TEXT: SPACE
  Through
  Drifting 
  *Not ‘thru’, ‘threw’ or even ‘thruff’.
  Cobbled together by:
  Star Capt. T. J. Birke
  __
  __
  MICHAL E. CROSS
  
  In 2097, the Hevig class Star Freighter “THE BIGGUN” lost all 
  power to its systems. With only 24 hours left to live,  
  * Yes, he used a pen. 
   
  It’s a shock to us too!
  Star Captain T. J. Birke did what any sane man would do...
  He wrote a roleplaying game.
  Contained within these pages is a 95.34% accurate 
  reproduction of the captain’s hand-written* scrawls, 
  salvaged from his ship and released to the public  
  for the first time.
  
  CREATED, “EDITED” AND WRITTEN BY
  Michal E. Cross
  mehow.nl
  “PROPER” EDITING AND PROOF READING BY
  Chris Birch, Lynne Hardy & Fransje Koning
  PUBLISHED BY
  Modiphius Entertainment Ltd. 
  37A Chesson Road, London. W14 9QR. United Kingdom 
  info@modiphius.com
  LEGAL
  Drifting Through Space copyright © 2011 - 2013 Michal E. Cross & is used under licence
  The Modiphius logo is copyright © 2012 - 2013 Modiphius Entertainment Ltd.
  Any unauthorised use of copyrighted material is illegal
  Find out more about Modiphius Entertainment Ltd. at
  www.modiphius.com & www.facebook.com/modiphius 
  Modiphius Entertainment product number: MPS02011i
  Dedicated to the next 22 hours 16 minutes and 45     
  *Ah! sod it!
  44
  43
  42*
  seconds,
  because 
  that's all I 
  have left...
  _
  _
  -
  
  Contents
  1
  Chapter I  
  Introduction  
    2
  Chapter II  Character Creation    4
  Chapter III  Doing Stuff  
     7
  Chapter IV  Dramatic Situations!    13
  Chapter V  
  Baddies  
   
    21
  Chapter VI  Experience 
   
    22
  Chapter VII   Story Ideas  
    23
  appendIx  
   Character Sheet 
    25
  
  IntroduCtIon
  Chapter I*
  Hello and welcome to a game I wrote. Actually, I'm writing it as I go, 
  so technically it's not written yet. 
  What's it about? Well, allow me to explain.
  Using rules, roleplaying games (or "RPGs" as they are called by the 
  kool kids) allow players to imagine that they are people or beings in 
  extraordinary circumstances, or at least circumstances that are 
  slightly different to their normal day-to-day life.
  Take me for example. My crew (the ones that are still alive) and I 
  have the really tedious job** of transporting the materials required 
  for terraforming various rocks throughout the solar system, via 
  a complex system of gates which allow spaceships to travel immense 
  distances by folding space-time (thanks Albert!).
  But I won't bore you with all that. What makes my current 
  situation extraordinary is that the ship's engines have chosen to 
  ** I guess I shouldn't complain, especially in this economic climate - 
  a job's a job, right?
  * That's the roman numeral for "one"!
  2
  
  possibilities!
  Being an honourable servant to the gaming community, I have thus 
  decided to write a game based on my current situation, all whilst the 
  oxygen and food supplies in this hunk of floating metal dwindle. Wow, the 
  sacrifices I make! And it's all for you! Aren't I nice?
  My plan is to write some mechanics, then shoe-horn in some story ideas 
  all WITHOUT STOPPING! Let's see how that works out.
  explode and now I'm stuck out in space with only 22 hours left to live. 
  Just imagine how excellent this would be as an RPG. Think of the story 
  3
  
