All spaceframes have a mission profile, which determines the specialized equipment installed before venturing into the unknown, the priority in personnel the ship’s fleet gives the vessel, and its overall mission goal.
This section details 10 of the most common mission profiles. Gamemasters and players are encouraged to amend these mission profiles or create their own based on their game’s needs and desires.
Each mission profile details:
Vessels equipped to assist colonies in their initial stages can provide cargo transfer capabilities, scientific and medical backup, and support for the unknowns of new worlds. These ships are essential in establishing and stabilizing new settlements.
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These vessels are equipped to respond quickly to a crisis, whatever it may be. Normally capable of supporting expansive shuttlebays, they can deploy large quantities of personnel or cargo to evacuate large populations from disaster areas. Such vessels also serve as hospital ships and troop transport during conflicts.
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Custom bult civilian ships (or the occasional decommisioned dreadnought) act as tourist destinations or cruise ships, providing luxury experiences.
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These vessels are often equipped with highly sensitive monitoring devices, enhanced sensors, and stealth systems. These vessels range close to—and sometimes beyond—foreign borders. Serving on these ships is often a dangerous and thankless proposition.
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Mainly employed by one of the Exploration Guilds, ships set up for exploration or surveying are designed to spend extended periods in deep space, using powerful sensors to map space, discover new star systems and find better routes between the stars.
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Flagships are a specialized form of command ship, with a dedicated flag bridge or strategic operations center within the vessel. These ships can act as a mobile fleet headquarters, with systems and personnel dedicated to ensuring the operations of whole fleets, or even serving as a vessel for the continuity of command should disaster strike.
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These starships are often older vessels that have been taken off active duty and equipped as standby vessels in case of disasters both natural and manufactured. Some new manufacture starships also are outfitted in this manner, but are referred to as “fleet support,” assisting flotillas in deployments away from the supply lines of the core worlds.
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Ships either built or retrofitted for these types of missions tend to focus on being decent defensive craft, with a secondary focus on some form of support. Like all good escorts, their main job is taking hits for the other ships in the convoy and providing cover, not defeating anyone. This means they need to make sure they don't become one of the ships needing assistance, so they tend to feature more rugged, robust systems, even at the cost of efficiency or over all damage output.
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Most large factions follow a fleet doctrine that emphasises specialed roles for every vessel. However, smaller organizations, colonies, or even individual operators dont' have such luxuries. Instead, they will often choose to embrace a jack-of-all-trades mission profile. It's not the best at anything, but it's good at everything.
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Patrol vessels are dedicated to acting as peacekeepers in regions of space where hostility is not only possible, but likely. These vessels tend to operate along borders with other polities, and act as picket vessels during fleet actions. In times of peace, patrol vessels can be assigned to survey missions, or operate patrols against pirates, smugglers, and similar dangers.
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These vessels are outfitted specifically for scientific missions, studying unknown phenomena, or supporting ongoing research. Often civilian hulls (or older / decommissioned military hulls) these vessels are more like mobile labratories than traditional starships.
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Vessels equipped for this profile are often placed under the command of flag officers and used as the heart of squadrons, battlegroups, and even whole fleets. These ships, and the prestige and standing that accompanies them, are also used for major diplomatic undertakings where they can serve as mobile embassies.
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These vessels provide the backbone of any fleet. Whenever vital equipment or personnel need to be moved, supply vessels are tasked with ensuring items or individuals arrive where they are needed, often before the destination realizes the necessity.
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The ship is equipped with an abundance of state-of-the-art or even prototype technologies, allowing them to be tested or studied in practical conditions so that the flaws can be discovered and overcome, and the systems can be refined and improved upon. These ships are often deployed on a broad range of missions to provide the most diverse conditions for equipment and technology testing.
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It's an unsafe galaxy and conflict of some kind is near constant. This vessel was designed as a weapon of war, and there's no mistaking it. Designed to be the backbone of a military force, it is the sad fact that warships are some of the most numerable startships ever made.
