Trade/Hyperlanes of the Three Galaxies

[taalismn]

Trade/Hyperlanes of the Three Galaxies
“Straight-line paths between inhabited star systems are very rare. Just because space LOOKS empty doesn’t mean that there aren’t obstacles in the way...in the case of starflight this can be undetected dark matter, overlapping gravity wells, and gravitic fault lines. Sometimes the fastest route to a destination is a very convoluted one to avoid those obstacles.”

“Going FTL ain’t always jump, engage the autopilot, and lay back and enjoy the rest of the trip; the real stardrivers will tell you that’s just true of the well-traveled, well-marked routes, which make up only a tiny percentage of the star-paths. Navigating the rest of the cosmos is as much an art as it is a science.”

Hyperlanes are charted paths of low gravitational interference that would otherwise impede contragravitic FTL travel. The better hyperlanes are relatively straight, with few detours to avoid stars and other gravity points, and go through low-mass regions. The best hyperlanes are wide, lengthy, more or less direct between destinations , and allow FTL drives to edge up over their listed maximum speed as much as 25%.
Hyperlanes can stretch for dozens to thousands of light years in length. They are generally 1 light year wide, though in less dense regions they can be dozens of light years wide.
The fastest hyperlanes generally occur above/below the disks of the Three Galaxies, in low-mass intergalactic space, or in the ‘voids’ between galactic arms, but a few hyperlanes actually skirt large gravitic masses, such that smart and experienced pilots can actually use them to ‘slingshot’-accelerate their ships to faster speeds (GM option: This is a difficult feat with a penalty of -20% to pull, but if successful, increase the ship’s FTL speed by 1d6x10% for 2d4 hours...a failure, however, requires another piloting roll at -10% to avoid dropping out of FTL to recalibrate the engines(takes 1d4x10 hours). A failed roll also bleeds off speed by as much as 1d6x10%, until the ship can drop out of FTL and restart its FTL mode at normal speed). A rare few hyperlanes have gravitic ‘pinches’ that allow a starship to accelerate, forced by gravitic pressure, like rapids in a river or a narrowing high pressure water hose.
Hyperlanes can change over time due to stellar drift, new star formation, star death and black holes. and cosmic phenomena such as cosmic strings, exotic matter clouds and dimensional rifts. Thus it is imperative that charts be kept updated. Most stellar polities establish trade and navigation organizations that maintain records and charts of galactic hyperlanes, and routinely send out scouts to survey the lanes for any changes. Out of good will and cooperation in an unspoken sense of galactic obligation, many of thse organizations freely share navigational information and changes to routes. The more mercenary organizations and guilds will charge starfarers(especially new cultures) for up-to-date navigation data, and the more security-conscious groups will carefully edit their publicly-available charts to obscure strategic lanes(the TransGalactic Empire, for example, strictly controls internal navigation data while hunting out the same in their neighbors’ territories).

A few of the (thread-)mentioned hyperlanes in the Three Galaxies are:

(Thundercloud)
-Thurian Path hyperlane and on the edge of the Turaken Gap

-Nivar Range Lane---Trans-void hyperlane that is effectively midpointed by Visguy, homeworld of the Bromlin.

(Anvil Galaxy)
-Ensa Spur and Redekkian Path--Small hyperlanes that are seeing increased traffic due to rerouting of trade around the Golgan warzones.

-The Getchen Node is the remains of a cluster of ancient blue giant stars that suffered a chain reaction squence of supernovas many eons ago. Now five massive black holes sit surrounded by a cluster of dying stars. The region is a dangerous one for starships to lose FTL drive in, as the surrouding normal space is still littered with cosmic debris and radiation, but the Node sits not far from several major hyperlanes. Daredevil pilots have figured out that they can more than make up time for the detour off the ‘lanes to whip around the Node and gravity-catapult for improvements in FTL speed of up to 30%, and as much as 90% using a more convoluted path around, back around, and through the black hole cluster. However, threading the Node is very dangerous, and only the most skilled(or foolhardy) dare the trick.

