In my first post for this game, I talked about my plans for the campaign and now it's time to actually implement these plans. I'm going to show you the random results I got and walk you through my thought process during character creation.
The finished narrative I've come up with is summarized at the end of this post.
I randomly generated a crew, as described in the core book, and then went through my collection to find something fitting for the theme. One mini (the Hulker) was already finished, but the rest I painted specifically for this campaign.
Without further ado, let's meet the crew! (With their gear and in the order I rolled them up)
The Captain
A mercenary captain is pretty much all you need to get going with a sci fi story so this was a promising start and would make it easy to include pretty much anyone into the crew.
The background tells me that he was raised on an alien planet or by an alien foster/adopted family. I'll keep all these potential story hooks in mind and hope that I can mesh them with the other crew members somehow.
The XO (Executive Officer)
The dice definitely want me to play a mercenary campaign so that is what I'm going to do. The background is perfect for a connection with the captain and makes me think of childhood friends that escaped this colony together.
The Bot
Robots in 5PH have identical starting stats and no starting personality descriptors. I'm going to attach this bot to the background story of one of the other crew members which could be an interesting plot hook on its own.
The Scientist
Every sci fi crew needs an intellectual archetype so this is already perfect. The combination of a researcher and a petty criminal makes me think that he stole valuable data (and/or the bot?) from the outpost and joined the crew to escape justice. Ideal for future adventure hooks.
The Weird One
The Assassin
I generated 3(!!) Glare Swords as part of the overall starting equipment so it only felt natural to add a melee only assassin type. The Rogue Trader box had a fitting (and weirdly sexualized) assassin mini so why not use that as well.
The Ship
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| Randomly generated with this tool |
Results like these make me love random character generation. What a lovely bunch of individuals that perfectly fit into the theme: Mercenaries that are only in in for the credits.
I changed the ship name retrospectively after coming up with the backstory of how XO Janidri initially 'acquired' the ship (see 'How did the crew get the ship?' below).
Finishing Touches
Captain Edaro and XO Janidri are childhood friends from the same planet but what made them decide to leave and start a mercenary company?
Elegantly Ruin Comfort - Considering the motivations of Order/Fame, I like the idea of them having a comfortable life in luxury that they want to escape from. An overly romanticized view of adventure led them both to establish their own mercenary company and to set out to the stars.
Did their families support this endeavor?
Unknown: Yes - Rich families supporting their children even though it's dangerous? Sounds like they are both 'Second Sons' type of family members that have nothing to inherit and no sense of purpose. Probably the youngest of several siblings and they both strive for recognition and respect from their families.
Why did the scientist Steven Bramlet choose this crew after he stole the bot Urtz from the research facility?
Potentially Regenerate Insecurity - Does he have something to prove by stealing the bot? Did he want to work on something that got shut down by his superiors? Was he looking into illegal AI research using this bot? Sounds like the perfect sci fi trope so let's go with it. Conveniently gives us a good story to go hunting for rare/expensive upgrades.
Is he using the 'naive rich boys' to further his goals or do they share some kind of understanding?
Unknown: Yes, but.. - Ok, so it's a conditional working relationship. Captain Edaro is in it for the money so I assume he sees the potential uses of an advanced bot and a capable scientist in his crew. He supports the illegal research as long as Bramlet supports the mercenary company.
How did 'the weird one' Koah Keot join the crew?
Sarcastically Become Mistake - This is a tough one. A survival focused agitator on a space station makes me think of an overconfident challenge that went wrong somehow. Maybe he underestimated Captain Edaro and challenged him to some sort of contest. The offer was sarcastic so he felt humiliated after getting beaten in front of a large crowd. Keot's customs demanded that he restored his honor by following the captain into battle. Sounds cheesy and tropey but that's the vibe I'm getting for this campaign. Space Opera here we come.
How did the assassin Selek Marfi join the crew?
Menacingly Help Destiny - Literally perfect and almost writes itself. She is zealously convinced that Captain Edaro has a very important destiny that she has to help him fulfill. She betrayed her former frontier gang and pledged her life to his cause.
How did the crew get the ship?
Subtly Destroy Love - Hm, this sounds like a good setup for a future rival. XO Janidri is motivated by fame and in it for the credits so let's assume he is the culprit for this one. It would fit the theme to make him a Han Solo esque scoundrel and heartbreaker. The merchant cruiser was originally owned by the patriarch of a rival family back on his home planet. Janidri seduced someone in this family (who exactly I'll generate if it becomes relevant) and stole the ship right from under their noses. Not a great combat vessel but a good start for a fledgling mercenary company.
What is the name of the mercenary company?
Using Fantasynamegenerators.com (a great site with countless name generators)
Immortal Children - Chosen for the connection of the captain and xo as 'Second Sons' style children. They won't get anything from their families so they look for immortality through glorious adventures.
The Story So Far
- Latus Edaro and Brimus Janidri are childhood friends from the planet Mako. They grew up as part of the rich colonial ruling class of humans that was established after the violent subjugation a few decades earlies. They lived in comfort, dreaming of adventures and fame.
- Janidri managed to steal an old merchant cruiser from a rival family, which allowed both friends to start their journey among the stars.
- Janidri didn't want the responsibility of leadership so he gave Edaro the Captain's seat. Captain Edaro turned out to be a natural leader and their mercenary company quickly grew to a size where they could actually take on lucrative contracts.
- A routine job for a research outpost ended with a blind passenger that smuggled himself and his bot on board their ship.
- Captain Edaro and the scientist Steven Bramlet came to an understanding that allowed both of them to align their goal. Bramlet could work on his illegal AI research while Edaro would profit from their expertise.
- Koah Keot came upon the crew through a chance encounter at a remote space station. The mercenaries were on shore leave when Keot overconfidently challenged the captain to a contest of wits and strength. To his horror and shame, Keot lost decisively and, as his customs demanded, chose to follow his vanquisher into battle to restore lost honor.
- The assassin Selek Marfi is a deadly mystery. She encountered the crew and was instantly overcome with a zealous sense of purpose. This unknown captain has a destiny that she must support at all cost. The crew was hesitant but captain Edaro saw the fire of loyalty in her eyes. He almost envied her ultimate sense of purpose and wondered if there was some truth to her words.
What now?
Stay tuned for the next post with the actual start of the campaign, and let's see what kind of narrative these scenarios can develop.
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