subsistance in the lost wastelands on Hum and a few areas (preservations) were left as havens for them on Hum. The largest conscentration now dewls on the planet Larg.

They sided with the Capellan Free Merchants during the Ifshno-Hummarin War. Which despite the hummar being declared a winner, did not turn out negative for them. Transfers in tech and military hardware from the CFM gave them an edge to hold out in their mountain strong holds on Larg. The negotiation of the peace treaty left them with more protections then they previously had.

With the formation of the Rim Coalition the boon'sheh of Larg attempted to pettition for membership. Stout resistence from the governments of the the three humma populated worlds and astute maneuvering by diplomats from House Jorah blocked their admission to the Rim Coalition on the basis that the planet Larg already had representation on the council.

Since that time some cadres have formed in boon'sheh society with the goal of autonomous government for the boon'sheh. Some of these cadres have taken a militeristic stance, stockpiling weapons and supplies while others are more open and seek negotiated change.

The boon'sheh on Larg have instituted a policy of sending the best and brightest off world to be educated in Osaka, Capella and the Frontier. Many return but some are learned away by the promise of a better life elsewhere in the Rim and Frontier. The boon'sheh have been readily accepted into military organizations in the Frontier (corporate, militia, and UPF) but until recently were blocked from joining the Flight in the Rim.

The average clan holds around 200 individuals, most of which live in the same village or town. There are no true boon'sheh families: all children are raised by the clan as a whole, and the parent-child bond is unknown to them. Boon'sheh worship their clans and fight fiercely for them. Those that don't uphold the clan's expectations are often cast out of their districts. Most of the star-faring boon'sheh are such outcasts.

Attitudes
The boon'sheh dislike the humma strongly but are very found of ifshnits and dralasites. As to be expected they are nervous around yazirians but neutral toward osakar, humans, and vrusk. The feeling of most races are recipracol toward them except yazirians who are ambivelent. They are distrustfull of humanity because of their curiousity (boon'sheh call it 'deathwish'). Their lack of facial expression is a source of bemusement and ammusement to other races. The ifshnit use the idion 'To see a boon'sheh smile' when talking about mirages and illusions.

Special Abilities
Danger Sense (10%): Boon'sheh's keen senses can subconsciously alert them to perils they aren't aware of. Whenever a boon'sheh is endagered, the referee secretly rolls for danger sense: a success means the boon'sheh becomes aware of danger (though not able to pinpoint its exact source) and can warn others of it. This special ability may be imporved by spending experience points, but even if rased to 100%, any roll of 96-00 is considered a failure. No matter how keen the senses of a a boon'sheh, there is always a slight chance he can be duped.

A Brief History of the Boon'Sheh

Place holder text

The Tragic Tale of the Boon'Sheh

From the Journal of Olson Steed

It was in a seedy spacer bar on the outskirts of Volkos while looking for a berth to work my way back to Truane's Star that I encounted Captain Artimis Caine. He was advanced in age and no longer had the look of the legendary rogue who had broke the hearts of a 1000 women, made and lost 100 fortunes, discovered 10 planets and captured 1 sathar carrier. In fact I would have never recognized him if the bartender had not pointed him out.

He appeared down on his luck, like me, but I felt obliged to buy his drinks and soak up his stories. Several days I spent feasting on those stories while he drank up my remaining credits. That was how I learned of the tragic tale of the boon'sheh.

The boon'sheh are a little known race from the Fockrik system with the misfortune to have evolved on the same world as the humma. The humma, being humma, hounded and fought with the boon'sheh till they were nearly wiped out. Eventually they had retreated into the furthest recesses of the most inhospitable environments on Hum or were herded into preserves under the protection of the humma's Highest One. That was until some valuable resource was discovered in one of the major preserves. At that time, many were forcibly relocated to the barely inhabitable planet of Larg .

Captain Caine had come to befriend a disgraced outcast from boon'sheh society and took him on as crew. Boon'Gig travelled with Caine for 6 years before trying to return to Fockrik to reclaim his ancestral lands or die trying. Captain Caine was visibly choked up as he told of Boon'Gig's death. It was obvious he was quite fond of him.

Apparently, the death of his friend had for once in the Captain's life, given him a political cause. He became the champion of the marginalized race. As one of the first human captains in the Capellan Free Merchants, he had enough political clout to push for recognition of the boon'sheh by the Rim Coalition.

He valiantly stormed the heights of power demanding autonomy and membership in the Rim Coalition for his friend's people. The Highest One of the humma banned Caine from Fockrik. The incident, though little reported in the Frontier, was a major firestorm in the Rim.