Select one of the following talents:
A starship’s service record (known by the Klingons as a ship’s Record of Battle, and other names by other spacefaring civilizations) may be selected to represent key elements of a starship’s life of service. Selecting a service record provides an additional trait for the ship to reflect her life of service and provides the following modest benefits:
Service records are not required for play; they are an optional element to add flavor and roleplaying potential. Players should work with their gamemaster to create alternative service records as desired. Ships may only have one service record, and they cannot be swapped out.
The ship has been in service for decades and has been home to many crews. Only the longest-serving crew are likely to remember when it was new.
Larger Crew: The ship’s Crew Support is increased by 1.
The ship is dependable, with a solid record of successful missions and accomplishments. While overshadowed by more famous ships, this vessel is nevertheless a mainstay of the fleet, with a competent, dedicated crew.
Reliable: Whenever the ship rolls to assist a task attempt, the group may spend 1 Momentum to ignore any complications rolled on the ship’s die.
Most ships are more than a collection of their parts, but this ship tries really hard to prove that wrong. The crew jokes that it's worth more sold as scrap, and the fact is sometimes they're dead serious. But ships stay flying for a reason, and this ship has it's one thing it's better at than most.
She's Got It Where It Counts: Choose any of the "Improved X" Talents from the Ship Talents page, ignoring requirements. In addition, whenever the ship assists a task attempt, the ship’s die increases its complication range by 2 (to 18–20). This can not be removed.
This ship launched her entire class. Typically, these ships are unique; they are never quite the same as production models. While this might be a bain to maintence crews who have to work on her, it also means she has abilities that others wouldn't expect from a member of her class.
First of Her Class: When the ship is created, apply one additional refit to the ship (including modifying her stock weaponry). In addition, choose a trait to represent an idiosyncracy of the ship. (If you are stumped, you may use one from the Ship Idiosyncrasies section.)
This ship is famous, having been at the center of one or more major events that shaped the history and politics of one or more civilizations. This comes with great prestige for those involved.
Prestigious Posting: When a new supporting character is first introduced, apply a single improvement to them immediately, like a milestone.
This vessel’s service has been spent responding to distress calls and disasters, coming to the rescue of those in danger or subjected to great hardship. The ship is heavily refitted for disaster relief, evacuation, and medical catastrophes, and the crew often have additional emergency medical training.
Mission of Mercy: The first time in a scene when an enemy makes an attack against this ship, the gamemaster must spend 1 Threat. The hope ship must add 1 Threat the first time in any scene it makes an attack.
The ship is brand new, first of her class, and laden with the newest technologies, assembled to be tested and studied. There are potentially a whole host of unknown problems and challenges to face, as novel systems clash or malfunction as they interact in unexpected ways.
Experimental Vessel: When the ship is created, apply two additional refits to the ship. In addition, whenever the ship assists a task attempt, the ship’s die increases its complication range by 2 (to 18–20). A milestone refit can remove this complication range increase, representing the ship’s crew working out the problems in the prototype design.
This ship has been fighting on the front lines her entire career. She was built for it, and has served with distinction the entire time. She might be new, just starting her career on the front lines, or she might be an old warhorse slightly long in the tooth, but still giving as good or better than she gets.
Combat Effectiveness: During the first round of ship combat, the first player to act may take the Targeting Solution action for free, regardless of what station they are at.
Note: Replace X with the name of a battle, major event or war.
This ship was involved in some of the fiercest battles, surviving the fighting, though not without scars. The crew is battle-hardened and prepared for anything.
Ready for Battle: During the first round of ship combat, the gamemaster must spend 1 additional Threat to allow an enemy ship to take the first turn.
This ship has known combat for most of its life and is an old, dependable fighter, having survived many battles, even if she hasn't won them all. She might be a little worse for wear, but her systems and crew are used to working under harsh battle conditions and she can be relied on to get the job done, no matter how many hits she's taken.
Resilient Systems: When performing a combat task, the ship may ignore the Difficulty increase from one of it's breaches.
Every ship, no matter how advanced or meticulously engineered, develops quirks and oddities over time. These idiosyncrasies might stem from wear and tear, rushed manufacturing, custom retrofits, or just the inevitable personality that emerges in a machine designed to keep humans alive in the unforgiving void of space. A ship idiosyncrasy is a unique, sometimes inconvenient, but ultimately harmless characteristic that gives your vessel a touch of realism and charm.
