It is hoped that the GM will not reveal the contents of this to the players, which will assure that every one has a fair chance to be ranked on the website according to their skill. If you are a player quit reading this!

Campaign Notes:

New characters should be made for this campaign, If the players wish to transfer characters from another campaign, the technology limitations outlined through out the campaign does not apply and corrections should be made. Otherwise, the players generate characters based on normal SO rules with the following exceptions;

• Technical skill level can not exceed level eight, as the knowledge is not available, this only applies during the character generation phase.

• Private and commercial travel are severely restricted and the characters will not know the extent of known space.

• Unless the character is an armsman, personal weapons are forbidden.

• Psionics are unknown to the main populous, characters with this ability will have been taught by a parent and know not to reveal these skills upon pain of immediate execution. Outward displays of psionics will result in the character being considered a menace to society and apprehended by a security team with orders to shoot.

• Characters begin the campaign while still serving their last tour of duty in the military, or as a consultant, under military authority.

• Characters with command experience are still under the authority of the ship's captain and other department heads and are not in direct command of any portion of the research ship "Lyris".

• The game is designed to be played by humans and alien races are not allowed in the GC service, players insisting though on playing aliens will require the GM to make concessions as outline below.

Character home worlds & backgrounds

Roll a d10 to see where each PC is from... (all home worlds are in the same region of space), (Class refers to population)

1. This PC comes from Kaltos (Sector 10:G) Class-5, Tech Level-4, The population is scattered across the planet in small cities that are the hub of farming communities. The star ships fueled their imagination and they enlisted as soon as they were old enough.
   

2. This PC comes from Lavant (10:G ), C-4, TL-3 The lack of excitement led the PC to travel to the nearest starbase (Varran) and enlist.
   

3. This PC comes from Varran (10:H), C-10, TL-8 This PC was witness to a lot of oppression by the GC and enlisted to get away from it,.
   

4. This PC is from Barnac (9:G), C-4, TL-4. A distant cousin of the governor, this PC does not boast this fact lest they become a hostage, besides the governor is not a very likable fellow.
   

5. This PC is from Kanos (9:H) C-5, TL-4. Looking at a future in the mines, this PC enlisted.
   

6. This PC is from Muran (9:I) C-5, TL-4 With not many opportunities on their home world of Shanier, the family moved and as a condition this PC was forced to enlist.
   

7. This PC is from Arten, (10:H) C-6, TL-5. The PC was looking for adventure, so they enlisted.
   

8. This PC is from Graden, (10:H) C-5, TL-5. Born on starbase 22 the PC naturally enlisted as soon as they could.
   

9. This PC is from Larrianes (10:G) C-4, TL-5. Friend to a minor merchant, the PC's first star ship voyage got them hooked and it kept them from running with the teen gangs.
   

10. This PC is from Crao'ne (9:H) C-5, TL-4. A rebel as a kid, this PC joined to get out from under the martial law and oppression.

(When the game begins, one of the PC's finds out that their parents were deported to a penal colony, they may also find themselves under investigation, roll d10 and then roll against their Streetwise skill.)

GalCom has little to fear from anyone, so at the start of the game, they are lightly armed and wear no armor. As the game progresses, or they go into hostile situations, they will begin issuing better and better gear. When the game starts Security Officers are wearing uniforms, with only a blaster pistol and ground based armsmen are issued archaic weapons. This will change fairly rapidly though if it is determined that the "enemy" is using high tech weapons, the GC has the blueprints and capability to mass produce Blaster Rifles, which will be their favorite. For general purposes GC troops have an average skill of 5 with the weapons they have now, if they go to a higher tech, this level will drop.

The game is designed with a preset experience and scoring method, not in respect to the characters, but in respect to the players and the game as a whole. The experience reflects the rank of the captain of the Xenophone, the character's starship, the score is based on how well the players do in each session and if they win the campaign. This is all dependant on the players ability to work as a team, as strategists, and their ability to see "the big picture". The game does not pull any punches and it is possible several places in the campaign where the PC's can either be outright killed, or flat out lose the campaign before they even get warmed up. It's ok if your players are fond of hack-and-slash type games, it's in here, but too much of "charging in without thinking" is the easiest way to blow the campaign.
The players can go a long way with the mercenary type mentality, the campaign will just take longer to complete. The players who will do the best will be the hero type, who are looking for effect rather than affects. To truly win this campaign the players will need to tip the scales of power, not overturn them. The time is ripe for a revolution and the PC's need only give a nudge, if they push too hard though it will push back and the other guy is much bigger. Every type of skill is considered and incorporated into the game and a few new ones thrown in, as well as character classes, both PC and NPC. It is hoped that this campaign will inspire like games in the future, both from the author and other parties.
It is believed that Space Opera was never truly appreciated by the masses and it is thought that this is because most people are not fond of math. So an effort has been made to simplify the larger aspects of the game so that it won't take years to calculate a fleet battle for instance. If these rules can be accepted by the majority of players as a supplication to the original rules, then maybe SO can make a comeback as a game of epic proportions. For those who are avid readers of science fiction, this game should quench their thirst, as it is encompassing in design.
The game is designed outside of the normal SO universe, as it is most likely that the players are already familiar with that universe and have preconceived notions of what everything is like. Instead a future where the galaxy has recovered from an invasion and the PC's want to bring back the old ways, is presented.