(Corkscrew Galaxy)
-Gasrow Hyperway---Important trade conduit for the CCW. It is protected by the Samantha Shoal and the Rubik Concordiat where it passes closest to the TransGalactic Empire.

Random Hyperlanes
“We can shave a few ship-days’ travel time off the trip if we take the Agearian Passage, but that takes us rather too close for comfort to the TransGalactic Empire’s Numidian Colonies. If we have to drop out of supra-light for whatever reason, we likely won’t be warmly received if we encounter any Imp ships and they identify us as Free Worlds allies---”

A set of tables for creating/outlining hyperlanes in the Three Galaxies.

a) Length:
b) Speed Factor:
c) Polity Boundaries:
d) Navigation Factor:
e) (Optional) Anomalies

a) Length:---How far does the hyperlane extend?
01-30% Local Squirt----6d6 light years
31-50% Short Sprint---2d4x10 light years
51-80% Modest ---6d6x10 light years
81-95% Long Haul----2d6x100 light years; +5% to Polity Boundaries
96-00% Expressway 1d10x1,000 light years; +20% to Polity Boundaries

b) Speed Factor:----Depending on the density of mass in the region of the hyperlane, proximity of gravity wells and other anomalies, how much of an improvement in speed can travelers expect to get?
01-50% Modest Push---5% increase in speed
51-75% Quick Dash---10% increase in speed
76-97% Fast Lane---25% increase in speed
98-00% Surging Wave----1d4x100% in speed; these are very rare and sought after avenues.

c) Polity Boundaries:---Hyperlanes, depending on their length, may inevitably cross the declared/recognized territories of various interstellar polities. This can also determine what sort of greeting a ship dropping out of a hyperlane, either deliberately or due to mechanical difficulties, can expect upon emergence into normal space.
01-25% Virgin Territory---The hyperlane passes through mainly unclaimed/undisputed or generally un-populated territory.
26-40% Lawless Space----The hyperlane passes through a disputed region with pirate problems or torn by small regional bushwars.
41-80% Modest Neighborhood---The hyperlane is bordered by 1d6+1 small system political entities. There is likely to be some effort to mark out and patrol the travel route. +5% to Navigation Factor.
81-90% Major Route----The space avenue passes through territory claimed by a major polity with serious clout(Georgia Protectorate, United Systems Alliance, Central Alliance, or one of the bigger dominions), and perhaps 1d6 smaller regional powers, The route is very likely to be well-marked out and monitored. +10% to Navigation Factor.
96-00% Inter-Power Bloc Traffic Artery---The hyperlane passes through or very close by the territory of 1d4+1 major interstellar powers, such the CCW, TGE, GR, Necrons, Fallen Cosmo Knights, or other prominent group. There is most likely going to be an effort to monitor and police the hyperlane, with several treaties regarding access, and the travel lane is also likely to be a strategic target in times of conflict. +15% to Navigation Factor.

d) Navigation Factor:--- How well marked is the hyperlane for navigation purposes?
01-10% Unmarked---Either this is a new hyperlane or it has deliberately been left unmarked; -20% to Navigation if flying it for the first time, as the crew must essentially feel their way along.
11-25% Out of Date---The hyperlane is marked with an ancient beacon system that had not been maintained or updated in ages. There has been drift and the incursion of anomalies in the intervening time. Depending on the old charts imposes a -10% to Navigation rolls.
26-75% Marked, but Spotty Coverage---This is frequently the case with hyperlanes that cross through the territories of many minor polities and backwater regions. There has been an effort to mark out the best travel routes, but it is intermittent and casually maintained, and it is easy to lose the marked path and go off course. Roll a Navigation roll for every 25 light years covered.
76--00% Well-Marked and Continually Updated---The hyperlane is well-laid out with regular beacons and constantly monitored ‘weather’. Updates and warnings are regularly issued. +10% to Navigation rolls.

