Starship Manticore - Character Keywords
Homeworlds - Coreworlds
Alpha Prime
One of the oldest Coreworlds other than Earth itself, Alpha Prime is a thriving urban world organised into great corporate feudal states. The planet itself is mineral rich but hostile to human life, forcing people to live in great geodesic-dome cities. The Corporate States, which include such economic powerhouses as Monarchy Incorporated and Dauphanic Unlimited, control most aspects of life in the largely meritocratous States, and only authorised ideas, tastes and technologies find rapid acceptance. Offworlders are distrusted. Rivalries between the States can be fierce and sometimes hostilities result, but it is in sponsored sporting competitions, from athletics and competitive climbing to gravball and small unit combat, that Alphans find their greatest fervour and release. Alphans pride themselves on their (sometimes ostentatious) generosity and their personal integrity; if an Alphan gives you his word, he will die before breaking it.
Typical Abilities: Urban survival; Give generously; Barrack; Make winning bet; Negotiate contract; Disdain Rivals (Hate in some cases); Know place in society.
Personality Traits: Obedient; Dependable; Ambitious; Intolerant.
Typical Relationships: to Favourite Sports Team; to Corporate State; to Work Group.
Centaur
One of the more aggressive and inwardly focused of the Coreworlds, Centaur is a beautiful and resource rich planet. Centaur has a surprisingly low population due to a strong social discouragement of familial constructs; Centaur relationships are brief, intense and largely selfish and long term commitments are uncommon. This trend carries across to other levels of society: politics and social alliances are issues-based and short-lived; political nations are volatile and constantly in flux; and nearly all work is managed by machines. As a consequence, there have been very few changes in Centaur society in the past few decades. Centaurs are incredibly indulgent and will go to great lengths to sample new sensual pleasures; what economic efforts they do make are almost exclusively devoted to funding their own leisure. They are economically xenophobic, never cutting a fair deal and quick to resort to force to ensure that trade dealings are on their terms – or just if their honour is insulted - making Centaur extremely unpopular with its client colonies. They do consider themselves honour bound when a contract is signed, but will move mountains to ensure that they are getting the better part of any deal.
Typical Abilities: Spurn lover; Seek best terms; Indulge senses; Ridicule others; Program machine; Value commodities; Toned body.
Personality Traits: Indulgent; Passionate; Imperious; Honourable; Stubborn; Violent
Typical Relationships: very few of significance.
Chance’s Reach
A waterworld in colonial space under the restrictive jurisdiction of Centaur. Settled more than 100 years ago, it has failed to provide significant economic benefits and has stagnated. Having strained its economic resources to breaking point, Centaur has withdrawn most of its technical support, leaving No Chance (as it is often known) as a relative backwater (excuse the pun). Technology has stalled and little development takes place, although basic starport facilities are maintained – and anyone who can afford to is still able to leave more or less freely. Those that remain live in undertended ghettoes of barges, bridges, canals and freeways encircling a handful of volcanic island chains; these floating cities are called pelagra.
Typical Abilities: Operate watercraft; Operate sailcraft; Predict weather; Ocean survival; Navigate by stars; Swim long distances.
Personality Traits: Distrust Coreworlders; Hate Centaurs; Stoic; Fear advanced technology.
Typical Relationships: to Family; to Pelagra.
Persephone Epsilon
Persephone was once a Coreworld, before internal hostilities and trade mismanagement drove it to the brink of social and economic collapse. A few believe that Centaur agents may have created and probably heightened these crises. Whatever the truth, the assumption of Persephone as a vassal state of Centaur – effectively a new colony world, named Persephone Epsilon (or Perzep) – certainly prevented its utter ruin. Now half a century on, the Persephones have taken on some characteristics of the Centaurs, becoming obsessed with material possession and hedonistic diversions. They do not share the heavy reliance on machine labour however, nor harbour expansionist intentions, and so Persephone manages to be a reasonably industrious world. There is strong resistance to outside influence, but it is more passive conservatism than aggressive insularity that drives the Persephones. Offworlders see Persephones' work-play balance as extreme, if not bipolar.
Typical Abilities: Work hard; Shun ideas; Pursue indulgence; Distrust Centaurs; some Artistic, Physical and/or Sensual Hobby
Personality Traits: Efficient; Even-tempered; Unfriendly; Enthused (about hobby).
Typical Relationships: to Co-workers; to [Interest Group]
Starship
Those born and raised on starships may go their whole lives without feeling dirt underfoot or a breeze on their face. In an environment where a lack of attention to detail can result in deaths either instant or lingering, they learn to be practical, careful and frugal. Most are able to tolerate extremes of behaviour that would drive personal-space-conscious planetsiders nuts.
Typical Abilities: Stow things; Emergency procedures; Knowledge of the galaxy; Endure ship food; Tolerate routine; at least one bizarre hobby.
Personality Traits: Cosmopolitan; Conscientious; Frugal.
Typical Relationships: to Shipmates.
Space Station
Most people are not born or raised on space stations; space is at a premium and it is rare outside the rich core worlds that facilities will exist for families. Those that work for long periods on a particular station will usually pick up a few things, however.
Typical Abilities: Know way around; Know station procedures; Emergency procedures; Handle my liquor; Hide contraband; Spread rumours.
Personality Traits: Hard working.
Typical Relationships: to Station personnel; to Drinking buddies; to Station security.