While the campaign provides for an all out galactic war, threaded though out the campaign is the requirements that out line the optimum effect, where the campaign can be won within twenty years. Through strategy and careful planning, the players can delegate the mundane task of the rebellion to NPC's, which allows them to concentrate on specific missions, that will make the game fast and furious. By not meeting the directives of the campaign, the players can completely lose the rebellion, lose points at the completion, and end up leaving the galactic empire in worse shape than when they started. The directives correspond to the aspects of the game;

1. Individual missions that the PC's carry out, each opportunity will earn the "captain" his rank, failures may get that character replaced.
   

2. NPC's, certain NPC's will become the future leaders of the new Galactic Empire, if the players utilize their talents.
   

3. Special Units, rather than trying to do everything themselves, the PC's will need to form specialized units to take over the skilled aspects of the rebellion.
   

4. Networking, by systematically spreading their influence the PC's can maintain their control over the rebellion and prevent it from taking on a chaotic nature.
   

5. Rebel loyalty, each system has it's own rebels, if the PC's alienate them, the result will be chaos.
   

6. Splinter groups, the PC's are not the only ones who are trying to force a rebellion.

There are other issues that will be dealt with individually as the game progresses, each directive though will reveal the players skill in waging a successful campaign.

GM Notes for the "Xenophone":

It may be thought that this is too much to give the players so early on in the campaign, but it is meant to be a distraction to the PC's. PC's who are fond of utilizing high tech weapons and equipment will most likely lose the campaign, as when the GC realizes they are out gunned they will begin upgrading there own forces. As the GC vastly outnumbers the rebels, it won't be long before they get wiped out, high tech or no. As long as the PC's do not overplay their hand and go through the missions in disguise, utilizing their skills, instead of massive firepower. They will be able to secretly build their own forces and when the time comes for an all out confrontation, the GC won't stand a chance.
The easiest way for the PC's too lose the campaign though, is to sport high tech weapons and equipment around with them, or arm their own forces with the same. The sooner the GC learns that there is a serious threat the sooner they will gear up to eliminate them. The GC already has a TL-10, but does not utilize it in production, except in the inner-worlds and even sparingly there, this is to prevent rebels from opposing them with serious firepower. The GC will not respond to the rebel threat with high tech immediately, unless a unit of theirs is totally wiped out, like a military outpost, fleet of ships, etc... It will only take a year for the GC to upgrade their forces and from that time on, they will be working on TL-11. More than likely the PC's will feel safe, walking around with their big guns and high tech gear, but it will actually be their down fall and the GM should alter the game accordingly...

GM Notes for Part Two:

Part Two is not played in sequential order like Part One, but is determined by a random roll, the spread of the rebellion influence, and how well the PC's plan their time-table. The campaign will not flow like part one, as by this time too many variables have entered the game and now timing and PC influence would be too hard to calculate. Instead each session describes similar missions, or events, grouped together, that will take place as the rebellion progresses, this is dependant more upon the PC's planning than anything else. For example, Session two deals with the PC's and missions that will need to be specifically carried out by them. Session three deals with Spies and each type of event that relates to them, Four deals with Special Forces, etc... Most of the time the GM will be referring to session one and charting the progress of the rebellion.
At the point where Part Two is started follows shortly after the PC's learn of the Cirrus Council's intentions, session two deals with the council and other similar rebel situations. From that point the GM would refer to the time table, of when the next chronological event will take place, if nothing is slated for that month, the PC's may do as they please. The GM should read the first section of each session though as it provides clues as to what will happen with what has already taken place.