e) (Optional) Anomalies---These are random features of cosmic ‘weather’ that make traveling a hyperlane a bit more...interesting....
01-20% Cosmic Storm--A traveling ’knot’ of gravitic turbulence that can cause a ship to lose speed or drop out of FTL. Roll Piloting at -15%; a failed roll drops the ship into normal space. The ‘storm’ generally moves along the hyperlane at 1 light year every 2d4 days.
21-30% Hyperspace Predators---The hyperlane is host to extradimensional creatures that prey on other organisms of like physiology, but they’re just as happy to eat ships as well. Or maybe there’s demonic beings or haunting entities looking to hitch a ride or find new hosts.
31-40% Minefield---Somebody has seeded part of the hyperlane with gravitic traps that, when activated, can pull ships out of FTL mode and back down into normal space.
41- 50% Wandering Black Hole---A gravitational singularity has wandered into the hyperlane; -10% to Piloting rolls to avoid being shucked down into normal space.
51-55% Random Rift---A dimensional rift has appeared in the hyperlane; +10% to Piloting rolls to avoid being pulled in and to someplace entirely different
56-67% Sensor Phantoms----The ship’s FTL mass-sensors detect what appear to be 1d6 gravity anomalies in the path of the ship. Attempts to avoid them are at -20% to piloting rolls, but even if the ship collides with one, nothing happens, and the anomalies disappear as soon as they pass the ship. There’s no explanation for them, as systems diagnostics will show no problems with the ship systems.
68-72% Cosmic String---A band of exotic matter oscillates across the path of the ‘lane. The period is once every 1d4 months. Hitting the String imposes a -20% to Piloting rolls. On a failure, the ship drops out of FTL. Regardless of the failure/success, make a second Piloting roll to fight the attendant turbulence; on a failure, the ship takes 1d4x10% of its main hull MDC in structural damage(if both the first piloting and the second rolls failed, the ship takes 2d4x10%).
73-85% SupraSpeed Asteroids(or some other matter)---Somehow loose matter has been accelerated up to FTL speed and poses a danger to ships in FTL in the hyperlane. Treat as an asteroid swarm or meteor storm.
86-95% Migration Route----The hyperlane is also the migration route of some form of exolife, such as Void Whales(Aliens Unlimited Galaxy Guide, pgs 131-132), energy beings, or some other form of exotic lifeform. Encounters with groups of these lifeforms can be occasion for frantic dodging, herd attacks, or maybe something unusual like shared psychic visions/communication.
96-00% Sensory Hallucinations---On reaching maximum velocity, roll save vs psionics; on a failure, the person finds themselves hallucinating the rest of the trip in a dreamlike state, with the most common being that the person is traveling in some ancient era by some ancient means, such as on sailing ship or steamboat, or riding a train. Events that happen on the ship will be interpreted as equivalents in whatever era the person is hallucinating they are in.


Nogo Zones
“A nogo zone’s more than a speedbump; it can trap a civlization in its own solar system with no way to expand beyond what it can reach via relativistic rocketry. If a nogo cloud appears in a contragravity-using starfaring system, unless they’re self-sustaining, that solar system may end up dying, without supplies from outside. ”

Nogo Zones are regions of space where contragravity systems(CG propulson, FTL drive, and FTL radio) do not work; only natural mass-based gravitation. Nogo zones can be as small as a moon’s radius or as large as several light years across. Hitting a nogo zone at FTL velocities usually causes the ship to drop to sublight speed, but there is also the chance of catastrophic engine failure destroying propulsion and possibly the entire ship. In the case of a successful drop out of warped space, the nogo zone forces the ship to crawl across the zone until it can reach unaffected space, If the crew is lucky, this may be only a journey of weeks or months; unlucky travelers may be stuck for years getting out, if they are fortunate enough to have enough supplies or suspended animation capacity to tide them over.
Nogo space isn’t always a deathtrap, however; some particularly exotic FTL drive techniques such as existing wormholes, magic gateways, leyline trams or psychic drives may work in a nogo zone, but not always.
It is not known what causes every case of a nogo zone; some are linked to obvious cosmic phenomena, such as gravitational singularities and supernova. It is speculated that others are caused by undetected exotic or dark matter, dimensional rifts, or extradimensional intrusions into ‘normal’ space. More worrying are the rumors of nogo zones being linked to ancient warzones, the zones being the byproduct or intentional result of exotic technology weaponry. And perhaps most worrying are reported incidents in modern history of the spontaneous appearance of nogo zones where none existed before. This implies either a natural or artificial generation of the zones, or previously undetected freefloating nogo space.
Naturally the latter incidents of appearing nogo space is of interest to the spacefaring community to detect and avoid such regions. More ominous is the interest in the phenomena paid by groups such as the Insulars, who seek to curtail starflight.