The power and influence of the Highest One went further than Caine anticipated. In short order he was expelled fromt he Capellan Free Merchants and his docking privileges were rescinded in the Capella system. His petition to the coalition government fell on deaf ears and no one would hire him to carry cargo in the Rim.

The once great legend returned to the Frontier and climbed inside a bottle. I can now say that a man should never live to see his hero at his worst. The legend seldom survives when you are confronted with this reality. I found his body two days before shipping out on the Dixon's Dawn. Captain Artimis Caine was dead in his quarters of a self inflicted wound from the multi-pistol given to him by his friend, Boon'Gig.

Fochrik System Brief WIP

Fochrik System
Stellar Type: F9 V Stellar Mass: 2.128x1030 (1.07 Msun)
Stellar Luminosity: 1.39 Lsun
Stellar Color: yellow
Nominal Habitable Zone region: 0.959 to 1.702 AU

PLANET
TYPE
 DISTANCE
(AU)
ORBITAL PERIOD
(YEARS)
MASS
RADIUS
(km)
 SURFACE
GRAVITY
 COMMENTS
 Fochrik I
 Rock 0.328 4.002x1023
(0.07 Me)
 2615.0 0.40 g
Airless
Rock
 Fochrik II Rock 0.475 1.016x1024
(0.17 Me)
 3564.6 0.55 g
 Airless
Rock
 Fochrik III (Forge)
 Hot
Terrestrial
 0.783  3.501x1024
(0.59 Me)
 5357.0 0.83 g
 Tidaly Locked To Fochrik
 Fochrik IV
(Hum)
 Terrestrial 1.060 4.307x1024
(0.72 Me)
 5732.2 0.89 g
 Earth Like
 Fochrik V
(Larg)
 Cold
Terrestrial
 1.381  6.344x1024
(1.06 Me)
 6728.0 1.06 g
 Cold Ice World
 Fochrik VI
 Jovian 10.042  8.704x1027
(1457.14 Me)
105995.9
 -Super Jovian (4.58 Jupiter Masses)
 Fochrik VII
 Ice
Giant
 26.134 2.003x1026
(33.53 Me)
 38204.6 -About 2x Neptunes Mass
 Fochrik VIII
 Ice48.533
  9.020x1023
(0.15 Me)
 4582.1 0.29 g
Small Ice World

.

Planetary Brief: Forge

Fochrik III: Forge

Type Distance
(AU)
Orbital Period
(Years)
 MassRadius
(km)
 Surface
Gravity
 Moons
 Moon's Uses
  Hot
Terrestrial
  0.783 --- 3.501x1024
(0.59 Me)
 5357.0 0.83 g Anvil Military

History of Forge

Planetary Brief: Hum

TBA

Planetary Brief: Larg

TBA

Hopping With the Humma

Below are several adventures involving Humma and/or Humma society.

Office Politics

The Highest One is travelling to Osak aboard his flagship, the Adjudicator-class destroyer Krokrik, to address the Board of the Rim Coalition. 

On board his ship is the newly appointed Adjudicator for his race, a scion of House Arius. Part of the Highest One's schedule includes a tour of the high-tech and agricultural facilities on Wonma in the Osak system, before travelling on from there to the Rim capital, after which, he plans a grand tour of both the Rim and the Frontier.

The Highest One's various rivals, however, have other plans. Using mercenaries and disgraced Humma, they plan to ambush and destroy the Krokrik, killing not only the  Highest One, but his hand-picked Adjudicator as well.

They plan to carry out the ambush far enough away from Wonma that any Flight or CFM assets in system will be too late to stop the assassination attempt.  

Setup

The ambushers are not be certain of the exact course to Wonma so they have positioned the mercs 15 hexes from the short side of the map and 10 hexes from the long side; the Humma ambushers are 15 hexes from the same short side and 10 hexes from the other long side.  

As fate would have it, the Highest One's course is directly between them. Place his ships in the exact center of the short side the ambushers are closest to- all ships must be within 2 hexes of the Highest One's force. 

On the opposite side of the map is Wonma and the space station in the center of the short side 12 hexes from the short side with the station orbiting the planet.

Also, Wonma has a moon, positioned in orbit 20-30 hexes from the planet.
 
Order Of Battle:

Mercenaries: 2 Curiassier-class assault scouts

HS:3  HP:15 DCR:40
ADF:4 MR:4
Crew:5
Weapons: PL(×4)*, RB
Defenses: RH
Engines: 2 Atomic "A"
Special(Optional): One AS has a WNB. 

*Pod lasers(assuming 1d5 per PL) are linked for 2d10 damage. 

Both assault scouts are at speed 10.


