GURPS - 4th Edition - Space

CHAPTER THREE

TECHNOLOGY

“You really want to try it again?” asked Captain Panatic as we circled
high above the alien city, looking down through the scanscope.

“Of course! It can’t fail this time! We drop down out of the sky with
the holobelts on to give us a nice halo effect, and demand that they
hand over all the nice shiny crystals or the mighty Sky
Demons will be angered.”

“When we tried that before, they threw
spears at us.”

“That’s because I used the wrong
mythological referent. I said Star
Demons instead of Sky Demons.
This time I know better. And
we’re a thousand klicks from
the last place. It’ll work just
fine!”

We left the airboat
parked at 1,200 meters,
put on the holobelts over
our flight harnesses, and
dropped down toward
the city. It was the stan-
dard local setup: low
cone-shaped houses
lining radial streets
around a tall spiral zig-
gurat tower topped
with the usual big
shiny copper sun disk.

A crowd of locals
gathered around us in
the main plaza. They
were typical lowtechs: no
metals harder than copper,
no wheeled vehicles, and no
wind or water power. They’d
be pushovers for the mighty Sky
Demons.

I stepped forward and touched my translator necklace. “We are the mighty . . .”
“Impostors!” shouted an old native, pushing through the crowd. “They are impostors! Beings from a distant
place come to steal our crystals!”
Panatic looked at me, his hand straying to the butt of his blaster.
I tried to salvage the situation. “Why do you say this?” I asked the old green guy. “Why do you say we are
impostors?”
He stabbed his staff angrily at the ziggurat. “The talking mirror brought word of your scheme!”
I shook my head at Panatic and slapped the BOOST button on my harness. As the city dropped away beneath
us, I let out a growl of frustration. Not even Bronze Age and they’ve already got lightspeed communications!
Sometimes the world just isn’t fair.

Sometimes in science fiction it’s all about the gadgets. Science fiction would hardly be the same without the products of
futuristic science. The available tools and their dramatic implications will be one of the most important things for any GM
to consider when designing a new science-fiction setting.

TECHNOLOGY 49

ADDING MIRACLES

After a setting’s space-flight tech- historical trends, not spectacular universe is a safetech setting for most
nology is set, the GM will want to con- social transformation. Some retrotech of its future-history timeline.
sider whether any miracles (as defined universes involve elaborate “future Meanwhile, several authors are cur-
on p. 29) will be present in other areas histories,” tracing out how the soci- rently trying to recapture the classic
of technology. Miracles in astronautics eties of the future evolved from those space-opera flavor by using safetech
are useful if the GM wants to set his of the present. Retrotech universes assumptions – Walter Jon Williams’
stories in space; miracles in other often support adventures driven “Dread Empire’s Fall” series is a
industries can have a profound effect by romance and drama rather than recent example.
on what those stories will be about. scientific rigor.
High Biotech
SEVERAL Classic examples of retrotech fic-
MIRACLES tion include Poul Anderson’s In some SF universes, the most
“Polesotechnic League” and “Terran miraculous technologies are those
Science fiction authors rarely Empire” stories, E. E. “Doc” Smith’s involving medical science and bio-
assign technological miracles arbitrar- “Lensman” novels, and even the Star engineering. Genetic modifications,
ily. Each story usually has a coherent Trek television series. tissue engineering, biochemical
set of technological assumptions, cho- weapons, living computers, and simi-
sen to support the plot (or to fit a con- Some more recent SF mimics the lar items all become commonplace.
sistent setting for which the author retrotech feel by using safetech
has written other stories). Some of the assumptions. In a safetech setting, it’s Miraculous biotechnology can pro-
more common assumption sets are possible to develop technologies that duce a variety of interesting effects in
listed here. drastically alter human nature or a science fiction setting. With it, a
replace humans with machines. sapient race can vary its own form,
High Industrial However, all such technologies are adapt itself to unusual conditions,
avoided or suppressed, usually acquire wonderful powers, and even
A high industrial setting is one in through social controls. This is most gain immortality. On the other hand,
which advanced technology produces often for ethical reasons, or because of biotechnology involves the manipula-
a world much like our own, but more: past wars or disasters that involved tion of living things, possibly without
more available resources, more useful the technology. their consent or to their detriment.
gadgets, more powerful weapons, and Techniques that benefit some people
so on. Technological miracles have Under safetech assumptions, may have terrible consequences for
given human beings better tools, but human society will extend into space others. A setting with extensive
they haven’t significantly changed and will probably be more prosper- biotechnology may need to address
human nature. ous, but it won’t otherwise be very dif- important moral themes.
ferent from the societies of today.
One form of high industrial setting Safetech universes support a space- A variation on the high-biotech set-
uses retrotech assumptions. Retrotech operatic approach, and are fairly ting is the high psionics setting. Here,
is characteristic of Golden Age SF, common in SF. For example, Larry improvements in human performance
which was written before the society- Niven’s famous “Known Space” come from the development of exotic
altering possibilities of certain tech-
nologies became obvious. Many of the
best stories of the period featured
highly advanced physics, but very
inferior electronics, and no hint of
advanced biotechnology or nanotech-
nology. This isn’t necessarily a bad set
of assumptions; it can give rise to a
very exciting space-opera campaign.
Without the realistic crutch of smart
computers and advanced cybernetics,
adventurers have to rely on their own
skills rather than those of their
machines!

Since retrotech campaigns are set
in the future, they usually involve
political change: present-day nations
will have vanished; new cultures and
empires will have appeared. However,
these changes result from ordinary

50 TECHNOLOGY

mental powers. These can, in turn, that is both commonplace and power- Greg Bear’s novels Blood Music, Queen
come from the manipulation of ful. Meanwhile, some classic “cyber- of Angels, and Slant; Kathleen Ann
human biology – but they can be punk” stories were set in space as well Goonan’s “Nanotech Quartet” novels;
derived from other sources entirely. In as on Earth – notably William and Karl Schroeder’s Ventus.
any case, many of the same ethical Gibson’s Neuromancer.
and social issues apply! EVERYTHING
High Nanotech A MIRACLE
The Transhuman Space setting
can be considered a high biotech uni- Nanotechnology is a broad range of The GM may want to incorporate
verse, since miraculous biotechnology technologies and products, all of many miraculous technologies into
is one of its main areas of advance. which require the manipulation of his setting. Indeed, a realistic assess-
Other space-oriented stories with a matter at small scales. Nanotech tech- ment suggests that (assuming no dis-
high biotech flavor include Bruce niques handle individual atoms and asters) the world may come to resem-
Sterling’s “Shaper/Mechanist” stories molecules, producing machines on ble all of the above setting types with-
and John Varley’s “Titan” novels. the same scale as viruses or complex in the next century!
proteins. The biological comparison is
High Cybertech apt; a living cell is a nanotechnological The more technological miracles
factory! A high nanotech setting is one are assumed, the more effort the GM
A high cybertech world is one in in which miraculous nanotechnology will have to put forth to work out their
which computer technology and exists and has transformed society. implications, and the less familiar the
cybernetics have transformed society. world will be to the players. The
Computers are extremely intelligent, A great deal of recent science fic- “many miracles” approach may be
and may be self-aware and self-moti- tion treats nanotechnology almost as best suited for an epic campaign, one
vated as well. Robots of all shapes and magic. It’s portrayed as cheap and effi- that will last a long time and involves
sizes are common. Even human cient, able to produce any desired a lot of world-building work on the
beings can become part machine, product with no undesirable side part of the GM.
with cybernetic implants and neural effects. A society with advanced nan-
interfaces. otechnology may be both wealthy and The many-miracles approach can
ecologically friendly; even waste prod- permit extreme realism, as in Poul
A high cybertech world can be one ucts can be “rebuilt” into useful items Anderson’s Harvest of Stars and its
of great convenience, as smart rather than being discarded into the sequels. On the other hand, it can also
machines take over many ordinary environment. On the other hand, if work well with a strongly space-oper-
tasks and leave humans free for more nanotech tools escape from control atic tone. If human characters are to
difficult work (or for pure leisure). On they can pose a terrible threat to soci- stand out against a background of
the other hand, such a world is often ety. Nanotech weapons may be espe- technological wonders, they may need
one in which machines have sur- cially horrific, penetrating even the to be larger-than-life individuals in the
passed their creators. Perhaps the tightest defenses and taking soldiers midst of an epic drama. Examples of
machines are benevolent, or perhaps apart one molecule at a time . . . this approach include Walter Jon
they have an agenda of their own . . . Williams’ Aristoi, or John C. Wright’s
Nanotechnology is a common “The Golden Age” trilogy.
The Transhuman Space setting is theme in some of the best recent
high cybertech as well as high biotech science fiction. Examples include:
in nature, with artificial intelligence

TECHNOLOGY AREAS

The following are some of the said Mark, and held the box out toward Miles leaned forward again, to peer
most likely areas in which technolog- his brother, “is a butter bug.” in revolted fascination. “It looks like a
ical miracles will occur in modern cross between a cockroach, a termite,
SF. The GM should consider which Miles glanced down in to the box, and a . . . and a . . . and a pustule.”
of these to emphasize in his setting; and recoiled. “Yuk! That is the most
books such as GURPS Bio-Tech or disgusting thing I’ve seen in my life!” “We have to admit, its physical
GURPS Ultra-Tech will cover rules appearance is not its main selling
mechanics for specific items of Inside the box, the thumb-sized point.”
equipment. worker butter bug scrabbled about on
its six stubby legs, waved its antennae – Lois McMaster Bujold,
BIOTECHNOLOGY frantically, and tried to escape. Mark A Civil Campaign
gently pushed its tiny claws back from
Mark pulled out the little box from the edges. It chattered its dull brown In recent years, science fiction
his jacket pocket, and carefully lifted the vestigial wing carapaces, and crouched has assimilated the possibilities of
lid. Enrique sat up expectantly. “This,” to drag its white, soft, squishy-looking biological technology: the creation or
abdomen to the safety of one corner. manipulation of living organisms.
GURPS Bio-Tech will cover this sub-
ject in detail.

TECHNOLOGY 51

Genetic Engineering Pantropic genetic engineering seeks to A successful clone is much like an
adapt humans or other organisms to identical twin of the donor organism.
Every organism on Earth is built to live in unusual environments – under A newborn human clone would be a
a specific genetic blueprint, encoded the sea, or on worlds that unmodified baby, without any of the original per-
in the DNA molecules in its compo- humans would find uninhabitable. An son’s memories or skills. He would
nent cells. That blueprint controls the interstellar society might use pantrop- have to grow to adulthood in the nor-
production of proteins at the cellular ic techniques rather than terraforming mal time, and his environment and
level, and indirectly controls the worlds. experience might lead him to form a
shape, structure, and innate behavior very different personality. Super-
of the organism. Alter the blueprint, Miracles in genetic engineering can science technologies such as forced-
and the shape and behavior of the help the GM design a setting in which growth tanks might permit the rapid
organism change. Change it enough, superhuman characters are easy to production of fully adult clones, while
and a wholly new life form might be justify. On the other hand, control over downloading (p. 57) might permit a
created. the building blocks of life raises a clone to be programmed with its
number of moral and social issues. donor’s personality.
This kind of genetic manipulation What if not everyone can afford to
is never straightforward; the DNA is engineer their children; will genetic Human cloning might permit an
only the first step in determining engineering give rise to an aristocracy, egotistical genius to produce his own
which genes are expressed, and in in which wealth and engineered talent younger twin, bereaved parents to
turn how the living organism takes reinforce each other? Gene engineer- produce the identical twin of a dead
shape. Genetic engineering was actu- ing might cause the human race to child, or a society ravaged by genetic
ally one of the first technologies to diverge into many related subspecies, disease to produce healthy offspring.
appear, in the form of domestication some of whom may be like aliens to A particularly ghoulish society
and selective breeding of species. one another . . . might raise clones for a supply of
True genetic miracles require very replacement parts . . .
sophisticated understanding of Cloning
cellular biology. Miracle Medicine
Species that reproduce sexually
One application for these tech- receive genes from their parents, and Even today, medical science has
niques is to edit the genes of an exist- the exact mix of genes is usually differ- produced improvements in the length
ing species. For example, once the ent each time. An alternative to this and quality of human life. Using mira-
human genome is well-mapped, gene process is cloning. This is a bioengi- cles in future medicine, physicians
combinations can be selected that neering technique used to create off- will confidently be able to heal and
ensure the appearance of desirable spring that are genetically identical to even improve the human body. Many
traits: good looks, high intelligence, the single “parent.” of these improvements will involve
acute vision, or even the simple lack of implants, artificial devices placed in
inherited genetic disorders. The Cloning of plants can be done the body to give it new capabilities or
resulting person is still human, his through low-technology methods such compensate for damage.
genetic inheritance isn’t beyond the as the cultivation of cuttings. Cloning
bounds of what he could have inherit- of animals is much more difficult, and Simple prosthetic implants exist
ed naturally, but his genes are better can require many failures for every today, and are useful in repairing
than he could have expected from successful birth. There may also be some injuries or supporting the body
random chance. side effects, particularly when the as it ages. At miraculous levels of tech-
genetic material for the clone is taken nology, implant devices begin to
Eventually, genetic engineers will from an adult organism. At this writ- improve on the natural human body.
learn to impose radical changes on ing, a number of successful animal Perfectly healthy people will begin to
their subject organisms. This permits clones have been produced, including accept implants to expand their physi-
the construction of new species, sheep, cattle, and cats – but no credi- cal or mental capabilities. Cybernetic
related to existing organisms but no ble scientist has yet claimed to have limbs and organs boost physical per-
longer able to reproduce naturally produced a human clone. formance. Neural interfaces permit
with the original stock. Such new
forms can have capabilities beyond
anything the original genome could
have produced. An engineered
human might have superhuman
strength or endurance, or internal
physical structures that normal
humans don’t have. He might even
have superhuman mental capabili-
ties: communication skills, memory,
intelligence, or other powers beyond
the norm of human psychology.

Another application of genetic
engineering is pantropy, a term coined
by the SF author James Blish.

52 TECHNOLOGY

the mental control of computers or person could perceive both “virtual Some artificial tissues may be able to
other devices. Implanted computers reality” and the physical universe at improve the body’s performance, bol-
assist the human brain to store and the same time. Real objects (or even stering the strength or resilience of the
process information. Natural senses other people) could be associated with natural structure, or secreting useful
are enhanced and new senses are virtual “tags” that provide extra infor- substances that the body would nor-
acquired. mation about them at a glance. mally not produce.
Messages could be sent across a data
Cybernetic implants have some of network with a thought, permitting a Finally, the possibility exists of
the benefits of miraculous biotechnol- mechanical form of telepathy. nanosymbiosis. Many of the cells in a
ogy, without some of the drawbacks. human body are not themselves
It’s possible to improve human per- Of course, not all implants need to human in nature – they are bacteria,
formance without needing to plan an be purely mechanical in nature. As viruses, or other microorganisms that
individual’s genetic inheritance before biologists learn how living cells natu- live in a symbiotic relationship with
birth. Implants can always be rally arrange themselves to form tis- their human host. Eventually it may
removed or altered as needed. Of sues and biological structures, they become possible to introduce artificial
course, the use of implants can be a will learn to control the process. Such symbionts into the human body: nan-
very alienating practice – in a sense, tissue engineering will permit the con- otechnological devices, engineered
the character is rejecting his body in struction of living, but artificial, struc- microorganisms, or a mix of both.
favor of a machine! tures that can then be implanted in
the body. These “micro-implants” could
Aside from the production of improve human health and capability
superhumans, cybernetic implants Although such living implants may at the cellular level: fighting off dis-
can alter the way the human mind be limited in strength and capabilities, ease, preventing cancer, arresting the
deals with the outside world. Linked they may be able to repair themselves, progress of age, and even building
directly to a computer implant, a just as the natural human body can. macro-scale implants into the body
without the need for complex surgery.
Suspended Animation
In general, miraculous medical
Suspended animation is a common science fiction trope. If space techniques mean that very few injuries
travel is very slow, then passengers and crew may sleep the years away, will prove fatal. If an injured character
awakening only at their destination. Suspended animation can also be survives long enough to reach a hospi-
a crude form of time travel, letting characters sleep through the cen- tal, he’ll recover – possibly with the aid
turies in order to wake in a far-future world. of mechanical, cloned, or tissue-engi-
neered replacement parts. This kind of
In classic science fiction, suspended animation meant “cold sleep,” technology may be useful for the GM
putting the human body in a hibernation state, or freezing it solid. Both who wants to concentrate on myster-
techniques assume that there’s a way to revive the subject at the desti- ies or social interaction rather than
nation (quite a challenge if the freezing method is used). In any case, for the threat of character injury or death.
journeys lasting years or longer, the technique doesn’t actually work all
that well. It’s impossible to prevent all random chemical change even in Meanwhile, implant technologies
a frozen body, and the background radiation of deep space will still give characters the freedom to
harm a frozen passenger. reshape themselves at will. Any cam-
paign in which miraculous implants
More recent science fiction assumes that advanced nanotechnology are available (not to mention upload-
can be used to keep a hibernating passenger in good repair. Nanotech ing or other technologies that can rad-
symbionts repair damage due to radiation, flush away cells that die due ically change a person’s nature) will
to random chemical change, and so on. With “nanostasis,” the body tend to be very fluid in character
need not even be kept all that cold, saving on heavy cryonic equipment. design. In such a campaign, GMs are
advised to treat GURPS character
Some recent science fiction suggests a third approach. If “upload- points as a guideline measuring the
ing” is possible (p. 57) then a passenger won’t need to take his body relative power of each character, not
on the trip at all. He can travel as data in storage, either unaware of as a rigid schedule for character devel-
the passage of time or enjoying a virtual environment. He can be opment. Characters will tend to
downloaded into a new robot body at the far end, or (if nanotechnol- change drastically in power level, and
ogy is sufficently advanced) his own body can be reassembled from will reallocate their points with every
stored information! “overhaul.”

No matter what the method, suspended animation can solve a num- Naturally, if miraculous medicine
ber of plot problems for the space-oriented GM. If interstellar travel is not available to everyone, there will
takes a long time, don’t bother playing out the years between stars – just be social consequences. Even today,
pop the adventurers into cold sleep and skip to the destination. wealthy people tend to live somewhat
Meanwhile, suspended animation may provide adventurers with an longer than poor people due to their
escape hatch if things go badly wrong . . . ability to afford medical care. If the
difference becomes drastic, the result
might be a badly stratified society (or
a revolution of the “natural” poor).

TECHNOLOGY 53

Artificial Life nutrients. It would also provide its particularly appropriate for aliens
own “power,” needing no power input who live underwater, in a gas giant
Advanced tissue engineering tech- or batteries. atmosphere, on a metal-poor planet, or
niques might permit the construction anywhere else where metals and
of wholly artificial organisms: crea- Just about any technological item ceramics would be difficult to produce.
tures that were not conceived and could be defined as a biogadget, as
born, but built out of cultured cells long as it doesn’t require high power Artificial life presents a variety of
and biomechanical frameworks. Such densities (like a beam weapon or a ethical questions. A bioroid is unques-
bioroids might have capabilities (and long-range communicator) or very tionably alive and may be fully sapi-
disadvantages) that naturally con- dense or strong materials (like ent. What are the rights of a being who
ceived organisms would not. advanced combat armor or an inter- was built from scratch for a specific
nal combustion engine). Biogadgets purpose? Of course, there may be
For example, a bioroid could have could, of course, be combined with strong prejudice against bioroids –
two traits that would be mutually nonliving gadgets or materials to like the mythical undead, they stand
exclusive in a naturally conceived cover a wider variety of applications. outside the normal human pattern of
organism. Bioroids could be built birth, life, and death.
around frameworks of nonliving Biogadgets can also be big – big
material, boosting their strength, enough to live in! A bio-building is an Uplift
endurance, or other capabilities in a artificial living creature (or a symbiot-
way that would be difficult to produce ic community of them) with plenty of Creideiki could imagine how the
through human genetic engineering. internal space that humans can live or vice-captain felt. There were times when
Meanwhile, bioroids could be built work in. Like a smaller biogadget, a even he felt oppressed by the towering
with inherent controls that limit their bio-building can be self-maintaining invasiveness of uplift, when he almost
capabilities, such as a short lifespan or and self-repairing, and might provide wanted to squawk in Primal, “Who
a limited personality. at least some of the power for various gave you the right?” And the sweet
appliances and conveniences. Bio- hypnosis of the Whale Dream would
Of course, artificial organisms buildings might be very ecologically call to him to return to the embrace of
don’t have to resemble people in their friendly, needing relatively little ener- the Old Gods.
shape or capabilities. Limited biogad- gy to build and converting trash or
gets could be produced, living entities other wastes before they’re released The moment always passed, and he
that can be used as specialized tools. into the environment. recalled that there was nothing in the
The advantage of a biogadget is that it universe he wanted more than to com-
is self-maintaining and self-repairing, Artificial-life technologies might mand a starship, to collect tapes of the
so long as it’s kept supplied with be interesting if applied by certain songs of space, and to explore the cur-
alien cultures. This would be rents between the stars.

Bioships – David Brin, Startide Rising

There’s nothing preventing a “bio-building” from flying through “Uplift” refers to the process of
space . . . at which time it becomes a bioship, a living spaceship. applying biotechnology to modify
non-sapient organisms, improving
Bioships can be built from scratch using tissue-engineering tech- their intelligence, communications
niques. Alternatively, a large alien life form or a big terrestrial creature skills, or tool-using abilities. The goal
can be subjected to extensive genetic and biomechanical engineering. A of uplift is usually to create a new
bioship is primarily living matter, of course, but it can have inorganic sapient (or near-sapient) race.
systems grafted into it.
The notion of granting intelligence
The original creature should be large to begin with, and tough to animal species is very old in SF lit-
enough to withstand large shifts in atmospheric pressure. It can be erature, dating back at least to H. G.
adapted to life in the vacuum and cold of space, and it can be made Wells. The term uplift was coined by
much larger in a zero-gravity environment. Several possibilities include: modern author David Brin; many of
his novels are based on the premise of
Atmosphere Dwellers: Floating creatures native to the atmosphere of a galactic civilization populated by
a large planet or a gas giant. species who all were once uplifted,
and who in turn uplift new species as
Giant Trees: Trees or tree-like organisms, engineered to withstand a matter of wealth and prestige.
deep-space conditions and grow to enormous size, possibly feeding
from the water and nutrients in comets. A setting including uplift can
include “aliens” who evolved along-
Marine Dwellers: Large creatures native to the deep ocean, such as side human beings from the begin-
whales (or, for a different approach, coral reefs). Such creatures can ning. For example, Brin’s novels
already grow to great size and are well-adapted to pressure extremes. include uplifted chimpanzees, dogs,
dolphins, and gorillas. These uplifted
Space Dwellers: It’s possible that large living creatures already exist species will have minds different from
in deep space, and would require little or no adaptation to serve as ours, but will also be familiar enough
bioships. for comfort. Aliens who are the end

54 TECHNOLOGY

product of billions of years of separate technology, collecting data on their an industrial process carries a com-
evolution are likely to be much citizens to use in new methods of puter with the information about
stranger . . . control. exactly how the item is to be used (its
own “user’s manual”) then the people
Other interstellar civilizations may Computer networking is likely to doing the assembly work won’t need
also include uplifted species, as ser- become even denser and more com- as much training to begin. For exam-
vants or partners of their naturally plete as it approaches miraculous lev- ple, every piece of raw material on a
evolved races. In a universe where els. Eventually, it will become possible construction site could keep track of
uplift is common, the question of to put small computers in almost where it is now, where it needs to be in
human origins may be open. Perhaps every common item: in clothing, in the finished building, at what point in
the UFO enthusiasts are right, and personal items, in pieces of industrial the process it needs to be put in place,
humans themselves were helped along equipment, in packages of raw materi- and how it should be handled. Then
the road to intelligence eons ago . . . als, and even in people. All of these the construction workers (or their
but by whom? small computers can be interconnect- robots!) can always remind them-
ed via a dense network of short-range selves exactly what needs to be done
COMPUTERS AND radio or infrared transmissions. next . . .
COMMUNICATIONS
The net effect of this ubiquitous In general, a society with miracu-
The role of computers in science computing will be to make a vast array lous levels of computing and network-
fiction has changed almost as drasti- of information available for reference ing will be one where information is
cally as their role in real life. In Golden and analysis. Any item with an cheap and easy to get, and where it
Age SF of the 1940s and 1950s, com- implanted computer can be designed will be very rare for anyone to be out
puters are almost invisible; when they to keep track of its own status, to of touch. This can be very convenient
appear at all, they are big, expensive, report when queried, and to respond for GMs who want to just hand their
and used exclusively by governments to orders. For example, in a “wired” players a “data dump” and get the
and large corporations. By the 1990s, household the kitchen appliances can adventure started. Meanwhile, when-
imagined computers were everywhere track supplies of food, prepare meals ever adventurers need more informa-
in science fiction and their capabilities on a schedule, and report when they tion or assistance, it’s usually just a
were little short of magic. need repair or replacement. A com- cell-phone call (or the equivalent)
puter implanted into a person can away.
The Networked World track his physical condition and signal
when he needs medical attention. Of course, there are also disadvan-
With the revolution in computer tages to this kind of setting. The GM
technology comes an associated revo- Items can even be physically may need to invent all the information
lution in communications technology. tracked with such a system, each the players might possibly want!
As computers become smaller, cheap- implanted computer responding to Players may give in to the temptation
er, and more powerful, it becomes nearby control units over the short- to over-research, wading through the
easy to put them everywhere . . . and range radio link. This can help a great information stream when they should
to get them to talk to each other. Along deal with commercial inventory, mak- be going into action. Adventurers may
the way, people find themselves able to ing it difficult to lose or misplace be overloaded with information, or
share voice, text, images, and data goods or equipment. Industrial plan- unable to pick out the critical facts
almost at will. ning becomes easier, as raw materials from a flood of irrelevant data.
can be tracked on their way through a Meanwhile, in a world where no one is
Even today, the global Internet manufacturing process. ever out of contact it’s difficult to keep
makes it easy for many people to characters from calling for help at the
access and work with information. Another application of ubiquitous first sign of trouble!
Messages can be passed, would-be computing is to reduce the need for
writers can post their work for anyone skill in certain trades. If every item in
to see, and research data can be made
accessible for everyone. The decentral- It’s in the computer, everything: your DMV
ized nature of a data web sometimes records, your Social Security, your credit cards,
undermines existing power structures, your medical records. Everyone is stored in there.
giving citizens new ways to share It’s like this little electronic shadow on each and
information despite government or every one of us, just begging for someone to screw
corporate control. with, and you know what? They’ve done it to me,
and you know what? They’re gonna do it to you.
Decentralized data webs have also
proven to be very hard to police. – Angela, The Net
Unscrupulous users can spread false
information, run scams, and steal
other people’s personal data.
Meanwhile, oppressive governments
will find their own uses for network

