Eye Of Balor Magazine

Void Pirates – CORE RULES

In the YE 500 Cradle, reliable faster-than-light communication does not exist. Therefore, all interstellar messages are delivered by a physical message courier.

Interstellar Communication

Information moves only as fast as the fastest courier ship, data pod, or trusted captain willing to carry it. Hyperdrive Cores allow jumps at a reliable, sustained rate of approximately 1 light-year per day (with typical safe jumps of 4–8 light-years taking 1d4 days ship time plus Navigation AR). Longer distances therefore, impose significant delays.

Gameplay Effects

• A message traveling X light-years generally requires roughly X days of travel time one-way under ideal conditions. Add extra time for safe jump plotting, refueling stops, port layovers, and possible misjumps.
• Round-trip communication (send + reply) between distant systems can easily take weeks, months, or even years.
• News, contracts, bounties, orders from central governments, and reputation updates are often stale by the time they arrive. Local commanders, governors, pirate captains, and corporate factors frequently act with broad autonomy because waiting for instructions from a distant capital (e.g., Nova Roma) is impractical.
• Players may hire independent couriers or contract established services during downtime (use Broker or Streetwise AR, TN 12–18 depending on distance and urgency). Cost scales with distance and risk — expect 50–500+ oz gold for routine deliveries, far more for high-risk or time-sensitive runs.
• Major polities maintain their own official courier services (Luyten Imperial Post, Teegarden Directorate runners, corporate data fleets, etc.). These are faster and more reliable on established routes, but they are expensive, heavily monitored, and sometimes subject to censorship or interception.
• Black-market or pirate courier networks exist and are often faster for sensitive information, though far less trustworthy.

Mechanical Note: There are no rules for real-time interstellar comms. Any long-distance coordination is handled narratively or through physical delivery. GMs should emphasize the isolation this creates — a crew operating on the Rim Reach may be completely out of contact with events in the Core Crown for months.

Ship Sensor Limitations

Ship sensors are short-ranged and imperfect, reflecting the harsh realities of the Void.

Standard Sensor Range: 2–4 AU (from core ship profiles).
Upgraded Sensor Array (available as a module): adds +1 AU.Detection Categories (for gameplay clarity):

• Close Detection (< 0.5 AU): Full scan possible. Use Recon (Average, PER) or Electronics (Average, INT) Action Roll at TN 12 (or opposed if the target is attempting to hide). Detailed information on ship class, approximate armament, transponder codes, and life signs may be obtained.
• Medium Range (0.5–2 AU): Vague contacts. Mass signature, velocity vector, and rough heading are detectable, but little else without closing distance.
• Distant Blip (> 2–4 AU): Only basic detection (a contact on sensors). Readings often fade in 1d6 minutes as ships move at high relative velocities. No detailed information or targeting possible.

Gameplay Notes

• Sensors do not provide perfect battlefield awareness. Stealth, debris fields, radiation belts, or ECM can impose AdMods (typically –2 to –4) or raise TNs.
• In ship combat, sensors primarily determine when vessels enter effective range bands for Piloting and Gunnery. Long-range sniping is difficult and heavily penalized.
• For exploration or encounters, the GM sets the TN and amount of information revealed based on range and circumstances. Natural 18 on a sensor roll may grant extra detail; natural 3 may produce false readings or trigger hazards.

These limitations reinforce the deadly, isolated feel of the Cradle. A distant contact on sensors could be a friendly trader, a Luyten patrol, a rival pirate, or something far worse — and you often won’t know until you close the distance.