Introduction
This prologue will introduce Tavasi Bonebow, a Zabrak smuggler/pilot and owner of the Nightingale, a light freighter.
Tavasi has lived in space most of her life — her parents operated the Nightingale before her, and the life of a trader and smuggler is all she has ever known. After retiring last year, Tavasi’s parents gifted her the Nightingale, so she could run her own business and continue in their footsteps. She is ambitious, hoping to travel the galaxy and build a successful business. Tavasi also hopes to share some of that success with her parents, and pay them back for a lifetime of learning and the gift of the Nightingale.
Starting Conditions
Each session in this campaign will include a couple of starting conditions.
First, each scene in the FFG Star Wars roleplaying game begins with players rolling for the Destiny Pool. This is a collection of Light Side and Dark Side force points.
Players can use Light Side points to upgrade a dice by one step, downgrade the difficulty of a check, or add something to the narrative. Dark Side points are used the same way, but by the gamemaster to work against the PCs by making checks more difficult for the players, adding benefits to villains, or making the narrative or environment more challenging. The pool is established at the beginning of each session by rolling one Force Die for each character.
Let’s roll for this session’s Destiny Pool. Since Tavasi is the only character in this session, we roll just a single Force Die.
- Dice Pool:
- Result: 1 Light Side
Since I am using the Mythic GME to assist with solo / GM-less play, I will also track the Chaos Factor. The Chaos Factor (CF) describes the level of control that a character has over the story. It ranges from 1 (in control) to 9 (totally out of control), and starts at 5. The Chaos Factor affects the odds of a yes/no answer when asking the Mythic Fate chart a question to drive the story/fiction. This value is constant for the session, and then changes at the end of the session, based on what happened during the game.
Since this is the first session, the Chaos Factor is set at 5.
Part 1: On Approach
Tavasi Bonebow was seated in the cockpit of her ZH-25 Questor light freighter, the Nightingale. She yawned and rolled her neck, trying to work out a kink. The computer’s insistent pinging had just woken her from a nap, alerting Tavasi that the ship was approaching its destination.
The Nightingale was inbound to Shenzou Station in the Ruuria system, on a so-called drop point delivery run from Cantonica. She carried twenty cargo containers (about ten tons) of power converters and spare parts on behalf of Grey Technologies, a corporation supporting coaxium refining on the station.
Drop point deliveries were simple cargo operations, generally advertised to pilots and traders via the Holonet. Mission parameters were simple: pick up so much of cargo A, deliver it to destination B, by date C, get paid D. Payments could be fixed fee or based on volume, and may include bonuses and penalties for early or late delivery. Cargo volumes were usually modest, in the range of 5 to 100 tons, and somewhat time sensitive. That combination of factors made it economically feasible for shippers to use private freighters, rather than hiring bulk shipping companies or using their own transports.
The Nightingale was equipped with a Class 2 hyperdrive, which meant that a flight from Cantonica to Shenzou Station would generally take two to six days, depending on the pilot’s astronavigation calculations. Tavasi’s contract paid ten credits, per ton, per day of travel, plus two days’ fees for cargo loading and unloading (another two hundred credits). With anticipated delivery in three-and-a-half days, this was a 550
job. Delivery in three-and-a-half days or less offered a 100 bonus, while delivery after that deadline was penalized 50 per day.
Tavasi expected her operating costs for this trip would be approximately 70 in fuel, 100 in taxes and landing fees, and any wear and tear on the Nightingale. Her funds had taken a beating after the last set of repairs she had made, so a few hundred credits in profit was good news. She hoped to string together a few milk runs like this to build up a little savings.
This is a little out of order, since navigation checks are usually made when entering hyperspace… but, we’re jumping in mid-flight here, so I’m going to make an Astrogation check for Tavasi to see whether or not she can make the trip within 3.5 days. Since that is the average timeline, I’ll make it Average difficulty.