  Chapter II
  CharaCter
  ** Why not?! It keeps with the space theme.
  * I like that last one - I'll use it!
  CreatIon
  probably DO have the time, so go look it up and come back to this 
  when you're ready.
  When the role of Space Man has been forced upon someone (or chosen/
  volunteered, if your group is of that disposition***), the players 
  make their Crew Members. I recommend using a piece of paper (or the 
  character sheet that I promise to make at the back of this book if 
  I have time) and a pencil as brains aren't good at remembering stuff.
  Done? Okay, let's continue.
  Like with most RPGs, in this game one person at the table is the 
  Game Master/Story Teller/Dungeon Master/Space Man(ager)* and 
  the others are players who play the roles of the Player Characters 
  (called Crew Members**). For the record, I haven't got the time 
  to give an in-depth explanation of an RPG. You on the other hand, 
  *** I learnt that word from D&D!
  4
  
  skIlls
  attrIbutes
  _
  Each crew member has... er... 6 7 Attributes. Because I saw a 
  biology TV program once, they are:
  _
   
  head   braIn* - how thinky your Crew Member is
   
  skIn - how phis   physically tough they are
   
  arms - how strong they is
   
  FIngers - how handy with their hands they's like
  _
  _
   
  legs - how runny and movey with their legs they are
   
  eyes and ears - how well your 'Member can see and hear stuff
  Most of the big games have a huge list of special bonuses for players 
  to choose from, but I have less than a day to live so I'm not going to 
  Each player now has some points to distribute amongst these 7 
  Attributes. Let's say 40. Now, here's an AWESOME twist: no 
  Attribute can be 0, nor above 10, and only two numbers can be the 
  same! Haha!
  speCIaltIes and Flaws
   
  FaCe   mouth - how good at talky things da crew man is @, like
  _
  _
  * Not to be confused with my pilot, Brian.
  do that.
  The players get to invent their own situational bonuses called 
  "Specialties". These are things that their Crew Member is good 
  at (mechanics, piloting, jumping, Scrabble, for example). Each player 
  chooses 3 for their Crew Member.
  5
  
  their Crew Member sucks at. I'm going to be unoriginal and call 
  these "Flaws". 
  Now, unlike Specialties, Flaws must have some impact on the story/
  setting/situation/whatever, therefore players can't choose 
  anything stupid like board games (who plays those anymore anyway?), 
  medieval basket weaving, or go-karting. No no no! They have to be 
  things like guns, computers, physics, moving in zero-g... That way 
  other stuFF
  can be used. If I had a Space Credit each time I saw someone getting 
  shot or stabbed over something like this, I'd be like, 12 Space Credits 
  richer. Roleplayers can be so passionate!
  That's nice, isn't it? But look, I'm in a pretty dire situation right 
  now, so I'm going to add a double shot of failure into this game. 
  After choosing 3 Specialties, players must to choose 2 things that 
  when a dire situation arises in game, it hurts more (and you might just 
  be able to feel my pain).
  Finally, and this is very important, Space Mans must approve Specialties 
  and Flaws before play, and everyone must understand how and when they 
  makes me ill thinking about it...
  If the Space Man wants, (s)he can allow players to choose weapons 
  and other stuff for their Crew Members (see later).
  all that stuff now. Also, if you can be arsed, you could write a 
  background for your Crew Member as well*. Crazy fact: some people 
  do these things BEFORE choosing Attributes! Can you imagine?! It 
  The players should now have Crew Members ready for action. 
  FYI, I have a headache... 
  Some people think that a name and physical description would be 
  good for a Crew Member to have. If you're one of those people, do 
  * No 2o,Ooo word essays, please! Contrary to popular belief, Space Mans
  hate that! Really, they do.
  6
  
  * OMG, that spelling looks right! First time too! I knew that biology TV program 
  helped! More exclamation marks!!! And a smiley face. :)
  suddenly feel very depressed.
  It's situations like these that slap you in the face and remind you 
  that you're going to asphyxiate* in... 18 hours 52 minutes. I 
  ...and I've just eaten my last potato. 
  Anyway, enough of my whining. Now to show you how to play this 
  fantastic game. First, I'm going to see what die I pull out from 
  my dice bag and use that for the core mechanic... It's a... 
  Whoops, I dropped that one under the console (I'll find it later)... Ok, 
  the basICs
  When a Crew Member wants to do a task that has some risk or challenge 
  involved, the Space Man should ask the player to roll a d2O. 
  d2O**!! Oh, how common... 
  again...
  It's a... DRUM ROLL!!
  Chapter IIIstuFF
  doIng
  ** That's a dice with twenty sides, if you didn't know.
  7
  