Humma Ambushers: Six Tail Slash heavy fighters:


HS:2 HP:10  ADF:5  MR:4  DCR:20
Crew: 2
Weapons: PL(×3), AR
Defenses: RH
Engines: 1 Atomic "A"

The Tail Slash fighters are travelling at speed 10 as well

Highest One: 

Krokrik

HS:6 HP:40  ADF:4  MR:3  DCR:75
Crew: 50
Weapons: 
LC(×2)*, EB, HARM(RB)(×2), TT(×2)
Defenses: RH, MS(x2), ICM(×4)
Engines: 3 Atomic "B"

*Both LCs are forward-firing and fire-linked for 4d10 damage.

Krokrik, the Highest One's flagship


2 Springblade-class patrol combatants:

Fochrik Flight Works Springblade-class Patrol Combatant 

HS:4 HP:15  ADF:4  MR:3  DCR:60
Crew: 15
Weapons: PL(×4)*, LB, HARM(AR)(×5)
Defenses: RH, MS(x1)
Engines: 2 Atomic "A"

*PLs are forward firing and linked for 2d10 damage.

All ships are travelling at speed 10.

Special Conditions

Mercanaries wont fight to the death and will flee if the Flight (not CFM) assets can threaten them. They must avoid capture and destruction, as their goal is only to destroy the Krokrik.

Humma ambushers will fight to the death (it's always a good day to die) and since they're already disgraced, they have nothing to lose.

The Highest One, on the other hand, has a lot to lose. If he and/or the Adjudicator die, his House will fall and civil war will erupt on Fokrik. 

If he loses face it could be almost as bad. 

But losing face will not necessarily cause his house to fall and he has his house and lineage to think of. 

He can flee to the safety of the armed space station's guns (at which point, the mercenaries will withdraw), call for the CFM vessel's help, issue a distress call, which means from now on 2 Flight vessels(both Springblades) will turn up on a 1 or 2 of a 1d10 roll, with speeds of 2d10+10(each vessel rolls separately for arrival location 1d10+5 hexes from Wonma's moon), and the CFM freighter will arrive first, if called upon(see below). 

Any of those three things mean a minor victory for the ambushers- destruction of the Highest Ones ship while he loses face is a total victory. everything else falls in between. 

Reinforcements?(purely optional)

Should the Highest One call for help, or at the end of 1d5 turns(assuming the Krokrik has NOT been destroyed by that time), a CFM Tanstaafl-class bulk freighter arrives on the map 15 hexes west of Wonma's moon.

The bulk freighter's captain will identify herself as Maria Craig, Shipmaster of the Free Merchant Ship Rules of Acquisition, and will profess her willingness to assist the Highest One.

The ship has the following stats:

HS:12 HP:48  ADF:3  MR:3  DCR:60
Crew: 23
Weapons: LC(×2)*, EB, PB
Defenses: RH, MS(x2)
Engines: 4 Atomic "B"

Notes: Carries six White Blaze interceptors in its cargo bay. Laser cannon are linked for 4d10 damage. Equipped with a white noise broadcaster.

and enters the map at a speed of 15.

At the beginning of the Highest One's next turn, the Rules Of Acquisition will launch her White Blaze interceptors...all crewed by disgraced Humma formerly of the Eruditi lineage. The Rules will then activate her WNB, before closing(at max burn, increasing her speed to 18) to effective range of her beam weapons and open fire on the Krokrik(the ambushing Tail Slash heavy fighters are part of the ship's fighter complement), seeking to blow the ship away, before the Flight arrives to complicate matters.

While the disgraced Humma will gladly throw away their lives to complete the mission, Craig and the crew of the Rules Of Acquisition will NOT. She plans on a single high-speed pass, using the ship's weapons to fry the Krokrik and anyone else who interferes(including any Flight assets), before she turns her guns on her Humma accomplices(mercenary assault scouts will retreat and never be heard from again)and leaves the scene of the crime. 

Should the Krokrik make it to the safety of the armed station, the Rules Of Acquisition will break off its attack. 

(If you feel this option is two and a half strikes against the Highest Ones, then don't use it.)

Things To Consider

The Highest One's player should try his best to avoid losing face, but, if faced with the alternative of running and hiding inside the armed station or being blown out of the sky, the Highest One should consider the good of his lineage and his house and choose the better part of valor("he who fights and hops away will live to hop another day.").

The ambushers, on the other hand, should try to remove the Krokrik as quickly as possible, then run like hell, before the Flight shows up. Humma will sacrifice themselves for the mission, as they have nothing to lose anyway, but the mercs aren't being paid to be kamikazes; if the battle goes against them, it's time for them to go.  

Fire in the Forge

A mini adventure/ encounter on the planet Forge