Venture Campaign Setting

Important Background & Locales in the Venture Universe

The Venture campaign is based upon a technology level roughly equivalent to the Babylon 5 television series. A roughly "parallel" Human race is imagined: Humans are called Terrans, the Earth is known as Terra, and the Sol system is now the Helios system. Aside from Terrans, the other primary races of the Interstellar Alliance are Eldans, Squats, and O.R.C.s - mainly because Elf, Dwarf, and Orc space figurines are easier to come by. ;-)

Time Period - Venture is set in man's early stellar exploration period. Barely two generations have passed since the invention of hyperspace travel, and only a handful of star systems have been explored. But in this short time, the Terrans have made themselves known as great explorers. The "Frontier" is a place of harsh living, surprises, and danger. Yet with the unknown comes great reward for those strong enough to survive.

The Interstellar Alliance - The Interstellar Alliance is currently comprised of the Terran race, the Grondians, and the Eldans. Humans were the first to set out into the stars, although the other races have older civilizations.

The Grondians were the first sentient life forms the Terrans discovered, although there were no immediate plans for an Interstellar Alliance with such warlike peoples. Two distinct Grondian races (Squats and O.R.C.s) had developed out of the radioactivity of war. The Grondians were highly advanced militarily, and the Terrans deemed it best to leave them alone in case their hostility were for some reason turned against them.

Next, the Terrans were surprised to discover the Lorien system and its inhabitants, the Eldans, hiding beyond the Eclipse Nebula. The Eldan homeworld is almost totally engulfed in giant vegetation, and it's inhabitants live beneath a canopy of leaves never seeing the sky and never dreaming of life beyond their own world. After all, out of sight, out of mind. The Terrans were eager to share technology with these otherwise-advanced and peaceful people.

An Alliance was now proposed by the Humans, and it was the Eldan's wisdom that included the Squats and O.R.C.s in the pact. They felt that the two Grondian factions would set aside their differences if they knew of other races beyond their own solar system and had access to the stars. And indeed, it became so almost overnight. Humans gave Grond hyperspatial travel technology, and hostilities ground to a halt as nearly half the world's population gladly dropped their weapons given the chance to evacuate their torn planet.

The Reptons - The Reptons are a militaristic race of bipedal reptiles. Their system of origin is unknown, and their expansion has been rapid. Presently they are just outside of Alliance space, but they grow inexorably closer every year. The Reptons seem to be able to "brainwash" or hypnotize individuals of other sentient races with phenomenal success. How they do this so well is unknown, but the ability lets them plant agents in the highest, most sensitive areas of opposing governments.

The Reptons as a race are no more physically imposing than any of the Alliance races, but their numerous conquered subjects have provided them with a wealth of stolen technology. Most notably, the Zzinndi race (of the Bugzzurrat system) has enhanced the Repton forces with their advanced knowledge of cybernetics. They often field armies with numerous cybernetically controlled and enhanced wild beasts that are hard to take down.

Hyperspace Travel - Hyperspace travel was developed by the Terran Jonathan P. Terwilliger when overcrowding of the Terran solar system (Helios) threatened to bring war. The existence of hyperspace had long been known as an area that overlaps our own universe, but is "out of phase" with us. Mr. Terwilliger's contribution to science was the discovery of a method to phase matter from normal space into hyperspace and back.

The nature of hyperspace itself is still a mystery. Whether it is a warping of space, a distortion of time, the fourth dimension, or what, nobody can say for certain. But the net effect is that moving in hyperspace takes you much further much faster than in normal space. To cross interstellar distances, one merely hops into hyperspace for the journey and drops back into normal space at their destination. Normal engines work fine to propel craft, but a ship must have a hyperspace field generator to open a "gate" between normal space and hyperspace. Many space stations with hyperspace field generators have been built in well-traveled star systems that can open and close gateways for ships that aren't equipped to do so themselves.

Inside hyperspace, you can "see" a distorted view of normal space. It is very pretty, with colorful eddies and currents. The stars, nebulae, black holes, and other objects seem to constantly change color and size. Since "landmarks" are constantly changing in this manner, astrogation in hyperspace can be difficult at times. A lost ship is best advised to drop back into normal space before they wander too far, and take a position reading from a more stable environment. Hyperspace "corridors" have been established along main routes with marker bouys that send position information and also relay electronic data from one solar system to another.

Combat in hyperspace is possible, but rarely attempted. The distraction of a fight (where you are maneuvering rapidly in all directions) can leave a ship lost in no time.

Breakaway's - Breakaway's is a bar near the spaceport on the planet Redrum (in the Darkstar system). It is famous (or infamous) for it's breakable windows, tables, and other fixtures... very unusual in this modern day of plastic windows and other safety-conscious settings. Not only are brawls permitted, they are a main attraction for the wild at heart. (At the end of a bar fight, the unconscious generally find their pockets emptied by the establishment to pay for damages.)

The Golden Opportunity - An old space battleship converted to civilian use and plated in gold. It is the home of Jonathan P. Terwilliger III, grandson of the Terran who developed hyperspatial travel. It rarely stays in any one place very long, and is accompanied by numerous smaller ships for defense against pirates.

The Silver Lining - An advanced Assault Scout starship owned by Jonathan P. Terwilliger III and used as a high-performance exploration vessel. There is currently a team of adventurers "buying off" ownership from Mr. Terwilliger.