- Dice Pool:
- Result: 1 Success, 1 Threat
Now we have to interpret the meaning of the Success and Threat. The FFG system’s dice mechanics are great because they give us narrative input as part of every check.
- A single Success means that Tavasi made it from Cantonica to Shenzou Station within the 3.5 day window. She can maximize her profits by securing that bonus!
- The Threat will mean that as the Nightingale drops out of hyperspace, the ship’s computer begins showing warnings and alerts about the condition of the hyperdrive.
Watching the countdown timer reach zero, Tavasi pulled back on the hyperdrive lever. Outside the transparisteel cockpit, the winding, random white lines of hyperspace straightened and then resolved themselves into normal space.
After checking her sensors, Tavasi smiled. The Nightingale had made great time and she should be able to grab that early delivery bonus. Her smile immediately changed to a grimace when the Nightingale‘s main computer began chirping an angry-sounding alarm and error messages about the hyperdrive filled her main display.
“Damn”, Tavasi said to herself, as she slapped the switches to shut down the hyperdrive. She was nearly broke and now the hyperdrive was acting up! After turning the ship onto an approach vector for the station, Tavasi shut off the alarms and re-ran the diagnostic routine. But, it was no use; the computer produced the same list of warnings.
Tavasi uttered a few more curses in her native Zabraki, then hit the comm switch to open a channel to the station. “Shenzou Control, this is freighter Nightingale, requesting landing clearance for cargo delivery.”
A few seconds later, a bored-sounding Imperial-accented voice responded. “Nightingale, this is Shenzou Control. You are entering a restricted zone. Reduce speed and transmit your cargo manifest on this channel.”
Tavasi rolled her eyes. The Empire did not control the coaxium production on Shenzou, leaving that dangerous work to Grey Technologies, a poorly-regulated subsidiary of TransGalMeg Industries. Still, the Empire did closely monitor the traffic in and out of the station to prevent theft and smuggling. Given that 100 kilograms of refined coaxium was worth about sixty million credits, she supposed that is made a kind of sense.
She gently slid the throttles back a couple of steps. “Nightingale reducing speed. Transmitting manifest.” Tavasi pushed a sequence of buttons on her comm panel and sent her cargo manifest to the station.
Under Starting Conditions, I touched on the Mythic Chaos Factor. One of the uses of the Chaos Factor is a check to determine whether or not a scene is going as expected, modified, or altered. I think this is a good time to introduce that mechanic, as it could have a big impact on Tavasi’s attempt to offload her cargo on schedule.
The mechanic works like this. Roll a d10. If the value is equal to or less than the Chaos Factor, then the scene is modified. If you roll above the Chaos Factor, the scene proceeds as expected.
If the scene is modified, we look at whether our roll was odd or even.
- If the roll was an odd number, then the scene is altered. Something new, different, or challenging happens to change the scene in progress
- If the roll was an even number, then the scene is interrupted. Something completely unexpected happens to challenge or derail the characters’ plans.
So, let’s make that scene check. Rolling 1d10… 5. This is equal to the Chaos Factor, and odd, so the scene is altered.
Mythic’s guidance on determining how a scene is altered is pretty straightforward. First, think about the most logical alteration and run with it. If that doesn’t work, we can ask the Mythic Fate Chart a question and interpret the results. Either way, keep the fiction flowing and the game moving.
In this case, since Tavasi is talking to an Imperial flight controller, it makes sense that it has something to do with the Empire. So, let’s ask the Fate Chart a question:
- Question: “Has the Imperial presence on the station increased?”
- Odds: Likely (as I think this is the most likely alteration)
- Roll and Result: d100… 20
- Outcome: YES
So, there is an increased Imperial presence on the station. Cool!
As Tavasi waited, her scope picked up an Imperial light cruiser emerging from the station’s shadow. The cruiser’s transponder identified it as the Valorum. Tavasi watched the ship warily, but it made no changes to course or speed. It appeared to just be orbiting the station.