TECHNOLOGY 55

Robots situations. On the other hand, human- in which human adventurers are
iform robots are hard to produce. constantly dealing with capable
Robots are a very common feature Many physical functions that humans machines. If robots can perform many
of science fiction. People are fascinat- take for granted (visual recognition, human tasks, what do human beings
ed by the notion of a machine that eye-hand coordination, walking, and do? Are they freed from the need to
looks or behaves like a human being so on) are actually difficult to build work for a living, or are all but the
. . . and which may in some ways be into a reliable robot. most talented people living in dull,
superior to a human being. purposeless poverty? Of course, if
The bush robot is a recent concept, robots are that talented, some of the
Although science fiction tends to first proposed by Hans Moravec as the adventurers may be robots!
focus on the social relationships ultimate in cybernetic flexibility. A
between robots and humans, the first bush robot has arms that branch into Artificial Minds
real robots don’t appear in social situ- multiple “fingers,” each of which
ations. Robots find their first use in branches into a set of smaller fingers, He said, “Had we somehow been
industrial manufacturing, where they and so on – possibly down to the created in a universe without humans,
can perform the kind of repetitive molecular scale. Each set of fingers is it is true that we would not have creat-
operations that appear in assembly capable of independent tactile senses ed them. We would have preferred more
lines. and operation, giving the robot perfect forms.”
tremendous range and flexibility.
Of course, even at this level robots She said, “But morality is time-
immediately have an impact on socie- A “bushbot” could easily manipu- directional. Parents who would not
ty. They threaten to compete with late objects on a variety of scales. deliberately create a crippled child can-
human workers, beginning in the With the proper programming, it not, once the child is born, reverse that
unskilled or semi-skilled trades. They could perform complex repairs or decision.”
also simply bother some people, who even microsurgery, all without spe-
are disturbed by a machine that can cial tools. Such tasks would require “And humanity is not our child, but
behave like a human being even in tremendous amounts of computer our parent.”
limited ways. processing, so advanced computer
hardware will be necessary. “Whom we were born to serve.”
Robots that more or less resemble “We are the ultimate expression of
human beings are a common feature A setting with miraculous robots, human rationality.”
in SF. A “humaniform” robot has sev- whether sapient or not, will be one She said: “We need humans to form
eral advantages, especially in social a pool of individuality and innovation
from which we can draw.”
The Transparent Society He said, “And you’re funny.”
She said, “And we love you.”
One drawback of ubiquitous computing is that it makes privacy
almost impossible to attain. We may find it very convenient to access to – John C. Wright,
all kinds of information about the world around us – but the other side The Phoenix Exultant
of the coin is that other people will find it easy to gather information
about us. Advanced computers may become
intelligent, able to handle information
This failure of privacy may offer some social benefits. The SF writer at least as flexibly and as well as a
David Brin has speculated about the transparent society. This is a socie- human being. Eventually they may
ty in which even powerful people, such as corporate or government even become sapient, self-aware enti-
leaders, can’t keep any secrets for very long. Every citizen can be fully ties with their own consciousness and
informed about the activities of his government or the corporations goals. Combine the sheer speed of a
with which he does business. It’s therefore easy, at least in theory, to computer with the power of a self-
demand accountability for any abuse of power. aware mind, and the result could be a
being far superior to the humans who
On the other hand, ubiquitous computing may lead to ubiquitous built it.
law enforcement. A government that controls the data network can mon-
itor the activities of every item – and every person – in it. It may become One of the most critical steps in
impossible to break even a minor law without immediately being producing an intelligent computer is
detected and targeted for correction. Private entities may also be a con- the development of a natural language
cern. A company could monitor even the smallest activities of its interface – that is, teaching computers
employees, and malicious users could use the system to track and to use idiomatic language as it is spo-
harass their enemies. ken and written by human beings.
Once a natural language interface is
In short, a society that uses ubiquitous computing may be highly available, anyone can describe a prob-
oppressive, or it may have developed social mechanisms for dealing lem to a computer and expect it to
with the loss of privacy. GMs who are interested in miraculous commu- produce information or programs
nications and computer technology may wish to explore the implica- that approach a solution. The com-
tions of a world where information really is free! puter can then respond using collo-
quial language of its own, presenting
the information in ways that non-spe-
cialists can understand.

56 TECHNOLOGY

At present, natural language inter- machines can be interesting and use- the stored personality somehow “writ-
faces can be considered nearly mirac- ful companions, but they might devel- ten” onto the structure of the brain).
ulous; much progress has been made op their own motives and superhu-
in this area, but most people still inter- man capabilities. Should such Uploading and downloading have
act with their computers in a stilted machines be treated as property, as profound effects on any science fiction
and artificial manner. servants, as partners – or as masters? setting or story. Uploading permits a
If they can exceed human abilities in character to undergo radical transfor-
Being able to use natural language most or all areas, then what purpose mations, leaving his human body and
doesn’t mean that the computer is self- do humans still serve? becoming a machine entity – which
aware, or even that it’s all that person- can then be transferred from one
able. Eventually, computers will add Uploading machine body to another. If both
personal and social skills to their nat- uploading and downloading are possi-
ural-language ability, interacting with If a computer is complex enough to ble, then one can travel as data rather
human beings on their own level. imitate a living human personality, than in his physical body; this is often
then it can imitate a dead one too. much cheaper and more efficient.
Personality simulation can work at Uploading can also make people effec-
a variety of levels. A computer that It’s theoretically possible for a com- tively immortal, letting them keep
simply uses natural inflection in its puter to store a complete description “backup” copies of themselves in case
speech and learns to respond to its of a human being, and then “emulate” of accident. Of course, uploading can
owner’s needs can be said to have a that human being as software. This also permit someone to copy himself,
personality, even if its responses are may involve a personality model, or it especially if the initial upload doesn’t
very simple and predictable. Indeed, may involve the minute analysis and require the destruction of his original
many humans will tend to ascribe emulation of the human subject’s brain.
more personality to their computers brain and nervous system (possibly
than they actually have. More complex requiring the destruction of the tissue Uploading raises many of the
“personality programs” will behave in the process). From that point on, same questions as the presence of
like real people, altering their respons- the computer believes itself to be the any intelligent machine. Should the
es and possibly surprising the human human being, his personality uploaded personality be treated as a
beings who interact with them. “uploaded” into a software matrix. person? Even further, should the
Eventually a personality simulation upload be treated as the same person
will become indistinguishable from a If a human mind can be uploaded, as the original citizen? This can be
human being, modeling its responses it may also be possible to “download” even more complicated if the origi-
after a real person, a well-documented it into another body – a robot or nal citizen is still walking around in
fictional character, or even a wholly bioroid body with a computer brain, his own body . . .
artificial psychology. or even a fully biological body (with

Even an advanced computer that is
capable of natural language process-
ing and is familiar with everyday
human knowledge still isn’t necessari-
ly a self-aware, independent being.
Actual consciousness seems to be
independent of the ability to process
information.

How one might design a computer
to be self-aware (or how it might
become so on its own) is anyone’s
guess. We don’t understand what con-
sciousness is, or what it does, in
human beings, much less how a
machine might exhibit it. In some SF,
a sufficiently advanced computer may
simply “wake up” one day. Other sto-
ries assume that self-awareness is
something that can be predictably
designed into a machine. Still others
ignore the question entirely; they
assume that no can be sure of any-
thing except that a machine behaves as
if it is self-aware.

In any case, the presence of self-
aware machines (or machines that
seem to be self-aware) raises a num-
ber of social issues. Intelligent

TECHNOLOGY 57

NANOTECHNOLOGY Many of these new materials will into threads or cables that are far
involve carbon. One of the most com- stronger than any previous material.
“Mites,” he said, “or so they say mon elements, and also one of the Nanotube threads could be woven
down at the Flea Circus anyway.” He most chemically active, carbon is into clothing or personal armor, mak-
picked up one of the black things taken very cheap and easy to work with. ing it tough and resistant to attack.
from the mask and flicked it with a fin- Carbon in its “raw” natural state is Thick nanotube cables would be rela-
gertip. A cineritious cloud swirled out flaky or crumbly, very flammable, tively light but extremely strong, use-
of it, like a drop of ink in a glass of and a natural insulator of electricity. ful in futuristic engineering projects.
water, and hung swirling in the air, nei- However, carbon atoms can form
ther rising nor falling. Sparkles of light very strong molecular bonds, and Aside from the applications of car-
flashed in the midst of it like fairy dust. when they are carefully arranged the bon, nanotechnology could produce
resulting materials can have a wide pure-iron crystals, high-temperature
“See, there’s mites around, all the array of properties. superconductors, and many other use-
time. They use the sparkles to talk to ful items. Some of these materials are
each other,” Harv explained. “They’re Diamonds, for example, are pure already being produced in small quan-
in the air, in food and water, every- carbon with the atoms arranged in a tities today; mass production might be
where. And there’s rules that the mites three-dimensional lattice. One of the the foundation for a great deal of
are supposed to follow, and those rules first applications of true nanotech- future industry.
are called protocols. And there’s a pro- nology will be the production of arti-
tocol from way back that says they’re ficial diamonds in large sheets, Smart Materials
supposed to be good for your lungs. blocks, or other shaped forms.
They’re supposed to break down into “Diamondoid” materials would make Smart materials change their phys-
safe pieces if you breathe one inside of superb armor or structural material ical properties when subjected to a
you.” Harv paused at this point, the- in applications where hardness and stimulus. They can be used in applica-
atrically, to summon forth one more resiliency are important. Spaceship tions where a material may need to
ebon loogie, which Nell guessed must hulls, perhaps . . . change its state in different circum-
be swimming with safe mite bits. “But stances. Smart materials can be made
there are people who break those rules Another form of carbon is nan- to respond “naturally” to different sit-
sometimes . . .” otubes. The carbon atoms are uations, or they can be controlled by
– Neal Stephenson, The Diamond Age arranged in tubes, each one thinner an attached computer. Some smart
than a human hair, so that the molec- material will be composed of micro-
The standard GURPS TL pro- ular bonds provide tensile strength for electro-mechanical systems (MEMS),
gression assumes that nanotechnol- the tube. If carbon nanotubes can be tiny machines built into sheets or
ogy will work, and that it will made long enough, they can be woven
advance along a fairly conservative
trajectory. Nanotechnology begins
as engineers discover ways to
manipulate matter on very small
scales. TL9 is the microtech age, in
which micromachines are produced
by traditional industrial methods
and nanotechnology continues to
develop. The real potential of nan-
otech doesn’t appear until TL10 or
later; the most outrageous specula-
tions of nanotech advocates should
probably be considered super-
science, or placed at TL11+.

Special Materials

Nanomachines themselves are only
some of the advances that nanotech-
nology will make possible. Some of
their first products, things that are oth-
erwise almost impossible to make or
find, will also transform industry.
These include new materials that
stretch the limits of what’s possible in
nature, providing combinations of
physical properties that would be
extremely unlikely without technolog-
ical intervention.

58 TECHNOLOGY

blocks of manufactured material. “Microbots” may be as large as a maintenance, or repair tasks. They
Other smart materials are natural sub- big insect, or as small as a dust mite. could also have military or security
stances that can change their proper- They may be limited to crawling over applications. Cyberswarms could mon-
ties in a controlled fashion. surfaces, or they may be capable of itor infrared emissions or movement in
buoyant or winged flight. Any one an area, alerting a more powerful com-
For example, smart fibers can microbot will have very little comput- puter to the presence of intruders.
adjust their length, flexibility, and er power, and might run a set of sim- Microbots could also carry tiny doses
color as needed, producing clothing ple behavioral programs. A “cyber- of toxins or disease organisms . . .
that can reconfigure to assure a per- swarm” of hundreds or thousands of
fect fit and the wearer’s desired color microbots can cooperate in intelligent As nanotechnology advances, the
pattern. Surfaces can vary their tex- behavior, just as an ant colony or bee- microbots are likely to become small-
tures, or even incorporate microscop- hive produces intelligent responses er and smaller, and en masse they are
ic brushes that ensure that dirt or from the actions of its nearly mindless likely to become more capable. One
paint will only stick where it is sup- members. application of advanced microrobot-
posed to. Layers of smart material can ics would be the production of assem-
create structures that are self-sealing, A cyberswarm could be an inte- blers, swarms of nanorobots capable
or even partially self-healing. gral part of a building or other struc- of building any desired product from
ture, performing routine cleaning, raw materials.
Eventually, nanotechnology may
begin to blur the distinctions Swarms and Goo
between nonliving and living matter.
Even as bioengineering produces Of course, assemblers that can build other things can also be
living organisms that resemble designed to build copies of themselves. This isn’t an unusual notion; a liv-
machines, nanotechnology will begin ing cell is itself a self-replicating assembler.
to give inorganic machines some of
the capabilities of living creatures. Such assemblers can cut through many of the limitations of nan-
otechnology. In particular, they make the supply of assemblers cheap
Living materials will begin by and easy to replenish. They can be even more effective than non-repli-
adding self-repair capabilities. A “liv- cating assemblers in bringing about a post-scarcity society. On the other
ing metal” tool would incorporate a hand, self-replicating assemblers may be harder to control. If they
supply of embedded nanomachines. escape into the environment, they may begin to replicate using whatev-
Under normal circumstances the er materials they can find . . .
nanomachines would support the
tool’s primary function, possibly inter- A mass of self-replicating assemblers is sometimes called goo.
facing with other nanomachines in Futurists and SF writers sometimes refer to goo as being of different
smart materials or assembler swarms. “colors” depending on its nature and purpose. Not everyone agrees on
When the tool needs supplies or is the color terminology, but some examples are as follows.
damaged, the nanomachines can pull
in the necessary materials and use White Goo: Well-behaved assemblers in a controlled environment,
them to perform repairs. producing useful items as designed.

With further progress, living mate- Golden Goo: A mass of assemblers designed to simply gather atoms
rials will be able to change shape and or molecules of a valuable substance (such as gold). Used in mining and
function as needed. At the extreme, a similar applications.
tool can be composed of nothing but
nanomachines that have taken a spe- Red Goo: A controlled mass of assemblers used as a weapon, proba-
cific shape. On command, the bly by a military organization or by terrorists.
nanomachines drop their connections
to one another, flow amorphously to Blue Goo: Assemblers designed to hunt down and destroy hostile
new positions, and lock together once assemblers (such as red goo) without otherwise affecting people or
again. The new shape may have a property.
completely different function.
Green Goo: Assemblers used to monitor and support a community of
Microbots and living things. Green goo can be used in agriculture, in the preservation
Assemblers of wild ecosystems, or even for the maintenance of human health.

The line of development that leads Gray (or Black) Goo: An uncontrolled mass of “wild” assemblers,
to living materials begins with the devouring everything in its path and turning the material into more
production of vast numbers of tiny assemblers. Gray or black goo is the ultimate terrorist weapon, or the
machines. Any one machine may not ultimate industrial disaster. A mass of gray or black goo could destroy
be very intelligent – but a swarm, the entire surface of a planet.
cloud, or puddle of such machines
could cooperate for an intelligent Some wits also refer to pink goo – by which they mean human
purpose. beings! After all, humans reproduce relatively slowly, but given time
they tend to fill up all available space and devour everything they can
find . . .

TECHNOLOGY 59

In theory, anything could be built will be related. If space flight is wealthier because they have more
by sufficiently sophisticated assem- supported by cheap and powerful options in life. If ease of transport
blers. Simply pour the assemblers into drives, the same technologies may be brings people into contact with for-
a vat, provide raw materials in easily applicable to local transportation. eigners, they may tend to be more
digestible form, and the tiny machines cosmopolitan. They will probably be
will assemble the desired item one Making the World Tiny more free, since they can easily
molecule at a time. Since assemblers escape an oppressive situation.
work on a nanometer scale, they can If miraculous transportation is
produce any of the unusual materials available, the GM (or players!) may Teleportation
described under Smart Materials want to design cool vehicles for use
above, and in large quantities. Very during adventures. Such vehicles can Teleportation is instant travel from
robust assemblers might be able to be faster, tougher, sneakier, or place to place, without passing
work with found materials, turning smarter than anything from the through the space in between. If tele-
air, water, and minerals into useful familiar world. portation is possible, it may render
products. many other forms of transportation
If vehicles and transportation obsolete. Teleportation that’s cheap,
If assemblers are strongly limited aren’t going to be used as a major works over long ranges, and has few
in their utility, they won’t change soci- plot element, they will probably disadvantages will quickly become the
ety very much. Assemblers may be have no specific effects on the cam- primary method of transport. In the
expensive or narrow of purpose, used paign background. As with advanced extreme, teleportation may unify
only for very specialized applications. power generation and materials sci- interplanetary (or even interstellar)
They may break down quickly, requir- ence, advanced transportation sup- travel with local transport. On the
ing manufacturers to constantly ports a generally wealthy society. other hand, if teleportation is expen-
acquire new supplies. Or they could be Manufacturing and commerce sive or has many limitations, it will be
too delicate to use anywhere except in become more efficient when raw used only in special circumstances.
a carefully controlled environment. materials and finished goods can be
Any or all of these features may lead to easily shipped to where they’re For a superb examination of the
a society where assemblers are rarely needed. implications of teleportation technolo-
encountered in everyday life. gy, refer to Larry Niven’s essay,
Adventurers may use tools and gadg- Meanwhile, when people are “Exercise in Speculation: The Theory
ets produced by assemblers, but they able to travel wherever they please and Practice of Teleportation.”
will rarely use assemblers themselves. quickly and conveniently, they feel

Assemblers that are cheap, robust Power Generation
and versatile can have a profound
effect on society. If literally anything One of the most important factors controlling any society is its abil-
can be made cheaply and easily, espe- ity to generate and apply energy. A society with access to cheap or
cially using found materials, then unlimited energy is by definition wealthy, while one experiencing ener-
large corporate manufacturers will no gy shortages is impoverished no matter what other resources are at
longer be needed. Combine cheap hand. The technical details of power generation are rarely important to
assemblers with the cheap energy of the story; the GM can assume solar, geothermal, fossil-fuel, nuclear,
fusion power, and you may get a “post- antimatter, or “total conversion” power as needed.
scarcity society,” one in which poverty
and economic inequity are unknown. Of course, how power is generated is almost less important than how
it is stored and distributed. The small gadgets beloved of adventurers
Of course, assemblers can also be need power, as do vehicles, buildings, and spaceships. Unless a power
disassemblers. Assemblers have to get generator is cheap and compact enough to carry around, energy will
their raw materials from somewhere, have to be stored – or devices will need to be connected to a remote
and they may get them from an item power source.
(or a human body!) that’s already in
use. Assemblers that get out of control Some forms of power plant technology will be dangerous if mishan-
can be a serious nuisance. Assemblers dled! Nuclear fission generates radioactive waste. Some types of fusion
designed to take the human body power generate radiation in the form of fast neutrons. Antimatter
apart, one molecule at a time, would power storage can be extremely destructive if the containment fails. In
be a devastating weapon. general, the higher the energy density of the power technology, the more
likely there are to be dangerous or destructive side effects.
TRANSPORTATION
The details of power technology are usually “deep background,” not
The GM building a space-oriented important to the story. The GM should decide how much energy is nec-
setting will certainly need to think essary to support the society (and the gadgets) he wants to include. Any
about space flight technology, but disadvantages attached to the technology can be developed as potential
how adventurers get around on each plot complications. After all, miraculous technology is a wonderful
world will also be important! thing . . . until the power goes out!
Naturally, the two setting elements

60 TECHNOLOGY

The Swashbuckler Option gun (or even into the bullets – “smart
bullets” are a possibility, able to recog-
Many a “swords and spaceships” epic has assumed that skill with a nize a target and change trajectory in
melee weapon – usually a sword or something similar – is important to mid-flight). With high-density power
an adventurer’s life. This can be a fun assumption, but the GM who sources, projectile weapons can use
wants to apply it will need to determine how melee weapons can hold magnetic acceleration instead of
their own in a universe full of ultra-tech firearms. chemical propellants. Such a “Gauss”
weapon can use very small, very fast
One approach to this problem is to assume that social factors projectiles.
encourage the use of melee weapons. Perhaps government forbids pri-
vate ownership of advanced weaponry, but doesn’t restrict knives and Energy-beam weapons (“ray
swords. Or perhaps one social class cultivates swordsmanship as a (usu- guns”) are a staple of SF stories. They
ally) non-lethal way to resolve disputes. An alien race that values include lasers, particle-beam weapons
ancient traditions may maintain its traditional weaponry for use away or “blasters,” plasma bolts, and “dis-
from the battlefield. ruptors” that work on an unspecified
physical principle. Non-lethal
Another approach is to assume that advanced melee weapons can weapons, which inflict pain or stun-
somehow hold their own against firearms. This can be accomplished by ning damage but no lasting harm, are
making the melee weapons more powerful, or by weakening the ranged another possibility.
weapons.
Of course, personal beam weapons
For example, in the Star Wars universe, ordinary adventurers rou- should probably be considered a “mir-
tinely use high-tech blaster weapons. However, the Jedi Knights and acle,” and are unlikely under rigorous
their foes use light-sabers (and psionic powers) to deflect blaster fire. assumptions. An energy weapon capa-
They have little to fear from firearms, and use their melee weapons ble of doing extreme damage or oper-
when fighting one another. ating at long range will need a lot of
power . . . and the waste energy at
In Frank Herbert’s Dune, personal “shield” technology is common, the source might turn the weapon red-
producing an archaic feel in weapons and tactics. The shield automati- hot! GMs may wish to limit the more
cally deflects fast-moving projectiles. If a “lasgun” or similar beam powerful energy weapons to heavy
weapon contacts the shield, the result is an explosion equivalent to that support or shipboard applications,
of a nuclear warhead. As a result, projectile firearms are rarely used, with personal sidearms still using a
and most people actively avoid using beam weapons! Meanwhile, a projectile principle.
slow-moving blade weapon can penetrate the shield, so most soldiers
are expert with knives and short blades. With advances in science (and
especially in superscience), weapons
WEAPONS AND Of course, some space-opera uni- may be based on principles not used
DEFENSES verses have “force swords” and similar today. Nanotechnology may provide
superscience melee weapons. For a “red goo” disassemblers (p. 59) that
One thing is certain: people in the “swords and spaceships” feel, permit will dissolve an enemy into his compo-
future will still be fighting one anoth- personal force fields that stop fast mis- nent molecules. Working psionics may
er on a regular basis. Weapons tech- siles or energy blasts, but which per- lead to weapons that attack someone’s
nology has often led other fields, as mit the slow intrusion of a melee mind directly.
governments invest in the develop- weapon.
ment of new defensive systems. In fact, almost every technology
Slugthrowers can be turned to some destructive use.
Melee Weapons and Rayguns The GM running a campaign with any
kind of superscience should consider
Melee weapons will still be useful In the future, as today, one of the inventing related weapons technology
in the far future, at least under best ways to poke holes in someone to fit.
some circumstances. Knives, swords, will be to throw bullets at him. Some
and similar weapons can be made military SF assumes that slugthrowers Armor and Force Fields
using ultra-tech materials, making will remain the main arm of battle
them difficult to blunt or break. indefinitely; this isn’t a bad assump- Throughout history, there has
Nanotechnology can produce tion, given the limitations of energy been an “arms race” between the
“monowire,” a strand of wire one mol- weapons (see below). designers of weapons and the design-
ecule thick. Tough and almost infinite- ers of defenses. Indeed, even present-
ly sharp, monowire could be used as a Chemical slugthrowers are likely to day personal and military weapons
weapon in its own right, or it could be continue to advance, bringing more are capable of ending human life
used to provide an edge for a more efficient propellants. Targeting will with great efficiency. There will be lit-
typical blade weapon. also continue to improve, possibly tle point in developing miraculous
linking computer controls into the future weapons, unless they need to
punch through equally improved
defense systems.

