Agent of the Imperium, page 31
F Flag. The ship is equipped for command and control of other ships. The squadron commander Admiral or Commodore commands from a Flag-designated ship.
D Monitor. The ship, while movable, is intended to operate in a fixed location. Typically restricted to one system, and so does not require (or does not have) jump drives.
A Armored. A ship which normally does not have Armor is provided Armor (usually applies to Auxiliaries).
F Fighter. The small craft (less than 100 tons) equivalent of a Rider. Shown for completeness. Does not apply to Battles.
L. Lander. The craft carries troops, vehicles, and equipment to a world surface for battle. An Assault Lander delivers directly to the battlefield.
Q Quarantine (Obsolete). The ship is dedicated to the Quarantine mission.
Other classification codes are possible.
For example, some idea of a ship’s intended capabilities can be gleaned from its identifying codes.
B is an undifferentiated Battleship. BR is a Battle Rider. BB is a Beam-armed Battleship. BK is a Strike Battle.
V is a Carrier. VR is a Rider Carrier. VF is a Fighter Carrier. VL supports Landers for a planetary invasion.
S is a Siege Engine. SO is an orbital Siege Engine.
Extended Ship Classification System XSCS
Where Primary Classification addresses Dreadnoughts and their brethren, the Extended Classification system is more comprehensive and includes a much wider range of ships. The system is too extensive to be addressed here.
Ship Tonnage
Ton is a unit measuring volume of starships and spacecraft.
Water ship volume is measured as the tons of water displaced. By extension, starship volume reflects the volume of liquid hydrogen which could be contained by the hull.
Ton. Displacement Ton. Volume Ton. Starship Ton. The standard measure of volume for starship construction, equal to the volume of one thousand kilograms of liquid hydrogen: approximately 13.5 cubic meters.
For reference, a 30-meter diameter sphere is about 1,000 tons. A 63-meter diameter sphere is about 10,000 tons. A 138-meter diameter sphere is about 100,000 tons. A 300-meter diameter sphere is about a million tons. A 650-meter diameter sphere is about ten million tons. A 1.4-kilometer diameter sphere is about 100 million tons.
Small Craft
Craft less than one hundred tons are “small,” intended for utilitarian purposes. They are incapable of jump.
Typical models for small craft include: pod, lifeboat, gig, ship’s boat, boat, launch, pinnace, cutter, shuttle, fighter, and lander.
THE IMPERIUM
The key to the stars is the jump drive—without it, the space between the stars takes years, even lifetimes, to cross. With it starships travel parsec distances in a matter of weeks. The development of a jump drive marks the beginning of interstellar travel for any race, including Humaniti.
A jump drive is both fast and simple. With one, it is possible to move from here to there (where both places are at least one hundred planetary diameters out from any large masses) in a period of about a week. The time in transit is independent of the distance travelled, which makes this system practical for interstellar travel, but for little else. The distance travelled with the jump drive is a function of the specific jump drive in use—for varying sizes and complexities of jump drives, the performance ranges from one to six parsecs, with greater distances as yet unavailable. In point of fact, the current theory of jump drive actually precludes greater jump distances.
Another central fact of interstellar travel is the fact that no method of information transfer faster than jump drive has been discovered. Ships can carry messages, but radio still lags at mere light speed. Communication is always restricted to the speed of interstellar transportation.
For Terra, the first rudimentary jump drives came into general use in the mid-21st century. These drives introduced the Terrans to Alpha Centauri, to the farther stars, to the First Imperium (then called only the Imperium), and to the First Interstellar War, 2113 AD. That series of wars (there was, of course, more than one) hastened the fall of the Imperium, and resulted in the takeover of the existing structure by expanding Terran forces. Their rule (The Rule Of Man, or the Ramshackle Empire, depending on who wrote the history) slowed, but did not stop, the continuing decay of empire.
What followed is romantically called the Long Night. It wasn’t romantic at all. The fall of the empire halted much of the trade and commerce between worlds—many of these worlds simply died, no longer able to maintain their previous standard and unable to recapture the lower technology levels necessary for survival. Some worlds banded together in pocket empires, mere shadows of the former glory that was the First Imperium. Some worlds wasted their technological jewels fighting for the scraps of the empire that were left. The fighting and the turmoil lasted nearly two hundred and fifty years—from twilight to maybe nine o’clock. Some worlds didn’t even know for sure that the empire had fallen; communications ships simply stopped coming, and no one could find out why.
Night continued for another twelve hundred years. Worlds turned in on themselves, developing local resources and moving in their own directions. About three decades before dawn, a group of worlds known as the Sylean Federation established a firm industrial base and a strong interstellar government. This, coupled with a high population pressure, provided the impetus necessary for the re-establishment of the empire. In a thirty-year campaign, the Sylean Federation actively recruited new member worlds for its interstellar community. Public relations programs, active commercial warfare, and (where necessary) battle fleets joined to bring all of what is now the Core Sector under one rule. Proclaiming the Year Zero (4521 AD) a holiday year to mark the beginning of a new era, Grand Duke Cleon Zhunastu accepted the iridium crown of the Third Imperium, establishing it firmly on the foundations of the First and Second.