[Grazzik]

This is good stuff - outlining the hyperlanes is good context for intergalactic travel and trade. Perhaps an idea for an interstellar map. But let me pose a question wrt the creation rules - in a space faring culture that extends for hundreds (if not thousands) of years, do the mechanics of how a given hyperlane works matter in the context of an adventure? Perhaps it does if the world from which the PCs are from are new to space faring or if the ship is a bucket of bolts, but many of the peoples of the 3Gs are sophisticated spacers and likely take hyperlanes for granted given they are, as you point out, charted. If they venture outside of established hyperlanes and make their own "offroad" paths, then I could see these mechanics playing a factor. Otherwise, I see it as no different as taking a much used freeway IRL where nothing happens 99.9% of the time. Sure, there are substantially more factors to consider in spatial navigation, but in game terms, everything would be automated with navigational systems many orders of sophistication beyond what we might imagine (on par to how that ancient seafarers couldn't comprehend today's navigation systems) that take into account stellar drift, reported distortions, etc. So that nothing really happens on established hyperlanes unless the GM wants something to happen.

[taalismn]

So that nothing really happens on established hyperlanes unless the GM wants something to happen.

Of course! And your starship systems should work perfectly...as advertised.

[darthauthor]

Impressive bit of writing!

[taalismn]

Hey, getting there's half the fun....

[glitterboy2098]

"nogo zones" sound like the Repression fields in DB5-Anvil Galaxy (pg30).

[gaby]

How about a List of Things that can Slow FTL-drive down,Adding More Hours or Days to travel in the area?

[taalismn]

"It was inexplicable why our ship was slowing down...sensors showed no signs of singularities, gravity wells, or exotic matter. Shipboard diagnostics showed our engines were operating perfectly. Then somebody suggested we check the cargo and passenger lists. When we found Gaby was aboard, it all became perfectly clear what the problem was. Once we ejected Gaby out the airlock and into deep space, full propulsion efficiency was restored and we got back underway, faster and happier."

[green.nova343]

"It was inexplicable why our ship was slowing down...sensors showed no signs of singularities, gravity wells, or exotic matter. Shipboard diagnostics showed our engines were operating perfectly. Then somebody suggested we check the cargo and passenger lists. When we found Gaby was aboard, it all became perfectly clear what the problem was. Once we ejected Gaby out the airlock and into deep space, full propulsion efficiency was restored and we got back underway, faster and happier."

Just how big was Gaby, LOL?

Although that's nearly a trope in "hard" sci-fi, where they are more realistic in the types of mass restrictions you have in ships (especially those that have to make planetfall). Sten Chronicles #8 (Empire's End) has a bit about that.

[taalismn]

Just how big was Gaby, LOL?

"List of Things that can Slow FTL-drive down,Adding More Hours or Days to travel in the area"----
The list would have to include things like 'Passenger's pet peeing in the star drive circuit bank', 'Wrong fuze installed', 'Wrong button pushed on the power-up sequence' and 'Passenger pestering the engineers constantly about what might cause delays in the FTL drive."
Y'know, the real nuisance issues.
Fortunately, a lot of them can be solved with the application of some brute force and/or use of the airlock.