TECHNOLOGY 61

CHAPTER FOUR

BASIC
WORLDBUILDING

The shipmind projected After decades of
images of the new world into Tan’s work, Tan’s ethnos
vision, causing them to appear as if floating had managed to win
in midair in the command lounge. Tan relaxed back approval for the foundation
into his chaise-longue, sipping his drink while he of a new colony in the long-fallow
watched. A Varenne motet played quietly in the back- Jiadra Drift region. Finally, humanity would have a
ground, just loud enough to be heard, not so loud as world of its own, a fresh start to recover from the Fall.
to distract. A place where humanity might be able to survive
the coming doom.
“It looks like a very good candidate,” observed Tan. “Ser Tan?” A new voice, Marja Kashani, calling
“Yes,” agreed the shipmind. “Ocean world. from her own workspace.
Atmosphere dominated by molecular nitrogen and oxy- “Go ahead, Ser Kashani.”
gen, secondary components including argon, carbon “We may have a problem,” Kashani worried. “Routing
dioxide, neon. Liquid water oceans cover four-fifths of some low-orbit recon imagery, your channel 32.”
the surface. Large regions appear to be within the Tan opened the indicated channel. The recon drone
optimum climate range for humaniform life.” had scanned part of the surface with visible-light sen-
“Biochemistry?” inquired Tan. sors. A river delta, not far from one of the planet’s
“Indeterminate from this distance. The most likely smaller seas. Plenty of vegetation, so green it made
result is a type III variant of the chlorophyll- Tan’s heart leap.
adenosine triphosphate complex.” “What am I looking at here, Marja?”
Tan smiled. “Excellent.” “Here.” Lines and arcs appeared on the image, enhanc-
ing some of the visible contours. They blinked slowly,
marking out the features Kashani wanted Tan to see.

62 BASIC WORLDBUILDING

Straight lines. Right angles. similar features. It seems unlikely Kashani sent an indeterminacy
Sections of regular circles. that they could be the result of glyph. “There’s only one way to
non-sapient activity.” find out,” she said.
“Shipmind, are you getting
this?” “I don’t suppose they could Once the GM knows what kind of
be renegades from civilization,” campaign he wants to run, what his
“Yes, Ser Tan.” Tan mused. “They might be interplanetary or interstellar civiliza-
“Habitation? A native low- criminals breaking the migration tion is going to be like, and what tech-
technology civilization?” laws. We could have them nologies are going to be available, it’s
“Possibly,” said the shipmind. evicted and take the planet for time to draw a star map and begin cre-
“Ser Kashani has selected a ourselves . . .” ating worlds.
number of other images, showing

USING WORLDS

Every space campaign needs about. The local society is usually inhabitants will always risk the
worlds – possibly dozens or hundreds utopian – possibly very free, or tightly dangers of their environment.
of them! controlled in a way that doesn’t inter-
fere with most people’s enjoyment of Hostile worlds are useful as diffi-
The GM might design these worlds life. cult, but not insurmountable, chal-
purely through his own inspiration, lenges for PCs. Visitors will want to
with no random elements. Another Paradise worlds may seem an pay constant attention to their protec-
approach is to generate worlds at ran- unlikely place for adventure. If life is tive gear, or they will need to be strong
dom, and then develop setting ele- easy for everyone, there’s not much and smart to survive. Hostile worlds
ments and story plots around whatev- room for serious conflict. The GM also make good breeding ground
er the dice provide. The best approach might use a paradise world to make a worlds for certain kinds of tough
may be a combination of the two. The point about the idea of paradise. NPCs, and they make interesting
GM can design some worlds without Perhaps the world has a hidden flaw, a unique resource worlds as well.
using random elements, in order to terrible price that the inhabitants pay
support the plots he knows he will for their easy life. Paradise worlds also Hell World
want. Then he can use random design make good targets for a star-spanning
to fill in gaps (and to generate surpris- threat, of the kind that requires heroic The hell world is even harsher than
ing worlds that may suggest new plot PCs for its solution. the hostile world. Humans simply
arcs). The world-design sequences in can’t survive there without elaborate
this book will support any desired mix Hostile World technological measures, and even
of the two styles. then there’s constant danger. A space-
The hostile world is much less suit may be the least that’s required
DRAMATIC ROLES pleasant. It can be lived on, but only for survival. Since living on a hell
with difficulty, so inhabitants and vis- world requires constant control of
The most important decision the itors must struggle to survive. The the environment, a hell-world society
GM must make for each world is its environment on a hostile world usu- may itself be tightly controlled or dic-
role within the campaign. What kind ally has one parameter that makes tatorial. Alternatively, inhabitants
of story is going to be told with the human existence difficult – if it has may enjoy plenty of social freedom,
world as its backdrop? How will the many such parameters, it becomes a but everyone is carefully trained in
world’s physical and social environ- hell world. Technology may make the skills needed to maintain the
ment affect adventures that take place a hostile world quite livable, but environment.
there? What challenges will the world
pose to adventurers who visit?

Worlds in space-based SF have
filled a wide variety of roles. Some of
the most common archetypes are
described below.

Paradise World

A paradise world is a very pleasant
place, where environment and society
combine to make life easy and agree-
able. The climate is stable and congen-
ial, there is plenty of water and food,
and there are no environmental poi-
sons or dangerous animals to worry

BASIC WORLDBUILDING 63

A hell world may be inhabited by specific kind of character. The author vacations there. No matter what the
aliens who are comfortable there. If may want to portray a civilization reason, every sapient species and every
humans live on a hell world, they must built around a single facet of human known interplanetary civilization is
have a very good reason for putting up nature, or he may simply be making represented among the crossroads
with local conditions. Maybe it has a the point that environment affects world’s residents.
valuable resource or a special loca- society. In either case, the physical
tion. Or perhaps more pleasant worlds environment causes many of the peo- A crossroads world can be useful as
are so rare that some human colonists ple living on the world to fit a stereo- the backdrop for a campaign involv-
have to choose hell worlds if they want type. A breeding ground world usually ing a mixture of themes, such as a gen-
a place of their own to live. Hell has a harsh or limited environment, eralized “troubleshooters” game.
worlds might be home to splinter forcing its inhabitants to specialize in Adventures beginning there can be
groups, dissidents, or exiles as well. order to survive. On the other hand, driven by a variety of patrons, and can
pleasant worlds may be breeding take the party to any region of the set-
Changing World grounds for soft hedonists . . . ting. Alternatively, adventurers visiting
the crossroads world in search of
Some SF is set on worlds whose The GM can use a breeding information or work will never know
environment changes drastically over ground world as a backdrop for sto- quite what to expect.
time. Perhaps a planet is at the begin- ries of social adaptation: the PCs
ning (or end) of an ice age, is being adapt to the local society while they Exotic World
invaded by alien life, or simply hosts a experience the environment that gave
society that is being transformed by rise to that society. Breeding grounds The exotic world is the one that is
new technology. Or perhaps the world can also be used to provide home actually unique in known space –
is subject to regular, cyclic changes in worlds for specific character types. some feature, or the whole environ-
its environment. ment, is the result of strange events
Crossroads World that haven’t happened anywhere
A changing world is good for stories else. Perhaps it’s a world whose
emphasizing adaptability in individu- A crossroads world is special physical environment breaks all the
als or societies. If the changes are because everyone comes to visit. It may normal “laws” of planetary develop-
exceptional, local society will be be at a major junction of jump lines, it ment. Or maybe the local society is
caught off-guard, with no historical may be an economically dominant unusual, distinctive, and mysterious
precedents to draw on. A cyclic world that trades across half to outsiders.
change won’t be so surprising, unless the quadrant, it may be an imperial
the cycle is so long that local society capital, or it may simply be such an Even if the exotic world isn’t the
doesn’t retain any memory of past attractive world that everyone plans main focus for an adventure plot, its
cycles. In either case, understanding presence in the campaign can serve as
the coming changes is critical to the
business of prospering despite them.

Doomed World

One subset of the changing world
is the doomed world, the planet that is
soon to be destroyed, or at least ren-
dered incapable of supporting life.
Any person or society on the planet
faces certain death.

The doomed world is a good set-
ting for high-pressure stories, aimed
at averting or escaping from the com-
ing cataclysm. The disaster imposes a
fixed time limit. When facing almost-
certain death, ordinary individuals
can display extraordinary heroism or
villainy. Some stories in the tragic
mode have used catastrophes that
can’t be stopped or evaded, no matter
how hard the characters strive.

Breeding Ground
Worlds

Some science-fictional worlds are

conceived as breeding grounds for a

64 BASIC WORLDBUILDING

a reminder that the universe is a Common Origins,
strange and mysterious place. Common Cause
Exploration or first-contact cam-
paigns will find an exotic world a good When designing his campaign framework, the GM may consider
place to visit. requiring that all of the PC adventurers come from the same world. This
works best when the world in question has been developed in consider-
Exploited World able detail, supporting a broad variety of character concepts.

An exploited world is well connect- This requirement certainly constrains character development, but it
ed to interstellar society – perhaps a has several advantages. It makes it easy to build characters with shared
bit too well connected. Outside forces plot hooks; characters that grew up together, or have already worked
are using the world for their own ben- together in the past, will be easy to bring into the same adventure. It
efit, strip-mining local physical also tends to give the adventurers common motivations – if their shared
resources or abusing the inhabitants. home is in danger of internal conflict or an external threat, it becomes
easy to involve all of them in the epic adventures to follow!
An exploited world is a natural set-
ting for the conflict that drives adven- Historical World Invisible World
tures. If multiple factions are doing
the exploiting, they may hire adven- The historical world is, simply put, The invisible world isn’t actually
turers to take part in their competi- a world with a great deal of history. invisible – it’s just that although
tion. Sympathetic outsiders may want Perhaps it has been inhabited for a everyone knows that the world exists,
to help the native inhabitants improve very long time – or the ruins of lost civ- no one knows where it is. Perhaps it’s
their lot, possibly by encouraging ilizations are scattered across its sur- the long lost home of an alien (or
rebellion. A world that has been over- face. Scholars come to study the human!) race. It’s possible that some
exploited may be subject to disaster, as ancient remains, tourists come to of the information “everyone knows”
the economy or even the ecology col- gawk at the ruins, and pilgrims come about the world is incorrect, so that
lapse. Exploited worlds are a good to see the birthplace of their tradi- explorers searching for it always look
backdrop for black-and-white ethical tions. Local societies may be very in the wrong place. The world itself is
issues . . . although they can also be wise, or very decadent, or both. probably either uninhabited or
drawn in shades of gray if everyone is inhabited by people who take great
complicit in the exploitation. The historical world is a congenial care not to reveal their home to inter-
place for plots involving mysteries or stellar society.
Forbidden World elaborate social intrigues. They can
also be a playground for GMs who like An invisible world is a grand-scale
A common trope in SF is the for- to develop elaborate “back story” for mystery, suitable as the end point of
bidden world, the planet that is cut off their settings. a star-spanning quest. Just figuring
from foreign visitors. The forbidden out why the invisible world can’t be
world is almost unknown to the galaxy Home-Base World found can be a difficult puzzle in
at large – until a party of adventurers and of itself. Of course, once the
breaks the barrier and discovers The home-base world isn’t usually a invisible world is located, adventurers
what’s behind it . . . site for adventures. Instead, it serves may need to deal with angry inhabi-
as a place where adventurers can go tants . . . and there may be a very
There are a variety of reasons why between exploits. It’s usually a civi- good reason why the world has kept to
a world might be forbidden. An inter- lized, high-population world, where itself all this time!
stellar society might prohibit travel to visitors can obtain anything from a
certain worlds to reserve them for relaxing night on the town to a billion- Primitive World
future colonization, to protect back- credit spaceship. It can also be the
ward cultures from outside interfer- home of various patrons and contacts, Even in a space-faring society,
ence, to prevent a dangerous local ready to give adventurers jobs, favors, some inhabited worlds will be primi-
society from gaining access to space or useful information. tive. Perhaps they have just been colo-
travel, or to protect visitors from dan- nized, and the colonists don’t have
gerous local conditions. A world’s Almost any campaign setting can access to the full range of advanced
inhabitants might set their own home use at least one home-base world, technology. Perhaps the colonists
off limits out of hostility toward out- unless the PCs will spend all their time don’t want to use advanced technolo-
siders. In any case, a visit to a forbid- wandering the galaxy. A home-base gy. Or perhaps the world is the home
den world is likely to be dangerous, world doesn’t have to have any other of a race that hasn’t reached parity
although unique opportunities may be role in the setting, although a sudden with interstellar society.
found there. Sending the party to a threat to it may be a good way to moti-
forbidden world may be a good way to vate adventures.
throw them on their own resources –
they won’t be able to call for help or
logistical support the moment they get
into trouble!

BASIC WORLDBUILDING 65

If you see a whole thing – it seems that it’s synthesized, is nearly impossible (but
always beautiful. Planets, lives . . . But up see Unobtanium, p. 181). If a unique
close, a world’s all dirt and rocks. resource world exists, it will be the
natural site for high-stakes adventure,
– Ursula K. Le Guin as various factions struggle to control
or profit from the resource.
A primitive world is a good back- world appears ordinary and hospitable
drop for stories of culture clash. until the characters are committed, DEPTH
Space-faring visitors might use their and then a mystery makes itself OF DETAIL
resources to carve out a kingdom evident . . .
among the primitive natives . . . Aside from considering the role a
although they would do well to Synthetic World given world is to play, the designer
remember that primitive doesn’t mean should think about how much detail
stupid! Sophisticated natives may be Some worlds are artificial. At the he really needs. A world that is going
able to understand advanced technol- smallest scales, space habitats (p. 132) to dominate the campaign should like-
ogy, and overcome it, even if they can’t are synthetic worldlets. Science fiction ly be designed in greater detail than
duplicate it themselves. On the other has also portrayed whole planets that one the PCs will visit once on their
hand, visitors may be unwilling or were either built from scratch or dras- way to a more important place.
unable to bring their own tools, and tically remodeled. Some synthetic
will need to deal with the natives on worlds are far larger than planets (see Grand Stage
their own ground. Primitive worlds Megastructures, p. 133).
are usually isolated from interstellar Any planet is a world – the product
society, else they don’t stay primitive A synthetic world doesn’t have to of billions of years of history, operat-
for long. present any special plot elements; ing on landscapes hundreds or thou-
after all, the designers of such a world sands of miles in extent. Even an unin-
Puzzle World may be trying to mimic a natural envi- habited world can provide almost
ronment as far as possible. Of course, unlimited puzzles to solve and loca-
A puzzle world is one where local even a very naturalistic habitat may tions to explore. An inhabited world,
conditions present a mystery to visi- need special attention to continue its population in the millions or bil-
tors. Naturally, almost every alien working properly. An abandoned syn- lions, will have at least as much vari-
world is a “puzzle world” in that sense, thetic world may be a doomed world ety and depth as present-day Earth. A
but in some cases the mystery is criti- (p. 64) as well, unless someone regains world could be considered a “grand
cally important – visitors will find control over its environment. stage” for dozens of adventures, devel-
themselves unable to survive or suc- Naturally, a synthetic world can pres- oped in great detail and used over and
ceed unless they understand how the ent a variety of mysteries. Who built it, over again.
world works! Perhaps the physical and why? What technologies were
environment or the ecology has hid- used in its construction? Are any use- The most detailed levels of develop-
den pitfalls. Or perhaps local society ful artifacts still there to be found? ment are useful for a world that is
has strange features that must be going to dominate the campaign. The
understood if visitors are to accom- Unique Resource World adventurers will spend most of their
plish their goals. time on such a world, and some of
A world can be critically important them may claim it as their home.
A puzzle world presents a specific if some resource is available there but Conflicts centering on the world will
kind of challenge to its visitors. nowhere else. Even a simple luxury be the most important factor driving
Adventures on a puzzle world are not item will bring commercial and gov- each adventure, even those that take
usually motivated by the puzzle itself, ernment attention if it can be found place elsewhere in the galaxy. Other
unless the adventurers are explorers or nowhere else in the galaxy. A unique worlds may well exist in the setting,
anthropologists whose job is to solve resource that is critical to the func- but the dominant world will be the
puzzles! Instead, the GM should see to tioning of interstellar civilization will most fully developed.
it that adventurers have something be fought over by everyone!
they really want to do (survive, get off The GM should use the world-
the planet, make a fortune) and then Unique resources are most likely to design rules in this book as a starting
make their goal contingent on solving appear in space-operatic universes. In point for developing such a world.
the puzzle. One way to surprise players a realistic setting, a resource that Following this, he might design maps
is to make the puzzle a subtle one. The occurs in only one place in the for the world and for individual
galaxy, and that can’t be analyzed or regions, work out the details of dis-
tinctive regional societies, design
native animal species and build local
ecologies, draw up local NPCs, and so
on. The history of the world might be
worth developing in detail; see
GURPS Infinite Worlds for tools for
developing historical timelines.

66 BASIC WORLDBUILDING

Repeated Visits development. Television series have in the design sequence can be skipped
often conveyed the “alien world” idea if those details aren’t likely to have any
Sometimes a campaign won’t be with actors on a sound stage, support- effect on the planned adventure. The
dominated by any single world, but ed by nothing more than a few fake GM may need nothing more than a
contains worlds to which travelers will boulders and an oddly colored back- general idea of the planet’s environ-
frequently return. Such worlds might drop to suggest an unearthly sky. ment, along with one or two specific
be military outposts that provide locations. Naturally, a sound-stage
bases for adventure, high-population A sound-stage world can easily be world can be developed further if the
centers of trade, or homeworlds where developed using the world-design GM or players take an interest in it!
PCs usually begin their adventures. rules in this book. Indeed, many steps

A world that’s subject to repeated Depth of Realism
visits should be developed to a moder-
ate level of detail. Even if the world is Another consideration in world design is how much realism the GM
a home base (p. 65) where action wants to inject into his setting. Realism in setting design isn’t an
rarely takes place, space travelers will absolute virtue; what’s necessary is plausibility. The audience of the
want to find employers, equip them- story, film, or roleplaying session wants to be able to suspend disbelief
selves, seek information, or just relax and enjoy immersion in the flow of events. Each audience will have its
there. The GM will want to be able to own standards, and every subgenre of science fiction has its own
describe the backdrop for such activi- requirements. A world design that fits perfectly into a space-operatic
ties. The world-design rules in this universe might be nonsensical in a high-realism “hard SF” setting, and
book can be used to generate the over- vice versa.
all environment for such a world.
After that, the GM can produce what- Very few SF authors ignore realism in their world design, but some
ever local details or NPCs are neces- pay more attention to it than others. A good author or GM will be con-
sary to support the world’s purpose in cerned with characters and story. Some authors (notably Poul Anderson
the campaign. and Hal Clement) have made a fine art of using rigorously plausible and
distinctive settings to drive their stories – but other approaches are just
Sound Stage as effective.

A world that is only going to be vis- In general, as with other discussions of real-world science and tech-
ited once (even as the focus of an nology in this book, the world-design rules are intended as tools for you
adventure) can often be developed to use when producing the space setting you want. Use, rewrite, or
to a very low level of detail. This could ignore them to taste!
be called the “sound stage” level of

MAPPING THE GALAXY

A broad and ample road, whose dust other that has been colonized by star systems are to be included, the
is gold, humans. A campaign on the interstel- GM may wish to arrange them in
lar or galactic scale can easily include accordance with what’s known about
And pavement stars, as stars to thee hundreds or even thousands of the large-scale structure of the galaxy.
appear worlds. Choosing a useful scale is one
of the fundamental decisions to make Drawing the Map
Seen in the galaxy, that milky way in any interstellar setting; see
Which nightly as a circling zone Choosing a Preferred Scale (p. 72) for The type of map to draw depends
thou seest some suggestions. on the scope of your campaign,
Powder’d with stars. and especially on the type of interstel-
The choice will depend on the lar travel that is available in your
– John Milton, Paradise Lost, available space-travel technology; if universe.
Book VII FTL is not available, no one will have
time to visit many worlds. Another If starships will move by
Worlds need a context, a map of consideration is the campaign frame- “jumplines” or a similar system, space
the overall campaign setting to which work. If the GM plans to spend a lot of can be mapped by drawing the
GM and players can refer. time with each world, he won’t need jumplines. The actual distance
very many. On the other hand, a pica- between two stars in space may be
How Many Worlds? resque campaign will need many irrelevant, and anything that isn’t on a
worlds for adventurers to visit. jumpline can be ignored. If jumpline
The GM should consider how many travel is instantaneous, only the con-
distinct worlds he will need for his Naturally, a campaign set in a sin- nections need to be drawn and the
campaign. Many space-oriented games gle star system won’t need much atten- map can be quite abstract. Otherwise,
will use only one star system – perhaps tion to astronomical detail. If many
our own solar system, perhaps some

BASIC WORLDBUILDING 67

the amount of time it takes to traverse sign, followed by its distance above universes that are visible for millions
each connection must be indicated the plane in parsecs. A star “below” of parsecs in every direction.
somehow. A jumpline map may also the plane would be mapped with a “-”
include information about how long it sign and its distance from the plane. Galaxies are much more closely
takes for a ship to travel from each Thus, if Lestrade’s Star lies four par- packed, relative to their size, than are
jump point to a nearby world or other secs below the reference plane, it stars within a single galaxy. Galaxies
place of interest. would be noted on the map with (-4). often interact. The largest ones seem
to have formed by absorbing their
If FTL travel times depend on the To find the distance between two smaller neighbors, a process that con-
normal-space distance between stars, stars when using three-dimensional tinues to the present day. Meanwhile,
then a scale map of the campaign area coordinates, apply the Pythagorean even full-sized galaxies sometimes
will be needed. If starships move formula: pass close to (or directly through!)
through normal space, then possible each other, distorting their shapes and
hazards like nebulae should be D = Square root of (X2 + Y2 + Z2) affecting one another’s evolution.
mapped. If starships move through
hyperspace, then normal-space phe- Here, D is the total distance Galaxies normally come in three
nomena between stars can probably between the two stars in parsecs, different categories: elliptical, spiral,
be ignored. Of course, if there are “ter- while X, Y, and Z are the distance and irregular. Each of these has signif-
rain features” in hyperspace that between them along each of the three icantly different properties.
might slow travel or make it more axes.
dangerous, those will need to be Elliptical galaxies have the shape of
mapped! ASTRONOMICAL a more or less elongated sphere. A few
FEATURES elliptical galaxies (the lenticular galax-
Mapping space is sometimes ies) show the beginnings of a central
inconvenient because paper maps are Campaign maps may include disk, and may represent a transitional
flat but space isn’t. The GM may astronomical features at a variety of type between elliptical and spiral
choose to ignore this, placing all of his different scales. galaxies.
star systems on the same plane. It’s
more realistic to use a three-dimen- Galaxies Elliptical galaxies vary tremen-
sional grid system. The map surface dously in size. Small dwarf ellipticals
then represents a convenient plane – Galaxies are the building blocks of are only a few hundred parsecs across
usually either the plane of the galactic the (visible) universe. The vast majori- and may contain only a few million
disk, or a plane defined by Earth’s ty of the universe’s stars are located stars. The largest elliptical galaxies are
equator. A star “above” the reference within galaxies, forming island hundreds of thousands of parsecs
plane would be mapped with a “+” across and contain many trillions of
stars. These huge elliptical galaxies,
Distances and Scales hundreds of times as large as our own
galaxy, are among the largest objects
Astronomical distances aren’t conveniently measured in miles. in the universe.
Although this book will refer to miles in some cases, it normally uses
several different units to measure distances on different scales. Elliptical galaxies have an undiffer-
entiated shape because they don’t
The Earth diameter will sometimes be used in this book to measure have a strongly preferred direction of
the size of worlds and the distance from worlds to their satellites. rotation. Component stars may orbit
Astronomers normally don’t use this unit, but it will make some of the the galaxy’s center of mass in a wide
world-building calculations more convenient. Earth’s diameter at the variety of directions and speeds. Many
equator is about 7,930 miles. elliptical galaxies are relatively barren
places, with little or no new star for-
The astronomical unit (AU) is the standard unit used in this book to mation under way.
measure interplanetary distances. One AU is equal to the average dis-
tance between Earth and the sun, about 11,730 Earth diameters or 93 Spiral galaxies have a strongly flat-
million miles. tened shape, with much of their visible
matter restricted to a galactic disk.
The light-year (ly) is equal to the distance light travels in the vacuum Spiral galaxies usually have a very
of space in the course of one Earth year. It is equal to about 63,000 AU obvious structure, with most of the
or 5.9 trillion miles. This book doesn’t use the light-year often, but it is visible stars arranged in a set of spiral
a common measure of distance in astronomy and in science fiction. arms. Spiral galaxies are much less
variable in size than elliptical galaxies.
The parsec (pc) is the standard unit used in this book to measure Most spiral galaxies are between 5,000
interstellar distances. Astronomers measure the distance to a nearby and 50,000 parsecs across, and have
star by observing its parallax, its apparent angle of motion across a base- between a billion and a trillion stars.
line of 1 AU. If the parallax is equal to exactly one second of arc, then
the star is one parsec away. One parsec is equal to 3.26 light-years, or to A spiral galaxy’s structure forms
about 206,000 AU. because it rotates strongly in a specif-
ic direction. Most of the stars of the
disk revolve in the same direction, in
more-or-less circular orbits around
the galaxy’s center of mass. Waves of

68 BASIC WORLDBUILDING

denser structure occur within the disk,
forming the spiral arms. The arms
tend to concentrate interstellar gas
and dust, providing a good environ-
ment for the formation of new stars.