By adding idiosyncrasies to your ship, you can create a more immersive and engaging experience for your crew. These quirks can act as storytelling prompts, opportunities for lighthearted moments, or even challenges to overcome in dire situations. Imagine the rattle of loose panels during evasive maneuvers adding tension to a heated escape, or the crew joking about an airlock's persistent malfunction becoming a running gag.
Idiosyncrasies are entirely optional, but they can add a layer of depth to your ship, making it feel less like a sterile collection of systems and more like a home—or a temperamental partner. Whether you roll randomly or select an idiosyncrasy that fits your ship's backstory, these details can turn your vessel into a memorable character in its own right.
Mechanic wise, an idiosyncracy is just a trait and works the same.
Below is an example table of some idiosyncrasies to choose from if you're neeing inspiration, but they can be anything you want.
| D20 Roll | Idiosyncrasy |
|---|---|
| 1 | Dim Flicker: Lights dim and flicker when switching power modes. |
| 2 | Gravity Stumble: Artificial gravity shifts slightly during high-G turns. |
| 3 | Burnt Smell: The lower deck always smells faintly of ozone. |
| 4 | Cargo Rattle: Containers rattle loudly during maneuvers. |
| 5 | Engine Hum: Engine hum is slightly out of phase with each other. |
| 6 | Loose Panel: A bulkhead cover on Deck 3 constantly comes loose. |
| 7 | Static Chirps: Internal comms pop with faint static before connecting. |
| 8 | Dark Corner: Some cargo bay lights never stay lit. |
| 9 | Hull Creak: Frame creaks audibly under minor stress. |
| 10 | System Whine: A high-pitched electrical whine builds at full thrust. |
| 11 | Control Lag: A eigth second’s delay on helm inputs above 85% accelleration. |
| 12 | Mismatched Paint: Exterior panel colors don’t quite match due to repairs. |
| 13 | Airlock Echo: Airlock makes a piercing hiss when cycling. |
| 14 | Grease Drip: A vent on Deck 5 constantly drips oil. |
| 15 | Missile Shift: Missile racks report one fewer missile after a hard accelleration. |
| 16 | Coolant Hiss: Coolant lines hiss audibly on deck 7 under strain. |
| 17 | Sensor Glitch: Passive sensors misreport distances at long range. |
| 18 | Shaky Landing: Landing struts always groan distressingly loudly when deploying. |
| 19 | Reactor Rumblings: The reactor emits occasional ghostly knocks, bangs and clanks. |
| 20 | Power Surge: Lights briefly overcharge when point defenses engage. |
Picking one or two of these when building a ship aren't required, but recommended if you want to make a ship truly feel like something that exists in the real world and not a static model.
Starships receive refits throughout the spaceframe’s service life. Refits represent significant overhauls performed at starbases and spacedocks, taking from days to months of work. In some cases, ships that have served for decades may receive substantial overhauls, taking a year or more to complete. Whatever the nature of these upgrades, older vessels will have received many refits.
A ship receives one refit for every 10 full years of spaceframe service. Each refit increases one of the ship’s systems by 1. No system may be raised above 12 through refits.
Another thing that can change in Refits is weapon systems. Perhaps a weapon system was developed in the time between when the spaceframe was launched and the year in which the current game is set. It is also possible that the political entity that is refitting it has different armament philosophies than it did originally.
For each refit your ship undergoes, work with your group to choose a system to refit. If you're stuck, or need a little inspiration, you may roll on the following table:
| D20 | Refit |
|---|---|
| 1–3 | Communications |
| 4–6 | Computers |
| 7–9 | Engines |
| 10–12 | Sensors |
| 13–15 | Structure |
| 16–18 | Weapons |
| 19–20 | Roll Again or Select |
Example: The group decides to create a military surplus Triumph. They decide the ship was manufactured in 2610 and was put up for sale only a few years ago. This means this ship has a service life of ~80 years, meaning 8 points to systems need to be added. The decide to add two points to Comms, Computers, and *Sensors, and then a single point each to Structure and Weapons, improving some of the class's weaknesses and playing to it's strengths.