THE STRUCTURE OF THE THIRD IMPERIUM
The Imperium is a far-flung interstellar community encompassing over 10,000 worlds within a region approximately 700 parsecs across. Interstellar government over such a large area, however, becomes a philosophical question; the problem initially seeming to be insurmountable. Distance, travel time, and communication lag all conspire against a functioning, efficient structure which can meet the needs of its subject population. But the lessons of history serve as a guide. Spain in the 16th century ruled much of the New World, with travel times of about a year between the seat of government and the new territories. In fact, through most of history, timely governmental communication, with both a rapid dispatch of instructions and an equally rapid response, has been a dream, not a reality.
The Imperium attempts to ameliorate the problems of distance through feudalism.
Feudalism: With such great distances separating stellar systems, individual responsibility and authority become of great importance. The Imperium is divided into sectors (twenty of them), each about 32 parsecs by 40 parsecs in size. Each sector is divided into sixteen subsectors (8 by 10 parsecs). And within a subsector could be perhaps thirty or forty systems, each with a star, worlds, and satellites.
Individual worlds, and even entire systems, are free to govern themselves as they wish, provided that ultimate power is always accorded the Imperium. Interstellar government begins at the subsector level—on one world designated the subsector capital. The ruling figure at the subsector capital is a high-ranking noble: a duke. This duke has a free hand in government, and is subject only to broad guidelines from his superiors. But at the same time, the duke owes fealty to the higher levels of government, ultimately to the Emperor himself. The feudal approach depends greatly on a sense of honor, one cultivated by the hereditary aristocracy. This sense of honor is very strong within the Imperium; it has proven essential to the survival of this far-flung interstellar community.
INTERSTELLAR SOCIETY
The known interstellar community encompasses thousands of worlds, many of them inhabited, and not all by Humaniti. The number of sophonts which have been contacted is quite high; the Imperium boasts hundreds; Charted Space boasts more than a thousand.
Major and Minor Races: A superficial classification system for the various intelligent races has been created, based on empirical evidence, and to some extent on tradition. In general, the dominant races of known space are those which have achieved FTL (faster than light) travel by themselves, rather than receiving it through contact with starfaring civilizations. These dominant races are called major races; all others are called minor races. Thus, the term major race has become attached to any race which achieves FTL flight on its own, regardless of its prominence. There are sound reasons for the mixing of these two concepts: races that developed FTL rapidly expanded into space, spreading their influence across the stars. Slower races were contacted before they had a chance to discover the FTL secret and emerged into a universe already controlled by the major races. Indeed, the culture shock of being found by a superior race (often superior only in their knowledge of FTL) may take something out of the race as a whole, making them incapable of denying their secondary role in interstellar society. The classification scheme is, of course, simplistic, but the major races tend to perpetuate it as it works to their advantage.
The Six Races: Similar to the major/minor race division is the concept of the Six Races. The origin of the term is uncertain, but it appears independently in Aslan, Vargr, and K’kree sources. There is some disagreement as to the proper identification of the Six, but most commentators agree that all must be major races. The most common definition was once Aslan, K’kree, Hiver, Vargr, Zhodani, and Imperials (both Solomani and Vilani). The confirmation (in 790, Imperial date) of multiple worlds inhabited by the Droyne, and of archeological evidence that they possessed FTL travel before the entry of any of the modern dominant races into space gave new weight to the Six Race concept. With the inclusion of the Droyne, Humaniti could be neatly categorized as one race, clearing the way for a classification that included six truly distinct races: Aslan, K’kree, Droyne, Hiver, Humans, and Vargr.
Aslan are roughly human-sized and are descended from four-limbed, upright, bipedal carnivore/pouncer stock. The earliest Terran explorers saw in them a vague resemblance to the Terran lion, and they have been described (by Terrans) as lion-like ever since, although there is very little true similarity.
The K’kree are among the most massive of the major races, and are the only example of a major race descended from herbivores. K’kree are conservative, gregarious with their own kind (to the point of distress if isolated) and claustrophobic. These characteristics derive from their evolutionary origins as herd animals.
Droyne are a small race, both in stature and in dominion, with only limited settlements on a small number of worlds. The history of their evolution is a puzzle as their home world is not known with certainty. The Droyne have no empires, and actually rule only a few worlds. In some few cases, they possess the technology to produce sophisticated machinery, including jump drives and starships, but they remain apparently content to stay on their own worlds.