As the name suggests, irregular
galaxies are unbalanced in shape,
although they often exhibit a few hints
of spiral structure – a vague spiral
arm, or a dense “bar” that is often dis-
placed from the galaxy’s center of
mass. Irregular galaxies vary in size,
although they tend not to be very
large. They are usually between 1,000
and 10,000 parsecs in diameter,
and have between 100 million and 10
billion stars.

Bigger Than Galaxies that will be used in this book for inter- The galactic disk is embedded in
stellar mapping. One direction perpen- the galactic halo, a spherical structure
Galaxies are not distributed ran- dicular to the plane of the disk is called that takes up most of the galaxy’s vol-
domly through the universe. Almost galactic north and points “above” the ume. The halo contains very little gas
all galaxies are found in groups or plane. The opposite direction is galac- or dust, and only a few percent of the
clusters. A group of galaxies is smaller, tic south and points “below” the plane. galaxy’s stars. The stars of the halo are
usually with no more than 30 member A line on the plane of the disk passing old and dim, many of them orbiting
galaxies, about 0.2-1.5 million parsecs through the galactic core defines the the core at wide angles to the plane of
across. A cluster is usually larger, con- directions of coreward (toward the the disk; such stars punch through the
taining up to several hundred galaxies core) and rimward (away from the disk twice in the course of each long
in a space about 1.5-3 million parsecs core). Finally, within the disk plane but orbit. Strangely, the halo appears to
across. perpendicular to the coreward- contain the majority of the galaxy’s
rimward line, another line defines the mass, which must be in the form of
Groups and clusters of galaxies are directions of spinward (in the direction undetectable “dark matter.”
themselves organized into superclus- of galactic rotation) and trailing (oppo-
ters. On the largest scale, the universe site the direction of rotation). The halo is densest toward the cen-
is full of galactic associations, ter of the galaxy, where it shades into
arranged in clumps and sheets as if on Much of the disk’s matter falls in the galactic core. This is a flattened
the surface of great “bubbles” of the spiral arms, long structures that (if bulge, about 1,800 parsecs thick. The
empty space. These voids are almost looking “down” on the disk from core is somewhat elongated, making
empty of matter, and are usually about galactic north) curve counterclock- our galaxy a moderate example of a
100-400 million parsecs across. The wise as they move from the core out to “barred” spiral. The best current
voids appear to be distributed fairly the fringes. The spiral arms are not model of the galactic bar makes it
evenly through the universe. Current smooth curves, forming a regular pat- about 1,800 parsecs wide and 4,500
cosmological theory has yet to explain tern. The densest parts of the arms fall parsecs long, with its long axis pointed
why the universe is arranged this way! into a series of short, discontinuous in the general direction of Earth. The
arcs that piece together to form an galactic core is composed of older
Galactic Structure overall spiral shape. There are two stars, with a few clusters of bright
major spiral arms, and a number of young ones. It is extremely dense in its
Our own galaxy is a very typical shorter arcs that could be considered inner regions, with many stars per
spiral galaxy, in shape, size, and struc- partial arms. cubic parsec.
ture. Its visible disk is about 30,000
parsecs across.

The galaxy’s busiest region is the
galactic disk, a flat structure in which
most of the nebulae and bright young
stars are found. Since it’s the brightest
stars that define the visible shape of
the galaxy, the disk is its most promi-
nent feature. The disk is about 600
parsecs thick, becoming thicker
toward the galactic core.

The galactic disk establishes a
three-dimensional system of directions

BASIC WORLDBUILDING 69

Current observations indicate that open clusters in Earth’s galactic neigh- the galactic halo, a star might be
Earth is about 30 parsecs above the borhood, most notably the Ursa Major dozens of parsecs from its nearest
plane of the galactic disk, about 7,700 Moving Cluster (centered about 23 neighbor.
parsecs from the center of the galaxy. parsecs away) and the Hyades (cen-
Sol is located in what astronomers call tered about 45 parsecs away). Most settings involving interstel-
the Local Arm, one of the galaxy’s two lar travel will focus on the region of
major spiral arms. This arm is about Associations are groups of stars the galaxy around Sol, or on a similar
1,800 parsecs across, and winds that have dispersed from their original region elsewhere in the galaxy. In this
halfway around the galaxy from core open clusters, but are still located region, there is about one star system
to fringes. The centerline of the Local close together on the galactic scale, for every 10-15 cubic parsecs. About
Arm passes about 100 parsecs and have similar orbits around the half of all star systems actually con-
rimward of Sol, so Earth is fairly close galactic core. Like open clusters, they tain two (or more) stars, each of
to the heart of the arm. This is no are found only in the galactic disk. which has some chance of associated
more than coincidence; Sol and Earth Associations tend to be young – after a planets.
are simply “passing through” the few orbits around the core, they dis-
region on their own orbit around the perse so far as to be impossible to THE FREQUENCY
galactic core. identify. Many associations are tied to OF WORLDS
well-defined open clusters, indicating
Galactic Features a common origin; both the Ursa Major There are about 400 billion stars in
cluster and the Hyades have their own our galaxy, and it seems likely that at
A closer look at the galaxy reveals a associations, which include many of least one-third of them (about 130 bil-
variety of small-scale features. the bright stars visible in Earth’s sky. lion stars) have planets. How many of
Some of the very youngest associa- these are home to intelligent life? How
Globular clusters are dense spheri- tions are still dominated by super- many might be suitable for coloniza-
cal clusters of stars. They are usually bright blue-white stars; these OB asso- tion? It’s anyone’s guess. All of our esti-
50-100 parsecs in diameter, and can ciations are among the galaxy’s most mates are based on unproven assump-
contain up to hundreds of thousands prominent small-scale features. The tions. That situation may change in
of stars. Globular clusters are very old, closest OB association to Earth is cen- the coming years, as better space tele-
10 billion years or more. They formed tered about 160 parsecs away. scopes continue to give us more infor-
even before the galactic disk was well- mation about other solar systems. For
established; most of them remain in Molecular clouds or dark nebulae now, even a GM interested in realism
the galactic halo, where they follow are clouds of interstellar hydrogen is free to make useful worlds as com-
very wide orbits around the galactic interspersed with heavier elements mon as he likes.
core. Some of the younger ones may and dust grains. They are much
have been captured from others by denser than the normal interstellar It’s possible that interstellar civi-
our galaxy. The stars in the core of a medium. When they are parsecs thick, lizations will be in the habit of colo-
globular cluster may be only light- they can obscure most or all of the nizing and using every star system, no
weeks apart, and close encounters light from stars behind them, giving matter how inhospitable or barren.
among them are common. Stars in a the appearance of dark “holes” in the Unless this is the case, many stars sim-
globular cluster are very unlikely to sky. On the other hand, when they are ply won’t be worth bothering with.
have stable, life-bearing planets. illuminated by bright nearby stars, Even under a generous estimate,
Globular clusters are rare – the near- they can shine in vast billows and trac- pleasant Earthlike worlds are out-
est one to Earth is about 2,000 parsecs eries by the reflected light. numbered dozens to one by barren
away. balls of rock or ice.
Molecular clouds are star nurs-
Open clusters are very common eries, places where new stars are Unless a campaign map covers a
star groups, smaller than globular formed. They can be of almost any region with only a few dozen stars in
clusters and located solely in the size; the smallest ones are less than a it, the GM should probably not try to
galactic disk. An open cluster is usual- parsec across, while great molecular- map every star, or even every margin-
ly two to 15 parsecs in diameter, and cloud complexes like the Orion ally habitable system. There are sim-
can contain up to several thousand Nebula can be 50 parsecs or more in ply too many. The GM can concentrate
stars. These stars all formed together diameter. Molecular clouds can be on locating the major star systems
and have since moved through the important in a campaign if they that will play a significant role in his
galaxy as one, mutually bound by obscure stars or hinder interstellar campaign, just as the publisher of a
gravity. Open clusters can be any age, travel. road atlas only selects the most impor-
although very old ones are quite rare. tant cities to place on a national map.
Most are less than 200 million years Distribution of Stars
old, and almost none are older than Alien Homeworlds
two billion years. Stars in an open The number of stars in a unit vol-
cluster may have planets, if they are ume of the galaxy’s space varies wide- Many science-fiction universes are
old enough and have managed to ly. In the galactic core or the heart of a busy, chatty places. They’re full of
avoid close encounters with other globular cluster, stars will be packed multiple alien species, all at about the
cluster members. There are several so tightly that only a few thousand AU same level of development, permitting
separate them. In the deep fringes of

70 BASIC WORLDBUILDING

Who are we? We find that we live on an insignificant Of course, the evidence is again
planet of a humdrum star lost in a galaxy tucked away in extremely sketchy, and the GM
some forgotten corner of a universe in which there are far should feel free to place this frequen-
more galaxies than people. cy wherever he wishes. After all,
complex (but stupid) living creatures
– Carl Sagan are almost impossible to detect at
interstellar distances. Meanwhile,
them to talk to (and shoot at) each galaxy might be a dangerous place for planets with complex life – but with-
other in dramatically interesting ways. young civilizations who foolishly out native intelligence – are likely to
Unfortunately, the real universe does- broadcast their existence! be superb places for colonization.
n’t appear to be so densely populated.
Worlds Bearing Interesting
Most scientists agree that intelli- Complex Life Barren Worlds
gent, technologically advanced life
must be a rare phenomenon in the If intelligence seems rare, life is Given the above, 90% or more of
universe. There is no clear-cut evi- probably very common. Although all star systems will be barren, con-
dence for past visits of alien intelli- alien life has yet to be unambiguously taining no complex life and probably
gence to Earth. Astronomers have discovered, astronomers have found little else to set them apart from one
never detected an unambiguous signal its chemical building blocks in many another. Still, even if a star system
from another world. We see no sign of surprising places – in the heart of has no complex life of its own, it
interstellar-scale engineering projects, meteorites, in the atmospheres of may be worth visiting, exploring, and
such as might be mounted by other planets, even in the vast molecu- colonizing.
advanced civilizations. The universe lar clouds found in deep interstellar
appears to be a quiet place. space. On Earth, primitive life seems If interstellar travel is expensive,
to have begun almost as soon as it difficult, or slow, then a civilization
The dearth of evidence for aliens could. Today, life can be found in some may colonize every star system as it
places a limit on the frequency with of Earth’s most hostile environments. expands. An interstellar society that
which they are likely to exist in the has to make a huge investment in
universe. If a communicative, techno- Of course, for most of Earth’s histo- order to reach even a single new world
logically advanced alien species exist- ry, life has been very simple: bacterial can’t afford to be choosy. Of course,
ed within 100 light-years of Earth, we mats, viruses, and algae. Scientists even a barren star system is coloniz-
would have detected it by now. This searching for life elsewhere in our able with advanced technology.
suggests that such species don’t own solar system expect to find simi- Energy can be derived from fusion
appear more often than about once in lar simple forms, not complex plants power or the primary star. Useful
10,000 star systems. and animals. Explorers may find com- materials can be mined, minerals and
parable situations on the worlds of metals from the barren worlds, water
Still, the evidence is extremely other stars – many worlds with primi- and other volatiles from the icy outer
incomplete, and there’s little to pre- tive life, few with complex species. system. If a convenient planet isn’t
vent a GM from setting the frequency available, habitats can be carved out
of alien intelligence at any level he Astronomers have defined a set of of asteroids or other pieces of space
wants. In some settings, intelligence is conditions for stars that are likely to debris (see Macro-life, p. 191). Thus
vanishingly rare and human explorers have Earthlike worlds, home to com- even the least promising star system
never find aliens. In others intelli- plex living organisms. A star must be can become a thriving colony, if the
gence is common, appearing around stable and long-lived. It must not be colonists have no choice.
many (or even most) stars. too bright, as the brightest stars rarely
have planets. It must not be so dim If interstellar travel is easy, the
When designing a densely-populat- that its planets are too cold for com- most useless star systems will proba-
ed universe, the GM may want to plex life. It must not be too old, as the bly be visited once and then ignored.
develop reasons why the sky seems so oldest stars are metal-poor and may Even in this case, some barren star
quiet to us today. Perhaps Earth is in not have planets. It must not be too systems may be colonized by people
the midst of a reserved space in the young, as it appears to take billions of who simply want to get away from civ-
galaxy, a region where colonization is years for complex life to evolve. It ilization. Dissident or refugee groups
forbidden. Perhaps intelligence is must not be tied to a partner star may set up camp in a barren star sys-
common but advanced technology is whose gravitational influence would tem in order to escape their enemies
rare, so that most species never make an Earthlike world’s orbit unsta- and live as they please.
progress beyond a primitive state. ble. Given all these conditions, it
Perhaps advanced civilizations are seems unlikely that more than 10% of Meanwhile, some barren systems
common, but the vast majority of all star systems will shelter complex will be colonized because they yield
them simply don’t bother exploring life. A more realistic estimate might useful resources: unusual organic
with telescopes or starships. Or per- place the number at 3% to 5%. compounds, industrial metals,
haps there is a very good reason for radioactives, the mysterious crystals
everyone to be keeping quiet . . . the used in starship power plants, and so
on. Even after the resource runs out,
an already-established community

BASIC WORLDBUILDING 71

may remain in place. Another possi- where interstellar travel is fast and The GM should decide how many
bility is the scientific colony, estab- easy – why colonize this particular barren-but-interesting worlds will be
lished as a base for the study of some star, rather than one of the 100 other in his universe for each world bearing
unusual phenomenon in nearby barren systems within easy travel dis- complex life. If the ratio is high,
space. tance? At the other extreme, if FTL interstellar travelers will often be vis-
travel takes place along fixed worm- iting small outposts and hardscrabble
Finally, a star system may be colo- holes or jumplines, the map will con- colonies on barren worlds. If the ratio
nized for its location. Civilizations tain many choke points, systems that is low, most adventures will take
will establish outposts as advance may have no intrinsic value but place on the garden worlds, with
bases, or to control places where which are natural waypoints for their higher populations and complex
unusual amounts of starship traffic travel. ecosystems.
pass. This is less likely in a universe

Choosing a Preferred Scale

The choice of scale for an interstellar setting is one of points is about 1.12 ¥ cube root of (V/N). (This assumes
the most fundamental decisions the GM must make. Is that the region of space has a simple shape, but it does-
the setting going to be vast, covering a significant part of n’t have to be a sphere – a cubic volume that can conve-
the whole galaxy? Or is it going to be a tiny chip of niently be drawn on standard graph paper will do.)
explored space, including no more than a few star sys-
tems? This choice affects not only the number of worlds The first formula is useful when deciding how big
that might fall onto the campaign map, but also the the space a campaign map covers will need to be,
selection of FTL and other technology assumptions (see assuming that stars are evenly distributed within the
Chapters 2 and 3). mapped region. The second is useful for determining
the average travel time between two neighboring worlds
The GM can get an idea of his preferred scale by on the map.
deciding how many star systems play host to intelligent
life, and how many have given rise to complex but unin- For example, suppose the GM assumes that intelli-
telligent life. Then he can decide how many of each kind gent alien life is found once in about 10,000 star sys-
of world he wants to have in his setting. Along with an tems, and that he wants to have six starfaring species in
assumption about the density of stars in space, this can his campaign. This suggests about 60,000 star systems
give the volume of the campaign map. In the neighbor- within the space covered by the campaign map. At
hood of Sol, there is about one star system for every 12.5 about one star system per 12.5 cubic parsecs, the map
cubic parsecs; different densities can be assumed in will need to cover about 60,000 ¥ 12.5 = 750,000 cubic
other regions of the galaxy. parsecs.

Once the scale is selected, the GM can consider the The GM decides that he will use a spherical shape for
typical speed of interstellar travel. How long can an his campaign setting. Applying the formula for the
adventurer expect to take to travel from one world to the sphere’s radius, he finds that the campaign map will
next or from the center of the campaign map to its need to cover a sphere with a radius of about 0.62 ¥ cube
edges? Unless many adventures are likely to take place root of (750,000) = 56.3 parsecs. A map covering a
on board ship, travel times between worlds should prob- sphere with a radius of about 60 parsecs should be
ably not be more than a few weeks. If there is regular enough.
contact between the core and the fringes of the cam-
paign setting, the longest trip shouldn’t take more than The GM then decides that this sphere will include
a year or so (unless years-long voyages are typical for about 200 interesting worlds, most of which won’t be
the setting, as in many STL-based universes). placed until he needs them. How far will each world be
from its neighbors?
Playing With Shapes
Applying the formula for average distance, the GM
When deciding on the scale of an interstellar cam- computes a distance of 1.12 ¥ cube root of (750,000/200)
paign, the GM can make use of a couple of simple math- = 17.4 parsecs. This distance should be typical for voy-
ematical formulae. ages from one world to the next in the course of the
campaign. If such a voyage is expected to take about a
Given a sphere of volume V, then the radius of the week, then the typical FTL speed for a starship will be
sphere (the distance from its center to its surface) is about 17.4/7 = 2.5 parsecs/day. At that speed, a voyage
about 0.62 ¥ cube root of V. Given a cube of volume V, from the center of the campaign map to its edge will
then the length of each face of the cube is exactly cube take about 60/2.5 = 24 days.
root of V.
Meanwhile, the 60,000 stars on the map will include
Given a region of space of volume V, and some num- several thousand with life-bearing worlds, and tens of
ber of points N distributed at random inside that region, thousands of barren systems. Clearly, the GM won’t
then the average distance between two neighboring need every one of these star systems – which is a good
thing, as he can’t even begin to draw every one on his
map!

72 BASIC WORLDBUILDING

WORLD DESIGN SEQUENCE

Gummidgy was blue on blue under (and have a place to show a color map Those steps will permit the GM to gen-
a broken layer of white, with a diminu- of your world, if you wish), download erate the astronomical context for
tive moon showing behind an arc of the Planetary Record Sheet for free at each world generated using the basic
horizon. Very Earthlike but with none www.sjgames.com/gurps/books/space/. design system. The advanced system
of the signs that mark Earth: no yellow can also be used to randomly generate
glow of sprawling cities on the dark The first 14 steps, presented in this whole star systems from scratch. Used
side, no tracery of broken freeways chapter, constitute a “basic” world- in full, the advanced system will pro-
across the day. A nice-looking world, building system that will help the GM vide dozens of worlds per star system
from up here. Unspoiled. design one world. The astronomical in realistic detail. The results will be
context for each world (its primary suitable for hard-SF settings, especial-
– Larry Niven, “Grendel” star, any moons it might have, the ly those in which many adventures
presence of other planets) is ignored. take place in space or in which inter-
The following material presents a The GM can design a complete cam- planetary travel is common.
system for designing worlds, star sys- paign setting using this chapter,
tems, and whole regions of the galaxy although it will be a setting in which The system uses die-roll tables to
for a space-based setting. Such a sys- only one world in each star system is present various options at each step.
tem depends on both the current state interesting, and the focus of any The GM should use these tables as he
of scientific knowledge, and on the adventure is expected to be down on pleases He may simply choose an
dramatic requirements of the setting. that world’s surface. This isn’t as option without rolling dice, in which
Unfortunately for the game designer, restrictive as it sounds. Many well- case the table and any die-roll modi-
both of those factors are subject to known science-fiction universes have fiers can be used simply to help decide
change! paid almost no attention to astronom- what options are more likely than oth-
ical context. ers. Or he can roll the dice as indicat-
The present day is a time of great ed and accept the result.
progress is astronomy and astro- The remaining steps (some of
physics. Our understanding of how which recapitulate the first 14) are Many of the tables help to generate
planets form and evolve is very differ- presented as an advanced world- various physical measurements for a
ent today from what it was even a building system in the next chapter. world and its surface environment:
decade ago. A decade from now it will
doubtless be different again.

Meanwhile, the role of scientific
realism varies from setting to setting.
A GM who wants a hard-SF feel may
map the stars with great attention to
astronomical realism. On the other
hand, a GM who wants a Golden Age
feel for his spaceship-and-blaster epic
will want to run off a dozen worlds to
suit his dramatic needs, and won’t
care about meticulous realism.

No fixed world-design system will
fit every need, or remain in accord
with the best scientific understanding
for very long. The system in this book
is designed to be flexible. As present-
ed, the system assumes a fairly high
degree of realism according to cur-
rent scientific research. However,
each step of the process will include
explanatory material designed to help
the GM alter the system to fit his
needs.

OVERVIEW

The world design system is pre-
sented in a series of concrete steps,
organizing the process of designing a
world in a logical progression. To
record the specifics of your design

BASIC WORLDBUILDING 73

mass, surface gravity, atmospheric Example: To demonstrate the STEP 2:
pressure, surface temperature, and so world-building rules, we will use them WORLD TYPE
on. Real-world physical measure- to generate a world and star system
ments don’t fall onto discrete values for a GURPS Space campaign. The planetographers were still puz-
that can conveniently be put in a table! zling about Diomedes. It didn’t fall into
To add local color, the GM may want After reviewing the options in either of the standard types, the small
to impose minor variations on these Chapter 1, the GM has decided to hard ball like Earth or Mars, or the gas
measurements from one world to the build a high-powered space-opera giant with a collapsed core like Jupiter
next. To do this, it is usually accept- universe. He decides that humans or 61 Cygni C. It was intermediate, with
able to choose and record a value have had FTL travel for thousands a mass of 4.75 Earths; but its overall
close to the one given by a table (i.e. of years, and have spread throughout density was only half as much. This
closer to that value than to the one on a large region of the galaxy. was due to the nearly total absence of
either side). There are lots of alien races, some all elements beyond calcium.
of them derived from humanity
Both basic and advanced systems by way of genetic engineering. There was one sister freak, uninhab-
require some computations that can The most important interstellar itable; the remaining planets were more
easily be performed using a hand cal- society in the setting is an Empire or less normal giants, the sun a G8
culator. They involve nothing more (p. 197) dominated by a hereditary dwarf not very different from other stars
complex than raising a number to a aristocracy. of that size and temperature . . .
small exponent, or taking the square,
cube, or fourth root of a number. In the example, the GM wishes to – Poul Anderson,
design a frontier planet, distant from The Man Who Counts
STEP 1: CONCEPT any major worlds and largely cut off
from the main trade routes. After In this step, the world’s type is
To begin the process of world thinking about a concept, he decides determined. A world type is an overall
design, the GM should decide on a that the world (named Haven) will be class of worlds, all of which have a
concept for the world. The concept an invisible world (p. 65), settled by similar surface environment. The con-
should be a sentence or short para- various dissidents and renegades cept of world type plays a very large
graph describing the most important who are hiding from imperial role in the world design system.
features of the world. The GM should authority. He further decides that
make a note of any dramatic role (p. Haven isn’t on imperial maps In particular, a world’s type
63) that he wants the world to fill. He because its star system is in the depends on what volatiles are avail-
should also jot down notes about any midst of a dense star cluster that’s able on the world’s surface. Volatiles
adventure plots that are likely to be difficult for FTL navigators to nego- are chemical compounds with low
attached to the world. Only if the GM tiate. He has no preferences about melting and boiling points that make
intends to design the world entirely at Haven’s surface environment, and up the bulk of a planet’s atmosphere
random should he skip this step. will use the random tables and his and hydrosphere (if any). Hydrogen,
own inspiration to develop that. nitrogen, oxygen, water vapor, carbon
dioxide, and a number of other famil-
iar compounds are all volatiles.