  Hack (of the computer variety) - Brain + Eyes and Ears
  Lift/Push - Arms + Skin
  Be Nice to People - Mouth + Brain
  Ask "Is He Lying?" - Mouth + Eyes and Ears
  Fix Things - Brain + Arms (sometimes Fingers for delicate stuff)
  Jump - Skin + Legs
  fail at the task. Un-yay!
  * Yeah, the Space Man can do this after the roll. Meh, why not?! Play it how you 
  want. I don't care, I'll be dead when you do.
  The Space Man then names two Attributes related to the task*. 
  The player looks at their Crew Member's Attributes and adds these 
  two together. If the result of the d2o roll is equal to or under this 
  Attribute total the Crew Member has succeeded at the task! Yay! 
  However, if the result exceeds this total, rocks fall and they die  they 
  If it makes sense to the situation, Specialties grant Crew Members 
  a +2 bonus to the Attribute total. Players must get Space Man 
  approval if they want the bonus. 
  Climb - Arms + Skin
  Do Art Stuff - Fingers + Brain
  Drive/Pilot - Brain + Fingers
  Catch - Eyes and Ears + Fingers
  On the othe hand, if a task which the Crew Member sucks at arises 
  (due to a Flaw), they suffer a -2 penalty to their Attribute 
  total.
  Here are some example tasks:
  Notice - Eyes and Ears + Brain
  Pick Lock - Fingers + Brain
  Sneaky - Legs + Eyes and Ears
  Throw - Arms + Eyes and Ears
  Move in Low Gravity - Legs + Arms
  __
  __
  8
  
  task dIFFICulty
  I need a bath. 
  As a guideline, +2 is an easy task whereas a -2 is a hard task. Simples.
  truth -serum (Fingers + Brain). In this case, all the Crew Members 
  need to succeed, but they each still get the +1 bonus.
  particular task (and the Space Man says, "Yes. I shall permit that"), 
  workIng together
  If two or more Crew Members are able to work as a team on a 
  the Super Success**!). On the other hand, if all members of the 
  team fail, well... then they all fail (and if one rolled a Boo-Boo***, 
  they all get burned!). 
  In some situations, the Space Man can call for different Attributes 
  they each make a roll with a +1 bonus to their Attribute totals per 
  Crew Member in the team. The Space Man is advised to give a limit on 
  the number of people who can help BEFORE any dice are rolled*. 
  If one person succeeds their roll, the team share the success (or even 
  when working together. For example, one Crew Member holds the 
  innocent victim down (Arms + Skin), whilst the other administers the 
  Because (s)he has the POWER!!!, a Space Man may say that a task is 
  easier or harder than usual. To change a task difficulty all (s)he has 
  to do is give the Crew Member's Attribute total a modifier. 
  ** A new rule! See later.
  * Watch out for those passionate roleplayers.
  *** And another!!
  9
  
  thousand minutes**. 
  the face with the melon that you're cutting for the evening meal's 
  first course.
  Look! Game Design TheoryTM: Clever people will notice that you can 
  only get Super Successes or Boo-Boo's if your Attribute total is high 
  or low enough!That's what you get for being a cake-fu master, or a 
  luddite.
  Whenever a player succeeds at a task AND rolls 13 or more on the 
  dice, they're awesome and Space Mans should throw them either a 
  leVels oF suCCess
  Examples include: trip over, blow up a computer, hit your friend in 
  metaphorical or literal biscuit. In other words, their Crew Member has 
  achieved greatness by succeeding spectacularly and should be rewarded.
  and the die turns up as 8 or less, they have "Boo-Boo'ed" and everyone 
  at the table should shout this loudly to rub it in. In this situation, 
  Space Mans should take away a biscuit. Or burn the Crew Member. 
  Or just make his (or her*) life a living hell for the next ten to ten-
  Like any good Yin, there must come the Yang. If a Crew Member fails 
  Examples include: pull  seduce the hot heir to the Zylaxian throne, 
  jump farther (how boring), bake 6 tasty cakes in one go.
  Versus rolls 
  super suCCesses &
  boo-boos
  ___
  ___
  _
  * Because I believe that everyone should suffer equally.
  Of course, two people can compete against one another to accomplish a 
  task, like the first to grab a gun or be the person to eat the most 
  wholemeal bread. In this case the competing sides both roll a d2o. 
  ** For purely personal reasons, I recommend 24 hours of misery.
  10
  