A couple of minutes later — just long enough to make her wonder if she had done something wrong, but not long enough to comm the station a second time — the speaker crackled and the same bored voice gave new instructions. “Nightingale, Shenzou Control. You are cleared for approach. Follow instructions from nav-buoy two-six. Approach docking bay three, landing pad bravo-four. Do not deviate from assigned course.”
Tavasi adjusted course before replying. “Copy, Control. Nightingale switching to buoy two-six, inbound for bay three, pad B-4. Nightingale out.”
A few seconds after adjusting her comm to receive buoy’s automated navigation signal, approach markers appeared on her heads-up display, guiding the Nightingale onto the approved course for approach to the station. The route took made a wide loop clockwise around the station’s axis — and away from the Imperial cruiser — before spiraling to approach the station’s lowest docking bay from the opposite direction.
Let’s roll a piloting check to see how smoothly (or not) Tavasi lands the ship. This is an average difficulty roll and Tavasi has one rank in Piloting (Space).
- Dice Pool:
- Result: 3 Successes, 1 Threat, 1 Triumph
Let’s interpret those results:
- 3 Successes: not only was it a smooth landing, somebody noticed what a great pilot Tavasi was and may have a job for her…
- 1 Threat: after landing, an Imperial representative will definitely inspect her cargo
- 1 Triumph: that hyperdrive issue was just a glitch!
A few minutes later, Tavasi triggered the landing sequence and gently touched the Nightingale down on her assigned landing pad. As steam vented from the ship’s underside, Tavasi went through her shutdown checklist, putting most of the systems into standby. She was careful to completely shut down the hyperdrive, since she was going to need to investigate those alarms. It would take about thirty minutes for a cold restart, but it was the only way to safely perform maintenance.
Part 2: Shenzou Station
Tavasi was no expert in hyperdrive repairs, so she was not looking forward to that job. “First things first,” she said to herself. She called up the delivery order and followed the instructions to log her arrival and location, so Grey Technologies could arrange to offload the cargo and transfer her payment.
Tavasi considered her options. Until she got paid, she did not have the credits to hire a mechanic to look at the hyperdrive. She decided to run the diagnostics one more time and then take a look for herself.
It took about 10 minutes for the hyperdrive to completely shut down. Once complete, she ran the diagnostic routine again. Thankfully, there were no warnings this tine. According to the computer, the hyperdrive was functioning perfectly. Tavasi sighed with relief — the cold restart, when she was ready to leave the station, would be the real test.
As she closed down the diagnostics, her datapad chimed with an incoming message. Tavasi called it up:
FROM: Albile Émibrecht
TO: Tavasi Bonebow, Nightingale
SUBJECT: Cargo Offload
Cargo offload scheduled 17:30-19:30 hours GT today. Imperial inspection required.
Payment transfer to account ****-****-****-****-ac130002, upon completion.
A. Émibrecht
Logistics Specialist
Grey Technologies
Tavasi sighed — the Imperial inspection would slow things down, but she had no real concerns. Her cargo was completely legitimate and she had no contraband aboard. She stretched and decided to finish that nap before the offload. Then she could grab dinner and a drink at the station commissary.
Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed this introduction to Tavasi Bonebow. I also hope I was able to introduce some of the mechanics I’ll be using, including the FFG Star Wars rules and how I use Mythic GME. The other goal of the prologues is to give characters a bid of depth and background before we jump into the main campaign. I hope you’ll stick with me and read the next prologue, where we introduce a new character and learn a little more about Tavasi, as well!
Disclaimer
Star Wars: Edge of the Empire, Star Wars: Age of Rebellion, Star Wars: Force and Destiny, and related materials in those product lines are the property of Fantasy Flight Games.
Star Wars, the Star Wars logo, all names and pictures of Star Wars characters, vehicles and any other Star Wars related items are registered trademarks and/or copyrights of Lucasfilm Ltd. or their respective trademark and copyright holders or licensees.
Any other products used or mentioned herein remain the property of their respective creators. Original content, player character names, and other concepts remain the intellectual property of the author.
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