Humaniti (old spelling: Humanity) is a special case. Originally evolved on Terra, humans were disseminated over nearly fifty worlds about 300,000 years ago by the Ancients, a now extinct intelligent race. These various examples of Humaniti then independently developed. Unlike non-human races, individual human races are classified as major or minor. Three human races (the Solomani of Terra, the Vilani of the First Imperium, and the Zhodani far to spinward) are major races. The nearly forty other races of Humaniti are all minor,
Vargr are an intelligent race genetically manipulated from Terran carnivore stock by the same Ancients who disseminated Humaniti to the stars. Vargr have long suffered from an inability to organize themselves (to any degree or for any length of time) beyond the star system level, and their empires tend to rise and fall with unsurprising regularity. Vargr have an intense racial pride, and are easily insulted. They are prone to enter into fights without regard for possible consequences.
Hivers (a human term applied to them) are the most obviously alien of the major races: They are descended from omnivore gatherer/scavenger stock, and are unique in that they attained a form of agriculture before they became sentient. They exhibit a sixfold radial symmetry. The body has an internal skeleton consisting of a series of rings supporting the limbs, while a fused carapace protects the brain and internal organs. Hivers themselves are highly individualistic (the term hive is an early misconception) while driven by basic drives such as curiosity, the parental instinct, and a desire to maintain the unity and uniformity of their race.
Within The Imperium: The many worlds of the Imperium are home to an abundance of sophonts, including many of the major races. Aslan, Vargr, and Humans can be expected in many areas under Imperial rule. Zhodani, K’kree, and Hivers, for various reasons, are much more infrequently encountered, and for the most part remain within their own regions.
IMPORTANT TERMS AND CONCEPTS
Traveller uses certain words and abbreviations in unique ways (although these terms may not appear in this text).
The following words, phrases, and abbreviations, are commonly used in the Traveller universe:
ablat. Ablative anti-laser armor.
air/raft. A small grav vehicle, normally open-topped, often used as personal transport.
alien. Refers to an intelligent being of a species other than the speaker. In general use, the word alien always represents non-humans. The preferred term is sophont. See also Sophont.
amber zone. An imposed designation cautioning travellers that the world poses some danger. The reasons may vary from natural (strange ecologies or biomes) to social (local sophonts are xenophobes) to political (local polities are at constant war).
Ancients. Usually expressed as “The Ancients.” The mysterious species that once ruled this region of space some three thousand centuries previous and then, in a spasm of violence, destroyed itself. Charted Space is littered with the wreckage of their cities and occasional artifacts of their fantastic technology. Because they are a specific alien race, the word is always capitalized.
Anglic. The accepted term for the English language as used in the Third Imperium.
The Third Imperium traces its roots to the Vilani-created First Imperium, which in turn was conquered and occupied by Terrans as The Rule Of Man (the Second Imperium). The Terran conquest and occupation overlaid the use of Anglic as the official language co-equal to the pre-existing Vilani official language.
The result is language usage on the Canadian model: both languages are in common usage and are mandated to be equally emphasized. However, not every sophont knows both (or even either) language. In some areas, language usage is on the American model. One language predominates and the second language is shown less predominately.
antigravity. No hyphen. The general term for technology which negates gravity.
Aslan. A major race of Charted Space, named by early explorers for a vaguely leonine appearance. Singular is “Aslan,” plural is “Aslan” or (rarely) “Aslani.” Rarely, Asmani is used to describe humans in societies culturally dominated by the Aslan.
Aslan Hierate. A major power in Charted Space, the Hierate lies to spinward of the Imperium. As the name of an interstellar state, always capitalized.
AU. Astronomical unit, always capitalized and without periods, representing the average distance from Earth’s orbit to the center of the Sun, or a distance of approximately 150 million kilometers.
battle. battleship. A powerful warship capable of standing in the line of battle and destroying opposing vessels. By definition, the most heavily armed and armored warship available. Also called capital (for Capital Ship).
battle dress. Heavy powered personal armor; the ultimate in personal protection.
battle rider. A powerful nonjump warship designed to be carried into action aboard a jump-capable tender.
belter. An asteroid miner.
black globe. A high technology artifact reproducible at TL15, which allows for limited invulnerability (and limited invisibility) at the cost of sensor blindness. White globes, an even higher technology artifact, should be handled the same way.
boat. A small craft. Also, a small defensive spacecraft (as in system defense boat, or SDB).
calendar. In the Imperial system, days are numbered from 001 to 365. Years are numbered from the founding of the Third Imperium, which was declared to be the Year 0 (zero). Years prior to the founding of the Imperium are either given as negative numbers (−1532, −22, etc.) or (less commonly) labeled as “minus 36.” Standard form for dates is [day]-[year], so the 10th day of 1117 would be 010-1117. When spoken, the connector is verbalized: for example, “oh oh one dash eleven seventeen.” The first day of a year (001-1117) is also called “Holiday” (capitalized, like Christmas or Easter). The other stellar powers use different systems, but these are seldom used. Only the Solomani Confederation still uses the CE/BCE system (without periods). Rarely, you will see dates in the Vilani system, such as 1235 VI (for Vilani Imperium), again without periods.