  other out.
  If someone rolled a Boo-Boo, then that person should be un-rewarded 
  as such, unless the other person also achieves Boo-Boodom, in which case 
  they BOTH Boo-Boo'ed! The competition may continue with re-rolls, 
  depending on the situation and what the Space Man says.
  You get me?
  there's still a tie, the Space Man can either ask for a re-roll or say 
  "fuck it" and let the tie stand. 
  Who(m?)ever rolls highest, but still under their Attribute total 
  (declared by the Space Man) succeeds. It is possible (and likely) 
  that the two totals could be made out of different Attribute 
  combinations. If there's a tie, compare Attribute totals. If 
  For example: My pilot, Brian, wants to sneak past Mr. Baddie. Brian 
  rolls (Eyes and Ears [5] + Legs [4]) against Mr. Baddie's 
  (Brain[3] + Eyes and Ears [5]). Brian rolls a 9 whilst the Space 
  Man rolls rolls a 3 for Mr. Baddie. Even though both 'succeeded',  
  Ok, let's KISS*.
  If the winner of a Versus Roll scores a Super Success, (s)he should be 
  rewarded as such, unless the other person also scored one, in which case 
  it's only a success/win as usual. I.e. Super Successes cancel each 
  4 Super Success
  3 Success
  2 Fail
  1 Boo-Boo
  the Space Man can call for a re-roll.
  Now to explain how Super Successes and Boo-Boo's work with Versus 
  Rolls. Here's a ladder with numbers:
  Brian rolled higher and therefore snuck past Mr. Baddie.
  If both sides rolled a fail, the person who rolled the highest wins, or 
  _
  _
  _
  _
  _
  _
  _
  _
  _
  _
  * That's 'Keep It Super Simple'. Sorry to get your hopes up, lad(d)ies.
  11
  
  To be honest, I wanted to carry on with more detailed task examples 
  together with Attribute total lists and whatnot, but I'm dying here. 
  other stuFF
  * Or a rescue ship.
  of course).
  Anyway, I'd better get on with the next chapter.
  Throw me a bone*, will you?! If you find this not to your liking, you 
  have my full permission to slap my dead corpse (presuming you find it 
  12
  
  When a situation calls for some time structure*, the Space Man 
  should mention that the Final Fantasy Effect has occurred. You 
  know, that whooshing noise when the "da-da-da-daaaaaa!" music 
  starts and everything moves in slow-mo so that players can choose 
  tactically what they want to do? Alternatively, the Space Man can 
  simply call for a DRAMATIC SITUATION! Shouting loudly and pointing 
  epically would do wonders. Try it. Seriously.
  turn order (or "InItIatIVe" **)
  A Crew Member acts on their turn. A turn's length can vary between 2 
  and 2O seconds depending on the story and the whims of everyone (meaning 
  the Space Man).
  Oh, bugger. I knew I would have to write this chapter eventually. Why 
  do role-players always want a fight? Ok, time to pull something out of 
  my head...
  turns
  How shall we do this? Let's say that in a Dramatic Situation, Crew 
  Members and baddies act in order of Brain from highest to lowest. If 
  there's a tie, the highest Legs*** goes first. If there's still a tie, 
  the highest Eyes and Ears goes first. 
  ** If the name ain't broke, don't fix it!
  Chapter IV
  sItuatIons!
  dramatIC
  * For example: The moment after you've spilt your pint on a Klingon's loin cloth.
  ** There must be a joke in there somewhere.
  13
  
