Venture 1.6

 

The Tower: Second Level

Room 8: (Laboratory) There is a table with restraining straps in the center of the room, and two storage cabinets along the walls. The storage cabinets contain 3 glass containers of formaldehyde and 2 glass containers of hydrochloric acid.

Room 9: (Computer Room) There is a computer access panel here and other technical equipment such as a geoscanner, an electron microscope, and a hydraulic drill press. There are also jars containing various mineral fragments. A character with computer skills who gains access by DEFEATING or BYPASSING a level 4 security system and is able to DISPLAY INFORMATION will learn the following information:

- Stage 1 research of the Z Virus has been conducted on the S-4 mining base for the past two months.

- Stage 2 testing on living subjects has been conducted over the past thirty days.

- The Z Virus will in most cases reanimate recently deceased creatures excluding Vrusk. 

- Infected Vrusk will become terribly ill from the Z Virus, the effects lasting several days.

- Stage 3 of the Z Virus testing will be on a space station.

- Stage 4 of the Z Virus testing will be on a populated planet.

The rogue miners were in the process of deleting all files regarding the Z virus when they were interrupted by the PCs arrival, and thus the above information remained in the computer system.

Room 10: (Conference Room) There is a long table with 8 chairs arranged around it. The chairs each have a securing waist belts to help keep the chair occupant seated. There is a 2 meter x 1 meter vidscreen on a wall, and a ladder that leads upward to the next level.

Room 11: (Storage) A sign on the outside of this door reads 'STORAGE'. If the PCs are not wearing their enclosed spacesuit helmets, they hear a thumping noise against the door coming from inside the room. The door is closed with a LEVEL 1 locking mechanism. Inside the room is a reanimated Human male that will attack the closest player character when the door is opened. It will violently attempt to grapple and bite the PC. The only way to stop the ghoul is to damage its brain. Attacking the body or limbs will slow the ghoul down but not 'kill' it. Any PC bitten by this ghoul must pass a STA check or become infected with the Z virus.

Any character other than a Vrusk who is infected with the Z Virus will lose 1 STA point per hour. No known medical treatment will prevent this loss of STA points, and the only method of preventing death and reanimation is to freeze the infected character. Once the infected character reaches 0 STA (death), reanimation will occur within 1 hour. The reanimate will then become active and attack any non infected character it sees.

Reanimated Human: STR 35, STA 50, DEX 35, RS 35, INT 0, LOG 0, PER 0, LDR 0, ATTACK: 35 to grapple,  then 35 to bite, DAMAGE: 5 + infection (STA check)

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The Tower: Third Level

Room 12: (Life Support) If the PCs check the equipment in this room, they will note that the life support system is operating on emergency battery power and will fail in 20 hours unless power is restored from the control room.

Room 13: (Dormitory) This is the zero G sleeping quarters for 20 miners. A search of the room will reveal the personal effects of the miners that were housed here such as photos of family members, clothes, a few bottles of alcohol, and one laser pistol with clip.

Room 14: (Lavatory) This is a zero G lavatory for the miners. There is nothing of interest here.

Room 15: (Radio Room) This small cluttered room contains a working subspace radio. There are papers listing rotation schedules for the miners going to Dead Man's Wharf, and transmission data sent to or received from Hepplewhite contacts. Several of the messages are from the other three mining bases, none mentioning anything out of the ordinary. One message is from a freighter called the Space Ox that is due to arrive at the S-4 base in 7 days.

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The Tower: Fourth Level

Room 16: (Observation Room) This room provides a 360 degree view through portholes surrounding the level. There are two control consoles located here; one is to operate several laser turrets positioned on the mining asteroid's surface, and the other is for operating a mechanical crane used for the disposal of waste from the mining station. The heavy lasers can divert an asteroid drifting too close to the S-4 base by strategically heating a drifting asteroid's surface, and using thermodynamics to change its trajectory a few degrees.

As the PCs arrive at the observation dome level, the 17 reanimates on the first level begin to wander out of room 2 opening doors and climbing ladders. They will progress from level to level until reaching the observation dome and the player characters.