74 BASIC WORLDBUILDING

A world’s type is normally solar system include Mercury and moons located on the outer fringes of
described with two terms. One gives Earth’s Moon. a star system. There are no examples
the general size of the world: Tiny, of this kind of world in our solar
Small, Standard, or Large. Each of Tiny (Sulfur): This world type rep- system.
these expands into two to six subtypes, resents certain gas-giant moons that
usually tied to local temperature, experience a tremendous amount of Small (Ice): The world is large
which further define conditions on the volcanic activity. Tiny (Sulfur) worlds enough to hold onto an atmosphere,
world’s surface. undergo a great deal of tidal “flexing” usually composed primarily of nitro-
in the course of their orbit, due to the gen with a few more complex com-
Tiny Worlds gravitational influences of the gas pounds in the mix. It is cold enough to
giant and its other large moons. This have a great deal of water ice and other
A Tiny world is so small that it can- flexing effect heats the interior of the frozen volatiles. It may even have liq-
not retain a significant atmosphere, moon, encouraging volcanism. Most uid “oceans,” although these are very
no matter how far from its primary of the lighter volatiles that are released unlikely to be composed of water –
star it is located. The following Tiny this way escape to space, while sulfur they may be full of hydrocarbons or
world types are available. and sulfur compounds are concentrat- other odd substances. Most Small (Ice)
ed on the surface. Such a world is like- worlds are very large moons orbiting
Tiny (Ice): The world is too small to ly to be a very dangerous place to visit. gas giant planets. The sole example of
retain significant atmosphere, but it is The sole example in our own solar sys- a Small (Ice) world in our own solar
cold enough that it can have rich tem is Jupiter’s moon Io. system is Saturn’s moon Titan.
deposits of water ice and similar
frozen volatiles. Internal heat due to Small Worlds Small (Rock): The world is large
radioactive deposits or tidal flexing enough to hold onto an atmosphere,
can melt some of the subsurface ice, A Small world is large enough to although that atmosphere is likely to
possibly forming a vast “ocean” of liq- retain molecular nitrogen, one of the be very thin. It is not large enough to
uid water. Most Tiny (Ice) worlds are most common volatile compounds retain water vapor, and it is too warm
actually large moons orbiting gas and a major component of many for the bulk of its surface water to
giant planets. Examples in our own planetary atmospheres. As a result, a remain frozen. As a result, any water
solar system include Jupiter’s moons Small world often has a substantial that the world originally had has
Callisto or Europa. atmosphere. However, it isn’t large escaped to space, perhaps leaving
enough to retain water vapor in its behind a few buried deposits of water
Tiny (Rock): The world is too small atmosphere, so unless all the water is ice. The sole example of a Small
to retain significant atmosphere, and frozen out on the world’s surface it (Rock) world in our own solar system
it is also too warm to have much ice. will eventually be lost to space. The is Mars.
The surface is composed almost following Small world types are
entirely of naked rock pocked with available. Standard Worlds
craters. Tiny (Rock) worlds may
exhibit some volcanic activity early in Small (Hadean): This world type A Standard world is large enough
their histories, but they quickly cool includes those worlds that are large to retain water vapor in its atmos-
off and become geologically dead. enough to retain gaseous nitrogen, but phere, which is normally extensive.
Some Tiny (Rock) worlds are large which are so cold that their nitrogen Some have liquid-water oceans, while
moons, while others are planets in atmosphere is frozen on the surface! others have vast deposits of water ice.
their own right. Examples in our own Such worlds are likely to be gas giant Although some Standard world types
are extremely hostile, others are
World Types and Skills among the most likely homes for com-
plex life forms and intelligence. The
The world types given in this book map to the “planet types” following Standard world types are
described under Planet Types (p. B180) as follows. This affects which available.
skill specialties scientist characters will need on each world.
Standard (Hadean): Like the Small
• Earthlike: Standard (Garden), Standard (Ocean), Large (Garden), (Hadean) worlds, these worlds would
and Large (Ocean) worlds. normally have an extensive atmos-
phere, but they are so cold that almost
• Gas Giants: Gas Giant worlds. all of the likely volatile compounds
• Hostile Terrestrial: Standard (Ammonia), Standard (Greenhouse), have frozen out. They are likely to be
Large (Ammonia), and Large (Greenhouse) worlds. the largest moons of gas giants on the
• Ice Dwarfs: Tiny (Ice) worlds. fringes of a star system. The sole
• Ice Worlds: Small (Hadean), Small (Ice), Standard (Hadean), example of a Standard (Hadean)
Standard (Ice), and Large (Ice) worlds. world in our solar system is Neptune’s
• Rock Worlds: Asteroid Belt, Tiny (Rock), Tiny (Sulfur), Small moon Triton.
(Rock), Standard (Chthonian), and Large (Chthonian) worlds.
Standard (Ammonia): This world
type world is large enough to retain
a thick atmosphere, along with plenty
of water and other light volatile

BASIC WORLDBUILDING 75

compounds. However, it is so cold that warm to support a habitable environ- Large (Ammonia): This class is near-
pure water would be eternally frozen ment. As the oceans began to boil, the ly identical to the Standard (Ammonia)
and Earthlike life could not possibly atmosphere experienced a runaway class, but is larger and is likely to have
survive. Instead, the atmosphere is greenhouse effect that pushed surface a substantial amount of helium or
primarily composed of ammonia and temperatures far above the level of hydrogen gas in its atmosphere.
methane, and the oceans are com- human comfort. Some Greenhouse
posed of liquid ammonia mixed with a worlds (“wet greenhouses”) still have Large (Ice): This class is nearly
substantial amount of water. oceans of surface water, trapped in a identical to the Standard (Ice) class,
Ammonia-based life (p. 138) is possi- liquid state by the intense atmospher- but again it is larger and is likely to
ble on such a world. Ammonia worlds ic pressure. Others (“dry greenhous- have large amounts of helium or
are very unlikely except near cool red es”) have lost all of their original water hydrogen gas in the atmosphere.
dwarf stars; the compound breaks to the breakdown of water molecules
down quickly when exposed to the by sunlight in the upper atmosphere. Large (Ocean): As with a Standard
ultraviolet light given off by brighter In either case, the surface environ- (Ocean) world, this type has a thick
stars like our own sun. There are no ment is extremely hostile, the air atmosphere, plenty of water, and is in
examples of such a world in our own unbreathable and furnace-hot. The the temperature range permitting liq-
solar system, although the small gas only example of such a world in our uid-water oceans. Unlike the Standard
giants Uranus and Neptune are simi- own solar system is Venus, a dry (Ocean) type, its atmosphere is very
lar in some respects. greenhouse planet. thick and is dominated by helium.

Standard (Ice): The world is large Standard (Chthonian): The world Large (Garden): This world is simi-
enough to retain a thick atmosphere would normally be large enough to lar to the Standard (Garden) type. Its
and plenty of water. However, the retain a thick atmosphere, but it is so atmosphere is very thick, rich in noble
world is so cold that almost all of this close to its primary star that almost all gases such as helium or neon. Large
water is frozen, covering the rocky of its volatiles have been stripped (Garden) worlds might be able to sup-
surface with a thick coat of ice. away by the stellar wind of charged port human life.
Photosynthetic life is rare or com- particles. There may be a tenuous
pletely absent, so the atmosphere has atmosphere, but it is likely to be com- Large (Greenhouse): Like the
little or no free oxygen. There is no posed of vaporized metal rather than Standard (Greenhouse) world, this
example of a Standard (Ice) world in anything convenient for human life. type has undergone a runaway green-
our own solar system. There is no example of this kind of house effect that has rendered the
world in our solar system. atmosphere extremely dense and fur-
Standard (Ocean): The world has a nace-hot. There may or may not be
thick atmosphere and plenty of water, Large Worlds oceans of liquid water, trapped by the
and has surface temperatures that intense atmospheric pressure.
make liquid-water oceans possible. A Large world is large enough to
However, it lacks photosynthetic retain helium gas (and possibly even Large (Chthonian): The world
organisms (plants), either because some hydrogen) in its atmosphere. would normally be large enough to
such life has not yet evolved or because Hydrogen and helium are by far the retain a thick atmosphere. However,
it has become extinct. As a result, the most common elements in the uni- either that atmosphere has already
atmosphere contains little or no free verse, so a world that can hold onto been stripped away, or it is being lost
oxygen. There are no examples of this them is likely to be very massive. In at a tremendous rate, forming a long
kind of world in our solar system, fact, the Jupiter-like gas giant planets streamer of gases that peels off into
although Earth fell into this category a are believed to have formed in this space.
billion years ago, and probably will fashion.
again a billion years from now. Special World Types
For whatever reason, a Large
Standard (Garden): The world is world has not accumulated the mas- Aside from the size-and-subtype
large enough to retain a thick atmos- sive atmosphere typical of a gas giant. system described above, two more
phere, retains plenty of water to form Perhaps it was starved of material at a world types will be used in the world
oceans, and has a surface climate that critical point during formation, or design sequence. These will be placed
humans would find relatively pleasant. some cataclysm stripped away most of and handled using special rules.
It also has extensive life, including its atmosphere. Although a Large
photosynthetic life that can maintain world may have a very thick atmos- Asteroid Belt: The “world” is actual-
free oxygen in the atmosphere. phere, its mass is dominated by rocky ly a zone or belt of small stony bodies.
Standard (Garden) worlds are the or icy materials and it has a definite These asteroids (or, more precisely,
most hospitable for human life. The surface on which visitors could land. planetoids) may contain useful met-
sole example of a Standard (Garden) Large worlds of this kind may be quite als, organic compounds, or even
world in our solar system is, of course, rare. frozen volatiles. Although the plane-
Earth. toids are widely separated in space,
The following Large world types there may be many thousands of them
Standard (Greenhouse): The world are available. None of them exist in in the belt. If the asteroid belt is set-
is large enough to retain a thick our own solar system, although one tled, its inhabitants live in artificial
atmosphere and plenty of water. (the Chthonian subtype) has been habitats, floating freely in space or
However, at some point it became too detected in orbit around other stars. built inside the belt’s largest plane-
toids. Inhabited asteroid belts are
often mining or industrial centers.
Our own solar system has one signifi-
cant asteroid belt.

76 BASIC WORLDBUILDING

Gas Giant: The world is a Jupiter- Why World Types?
like planet, possibly far bigger than
even a Large-class world, with a mas- Planets are complex and diverse things. Consider the case of Earth
sive atmosphere dominated by hydro- and Venus in our own solar system. The two planets have close to the
gen and helium. There is no solid sur- same mass, have very similar composition, exist as very close neighbors
face, and life is unlikely to exist even in within the solar system, and presumably began their histories with a
the highest reaches of the atmosphere. similar budget of volatiles. Yet today they have vastly different surface
In most settings, gas giant worlds are environments. Earth is cool, wet, and pleasant – Venus is a furnace-hot,
rarely visited and never landed upon utterly dry hell.
(although their atmospheres can be a
useful source of hydrogen fuel or Designing all the factors that determine how a world will evolve is a
other resources). They are mostly of matter for an advanced university research team, and in fact there are
interest because of their extensive sys- many facets of planetary development that are still unclear to human
tems of moons, many of which are science. If we want to design a setting for a novel or a roleplaying game,
viable worlds in their own right. Most we must simplify. Fortunately we have good reason to expect that most
star systems are likely to include gas worlds in the galaxy will fall into a few well-defined categories, each
giant worlds. Our own solar system with its own characteristic properties. We use world type to describe
includes four: Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, those categories and help organize the process of world design.
and Neptune.
Another advantage of using world types is that they give the GM con-
Determining World Type trol over his setting. We could take a different approach, randomly
selecting a world’s primary star first, then placing worlds, then generat-
To begin the design process for a ing the properties of each world, only at the end getting an idea of what
given world, select a world type to fit each world will be like. Many science-fiction roleplaying games take this
the needs of the setting. If a random approach, and a GURPS GM has the same option when using the
result is desired, roll 3d on the Overall advanced system in Chapter 5 of this book. However, if the GM has a
Type Table and make note of the result. desired result, this approach makes it difficult to guide the process
Then roll on the World Type Table, refer toward that result – there’s no guarantee, for example, that a randomly-
to the column appropriate for the generated star system will contain a pleasant Earthlike world if the GM
result from the Overall Type Table, and wants one.
make a note of the result. The world
will be of that type. It’s much easier to specify the desired properties for the “main
world” of a star system first, and then go through the rest of the process
in such a way that every result is consistent with that starting point.
World types are the easiest way to define this kind of design system.

Overall Type Table

Roll (3d) Overall Type

7 or less Hostile

8-13 Barren

14-18 Garden

World Type Table

Roll (3d) Hostile Worlds Barren Worlds Garden Worlds
Small (Hadean) Standard (Garden)
3 Standard (Chthonian) Small (Ice) Standard (Garden)
Small (Rock) Standard (Garden)
4 Standard (Chthonian) Small (Rock) Standard (Garden)
Tiny (Rock) Standard (Garden)
5 Standard (Greenhouse) Tiny (Rock) Standard (Garden)
Tiny (Ice) Standard (Garden)
6 Standard (Greenhouse) Tiny (Ice) Standard (Garden)
Asteroid Belt Standard (Garden)
7 Tiny (Sulfur) Asteroid Belt Standard (Garden)
Standard (Ocean) Standard (Garden)
8 Tiny (Sulfur) Standard (Ocean) Standard (Garden)
Standard (Ice) Standard (Garden)
9 Tiny (Sulfur) Standard (Hadean) Standard (Garden)
Large (Ocean) Large (Garden)
10 Standard (Ammonia) Large (Ice) Large (Garden)

11 Standard (Ammonia)

12 Standard (Ammonia)

13 Large (Ammonia)

14 Large (Ammonia)

15 Large (Greenhouse)

16 Large (Greenhouse)

17 Large (Chthonian)

18 Large (Chthonian)

Example: Since the GM wants Haven to be a habitable world, he declines to roll on the tables and simply chooses the
Standard (Garden) world type.

BASIC WORLDBUILDING 77

Tweaking the which an atmosphere can be Marginal
World Type Table (see Marginal Atmospheres, p. 80).

The default World Type Table given is appropriate for a moderately Unbreathable atmospheres pres-
“realistic” space setting, one in which pleasant Garden worlds are ent varying degrees of danger to
uncommon but not vanishingly rare. In most star systems, the focus of unprotected human visitors. They can
human activity will be some uninhabitable but not actively hostile be Suffocating, not actively poisonous
world: an asteroid belt, a Mars-like desert planet, or the moon of some but lacking in free oxygen. They can
larger planet. Only in a few star systems will visitors tend to come to the be Toxic, actively doing damage when
more hostile environments, such as Standard (Greenhouse) or Large breathed directly. They can even be
(Ammonia) worlds. Corrosive, attacking exposed tissues
and requiring full-body protective
The GM can alter the distribution of world types to suit his own gear. All three of these categories
needs, by writing his own Overall Type Table and World Type Table. To are as described in Hazardous
increase the probability of any world type, give it a wider range of val- Atmospheres on p. B429 (but see also
ues or move its range toward the center of the table. To make a world the Toxicity Rules sidebar).
type rarer, give it fewer table entries, push it toward the top or bottom
of the table, or even remove it from the table entirely. Use the following rules to deter-
mine what kind of atmosphere exists
on the world being generated.

Determining

STEP 3: An atmosphere is also classified Atmospheric Mass
ATMOSPHERE according to its composition, which in
GURPS is important for whether the The surface pressure of a world’s
One of the most important ques- atmosphere is breathable or not. atmosphere depends on the amount of
gaseous volatiles present, and on the
tions any visitor to a world will have A world’s atmosphere may be con- world’s surface gravity. Surface gravity
sidered Marginal. A Marginal atmos- won’t be determined until Step 6 (p.
is, “Can I breathe the air?” This step phere is generally breathable, but 84), but the atmospheric mass for the
there is something subtly wrong with world can be determined now.
determines the composition and its composition that makes it danger- Atmospheric mass is a rough measure
ous to breathe without a filter mask, a of the world’s supply of gaseous
thickness of the world’s atmosphere. compressor, or some other simple pro- volatiles, relative to other worlds of
tective device. There are many ways in the same type.
Atmosphere Types
Toxicity Rules
Atmospheres are defined by their
pressure. Atmospheric pressure is Many different atmosphere types are Toxic in the sense used on p.
measured in atmospheres (atm), with B429. However, some poisonous atmospheres are much more danger-
1 atm being equal to the average sea- ous than others!
level air pressure on Earth. GURPS
also classifies atmospheres into cate- Any character exposed to a Toxic atmosphere will need to make HT
gories based on pressure, as described rolls on a periodic basis to avoid taking toxic damage. The differences
in the following table. between various Toxic atmospheres affect how often these HT rolls
must be made, what penalties are applied to the HT roll, and how much
Atmospheric Pressure damage is taken when a HT roll is failed. The exact details will vary
from atmosphere to atmosphere, but this book will use the terms Mildly
Categories Table Toxic, Highly Toxic, and Lethally Toxic as general categories.

Pressure Pressure Mildly Toxic: Exposure requires a HT roll no more often than once
per hour. There is no penalty to the HT roll, and a failed roll inflicts only
Range Category 1 point of toxic damage. Characters may risk brief exposure to a Mildly
Toxic atmosphere without much danger of serious injury or death.
Less than 0.01 atm Trace
Highly Toxic: Exposure requires a HT roll up to once per minute. The
0.01-0.5 atm Very Thin HT roll will usually be at a -2 to -6 penalty, and a failed roll inflicts 1
point of toxic damage. Characters may risk very brief exposures to a
0.51-0.8 atm Thin Highly Toxic atmosphere, but only in dire emergencies.

0.81-1.2 atm Standard Lethally Toxic: Exposure inflicts 1d or more of toxic damage every 15
seconds, with no possibility of resistance. Characters exposed to such
1.21-1.5 atm Dense an atmosphere will die in a very short time.

1.51-10 atm Very Dense

Over 10 atm Superdense

If an atmosphere is otherwise
breathable, a Standard atmosphere
has no special effect on human beings;
the other pressure categories have
effects as described on p. B429.

78 BASIC WORLDBUILDING

Worlds of the Asteroid Belt, Tiny
(Ice), Tiny (Rock), Tiny (Sulfur), Small
(Hadean), Small (Rock), Standard
(Hadean), Standard (Chthonian), and
Large (Chthonian) types will not have
any significant atmosphere. Don’t
bother to generate atmospheric mass
for any of them.

Atmospheric mass may differ very
widely from world to world, but the
most likely range is from 0.5 to 1.5.
Select an atmospheric mass for the
world, or roll 3d and divide the result
by 10 (keeping fractions). When using
the dice, feel free to vary the result by
up to 0.05 in either direction. Make a
note of the atmospheric mass.

Determining volcanic activity or other natural Standard (Greenhouse) Worlds:
Atmospheric processes. Roll 3d. On a 12 or less the The atmosphere of a Standard
Composition atmosphere is only Suffocating, other- (Greenhouse) world is always
wise it is Suffocating and Mildly Toxic. extremely dense and furnace-hot. A
Refer to the following notes to “dry greenhouse” world will have an
determine the composition of the Standard (Ocean) Worlds: The atmosphere dominated by carbon
world’s atmosphere, and to determine atmosphere of a Standard (Ocean) dioxide, while a “wet greenhouse”
whether it has any specific undesir- world will be composed of a mixture world will have nitrogen, water
able features. Make a note of whether of carbon dioxide and nitrogen. As vapor, and possibly even a small
the atmosphere is Marginal, and with the Standard (Ice) world, there amount of free oxygen in the
whether it is Suffocating, Toxic (with may be other toxic substances in the mix. The atmosphere is always
the level of toxicity), or Corrosive. atmosphere due to volcanic activity Suffocating, Lethally Toxic, and
or other natural processes. Roll 3d. Corrosive.
Asteroid Belt, Tiny (Ice), Tiny On a 12 or less the atmosphere is only
(Rock), Tiny (Sulfur), Small (Hadean), Suffocating, otherwise it is Large (Ammonia) Worlds: The
Small (Rock), Standard (Hadean), Suffocating and Mildly Toxic. atmosphere of a Large (Ammonia)
Standard (Chthonian), and Large world is dominated by helium gas,
(Chthonian) Worlds: None of these Standard (Garden) Worlds: A with very large quantities of ammonia
worlds have more than a Trace atmos- Standard (Garden) world has an and methane. It is always Suffocating,
phere. Since any visitor will effectively atmosphere dominated by nitrogen, Lethally Toxic, and Corrosive.
be in a vacuum, the composition of with a significant amount of free
what little atmosphere is present oxygen that can support human Large (Ice) Worlds: The atmos-
rarely matters. life. Roll 3d. On an 11 or less the phere of a Large (Ice) world is domi-
atmosphere will have no special nated by helium and nitrogen gases,
Small (Ice) Worlds: The atmos- properties. On a 12 or higher and is likely to contain toxins due to
phere of a Small (Ice) world is com- it will be Marginal; to generate volcanic activity or other natural
posed of nitrogen and methane. The more specific detail, see Marginal processes. The atmosphere is always
atmosphere is poisonous, but is Atmospheres (p. 80). Suffocating and Highly Toxic.
unlikely to contain any corrosives.
Roll 3d. On a 15 or less the atmos-
phere is Suffocating and Mildly Toxic.
Otherwise it is Suffocating and Highly
Toxic.

Standard (Ammonia) Worlds: The
atmosphere of a Standard (Ammonia)
world is composed of nitrogen, with
large quantities of ammonia and
methane. Such an atmosphere is
always Suffocating, Lethally Toxic,
and Corrosive.

Standard (Ice) Worlds: The atmos-
phere of a Standard (Ice) world is com-
posed of a mixture of carbon dioxide
and nitrogen. There may be other toxic
substances in the atmosphere due to

BASIC WORLDBUILDING 79

Large (Ocean) Worlds: A Large the presence of trace amounts of similar to that of a Very Dense atmos-
(Ocean) world’s atmosphere is com- chlorine in the air. Visitors who do not phere (p. 78). It is possible to accli-
posed of a mixture of helium and have similar biochemistry would find mate to moderate levels of carbon
nitrogen gases. As with the Large (Ice) the unfiltered air to be corrosive and dioxide. Very high levels of carbon
worlds, there will usually be other very poisonous. dioxide are Mildly Toxic, and it’s not
toxic substances in the atmosphere. possible to acclimate to them.
The atmosphere is always Suffocating A world with significant amounts
and Highly Toxic. of chlorine in the air would be a very High Oxygen
strange place. The air would carry a
Large (Garden) Worlds: These faint color, and the presence of chlo- In moderate cases, an excess of
unusual worlds have thick atmos- rine would slightly distort images. oxygen can be a mild irritant to skin
pheres dominated by nitrogen and Since chlorine gas is heavier than air, and mucous membranes, and can
noble gases, with a significant amount it would tend to pool in caves and make it much easier for people to
of free oxygen. The atmosphere will depressions in the land, reaching con- hyperventilate when working hard.
usually be breathable (although it may centrations that might kill even native Assess ill effects as if the atmosphere
be uncomfortably dense). The atmos- animal life. On such a world, rainfall is one pressure class higher (Dense for
phere will be Marginal on a roll of 12 and standing water would actually be a Standard atmosphere with high oxy-
or higher on 3d. a weak hydrochloric acid solution. gen, Very Dense for a Dense atmos-
Living things would use odd polymers phere, and so on).
Large (Greenhouse) Worlds: These in their structure – natural plastics
worlds have atmospheres similar to that would not dissolve in the chlo- Very high concentrations of
those of Standard (Greenhouse) rine-tainted air. oxygen are Mildly Toxic. At such
worlds. The atmosphere is always concentrations, the oxygen increases
Suffocating, Lethally Toxic, and The atmosphere on such a world is fire hazards as well – all materials
Corrosive. Highly Toxic, with the penalty to the are considered to be one flammabili-
HT roll depending on the local con- ty class higher (p. B433).
MARGINAL centration of chlorine. At its highest
ATMOSPHERES concentrations, the chlorine would Inert Gases
actually be Lethally Toxic and
An otherwise breathable atmos- Corrosive. Nitrogen and other chemically
phere can be Marginal in a variety of inert compounds can cause “inert gas
ways. Some of the most likely are Fluorine gas is chemically similar narcosis” when their partial pressure
described here. to chlorine and might play a similar is high enough. Symptoms include
role in a planetary atmosphere. light-headedness, reduced dexterity,
Chlorine or Fluorine However, fluorine is much less com- euphoria, and impaired judgment.
mon and is unlikely to appear any- This is normally a problem only in
In a breathable atmosphere, chlo- where in large quantities. An atmos- Very Dense atmospheres, although a
rine would normally combine with phere contaminated with free fluorine few compounds (such as nitrous
other elements to form nontoxic com- gas would be extremely unusual. oxide, or “laughing gas”) can cause
pounds. However, it’s possible for living these symptoms at relatively low pres-
things with an odd biochemistry to High Carbon Dioxide sures.
release a significant amount of chlorine
into the atmosphere. This might give The human metabolism is set to An atmosphere with high levels of
rise to a biosphere full of plants and deal with a certain amount of carbon inert gases is not likely to be Toxic.
animals that use an Earthlike carbon- dioxide in the air. When there is too However, an unprotected human sub-
oxygen cycle but which are adapted to much, the human breathing reflex ject to inert gas narcosis will behave as
malfunctions, leading to hyperventila- if intoxicated; he may be tipsy, drunk,
tion and a sense of panic. The result is or suffer from euphoria (p. B428)
depending on the level of exposure.

If the Almighty were to rebuild the world Low Oxygen
and asked me for advice, I would have
English Channels round every country. And An otherwise breathable atmos-
the atmosphere would be such that anything phere can simply have a lower concen-
which attempted to fly would be set on fire. tration of free oxygen than one might
expect for its pressure. Such an atmos-
– Winston Churchill phere is unlikely to be Toxic, but it
may be difficult to breathe normally.
Treat such an atmosphere as being
one pressure class lower (Thin for
Standard, Standard for Dense, and so
on). This can actually make a Very
Dense or Dense atmosphere more
comfortable for human visitors!