Notes from the Author:

This campaign is a realistic one, the author is experienced in tactical warfare and use to teach classes in the same. The idea of this campaign is not to "rack up a body count", as experience is awarded by use of skills, not so much by the number corpses left behind. Also, the author is a councilor for troubled teens and knows the detriments of playing out murderous fantasies, it is not this one's intentions to provide an environment to train homicidal maniacs, or entertain them. There has been documented proof, that encouraging fantasies of a pathological mentality builds a desire to carry them out. While there are many attributing factors, like one's home life, job, environment, etc... The author does not want this to be one of them and the game is structured so that maniacs will ultimately lose the game, but this is the nature of a realistic game, not by purposeful design.

Notes on the Universe:

As stated elsewhere, this part of the spiral arm is recovering from a galactic invasion that was defeated, but left the spiral arm in chaos. The untouched central portion of the galaxy, (from the terran worlds inward) are the same as outlined in the SO books. This campaign takes place in the future of that universe, when the terran population had spread themselves thinly along the spiral arm. There are a few alien races in the campaign, but the worlds they populate are kept in the stone age, as xeno-phobia is high. Players who desire to create alien race characters will not be able to play as openly as human ones, many times they will need to be left behind on the ship, while the humans get to have all the fun... If the players are insistent on playing alien races though, only slight modifications need to be made; The core of the GalCom worlds will all be human and the only branch of service that aliens will not be allowed in is the GC security force, then make one-in-ten of the worlds alien, but do not allow aliens to operate in groups, only in segregated units.

Experience:

Award Campaign Experience, (not character experience) 10 points for each skill used by a player character, skills used by NPC's are not added. This reflects how much the PC's are instrumental in winning the campaign and how rounded out the group is. These point are only given once and only during the first part of the campaign, if the PC's allow an NPC to do something because their own skill level is not high enough, they will miss out. Only one character can earn these points also, this will reflect the diversity of the characters party.

Scoring:

Each session the party succeeds in accomplishing earns them 1000 points, if they fail a mission the first time, or miss the opportunity altogether, this will reflect in the final score of the campaign. These points can be taken away also, primarily by sacrificing NPC's, or failing parts of a mission. This will show the players how well they are doing in the campaign, as the success of each mission will determine if the players are capable of winning the campaign as a whole.

Body Count:

For each NPC the PC's kill during the course of the game, one point is awarded, which may be a challenge to them, but as explained below, is not in their best interests.

Winning the Campaign:

To win the campaign, the players must become heroes, not leaders, the more aspects of the rebellion they try to control themselves, the less likely they are to win. This is primarily because leaders are usually bogged down by politics, paperwork, and the small details. If the players are power hungry, then the GM should increase their paperwork, which will slow the ultimate progress of the rebellion. The missions the characters are given to accomplish are designed to present them with NPC's that take over the small details of running a rebellion. The players though can not just turn these aspects of the rebellion over to the NPC's and expect them to carry the rebellion themselves. The PC's will need to control the rebellion from the back ground and prevent it from getting out of hand, more than anything else.
The success they will have will not be apparent until part two of the campaign is started and especially during Part Three, then battle lines are drawn and the planning of the rebellion unfolds. This is then compared to the GC's (GalCom) ability to counter the threat of rebel forces. At this point it will become apparent whether the players will win the campaign in the allotted time, (20 years). They may still be able to win the campaign, (or maybe not), it will just take longer and require more playing time (real time).
How well the PC's do in the campaign is reflected in the body count, more than anything else. The NPC's of the game are citizens just like the PC's, so in a sense, they will be killing their countrymen. It is unlikely the PC's can go through the entire game without killing someone, but the possibility exists. But if they enjoy killing the enemy too much though, the GM should insert observations like, that when they check the bodies, they see a past comrade they served with during a tour of duty. The GC as a whole should not be viewed as the enemy, as it is not, there are persons who have allowed the GC to become, or stay, like it is, these should be considered the enemy. The majority of NPC's though will feel much like the PC's, but are trapped by their place in society, by killing off NPC's the PC's are basically killing off their friends, neighbors, and countrymen.
In the end, if the rebellion is won with a high body count, friends and family will want an accounting and it is possible that the PC's will become war criminals and not viewed as heroes. They also should be haunted by the faces of their dead, so that once in a while they wake up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat. This won't be a problem if the players can see the "big picture", but if their only thought is making it from one battle to the next the body count they leave behind, should not be allowed to be "left behind". After all, this is a campaign designed for heroes, not for mercenaries, if the players want this kind of game, let them be rebels on one of the worlds and let them enjoy a game that will last until their characters grow old...