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The Chase

Assuming that the PCs survived the many perils of the S-4 Mining Base, they will likely attempt to chase the rogue miners. The NPCs intend to leave the base using a mining shuttle. If the PCs originally used a mining shuttle to get on the base, this means that there are now two shuttles parked in the landing bay. When the PCs reach the bay, the rogue miners have just launched in their shuttle. The PCs must then board the second shuttle in order to pursue the miners. Use the rules for traveling through an asteroid field in the Knight Hawks Campaign rulebook. Although the mining shuttles are armed with a forward firing laser, the PCs should be aware that firing at the rogue shuttle will put Hakfoost's life in danger. Falco Starhammer will radio the PCs and threaten to kill Hakfoost if the PCs do not break off their pursuit. Malco's privateer vessels patroling the belt will soon intervene, cutting off the PCs pursuit and unwittingly allowing the rogue miners to escape.

If the PCs arrived in the Starfox (parked outside the landing bay or on the asteroid's surface), it is likely that the rogue miners will be long gone by the time the PCs get on board their ship. If the PCs do somehow manage to use the Starfox to pursue the rogue miners, Malco's privateer vessels will soon intervene to challenge the PCs. From the privateers perspective, they see an unknown vessel chasing one of Hepplewhite's mining shuttles. Their interference unwittingly allows the rogue miners to escape the PCs.

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A Trail Gone Cold

It is likely that the rogue miners eluded the PCs and disappeared into the asteroid field. The only lead that the PCs will have at this point is the name Falco Starhammer. If they checked the mining base's computer, they will know that he was hired while on Dead Man's Wharf. They should return to that space station to find any helpful information that the wharfers might have regarding the rogue miner.

The miners that were freed will insist that the PCs need not remain on S-4 considering that the Spaceox is due to arrive in a few days with supplies, and that the other mining stations have already dispatched shuttles to assist them. The miners plan to hold up in the control room building until help arrives, and then clear the base of any remaining reprogrammed robots or reanimated ghouls. They thank the PCs profoundly for their assistance, and tell them that they will always be welcome on S-4.

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Back To The Wharf

When the PCs return to Dead Man's Wharf, three Hepplewhite Industries investigators will introduce themselves to the player characters. A Dralasite named Fibbler Bublubb, a Human named John Bagarox, and a Vrusk named K'tzz Z'tak will want to know everything that has happened since the PCs first arrived in the Shepherd's Star system, and more specifically, what has happened on the S-4 mining base.

If the PCs maintain their cover story that they are only freight haulers looking to sell their cargo of robotic parts, Bublubb will suggest that he finds this highly unlikely in light of all that has happened thus far involving the PCs. Also, Bublubb will use his profound Lie Detection ability (72%) during his discussion with the player characters. The investigators only wish for the PCs to truthfully tell them all that they know regarding the situation of Hakfoost and the S-4 Mining Base.   

When the interview is concluded, Bublubb will suggest that a meeting be held on Dead Man's Wharf as soon as possible, and that it should include the following personnel:

- Cmdr. Savage and Glendarfur Maddus of Dead Man's Wharf space station

- Representatives of Zaxx Mooring space station

- Representatives of Sanctuary space station

- Fibbler Bublubb, John Bagarox, and K'tzz Z'tak

- The player characters

He will also recommend that the freighter SS Spaceox be located and intercepted immediately. Bublubb feels that this freighter may be somehow involved regarding Hakfoost's disappearance and the S-4 mining base mutiny. If the PCs report of the Z Virus is accurate, the threat must be neutralized at all costs.

If the PCs reveal the information they discovered that the Spaceox is scheduled to stop at the mining base in several days, Bublubb will ask the PCs to intercept the freighter using the Starfox, and escort it back to Dead Man's Wharf. He will also suggest that he accompany the PCs on this mission to address any Hepplewhite concerns. Commander Savage will provide two of his star fighters as escort to the Starfox, and he will also notify any privateer ship that is patrolling Shepherd's Belt to assist the PCs in locating the Spaceox.

Fibbler Bublubb: Dralasite male, Stats: Greater NPC, Lie Detection: 72%, Engineering 2, Astrogation 2

John Bagarox: Human male, Stats: Greater NPC, Piloting 2, Energy Weapons Gunner 2

K'tzz Z'tak: Vrusk male, Stats: Greater NPC, Engineering 2, Piloting 2, Comprehension 20%