80 BASIC WORLDBUILDING

What Makes the Air? Determining a
Marginal Atmosphere
When a planet first forms, it is likely to have an extensive atmos-
phere dominated by the most common substances in the universe – Select at least one property from
hydrogen and helium. Large worlds can hold onto this primordial the list above, or roll 3d on the
atmosphere. Smaller ones lose it when their primary star ignites, enter- Marginal Atmospheres Table. A few
ing the so-called “T Tauri” stage during which a massive stellar wind atmospheres may exhibit more than
blasts the inner star system clean of gas and debris. one of the Marginal traits . . .

Later, the last stages of planetary formation include a period of “late Marginal Atmospheres
heavy bombardment.” This is an era in which young planets frequently
collide with comets, asteroids, and even bodies as massive as moons or Table
small planets. The smaller collisions, especially with comets or other
objects containing plenty of ice, can leave volatiles behind to form an Roll (3d) Major Toxic
atmosphere and seas. The larger collisions may blast this early atmos-
phere away into space, possibly more than once. Component

Eventually, the largest collisions come to a stop and the young world 3-4 Chlorine or Fluorine
can expect to keep any atmosphere it receives from comets and icy
asteroids. At this stage, the primary source of atmosphere becomes the 5-6 Sulfur Compounds
planet’s own volcanism. Volatile substances locked into a world’s icy or
rocky body are released along with its internal heat. The result is a thin 7 Nitrogen Compounds
envelope of air, the world’s final atmosphere.
8-9 Organic Toxins
Of course, once the atmosphere is stable, chemical processes can
alter its composition considerably. The most startling example of this is 10-11 Low Oxygen
found on Garden worlds, where photosynthetic life creates a substantial
amount of oxygen in the air. Since oxygen normally combines with 12-13 Pollutants
other chemicals very quickly, any world with lots of “free” oxygen in the
atmosphere is far out of chemical equilibrium; the situation can only be 14 High Carbon Dioxide
maintained by the activity of plant life or some other continuous
process. 15-16 High Oxygen

All of these processes are unpredictable. The atmosphere found on a 17-18 Inert Gases
given world depends strongly on its initial chemical composition – but
the accidents of planetary evolution also play a strong role. Example: The GM decides to
choose Haven’s atmospheric mass at
random. He rolls 3d for 12, and
divides by 10 to get an atmospheric
mass of 1.2.

Since Haven is a Standard
(Garden) world, its atmosphere is
automatically breathable, but it may
be Marginal. The GM rolls 3d for 10,
and notes that the atmosphere has no
special properties.

Nitrogen Compounds Organic Toxins STEP 4:
HYDROGRAPHIC
Nitrogen oxides are very unlikely to Living things may release danger- COVERAGE
appear in a breathable atmosphere, ous substances into the air – pollen,
unless they are produced by a strange spores, disease-causing microorgan- Worlds are often described in
local biochemistry or by massive isms, toxins, and so on. Most such terms of their hydrographic coverage,
industrial pollution. The unfiltered air atmospheres will be Mildly Toxic, the portion of the world’s surface that
would be somewhat toxic and any although higher levels of toxicity are is covered by oceans of some liquid
open water would be tainted by acid. possible. Unprotected exposure to the material. This step determines the per-
Such an atmosphere is Mildly Toxic, air may also count as exposure to a centage of the surface that is taken up
and may be Highly Toxic close to a weak respiratory-agent poison (p. by oceans, seas, and lakes.
source of the nitrogen compounds. B437) or a disease (p. B442); the GM is
encouraged to develop his own exotic On an Earthlike world the oceans
Sulfur Compounds maladies to give his alien worlds flavor. will be composed of liquid water, con-
taining metal salts and other impuri-
Hydrogen sulfide, sulfur dioxide, Pollutants ties. On more hostile planets the
and sulfur trioxide might be found in oceans may be composed of exotic
the air due to massive industrial pollu- Non-organic poisons may be in the substances. Many worlds that have no
tion or volcanic activity. Visitors air as well – heavy-metal or radioac- liquid oceans on the surface may be
would find the air to be toxic and full tive dust, toxic smoke from volcanism rich in water or other ices; they may
of unpleasant odors. Rainfall and or industrial pollution, and so on. It also have extensive underground sup-
standing water would be weak solu- would be rare for such an atmosphere plies. These features do not count
tions of sulfuric acid. Such an atmos- to be more than Mildly Toxic. Heavy- toward the hydrographic coverage,
phere is Mildly Toxic, and may be metal poisoning can have lasting but may be of interest to visitors.
Highly Toxic close to a source of the effects, as can radioactivity.
sulfur compounds.

BASIC WORLDBUILDING 81

Determining too cold to have oceans of liquid water. portion of the world’s surface covered
Hydrographic Coverage However, they may have vast oceans by liquid water.
of liquid ammonia mixed with water
Each world type has its own asso- and other substances, mingled in a Standard (Greenhouse) and Large
ciated hydrographic properties. When eutectic solution whose freezing point (Greenhouse) Worlds: Even if one of
dice are used, the hydrographic cover- is much lower than that of pure these worlds has surface water, it is
age will be expressed as a multiple of ammonia or water. A typical world of usually in the process of losing it.
10% of the world’s surface area. It these types will have hydrographic Most will have hydrographic coverage
would be reasonable to vary the result coverage between 50% and 100%, of 0%, and it will be quite rare for such
by up to 5% in either direction, with a depending on the surface temperature a world to have coverage greater than
minimum of 0% and a maximum of and the amount of ammonia and 50%. Select a percentage, or roll 2d-7
100% of the surface. water in the world’s volatiles budget. and multiply by 10% (minimum 0%);
Select a percentage, or roll 2d and the result is the portion of the world’s
Asteroid Belt, Tiny (Rock), and multiply by 10% (maximum 100%); surface that is still covered by oceans.
Small (Rock) Worlds: None of these the result is the portion of the world’s A world that still has oceans is a wet
world types will have “oceans” of liq- surface covered by liquid substances. greenhouse (p. 79), while a world with
uid water or other common sub- 0% hydrographics is a dry green-
stances. Their hydrographic coverage Standard (Ice) and Large (Ice) house. If oceans exist on one of these
is always 0%. Those that are far Worlds: These worlds generally have worlds, they are likely to be extremely
enough from the primary star may no permanent bodies of liquid water impure, and may be rich in dissolved
have some water ice buried under the on their surface, but they may have carbon or sulfur compounds, forming
surface or hidden in always-shadowed lakes or small seas that are temporari- a more or less acidic solution. Some
craters. ly liquid at certain seasons. Such open extreme greenhouse oceans may be
water may provide hydrographic cov- composed of sulfuric acid!
Tiny (Ice), Small (Hadean), and erage of up to about 20%. Select a per-
Standard (Hadean) Worlds: These centage, or roll 2d-10 and multiply by Standard (Chthonian) and Large
worlds often have extensive water ice 10% (minimum 0%); the result is the (Chthonian) Worlds: These worlds
deposits on the surface, but they will portion of the world’s surface that is never have water or other volatiles in
not have permanent bodies of liquid usually covered by liquid water. the liquid state on the surface. Their
surface water. Their hydrographic hydrographic coverage is always 0%.
coverage is always 0%. Beneath the Standard (Ocean), Standard They may be so hot as to melt surface
surface of the ice, these worlds may (Garden), Large (Ocean), and Large rock, producing seas of lava!
have considerable liquid water if they (Garden) Worlds: These worlds will
experience internal heating. For almost always have liquid-water Example: Since Haven is a
example, many Tiny (Ice) worlds that oceans. A typical world of these types Standard (Garden) world, it will have
orbit gas giant planets are heated by will have hydrographic coverage liquid-water oceans. The GM rolls
tidal effects, keeping the subsurface between 50% and 100%, depending 1d+4 and gets a result of 10, suggest-
oceans warm enough to stay in a on the amount of water in the world’s ing hydrographic coverage of 100%.
liquid state. volatiles budget. Large worlds are He doesn’t want a world that’s com-
likely to have a lot of water, and may pletely covered by water, but a world
Tiny (Sulfur) Worlds: These worlds be covered by oceans that are tens or dominated by vast oceans seems
usually begin with extensive deposits hundreds of miles deep! Select a per- appealing. He lowers the hydrograph-
of water and other ices, but tidal heat- centage, or roll 1d+4 (1d+6 for a ic coverage to 98%, and makes a note
ing and volcanism mean that these Large world) and multiply by 10% that Haven’s land mass consists of a
volatiles are quickly lost to space. (maximum 100%); the result is the single Australia-sized continent and a
Their hydrographic coverage is always scattering of island chains.
0%. A Tiny (Sulfur) world may have
intermittent, short-lived lakes of liquid
sulfur and sulfur compounds.

Small (Ice) Worlds: These worlds
may have oceans of liquid volatiles,
but they are likely to be composed of
liquid hydrocarbons rather than
water. A typical Small (Ice) world will
have hydrographic coverage between
30% and 80%. Select a percentage, or
roll 1d+2 and multiply by 10%; the
result is the portion of the world’s sur-
face covered by substances in a liquid
state. The rest of the surface is likely to
be rich with ices, possibly including
water ice.

Standard (Ammonia) and Large
(Ammonia) Worlds: These worlds are

82 BASIC WORLDBUILDING

STEP 5: CLIMATE whose fury mounted daily until words Determining
like “hurricane” could no more name Climate Type
Now the cryosphere was dissolving. them. Hanging in space, Falkayn and
Glaciers became torrents, which Chee Lan took measurements of Each world type is associated with
presently boiled away and became Ragnarök. a range of possible average surface
storm-winds. Lakes and seas, melting, temperatures. To determine a world’s
redistributed incredible masses. – Poul Anderson, Satan’s World average surface temperature, refer to
Pressures within the globe were shifted; the following table. Select a tempera-
isostatic balance was upset; the read- Planetary climate can be very ture within the given range for the cor-
justments of strata, the changes of complex, but the most important rect world type, or roll 3d-3, multiply
allotropic structure, released cata- question for any visitor is whether or the result by the Step value, and then
strophic, rock-melting energy. Quakes not he will be comfortable in the add the minimum value from the
rent the land and shocked the waters. surface environment. This step Range. The result is the average sur-
Volcanoes awoke by the thousands. determines the average surface tem- face temperature in kelvins, a unit of
Geysers spouted above the ice sheath perature of the world. This average absolute temperature. When using the
that remained. Blizzard, hail, and rain doesn’t take into account daily or dice, it would be reasonable to vary
scourged the world, driven by tempests annual variations, or the details of the final temperature by up to half the
local climate. Step value in either direction.

Average Surface Temperature Table Range Step
140-500 K 24 K
World Type 80-140 K 4K
Asteroid Belt 140-500 K 24 K
Tiny (Ice or Sulfur) 2K
Tiny (Rock) 50-80 K 4K
Small (Hadean) 80-140 K 24 K
Small (Ice) 140-500 K 2K
Small (Rock) 50-80 K 5K
Standard (Hadean) 140-215 K 10 K
Standard (Ammonia) 80-230 K 6K
Standard (Ice) 250-340 K 30 K
Standard (Ocean or Garden) 500-950 K 5K
Standard (Greenhouse or Chthonian) 140-215 K 10 K
Large (Ammonia) 80-230 K 6K
Large (Ice) 250-340 K 30 K
Large (Ocean or Garden) 500-950 K
Large (Greenhouse or Chthonian)

The average surface temperature determines the climate type of the world. Refer to the World Climate Table.

World Climate Table Climate Type Temperature Range (ºF)
Frozen Below -20º F
Temperature Range (K) Very Cold -20º to 0º F
Below 244 K Cold 0º to 20º F
244 K to 255 K Chilly 20º to 40º F
255 K to 266 K Cool 40º to 60º F
266 K to 278 K Normal 60º to 80º F
278 K to 289 K Warm 80º to 100º F
289 K to 300 K Tropical 100º to 120º F
300 K to 311 K Hot 120º to 140º F
311 K to 322 K Very Hot 140º to 160º F
322 K to 333 K Infernal Above 160º F
333 K to 344 K
Above 344 K

Temperature Range (K) gives a temperature from kelvins to degrees Make note of both the average sur-
range of possible average surface tem- Fahrenheit, use the following formula: face temperature in kelvins (and
peratures in kelvins. Climate Type is a optionally in degrees Fahrenheit) and
descriptive name for the world’s over- F = (1.8 ¥ K) - 460 the corresponding climate type from
all surface climate. Temperature Range the table.
(F) gives the associated range in Here, F is the temperature in
degrees Fahrenheit. To convert a degrees Fahrenheit and K is the tem-
perature in kelvins.

BASIC WORLDBUILDING 83

Determining Blackbody correction. The blackbody correction can be determined by subtracting the
Temperature is based on two different factors, each world’s albedo from one, and taking
dependent on the world type and a the fourth root of the result.)
Another parameter related to a few other parameters: the absorption
world’s climate is its blackbody temper- factor and the greenhouse factor. The greenhouse factor is a measure
ature. This is the average surface tem- of how much heat energy is trapped
perature the world would have if it The absorption factor is a measure by the world’s atmosphere rather than
were an ideal blackbody, a perfect of how much incoming energy is being radiated back into space. The
absorber and radiator of heat. Of absorbed by the world’s surface rather higher the greenhouse factor, the
course, real worlds are not ideal black- than being reflected away. The higher more energy is recycled within the
bodies, so the blackbody temperature the absorption factor, the more energy atmosphere, and the warmer the
is usually different from the world’s is absorbed, and the warmer the world world will be with respect to its black-
average surface temperature. will be with respect to its blackbody body temperature.
temperature. (For those familiar with
To determine a world’s blackbody astrophysics, the absorption factor Refer to the following table.
temperature, compute its blackbody

Temperature Factors Table

World Type Absorption Factor Greenhouse Factor
0
Asteroid Belt 0.97 0
0
Tiny (Ice) 0.86 0
0
Tiny (Rock) 0.97
0.10
Tiny (Sulfur) 0.77 0
0
Small (Hadean) 0.67
0.20
Small (Ice) 0.93 0.20
0.16
Small (Rock) 0.96 0.16
0.16
Standard (Hadean) 0.67 0.16
2.0
Standard or Large (Ammonia) 0.84
0
Standard or Large (Ice) 0.86

Standard or Large (Ocean or Garden) (Hydrographics 20% or less) 0.95

Standard or Large (Ocean or Garden) (Hydrographics 21% to 50%) 0.92

Standard or Large (Ocean or Garden) (Hydrographics 51% to 90%) 0.88

Standard or Large (Ocean or Garden) (Hydrographics 91% or more) 0.84

Standard or Large (Greenhouse) 0.77

Standard or Large (Chthonian) 0.97

To determine the blackbody cor- To determine the blackbody tem- [1 + (1.2 ¥ 0.16)] = 1.00. Haven’s black-
rection for a world, use the following perature, divide the average surface body temperature is almost exactly
formula: temperature by the blackbody correc- equal to its average surface tempera-
tion. Make a note of the blackbody ture: 295 kelvins.
C = A ¥ [1 + (M ¥ G)] temperature.
STEP 6:
Here, C is the blackbody correc- Example: So far Haven is a reason- WORLD SIZE
tion, A is the world’s absorption fac- ably pleasant world, if lacking in dry
tor from the table, M is the world’s land. The GM decides that its surface This step determines the world’s
atmospheric mass as generated in climate should also be pleasant, and diameter, density, mass, and surface
Step 3 (p. 78), and G is the world’s sets its average surface temperature to gravity. For a world of Asteroid Belt
greenhouse factor from the table. 295 kelvins (about 70º Fahrenheit). type, this step can be skipped. An
Note that for a world with a green- Haven has a Normal climate type. asteroid belt is composed of hundreds
house factor of 0 (i.e. a world without or thousands of small objects, most of
significant atmosphere) the black- Referring to the Temperature them far too small to be considered
body correction is equal to the Factors Table, the GM finds that “worlds” in their own right.
absorption factor (C = A). Haven’s blackbody correction is 0.84 ¥

An asteroid belt is composed of hundreds or Density
thousands of small objects, most of them far too
small to be considered “worlds” in their own right. A world’s density is the average
mass per unit volume in the world’s
body. Density depends almost entirely
on the world’s composition. An
Earthlike world will usually have an
iron core of very high density, overlaid
by a thick layer of less-dense rock and

84 BASIC WORLDBUILDING

Turning Up the Heat small metal cores, and will normally
have density between 0.6 and 1.0.
The Absorption Factor and Greenhouse Factor for each world type Select a density, or roll on the World
are typical values rather than universal constants. It would be reason- Density Table using the Small Iron
able to vary either slightly, to reflect changes from the normal proper- Core column.
ties of the world’s type.
All other Standard and Large
The Absorption Factor might vary by as much as 0.05, with a maxi- Worlds: These worlds are primarily
mum of 1 and a minimum of 0, to indicate a surface that is more or less rocky and have large iron cores, with
reflective. A dark surface, such as dark stone, ice darkened by chemical density normally between 0.8 and 1.2
processes, or dust in the upper atmosphere, would have a higher (but might have density as high as 1.4
Absorption Factor. A bright surface, such as snow or polished ice, would in extreme cases). Select a density, or
have a lower Absorption Factor. For example, Earth’s current roll on the World Density Table using
Absorption Factor is about 0.88, and this is taken as the typical value for the Large Iron Core column.
a Standard (Garden) world with moderate hydrographic coverage.
During the last Ice Age the vast areas of land covered by ice and snow When using the dice, it would be
may have reduced the Absorption Factor to 0.86 or so, enough to lower reasonable to vary the density by up to
the average surface temperature by several kelvins. 0.05 in either direction. Most textbooks
and game sourcebooks prefer to give
Meanwhile, if the Greenhouse Factor for a world’s type is not 0, it planetary density in units of grams per
might also vary by up to 0.05 in either direction to reflect local differ- cubic centimeter (g/cc); to get world
ences in atmospheric composition. A change in the concentration of density in these units, multiply the den-
greenhouse gases, too small even to render a breathable atmosphere sity value generated here by 5.52.
Marginal, could have dramatic effects on local climate. For example,
Earth’s current Greenhouse Factor is about 0.16, but during the Diameter and
Cretaceous Era (145-65 million years ago) it may have been as high as Surface Gravity
0.20 due to high levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
Once the world’s density has been
In any case, variations in Absorption Factor and Greenhouse Factor fixed, it is possible to determine its
are not significant to the world-design system, but the GM should feel diameter and surface gravity. These
free to use them to reflect features of the local environment. two parameters are closely related – if
you select the world’s diameter, that
stone (the very thin layer of water and body) to 1.4 (a world that is almost a determines its surface gravity, and vice
air is almost negligible on this scale). ball of solid iron). To determine a versa. The following rules will permit
A planet with a smaller iron core world’s density, refer to the following the GM to select these two parameters
would be less dense; a planet with notes. in either order.
more iron and less rock would be
denser. Some large moons have bodies Tiny (Ice), Tiny (Sulfur), Small Selecting World Diameter First:
that contain a great deal of ice, which (Hadean), Small (Ice), Standard Refer to the Size Constraints Table for
is even less dense than rock. (Hadean), Standard (Ammonia), and the world’s size class. Multiply square
Large (Ammonia) Worlds: All of these root of (B/K) (where B is the world’s
In these rules, world density is worlds will have icy cores and a densi- blackbody temperature in kelvins, and
expressed as a proportion of Earth’s ty between 0.3 and 0.7. Select a densi- K is the world’s density in units of
density – a world with a density of 1.0 ty in the appropriate range, or roll 3d Earth’s density) by the appropriate
is exactly as dense as Earth and prob- on the World Density Table using the Minimum value from the table. The
ably has a very similar composition. Icy Core column. result is the minimum possible diam-
Density normally ranges from 0.3 (a eter for the world, expressed in multi-
world with a great deal of ice in its Tiny (Rock) and Small (Rock) ples of Earth’s diameter. Similarly,
Worlds: These worlds are rocky with multiply square root of (B/K) by the
appropriate Maximum value from the
World Density Table table to get the maximum possible
diameter for the world.
Roll (3d) Icy Core Small Iron Core Large Iron Core
0.6 0.8 Select any value within this range
3-6 0.3 0.7 0.9 for the diameter. To select a diameter
0.8 1.0 at random, roll 2d-2, multiply by one-
7-10 0.4 0.9 1.1 tenth of the difference between the
1.0 1.2 maximum and minimum diameter
11-14 0.5 values, and add the result to the mini-
mum value. Feel free to vary the final
15-17 0.6 result by up to 5% of the difference, so
long as the final value is within the
18 0.7 range. To express any diameter in
miles, multiply the value in Earth
Size Constraints Table diameters by 7,930.

World Type Minimum Maximum
0.091
Large 0.065 0.065
0.030
Standard 0.030 0.024

Small 0.024

Tiny 0.004

BASIC WORLDBUILDING 85

Once the diameter is known, use Worlds Big and Little
the following formula to get the
world’s surface gravity: When designing a world, it’s important to know what volatiles will be
available at the world’s surface, defining the environment visitors will
S=K¥D experience. Every world begins with a wide variety of volatiles, but
some of these will be lost very early in the world’s history. The most
Here, S is the world’s surface grav- common reason for such loss is the fact that molecules of a given
ity in Gs, K is the world’s density in volatile that are close to the top of the world’s atmosphere might reach
units of Earth’s density, and D is the escape velocity and head for deep space!
world’s diameter in Earth diameters.
Molecules in a gas move at random speeds, and the distribution of
Selecting World Surface Gravity those speeds is determined by the molecular weight of the gas and by
First: Refer to the Size Constraints the ambient temperature. Higher temperatures mean that the mole-
Table for the world’s size class. cules tend to move faster – but the more massive molecules of a gas with
Multiply square root of (B ¥ K) (where high molecular weight will move more slowly at the same temperature.
B is the world’s blackbody tempera-
ture in kelvins, and K is the world’s In effect, every world has a minimum molecular weight retained
density in units of Earth’s density) by (MMWR) that indicates what volatile substances can be held onto
the appropriate Minimum and across billion-year time scales. Volatiles with molecular weight higher
Maximum values from the table. The than the MMWR will stay in the world’s atmosphere and on its surface.
result is the minimum and maximum Volatiles with lower molecular weight will be lost to space in a relative-
possible surface gravity for the world, ly short time after the world is formed.
in Gs.
Factors that increase a world’s escape velocity all tend to lower the
Select any value within this range minimum molecular weight that can be retained. A more massive world
for the surface gravity. To select a will have a higher escape velocity. So will a denser world, even of the
Surface Gravity at random, roll 2d-2, same mass.
multiply by one-tenth of the difference
between the maximum and minimum On the other hand, the temperature at the top of the atmosphere is
values, and add the result to the mini- also critical; higher temperatures mean that more molecules will reach
mum value. Feel free to vary the final escape velocity. Thus two worlds can have the same MMWR despite
result by up to 5% of the difference. being of different sizes, so long as the smaller one is colder.

Once the surface gravity is known, Steps 2-6 of the world design sequence are set up so that the GURPS
use the following formula to get the GM doesn’t need to concern himself with the details of computing a
world’s diameter: world’s MMWR. Advanced world-builders may choose to work in a
more free-form manner, selecting a world’s physical parameters as
D = S/K needed and then checking to make sure the result makes sense. In that
case, the following formula may be of use:
Here, D is the world’s diameter in
Earth diameters, S is the world’s sur- W = B/(60 ¥ D2 ¥ K)
face gravity in Gs, and K is the world’s
density in units of Earth’s density. Here, W is the MMWR measured in units of molecular weight, B is
the world’s blackbody temperature in kelvins, D is its diameter in Earth
Mass diameters, and K is its density in units of Earth’s density.

To determine a world’s mass, apply A world’s physical parameters will fit its selected World Type if its
the following formula: MMWR is legal for its size class. A Large world must have MMWR
greater than 2, but less than or equal to 4. A Standard world must have
M = K ¥ D3 MMWR greater than 4, but less than or equal to 18. A Small world must
have MMWR greater than 18, but less than or equal to 28. A Tiny world
Here, M is the world’s mass in mul- must have MMWR greater than 28.
tiples of Earth’s mass, K is its density
in units of Earth’s density, and D is its For comparison, some of the more important molecular weights are:
diameter in multiples of Earth’s diam- hydrogen 2, helium 4, methane 16, ammonia 17, water vapor 18, neon
eter. Regardless of the order in which 20, carbon monoxide 28, nitrogen 28, nitric oxide 30, oxygen 32, hydro-
these parameters are determined, gen sulfide 34, argon 40, and carbon dioxide 44.
make a note of the world’s density,
diameter, surface gravity, and mass. have widely diverging atmospheric of these worlds have a significant
pressure values. Refer to the follow- atmosphere. A visitor on the surface
Determining ing notes to determine the world’s will be in a vacuum.
Atmospheric Pressure atmospheric pressure.
Small (Rock), Standard (Chthonian),
Now that the world’s surface grav- Asteroid Belt, Tiny (Ice), Tiny and Large (Chthonian) Worlds: All of
ity is known, its surface atmospheric (Rock), Tiny (Sulfur), Small (Hadean), these worlds automatically have a Trace
pressure can finally be determined. and Standard (Hadean) Worlds: None atmosphere.
The various world types are likely to

86 BASIC WORLDBUILDING

All other worlds will have a sub- then given by 1.15/1.1 = 1.05 Earth- come to a world that is comfortable
stantial atmosphere. To determine the diameters (8,330 miles). Finally, its for them, where they can live without
surface atmospheric pressure, begin mass is given by 1.1 ¥ 1.053 = 1.27 investing in expensive artificial life
by referring to the following table. Earth-masses. support. However, even if a world is
very inhospitable, settlers may arrive
Pressure Factors Table Now that Haven’s surface gravity is in a quest for valuable resources.
available, the GM can go back and
World Pressure determine the planet’s surface atmos- Determining Resources
pheric pressure. This is given by 1.15 ¥
Type Factor 1.2 = 1.38 atm, which yields a Dense Every world will have some value
atmosphere. The GM makes a note of to human or other settlers: mineral
Small (Ice) 10 this under the world’s atmospheric resources, native plant or animal
properties. species that generate useful products,
Standard (Ammonia, Ice, or even something as simple as arable
The GM also realizes that with vast land on which crops can be sown.
Ocean, or Garden) 1 oceans, a warm climate, and a dense
atmosphere, Haven is probably a We will use the Resource Value
Standard (Greenhouse) 100 breeding ground for hurricanes and Modifier (RVM), a number between -5
other violent storms. Visitors to the and +5, to describe the overall
Large (Ammonia, Ice, Ocean, planet will need to watch out for the resource value of a world. An RVM of
weather! He makes a note of this item 0 indicates a world of average
or Garden) 5 for possible use in future adventures. resource wealth, likely to attract settle-
ment only if it is reasonably habitable.
Large (Greenhouse) 500 STEP 7: An RVM above 0 indicates an unusual
RESOURCES AND abundance of resources, which may
The atmospheric pressure is given HABITABILITY attract settlers even if the local envi-
by the following formula: ronment is hostile. An RVM below 0
“Funny about Valeria, isn’t indicates a world unlikely to offer any
P=M¥F¥S it . . .” resources worth exploiting.

Here, P is the atmospheric pres- There was a moment of silence, then Most worlds will have an RVM
sure (in atm), M is the atmospheric Kinnison went on: between -2 and +2. Worlds of the
mass as generated in Step 3 (p. 78), F Asteroid Belt type will vary more wide-
is the pressure factor for the appropri- “But wherever diamonds are, there ly, between -5 and +5. One asteroid belt
ate world type from the table, and S is go Dutchmen. And Dutch women go may be dense, with vast deposits of
the world’s surface gravity in Gs. Make wherever their men do. And, in spite of useful metals, organic compounds,
a note of the result, and of the pres- the medical advice, Dutch babies arrive. and volatile ices; another may be a thin
sure category associated with that Although a lot of the adults died – three scattering of pebbles. Select an RVM,
pressure from the Atmospheric Gs is no joke – practically all of the or roll 3d on the Resource Value Table.
Pressure Categories Table (p. 78). babies keep on living. Developing mus- For a world of the Asteroid Belt type,
cles and bones to fit – walking at a year refer to the first column of die-roll
Example: The GM has no prefer- and a half old – living normally – they results; for all other world types, refer
ence for Haven’s density, and so rolls say that the third generation will be per- to the second column. The result will
3d on the World Density Table, refer- fectly at home there.” be a description of the world’s resource
ring to the Large Iron Core column. availability, along with a Resource
He rolls a 16 and records a density of – E. E. “Doc” Smith, First Lensman Value Modifier (RVM) that will be used
1.1, or about 6.1 g/cc. in later steps of the sequence. Make a
This step fixes the factors that note of the RVM for each world.
The GM then decides to set the make a world attractive for human or
planet’s surface gravity first. This alien settlement. Colonists are likely to
parameter must be between 0.03 and
0.065 times square root of (295 ¥ 1.1),
or between 0.54 and 1.17. He decides
to set the surface gravity to 1.15 Gs,
making Haven a relatively high-
gravity world. The planet’s diameter is

Resource Value Table

Roll (3d)

Asteroid Belts Other Worlds Overall Value Resource Value Modifier
Worthless -5
3– Very Scant -4
Scant -3
4– Very Poor -2
Poor -1
5 2 or less Average +0
Abundant +1
6-7 3-4 Very Abundant +2
Rich +3
8-9 5-7 Very Rich +4
Motherlode +5
10-11 8-13

12-13 14-16

14-15 17-18

16 19 or more

17 –

18 –

BASIC WORLDBUILDING 87

Determining that make the world pleasant for the target world, refer to the following
Habitability and Affinity humans to live on. Habitability runs table and add up every modifier that
from -2 to 8, with higher scores indi- applies. Make a note of the final habit-
The habitability score for a given cating a more pleasant environment. ability score for the world.
To determine the habitability score for
world is a summary of all the factors

Habitability Modifiers Table Modifier
0
Condition -2
No atmosphere or Trace atmosphere -1
Non-breathable atmosphere, Very Thin or above, Suffocating, Toxic, and Corrosive 0
Non-breathable atmosphere, Very Thin or above, Suffocating and Toxic only +1
Non-breathable atmosphere, Very Thin or above, Suffocating only +2
Breathable atmosphere (Very Thin) +3
Breathable atmosphere (Thin) +1
Breathable atmosphere (Standard or Dense) +1
Breathable atmosphere (Very Dense or Superdense) 0
Breathable atmosphere is not Marginal +1
No liquid-water oceans, or Hydrographic Coverage 0% +2
Liquid-water oceans, Hydrographic Coverage 1% to 59% +1
Liquid-water oceans, Hydrographic Coverage 60% to 90% 0
Liquid-water oceans, Hydrographic Coverage 91% to 99% 0
Liquid-water oceans, Hydrographic Coverage 100% +1
Breathable atmosphere, climate type is Frozen or Very Cold +2
Breathable atmosphere, climate type is Cold +1
Breathable atmosphere, climate type is Chilly, Cool, Normal, Warm, or Tropical 0
Breathable atmosphere, climate type is Hot
Breathable atmosphere, climate type is Very Hot or Infernal

The affinity score for a given world Modifier. To determine the affinity resource abundance (or poverty); its
is a summary of all the factors that score for the target world, add the colonists have chosen to settle there
might make the world attractive to Resource Value Modifier to the habit- because of its location, not because of
human settlement. Affinity is a num- ability score. Make a note of the result. its natural resources. He sets the plan-
ber between -5 and 10, and is closely et’s RVM at 0. Haven’s habitability
related to the Resource Value Example: The GM decides that score is 7, so its affinity score is also 7.
Haven doesn’t have any special

88 BASIC WORLDBUILDING

Habitability for Aliens

The habitability rules assume that human comfort high, since a world with nothing but a few small
is the primary yardstick for whether or not a planet is islands will not offer enough land area to support a
going to be attractive. An alien race that evolved under large population). Amphibious or shore-swimming
different conditions may judge worlds differently! species will be happy with lots of coastlines, but won’t
care about inland space, so they can tolerate
If the GM is designing worlds within the space more land area. Deep-ocean species will want lots of
claimed by an alien race, he should design his own hydrographic coverage, the more the better. Of course,
Habitability Modifiers Table for that race. The following if a world’s oceans aren’t even based on the same
guidelines should be of assistance. chemistry that the colonists evolved with, they will be
useless . . .
Overall: The range of possible habitability scores
should be the same as for human-colonized worlds: Climate: For human-colonized worlds, 25% of the
-2 to 8. maximum habitability score depends on the average
surface temperature. Humans find a band of average
Atmosphere: The planet’s atmosphere should usually surface temperatures about 53 kelvins wide (or 95º
be the factor with the greatest weight. For human-colo- Fahrenheit) to be optimal for colonization (+2 to habit-
nized worlds, half of the maximum habitability of 8 ability). A wider band, about 75 kelvins wide (135º
depends on the quality of the atmosphere. Having Fahrenheit), is tolerable (+1 to habitability). Note that
enough air to support intelligent life is important, but these bands are wider than the “comfort zone” defined
an atmosphere whose composition is actively hostile to under the Temperature Tolerance advantage (p. B93).
the world’s inhabitants is likely to impose a penalty to After all, colonists can selectively settle close to the poles
habitability. on a hot world, or close to the equator on a cold one, and
compensate for a less-than-ideal average climate.
Hydrographic Coverage: Most forms of life will be
dependent on a liquid volatile – water for human-like Aliens should have their own bands of optimal and
life, liquid ammonia for ammonia-based life, and so on. tolerable climates. If an alien race has Temperature
For human-colonized worlds, 25% of the maximum Tolerance as a racial advantage, their bands should be
habitability depends on the hydrographic coverage. about 6 kelvins (10º Fahrenheit) wider for every level of
the advantage.
Land-living species will want plenty of coastlines
and well-watered inland regions, which will occur
when the hydrographic coverage is high (but not too

SOCIAL PARAMETERS

So far, the design process has worlds before applying this step to any Science fiction settings vary widely in
defined the physical parameters for of them. This is because the place- their assumptions regarding “ideal”
the world under construction. The ment of outposts will tend to depend population size. Many settings of the
next few steps determine the social on the placement of homeworlds and 1960s and 1970s included truly crowd-
parameters for each world – how colonies, which in turn depends on ed worlds, inspired by the “population
many humans (or other sapient the physical parameters determined in explosion” that many believed was
beings) live there, what kind of gov- Steps 2-7. inevitable. Today, with world popula-
ernment they live under, how much tion leveling off and some nations fac-
trade they engage in, and so on. Homeworlds ing a population decline, it seems more
likely that future civilizations will be
STEP 8: A homeworld is the place where a able to control their numbers.
SETTLEMENT race evolved, and where its oldest pop-
TYPE ulation centers are still in existence. A Homeworlds should never be
homeworld will usually support as placed at random; the GM should
This step sets the settlement type for many people as can be sustained by deliberately place them to suit
the target world. These rules classify local resources, although the social the needs of his campaign. See The
inhabited worlds into three settlement preferences of the population will also Frequency of Worlds (p. 70) for
types: homeworlds, colonies, and out- play a part. Some societies will prefer some of the pertinent considerations.
posts. Use the following rules to decide to maintain roomy living space and Naturally, a homeworld should have
which category the target world falls unspoiled vistas. Others like crowds, high habitability for the race that lives
into. and are likely to populate a world to the on it – although not necessarily maxi-
limits of local resources (or beyond). mum habitability, since natural or
You may wish to generate the phys- man-made disasters can render even a
ical parameters for a number of In general, homeworld populations race’s homeworld less than ideal!
depend strongly on the GM’s preferences.

BASIC WORLDBUILDING 89

Colonies eligible world that is within this dis- Example: Haven isn’t a homeworld,
tance of a military frontier. If space- but it is a world with an affinity
A colony is a permanent settlement ships can travel indefinitely without greater than 0 within human-explored
on some world, a place where a com- stopping at a port, then military out- space. The GM notes that it is a
munity is likely to remain for genera- posts may be useless – or a civilization colony.
tion after generation. Most of a colony may place “listening posts” with FTL
world’s population is composed of sensors all through their territory. STEP 9:
long-term immigrants or permanent TECHNOLOGY
residents; the colony is their home. Way Station Outposts: These are LEVEL
placed to serve transient starship traf-
Colony worlds must either have a fic. If starships must follow “jump Every world has an associated tech
certain minimum population, or have lines,” or they may not go too far with- level (see p. B511). The TL of a world
continuing support from offworld. A out stopping in a star system, certain does not normally indicate that only
human colony can be established with worlds will see a great deal of traffic goods at that TL are available there. In
only a few dozen people, but such a even if there’s no reason for a starship a universe in which most worlds have
tiny settlement may need lots of off- to begin or end its journey there. Place access to off-planet commerce, citi-
world support and immigration to an outpost on any eligible world that zens will be able to buy goods at other
remain viable. To maintain a stable falls into such a situation. tech levels. For example, in a TL10 set-
high-technology society over a long ting, visitors to a backwater world
term, a colony will probably need to Miscellaneous Outposts: Other with TL7 will still be able to buy TL10
begin with at least 10,000 people and worlds may have scientific research goods (probably at a premium cost,
the necessary equipment. A truly mas- stations, corporate mining towns, since they must be imported).
sive colonization effort will begin by small settlements of independent-
planting up to 500,000 people on the minded dissidents, and so on. How Unless a character grew up on a
target world. From this initial popula- often such outposts appear depends world that is actually cut off from the
tion, colonies will grow due to further on social conditions. A tightly con- rest of the galaxy, he will probably be
immigration and natural growth. trolled interstellar empire will have familiar with equipment at the maxi-
fewer “unplanned” outposts than a mum TL available. On the other hand,
Space-traveling civilizations will loose federation. The GM should place people from a world with low TL are
tend to colonize every world that can these extra outposts on eligible worlds likely to be poor. The tech level of a
support a substantial population. A as needed, or he can fix a die-roll world does indicate the technology
world will be a colony if it is in a threshold and determine their loca- most commonly available to local
region of space claimed by some tions at random. For example, a industry, which determines the pro-
space-traveling civilization, it has an sprawling democratic society may ductivity of the local economy, which
affinity score greater than 0, and it is place an outpost in an eligible star sys- in turn determines the typical wage
not already defined as a homeworld. tem on a 12 or less on 3d, while a stay- and standard of living for the local
at-home empire may only place one population.
Outposts on a 6 or less.
Local TL depends on the standard
An outpost is a settlement on an Uninhabited Worlds TL for the setting as a whole. An
unattractive world, planted only industrialized world that engages in
because of the world’s strategic loca- A world that isn’t a homeworld, plenty of interstellar trade will almost
tion or other unusual properties. An colony, or outpost will be uninhabited. invariably have the standard TL.
outpost may be in place for decades or Most uninhabited worlds will appear Worlds that are poorly industrialized
even centuries, but it never loses its in unclaimed space. Of course, every or that are cut off from interstellar
temporary character. Unlike a colony, space-faring empire will find its share trade may have lower TL. Select a TL
an outpost has relatively few perma- of worlds that are entirely useless – or for the world according to the needs of
nent settlers – most of the inhabitants at least appear useless to the first the setting.
expect to go elsewhere once their work explorers who visit . . .
at the outpost is finished. To select a TL randomly, roll 3d on
the Tech Level Table and make a note of
In general, the GM may place out- the implied TL.
posts on worlds that are in a region
claimed by a space-traveling civiliza- Modifiers: -10 if the local settlement
tion, that have affinity scores of 0 or is a homeworld and the world is not
less, and that are not already defined within space claimed by any space-
as homeworlds or colonies. Several faring civilization; +1 if the local set-
different kinds of outpost exist. tlement is a homeworld or colony and
the world’s habitability score is 4-6, +2
Military Outposts: These are if the local settlement is a homeworld
designed to serve as military bases, or or colony and the world’s habitability
to watch the frontier between hostile score is 3 or less; +3 if the local settle-
interstellar states. The GM should ment is an outpost.
decide how far military starships can
travel without needing to stop for fuel,
supplies, navigational fixes, or some
other need. Place an outpost on any

90 BASIC WORLDBUILDING

Tech Level Table World TL If a world has habitability of 3 or
Primitive less and tech level of 7 or less, then the
Roll (3d) Standard-3 carrying capacity for the world is
3 Standard-2 automatically 0 (such a case should
4 Standard-1 not occur under the rules in Step 9).
5 Standard (Delayed) Otherwise, refer to the following
6-7 Standard tables.
8-11 Standard (Advanced)
12-15 Affinity Modifiers Table
16 or more world’s population; increasing the PR
by 1 multiplies the actual population Affinity Score Multiplier
A Primitive world is, for whatever by a factor of 10. For example, a world 10 1,000
reason, cut off from interstellar trade with a population between 1.0 million 9 500
and unable to produce advanced and 9.9 million has a PR of 6; a world 8 250
goods on its own. Roll 3d-12 (mini- with a population between 1.0 billion 7 130
mum 0) for the world’s TL. Citizens of and 9.9 billion has a PR of 9. 6 60
this world are very likely to have the 5 30
Low TL disadvantage (p. B22). Determining Carrying 4 15
Capacity 38
Worlds that are at the setting’s stan- 24
dard TL can still be known for slight First, determine the carrying capac- 12
differences in technological accom- ity of the world for its inhabitants. 01
plishment. A world that is Delayed is at This is the maximum population that -1 0.5
the standard TL, but its manufactured the world can support in reasonable -2 0.25
goods tend to be larger, heavier, more comfort for long periods of time. A -3 0.13
costly (by about 10%), less reliable, or world’s population can exceed its car- -4 0.06
less user-friendly. A world that is rying capacity, but only at the cost of -5 0.03
Advanced is at the standard TL, but its widespread poverty or the risk of a dis-
manufactured goods will be known astrous “die-back.” Get the base carrying capacity for
for beautiful styling, compactness, the world, based on its TL. Multiply
reliability, ease of use, or reduced cost Carrying capacity depends on sev- this value by the appropriate multiplier
(about 10%). An Advanced world may eral factors. The world’s diameter from the Affinity Multipliers Table,
also have made breakthroughs in spe- controls its surface area. The world’s based on the world’s affinity score.
cific fields, offering certain manufac- affinity score stands for a variety of Finally, for any world type other than
tured goods at higher than the stan- factors, all of which affect how much Asteroid Belt, multiply the result by the
dard TL for the setting. of the world’s surface area is going to square of the world’s diameter (meas-
be usable. Finally, the tech level of the ured in Earth diameters). If the world
Regardless of the result on the Tech settlement controls the density of is of Asteroid Belt type, multiply by 50
Level Table, if a world is not naturally population that can be supported – (an asteroid belt offers material broken
hospitable, then its population will the number of people that can live up into many small chunks, providing
need advanced technology to survive. comfortably in the same area. a lot of potential living surface).
If the world’s habitability score is 3 or
less, then the world must be at least Carrying Capacity Table Base Carrying Capacity
TL8. 10,000
Tech Level 100,000
Example: The GM has no prefer- 0 500,000
ence regarding the TL of the Haven 1 600,000
colony, so he rolls 3d on the Tech Level 2 700,000
Table and gets an 11. This yields a 3 2.5 million
result of Standard (Delayed). The GM 4 5 million
sets the colony to TL10, since that’s 5 7.5 million
the standard TL for his campaign, and 6 10 million
notes that local industries aren’t quite 7 15 million
up to galactic standards for cost and 8 20 million
reliability. 9 GM option
10
STEP 10: 11 or higher (or Superscience)
POPULATION
Note that base carrying capacity at TL8 and above is speculative – economists
This step sets the population for and ecologists aren’t in agreement on how many people Earth can stably support
the target world. In this book, a at high TL. The GM should feel free to set these figures to suit his own assump-
world’s population will be given as a tions, especially at TL11+ or in settings that include a lot of superscience.
head-count of residents. Each world
also has a Population Rating (PR).
This is the “order of magnitude” of the

BASIC WORLDBUILDING 91

The above procedure will yield the capacity by 1.5. If they have Reduced At TL4 or below, a homeworld’s
carrying capacity of the world for Consumption 2, multiply carrying population is likely to be within 50%
humans or human-like aliens. Alien capacity by 3. If they have more levels of its carrying capacity. Select a popu-
races with certain racial advantages or of Reduced Consumption, or the lation as needed, or roll 2d+3, divide
disadvantages will need different Doesn’t Eat or Drink advantage, multi- by 10 (retaining fractions), and multi-
amounts of space and resources to ply carrying capacity by 10. ply by the carrying capacity to get the
survive comfortably. world’s population.
Once all the relevant factors have
Carnivores: Races that are unable been taken into account, make a note At TL5 and above, a homeworld’s
to eat anything but meat will use land of the final carrying capacity of the population can vary widely from its
much less efficiently than their herbiv- world. Then proceed to the appropri- carrying capacity. Select a population
orous or omnivorous counterparts. ate section of the following rules and as needed, or roll 2d. Multiply the car-
Such a race would have some level of determine the current population of rying capacity by 10, and divide the
the Restricted Diet disadvantage (p. the world. Round carrying capacity result by the die roll to get the world’s
B151) tied to their predatory require- and population to two significant fig- population.
ments. At TL8 and below, divide carry- ures, and make a note of the world’s
ing capacity by 10 for such races. PR as well. Colony Populations

Increased Consumption: Races that Homeworld Populations A colony world will begin with a
need lots of food or water will need relatively small population that will
more resources to survive comfort- In general, a homeworld will sup- grow over time until it approaches the
ably. For every level of the Increased port as many people as it can – its pop- carrying capacity of the world. Select
Consumption disadvantage (p. B139) ulation will be about equal to its carry- a population for the world to fit the
that the inhabitants have, divide carry- ing capacity. This is especially true at needs of the campaign.
ing capacity by 2. TL4 or below, when societies have no
reliable way to control their own birth To generate a colony’s population
Increased Life Support: This disad- and death rates. at random, roll 3d on the Colony
vantage (p. B139) applies to members Population Table.
of a race while operating in a human- At TL5 and above, societies are
safe environment. When in their own more likely to diverge from their Modifiers: Add +3 times the world’s
environment, they will have no unusu- world’s carrying capacity. By restrict- affinity, and add +1 for every 10 full
al needs. This disadvantage does not ing birth rates, a high-tech society years since the colony was established.
affect carrying capacity. may fall significantly below the carry-
ing capacity. On the other hand, a The colony’s population should
Reduced Consumption: Races that high-tech society can also exceed the normally not exceed the world’s carry-
need less food or water than normal carrying capacity, but only by using ing capacity. The GM may fix the pop-
will be able to get by with fewer world resources in a way that can’t be ulation below the carrying capacity to
resources. This is reflected by the sustained indefinitely. Such a society represent a society that dislikes
Reduced Consumption advantage (p. will be in trouble within a few genera- crowding, or above the carrying
80) and, at extreme levels, by the tions, unless it can improve the carry- capacity for an unstable colony that is
Doesn’t Eat or Drink advantage (p. ing capacity of its world. outpacing local resources.
B50). If the inhabitants have Reduced
Consumption 1, multiply carrying

Colony Population Table

Roll (3d) Population Roll (3d) Population Roll (3d) Population
45 1.0 million 65 100 million
25 or less 10,000 46 1.3 million 66 130 million
47 1.5 million 67 150 million
26 13,000 48 2.0 million 68 200 million
49 2.5 million 69 250 million
27 15,000 50 3.0 million 70 300 million
51 4.0 million 71 400 million
28 20,000 52 5.0 million 72 500 million
53 6.0 million 73 600 million
29 25,000 54 8.0 million 74 800 million
55 10 million 75 1.0 billion
30 30,000 56 13 million 76 1.3 billion
57 15 million 77 1.5 billion
31 40,000 58 20 million 78 2.0 billion
59 25 million 79 2.5 billion
32 50,000 60 30 million 80 3.0 billion
61 40 million 81 4.0 billion
33 60,000 62 50 million 82 5.0 billion
63 60 million 83 6.0 billion
34 80,000 64 80 million ¥10
Every +10
35 100,000

36 130,000

37 150,000

38 200,000

39 250,000

40 300,000

41 400,000

42 500,000

43 600,000

44 800,000

92 BASIC WORLDBUILDING

Outpost Populations STEP 11: democracy on its member worlds. A
SOCIETY TYPE near-future setting may have relatively
An outpost will usually have a pop- little variety in social types, while a
ulation between 100 (for a small sta- “What I see happening around me is space-operatic galaxy of the distant
tion) and 100,000 (for the largest mili- bad enough,” Sarah said. “To know that future may see every one of the types
tary or commercial outposts). Select a the trend is being encouraged by a secret represented on hundreds of worlds.
population, or roll 3d on the Outpost elite is worse. But to know that They are
Population Table below to determine doing it for no more reason than to sim- The GM may want to set up his
the outpost’s approximate population. plify their . . . arithmetic really frosts own procedure for determining
Feel free to vary the result by up to me.” what society type can be found on
25% for any given world. An outpost each world in his setting. The follow-
will almost certainly be smaller than – Michael Flynn, ing procedures are reasonably gener-
the world’s carrying capacity. In any In the Country of the Blind ic and can be used in a variety of
case, the carrying capacity rule doesn’t settings.
apply to outposts, which are depend- This step determines the type of
ent on imported supplies. society (or societies) that exists on the World Unity
target world. This book uses the socie-
Outpost ty types listed on pp. B509-510, the The degree to which a world is
Population Table overall political situations described socially unified depends strongly on
under The Big Picture on p. B509, and the available technology. An ultra-tech
Roll (3d) Population the “special conditions” listed under world with instant communication
3 100 Variations on p. B510. and fast transport is much more likely
4 150 to be politically unified than a pre-
5 250 This step almost demands that the industrial civilization that still
6 400 GM make a selection to fit the needs depends on animal-drawn and water
7 600 of his setting. Any world’s social situa- transport.
8 1,000 tion needs to fit the GM’s assumptions
9 1,500 about interstellar society. An Evil Select a level of unification from
10 2,500 Galactic Empire won’t tolerate demo- the ones described in The Big Picture
11 4,000 cratic world governments, but a on p. B509. To get a random result,
12 6,000 Benevolent Federation may insist on roll 1d at TL7 or less or 2d at TL8+, on
13 10,000 the following table.
14 15,000
15 25,000 Altering the Colony
16 40,000 Population Table
17 60,000
18 100,000 The Colony Population Table makes several assumptions about the
normal growth of colony worlds. Each of these assumptions can be
Example: The GM computes the changed to fit the needs of a given setting.
carrying capacity for Haven. The base
carrying capacity for TL10 is 20 mil- • A stable colony must have at least 10,000 inhabitants. This fixes the
lion, the multiplier for Haven’s affinity lowest possible entry on the table. The current table assumes that an
of 7 is 130, and the square of the plan- average die-roll of 10, combined with a medium affinity score (5) and
et’s diameter (in Earth diameters) is no time-since-foundation modifier, will match the minimum popula-
1.1. Multiplying all of these together, tion. When rewriting the table, the GM may wish to make sure a simi-
the GM gets a total carrying capacity lar result occurs – otherwise some new colonies will have very high pop-
of about 2.9 billion. The colonists have ulations, or some very old colonies will have the minimum population.
almost certainly not come anywhere
near this population . . . • A colony world’s population will grow at a rate of about 2.3% per
year, averaged over its entire history. This assumption fixes the ratio
The GM decides that the Haven between adjacent entries on the table, and the +1 die-roll modifier for
colony was established about 200 each decade since the colony’s foundation. If populations grow faster,
years ago, by dissidents fleeing a civil increase the ratio between entries or apply the +1 modifier more often
war in the Galactic Empire. He than every 10 years. If colony populations grow more slowly, decrease
decides to determine the colony’s pop- the ratio between entries or apply the +1 modifier less often.
ulation at random, and rolls 3d on the
Colony Population Table. He gets a • Each point of the affinity score will, on the average, double a colony
total roll of 53 (12 on the dice, +21 for world’s Population. This assumption fixes the size of the modifier for
the planet’s affinity score, and +20 for affinity. If habitable conditions and available resources are more impor-
time since settlement). This suggests a tant, increase this modifier. If colonies grow at a rate independent of the
population of 6.0 million. The GM environment, decrease or remove this modifier.
decides to vary the final result slightly,
and records a total population of 6.5
million (PR 6).

BASIC WORLDBUILDING 93

Modifiers: +4 if the world’s PR is 4 Society Type If a “special condition” was indi-
or less, +3 if the PR is 5, +2 if the PR is cated by the roll on the World Unity
6, +1 if the PR is 7. Select a society type, or roll 3d on Table, choose one or two of the spe-
the Society Types Table, referring to the cial conditions listed under
World Unity Table column for the type of interstellar soci- Variations (p. B510). To select special
ety in which the world is a member conditions randomly, roll 3d on the
Roll (2d) Conditions (for a summary of interstellar society Special Conditions Table, with no
types, see Chapter 1). If the world is modifiers. If the result has an aster-
5 or less Diffuse not part of any larger society, use the isk, record the special condition,
“Anarchy or Alliance” column. then roll 1d. On a 1-3, roll for a
6 Factionalized second special condition and apply
Modifiers: Add the world’s TL (treat- both.
7 Coalition ing TL11+ as TL10). The result is the
society type of the world (or the domi-
8 World Government nant type, if the world is not unified).

(Special Condition)

9 or more World Government

Society Types Table

Roll (3d) Anarchy or Alliance Federation Corporate State Empire
3-6 Anarchy Anarchy Anarchy Anarchy
7-8 Clan/Tribal Clan/Tribal Clan/Tribal Clan/Tribal
9 Caste Caste Caste Caste
10 Feudal Feudal Theo Feudal
11 Feudal Theo Feudal Feudal
12 Theo Dictator Feudal Feudal
13 Dictator Dictator Dictator Theo
14 Dictator Dictator Dictator Dictator
15 Dictator RepDem Dictator Dictator
16 RepDem RepDem RepDem Dictator
17 RepDem RepDem RepDem Dictator
18 RepDem RepDem AthDem RepDem
19 AthDem RepDem Corporate RepDem
20 AthDem AthDem Corporate Corporate
21 Corporate AthDem Corporate Corporate
22 Corporate AthDem Techno Corporate
23 Techno Corporate Techno Techno
24-25 Techno Techno Techno Techno
26-27 Caste Caste Caste Caste
28 or higher Anarchy Anarchy Anarchy Anarchy

Here, AthDem stands for Athenian Democracy, RepDem stands for Representative Democracy, Dictator stands for
Dictatorship, Techno stands for Technocracy, Theo stands for Theocracy, and Corporate stands for Corporate State.

Special Conditions Example: Rather than roll the dice, that are not politically unified will
Table the GM works directly from his con- have different CR in different regions,
cept for Haven. He decides that the and a world may have a split Control
Roll (3d) Special Haven colonists oppose the feudal gov- Rating as well (see p. B507).
ernment that rules most of the Galactic
Condition Empire, and are experimenting with Control Rating depends strongly
3-5 Subjugated* democracy instead. He gives Haven a on the society type and any special
6 Sanctuary World Government, sets the society social conditions to be found on the
7-8 Military Government type to Representative Democracy, and world. Refer to pp. B509-510 for the
9 Socialist* places the Sanctuary special condition likely relationships between society
10 Bureaucracy to fit the world concept. type and CR. The GM should select a
11-12 Colony CR to fit the needs of his setting, or
13-14 Oligarchy* STEP 12: choose one from the most likely range
15 Meritocracy* CONTROL RATING using any random method he prefers.
16 Matriarchy or Patriarchy
The Control Rating (p. B506) of a A world with the special condition
(choose which) world is a measure of the most of Colony (not to be confused with a
17 Utopia common CR to be found there. Worlds world with the colony settlement type)
18 Cybercracy is a special case. Such a world’s CR
should depend on its local social type,
(roll again if TL7 or less) but it is almost always lower than that

94 BASIC WORLDBUILDING

of the world from which the colony is Modifiers Table and add together all Economic Volume
governed. For any such world, deter- the modifiers that apply.
mine the governing world’s CR first. To determine the economic volume
Base Per-Capita of the world, simply multiply the per-
Example: The GM decides, based capita income by the population of the
on his original concept, that the Income Table world and round off to two significant
inhabitants of Haven are likely to pre- figures. Make a note of the final per-
fer freedom and an open society to a Tech Level Base Per-Capita capita income, the typical Wealth level
lot of regulation. He sets the Control for local citizens, and the economic
Rating for Haven to be the minimum Income volume.
that would normally occur under a
Representative Democracy: CR 2. TL12+ $130,000 Estimating
Trade Volume
STEP 13: TL11 $97,000
ECONOMICS The best model known for estimat-
TL10 $67,000 ing the flow of trade between two
This step determines the economic points is the gravity trade model, so
parameters of the target world. It can TL9 $43,000 called because the fundamental equa-
be skipped if the details of local eco- tion describing trade flows resembles
nomics aren’t going to be useful to the TL8 $31,000 Newton’s equation for the force of
campaign. gravity between two masses.
TL7 $25,000
The economic output of a world In order to estimate the trade vol-
depends on the productivity of the TL6 $19,000 ume between two specific worlds, the
world’s workers. Productivity is large- GM will need to determine two
ly determined by the local technologi- TL5 $13,000 parameters, which should be consis-
cal base. Workers with access to high- tent throughout his setting.
er-TL equipment and techniques will TL4 $9,600
be able to produce more economic The simplest formula for estimat-
value in the same amount of time. TL3 $8,400 ing trade volume is:
Also, the goods and services they pro-
duce will command a higher price TL2 $8,100 T = (K ¥ V1 ¥ V2)/D
when sold. Here, T is the trade volume
TL1 $7,800 between two worlds (in trillions of $),
Productivity also depends on the K is a constant on which the GM must
efficiency of the local economy. This TL0 $7,500
can depend on local environmental Wealth Level
conditions, and on the details of local Income Modifiers Table Comfortable
society. A world where most people Average
are scrambling simply to survive is not Condition Modifier Struggling
one whose local industry will be effi- Poor
cient and productive. Affinity score 10 +40% Dead Broke

Finally, productivity depends on Affinity score 9 +20%
the resources available to the work-
force. Resource-rich worlds will natu- Affinity score 7-8 +0%
rally be more productive than
resource-poor ones. Low-population Affinity score 4-6 -10%
worlds may be quite rich, but they
don’t support extensive industry so the Affinity score 1-3 -20%
workforce can’t take advantage of the
available resources. High-population Affinity score 0 or less -30%
worlds are economically saturated,
and many workers won’t have access PR 6 or higher +0%
to all the resources they could other-
wise have used. PR 5 -10%

Per-Capita Income PR 4 or less -20%

To begin, refer to the following Apply the total modifier to the base
table to determine the base per-capita per-capita income. If the world’s carry-
income for inhabitants of the world. ing capacity is less than its population,
This is dependent solely on the world’s multiply the result by the world’s car-
prevalent TL. Then refer to the Income rying capacity and then divide it by
the population. The final result is the
actual per-capita income. Round off to
two significant figures.

The per-capita income for a world
can indicate the most typical Wealth
level (p. B25) for citizens of that
world, relative to the average Wealth
level of the campaign. Divide the
world’s final per-capita income by the
base per-capita income associated
with the campaign’s standard TL, and
refer to the following table.

Typical Wealth Table

Per-Capita Income
1.4 ¥ base or more
0.73 ¥ base to 1.39 ¥ base
0.32 ¥ base to 0.72 ¥ base
0.1 ¥ base to 0.31 ¥ base
0.09 ¥ base or less

BASIC WORLDBUILDING 95

decide, V1 and V2 are the economic much to reduce the trade volume interstellar society is likely to place
volumes of the two worlds (in trillions between two worlds that are not part way station outposts (p. 90) in order to
of $), and D is the distance between of the same society. A reasonable make trade more efficient (or to sup-
the two worlds (in any convenient reduction would be to divide the trade port naval protection of the merchant
unit, usually parsecs). volume by three. ships).

The gravity trade model can yield If trade will be important to the Estimating Space Traffic
some very odd results when used on campaign, compute the trade volume
certain pairs of worlds; if one world’s between the target world and as many To estimate the total amount of
economic volume is much higher than of its neighbors as is convenient. space traffic at any given world, total
the other’s, the estimated trade vol- up the world’s trade volumes with its
ume between them can be many times Designing Trade Routes neighbors. Add the trade volume for
the size of the smaller world’s econo- any other world-pairs connected by a
my. At the GM’s option, a low-popula- If the trade volumes between vari- trade route that passes through the
tion world may carry on all of its ous worlds in the setting have been target world. The result is the total
direct trade with the nearest high-pop- computed, the GM can lay out trade amount of merchant traffic that will
ulation world; the trade volume of the routes on his map. pass by the target world each year,
link should be no higher than the expressed in trillions of $.
smaller world’s economic volume. The structure of trade routes
depends strongly on the mechanisms The GM can use this figure to esti-
The value of the constant K is very of space travel. Suppose that mer- mate the number of merchant ships
dependent on the setting. The GM chant ships can travel freely through that will call at the world’s port each
should determine it early in his setting deep space, moving from any origin to year. Of course, this depends on a
design process, at least if he intends to any destination, never stopping at a number of factors that are all up to the
work out trade routes or otherwise port in between no matter how long GM: the typical size of a merchant
estimate the amount of interstellar the journey. In this case discrete “trade ship, the expected value (in $) of cargo
traffic. The best way to determine K is routes” become unlikely, since every and passengers, and so on.
through trial and error, until the GM is merchant ship moves along its own
happy with the results as applied to independent path. There will be no Example: The base per-capita
the most important worlds of his set- transient merchant traffic at any income at TL10 is $67,000. The GM
ting. The value of K will also have an world. refers to the Income Modifiers Table
effect on what kind of trade is likely to and finds that the total modifier for
occur. On the other hand, if ships must Haven is +0%. Meanwhile, the popula-
touch at port every few parsecs, dis- tion is much less than the carrying
For example, the GM may assume tinct trade routes will appear along the capacity, so the per-capita income
that two worlds with high population paths used by ships carrying the high- won’t be reduced due to a too-large
and high TL, located close to each est trade volumes. Ports between the population. The actual per-capita
other in space, will have a trade vol- high-volume worlds may serve a great income of Haven’s population is
ume between 5% and 10% of each deal of transient traffic, as starships $67,000. The total economic volume
world’s economic volume. If K is set stop to refuel or perform maintenance of the planet is 67,000 ¥ 6.5 million =
high enough to permit these levels of before carrying their passengers and $440 billion. The most typical Wealth
trade, interstellar commerce may cargo onward. The GM can draw a level on the planet is Average.
involve ordinary manufactured goods tree-shaped structure of trade routes,
or even certain raw materials. measuring the total trade volume for The GM has developed trade
Passenger service between worlds will each link by summing up the trade routes for other worlds in his setting,
be fairly common as well. volumes for each pair of worlds whose but he decides that Haven doesn’t
commerce traverses that link. engage in open trade. Instead, the
A smaller value for K will give rise inhabitants maintain self-sufficient
to smaller trade volumes, suggesting a In a setting where worlds are con- industries, and keep in contact with
setting where interstellar trade is nected by jump lines, trade routes are imperial worlds solely through
more difficult or less important. In forced to follow the jump lines. A link- sporadic smuggling.
such settings, trade will tend to be and-branch structure becomes easy to
dominated by high-value, low-volume define in this case. STEP 14:
goods such as luxury items and preci- BASES AND
sion machinery. Even information Note that in either of the last two INSTALLATIONS
may become a worthwhile trade good, cases, trade between high-population
especially if there is no equivalent of worlds may end up following a round- Many worlds have interesting spe-
FTL radio. about route because no inhabited cial features, bases and installations
worlds exist to provide a more direct built by the inhabitants. These may
Another factor that affects trade path. If this happens, the GM may be placed by the GM, or may be
volumes is the presence of political wish to place outposts, or even new placed randomly using the following
borders. Worlds that are members of worlds, in locations that would permit procedures.
different space-faring civilizations are a more direct route for the trade. This
likely to trade less than those that is particularly likely in settings where
share the same culture and govern- only a few of the existing star systems
ment. The GM should decide how are normally placed on the map. Any

96 BASIC WORLDBUILDING

Spaceports repairs, even on ordinary spaceships, less. The chance of some installations
will require off-planet parts, techni- is affected by the world’s TL, PR, and
A spaceport may exist on any world cians, or facilities. A Class III space- Control Rating.
that has space travel or that trades port will always be present on a world
with space travelers. that sees at least $50 billion annually Some installations will have a PR
in total trade volume or transient mer- of their own, indicating the number of
Select the spaceport for the target chant traffic. Otherwise it is present personnel assigned to them. When
world from the following classes. To on a 3d roll of (PR+8) or less. rolling for this PR, assume a mini-
choose a spaceport at random, roll 3d mum PR of 1 unless the world itself
against the target number specified Class II – Frontier Facilities: These has PR 0. No installation can have a
for each spaceport class. Check for the are intended only for interplanetary or PR higher than that of the world itself,
highest applicable class first. If there is shuttle craft rather than starships. and there can be only one installation
no spaceport of that class, check for Only emergency repairs are available with PR equal to that of the world. If
the next-highest class, and so on. A for starships, although common fuel such an installation exists, it and the
world will usually have several ports types are available. A Class II space- supporting industries probably domi-
of lower class than the main space- port is present on a 3d roll of (PR+7) nate local society.
port, but this rarely affects play except or less.
to give visitors a choice of debarkation Alien enclave: One or more races
points. Class I – Emergency Facilities: This alien to the world’s major population
isn’t a real spaceport, just a landing live in segregated ghettos or reserva-
Class V – Full Facilities: This class area. Marked by automatic buoys, it tions. This may be by own choice – to
of spaceport includes full construction might be a cleared-off, flattened space preserve their own culture, or from
and repair facilities for the most or a small orbital station. It may be dislike of the other race. Or the major
advanced spacecraft in the setting. completely unmanned, or it may have population may dislike them. An
The port has berths for hundreds or local customs and security offices. entire world may be designated an
even thousands of vessels, multiple Emergency parts and fuel are stored enclave. Present on a roll of 6 or less.
landing facilities, launch facilities, nearby. If qualified technicians are
surface-to-orbit shuttle services, and available, there will be a way to sum- Black market: Illegal goods are eas-
every amenity imaginable – from crew mon them as needed. Class I facilities ily found on this world, either in a
union halls to high-tech training facil- are present on a 3d roll of 14 or less. fixed physical location or simply
ities. A Class V spaceport will always through a network of contacts. If the
be present on a world that sees at least Class 0 – No Facilities: There isn’t black market is commonly known, the
$20 trillion annually in total trade vol- even a designated landing site. Ships Patrol is likely to raid occasionally or
ume or transient merchant traffic. planning to land must look for suit- restrict trade (unless people in high
Otherwise it is present only on worlds able terrain. If the world has a high places have been paid off). Interstellar
of PR 6 or better, on a 3d roll of (PR+2) enough TL, there will be an airport, criminal organizations have agents
or less. parking lot, or wide roadway. here. Present on a roll of (9-CR) or
less.
Class IV – Standard Facilities: This Depending on the campaign’s
class includes light ship-construction space-flight technologies, spaceports Colonial office: An office of the
facilities, and repair yards for ordi- may be located in orbit, on the colonial authority. On a high-popula-
nary spacecraft. A Class IV spaceport ground, or both. Ground ports service tion world, this may be a recruiting
will always be present on a world that shuttles and landing-capable space- center. On a colony, it will be an
sees at least $1 trillion annually in ships, while an orbital facility allows enforcement office, which works to
total trade volume or transient mer- non-landing ships to dock and pro- ensure compliance with government
chant traffic. Otherwise it is present vides shuttle service to the surface. policies. In the latter case, the general
only on worlds of PR 6 or better, on a attitude of the chief administrator can
3d roll of (PR+5) or less. Other spaceports, not specifically be set by a general reaction roll.
included in a world’s spaceport rating, Present only at PR 3 or higher, on a
Class III – Local Facilities: This include corporate, military, Patrol, roll of (PR+4) or less.
class includes repair facilities for com- and government ports. These can nor-
mon needs; special parts or complex mally be used by any ship in an emer- Corporate headquarters: The nerve
gency, if the facility isn’t secret. center of a major interstellar corpora-
tion is located here. Industrial opera-
Installations tions may or may not be present. In
extreme cases, the planet is governed
Each of the following facilities may by the company. Present only at PR 6
be present on a given world. They may or higher, and local TL7 or higher, on
be selected by the GM as needed. a roll of (PR+3) or less. Roll 1d-3 for
the PR of the headquarters itself.
To place installations at random,
roll 3d for each in any convenient Criminal base: This is the “corpo-
order. If a particular type of installa- rate HQ” for a criminal group. The
tion doesn’t exist in your setting, don’t Patrol will be interested in this world,
roll for it. Each installation type lists a if it knows about it. Present on a roll of
target number; the installation is pres- (PR+3) or less. Roll 1d-3 for the PR of
ent if the 3d roll yields this number or the base.

BASIC WORLDBUILDING 97

Espionage facility: This may range Pirate base: This planet may house Religious center: Sacred areas –
from a secret spaceport to a minor a full-fledged pirate outpost with its shrines or temples, often with
office or spy cell. Civilian spy organi- own spaceport and security forces, church administrative and meeting
zations may be involved in industrial possibly allied with the world’s popu- facilities. Some sites of historical
espionage. Military espionage bases lation. Or, on a smaller scale, corsair significance will be guarded by the
will be specifically involved in spying ships may set down secretly from time Patrol. Pilgrims are likely. The center
on enemy capabilities and forces, or to time for supplies and R&R. If the may be off-limits to nonbelievers.
(in rear areas) in correlating data. pirate base is public knowledge, the Present on a roll of (PR-3) or less.
Espionage facilities will be present on Patrol can be expected to take an Roll 1d-3 for the PR of the religious
a roll of (PR+6) or less. If a facility is interest. Present on a roll of (8-CR) or center.
present, roll 1d to determine its type: less. Roll 1d-3 for the PR of the base.
on a 1-4 it is civilian, on a 5 it is friend- Special Justice Group office: A local
ly military, and on a 6 it is enemy mil- Prison: Prisons are often built on headquarters for the Special Justice
itary. Roll 1d-2 for the PR of the facili- barren, unsettled worlds (to make Group (p. 204). Present on a roll of PR
ty if military, or 1d-4 if civilian. If one escape difficult), or in remote areas on or less. Roll 1d-4 for the office’s PR.
espionage facility is present, there habitable planets. They are rigorously Roll 1d for the office; on a 1-2 it is
may be others (presumably to spy on patrolled. If the prison dominates “covert,” known only to SJG opera-
the first one). Roll again for another local society, this is a “prison planet,” tives and with an innocuous “cover”
facility; if it is present, roll for a third, and travel there is heavily restricted. A function.
and continue until a roll fails. prison will be present only if no other
installations exist on the world, aside Survey base: As for a naval base,
Government research station: The from naval or Patrol bases. Present on but for the Survey organization.
station may be studying any cutting- a roll of (10-PR) or less (roll last). Roll Present if there is a Class IV or Class V
edge technology or scientific field. It 1d-3 for the PR of the prison. spaceport, or on a roll of (PR+3) or
may be known to the public, gar- less. Roll 1d-3 for its PR.
risoned by security troops and ships. Private research center: Like the
Or it may be secret, located in a government research station, this University: A prestigious interstel-
remote area. It may even be disguised installation is dedicated to scientific or lar center of learning, with libraries
as some other form of installation. engineering research. It may be fund- and research facilities. Present on a
Present on a roll of 12 or less; if one is ed by industry, by government grants, roll of (PR-6) or less. Roll 1d; on a 1-2,
present, a second is also present on a or (secretly) by criminal organiza- the university will have PR 3; on a 3-4,
roll of PR or less. Roll 1d-4 for the PR tions. Private centers investigate a it will have PR 4; on a 5-6 it will have
of each installation. Roll 1d for each wider range of topics than govern- PR 5.
research station; on a 1-2 the station is ment centers, possibly including far-
secret. out theories. Present on a roll of Example: The GM rolls 3d for each
(PR+4) or less; if one is present, roll starport class in turn. The first roll is a
Mercenary base: This is the current again for additional centers, to a max- 14, which is greater than Haven’s
home planet for a mercenary compa- imum of three. Roll 1d-4 for the PR of PR+2=8, so there is no Class V space-
ny, perhaps with a contract from a each installation. port. The second roll is a 15, which is
local government. There are training greater than PR+5=11, so there is no
facilities, depots, and support person- Rebel or terrorist base: These range Class IV spaceport. The third roll is an
nel as well as fighting forces. Present from hidden fortresses with full space- 11, which is less than PR+8=14, so the
on a roll of (PR+3) or less. Roll 1d-3 port facilities to minor hideouts for GM places a Class III spaceport on the
for the PR of the base. ships “on the run.” Rebels will have planet.
contacts among the local population,
Nature preserve: Most or all of this though the world government is rarely The GM has no special preference
planet is set aside in its unexploited, allied. Terrorists usually base them- regarding bases and installations for
natural state. These preserves may be selves on friendly worlds, striking into Haven, except that there should be no
used for scientific research (off-limits foreign territory. The navy and Patrol installation operated by the govern-
to tourists), or for light or heavy will take an interest in these installa- ment (the Empire) or a major corpo-
tourism (safaris, excursions, and so tions. Present on a roll of 9 or less. ration. He rolls dice for every other
on). Present on a roll of (12-PR) or Roll 1d-3 for its PR. item. The only roll that succeeds indi-
less. cates a rebel or terrorist base; a second
Refugee camp: A holding center for die roll yields a PR of 2 for the base.
Naval base: A support installation those who have fled their native world The GM decides that some citizens of
for the Navy. The size and complexity due to war or another catastrophe. Haven operate a support base for
can vary, from a main fleet base to a These are usually run-down, filled with rebels against the Empire; the base
small refueling station or listening squalor and crime. Refugees are usual- may be associated with the smugglers
post. Present if there is a Class V ly disliked by the natives; the impover- who sometimes bring in imperial
spaceport, or on a roll of (PR+3) or ished refugees are often desperate and goods.
less. Roll 1d-1 for the PR of the base. militant, scheming to regain their lost
lands. Present on a roll of (PR-3) or The design of Haven is complete, at
Patrol base: As above, but for the less; if one is present, roll for addition- least under the basic world-building
Patrol. Present if there is a Class IV or al centers until a roll fails. Roll 1d-3 for system. In Chapter 5 the design will be
Class V spaceport, or on a roll of the PR of each camp. expanded with advanced options.
(PR+4) or less. Roll 1d-2 for its PR.

98 BASIC WORLDBUILDING