  Dramatic Situation.
  moVe A person can move 10 metres (or 32.808399 feet) each turn. 
  do one (and only one!) of the other actions below.
  talk A person can say something. That's easy.
  During their turn, a Crew Member or baddie can swap places with the 
  Crew Member immediately below them in the turn order if they want. 
  This new, un-Freudian positioning lasts for the remainder of the 
  what you Can do on your turn durIng dramatIC 
  sItuatIons (aka aCtIons)
  A person can always talk and move on each of their turns and can also 
  wIthdraw This is the only way to get out of melee combat without 
  or quarter speed when swimming.
  moVe Faster The person can move faster. They move extra metres 
  equal to their Legs. Also known as running or sprinting.
  getting smacked. The person wanting to run away like a pansy must 
  perform a Versus Roll using their (Legs + Brain) against the (Legs + 
  Eyes and Ears) of all opponents they are in melee with. The pansy rolls 
  once and compares their result to each of the opponents'. 
  If the pansy wins against ALL their opponents, they can move as normal 
  upto 3 metres plus half their Legs. If the pansy scores lower than 
  Unless of course, they are in melee combat, in which case they have to 
  Withdraw. Some terrain can be harder to move over, so the Space Man 
  can impose movement penalties. For example: half-speed when climbing, 
  ONE of the opponents' results, the Withdraw has failed and they 
  stay put. 
  14
  
  attaCk! Finally! How to kill stuff! First up, it's a Versus Roll. 
  The person making an attack (let's call them the Attacker) makes 
  an 'Attack Roll' whilst the target (let's call them Bradley  the 
  Defender) makes a 'Defence Roll'.
  To make a ranged attack, an Attacker must be able to see their 
  attaCk attrIbute total
  To make a melee attack, an Attacker must be next to their target. 
  They are considered to be "in melee".
  Have a look at my nice Table to get the right Attribute totals for 
  the Attack and Defence Rolls.
  Toilet break.
  target and be within weapon range (please consult your nearest 
  Space Man for details).
  If a person (or idiot) moves out of melee without doing a 
  Withdraw thing, all baddies in melee may make an Attack on the idiot 
  immediately. The idiot still gets to move away afterwards (if they 
  are alive), and then still perform an action.
  If the attacker wins the Versus Roll, the baddie is hit and takes 
  damage. See the Weapons and Damage section that I hope I'll remember 
  to write below****. 
  _
  deFenCe attrIbute total
  melee
  Arms + Fingers*
  Lowest + highest of 
  Arms, Legs, and Fingers**
  ranged
  Legs + Eyes and Ears
  Fingers + Eyes and Ears***
  * You can swap Fingers for Legs if kicking someone. Also, kicking pretty much always counts 
  as being unarmed.
  *** If the ranged weapon is primitive, eg. a javelin or bow, it's (Arms + Eyes and Ears).
  ** Meh. Why not?
  15
  **** This is the sound of me trying to remember: "Hhhherrrrrgghhh!"
  
  Attacker wins, (s)he grabs the Defender. No damage is caused this 
  turn. The grabbed person may only try to break free or turn the 
  grapple around and grab their opponent on their next turn by winning a 
  successful Versus Roll (using the usual Attributes). 
  The Attacker and Defender make a melee Versus Roll as usual. If the 
  rolls on a Boo-Boo/Super Success).
  dIsarm In melee, make Versus Rolls as usual. If the Attacker wins, 
  no damage is caused, but the Defender's weapon flies a distance away 
  in metres equal to half the attacker's Arms, in a random direction 
  (rounded down)*. If the Attacker is unarmed, (s)he can take the 
  weapon instead. 
  grab/grapple Why? Why did I have to include this?! Nobody does it 
  anyway. Ok, deep breath.
  It's always easy to attack people involved in a grapple, isn't it? So 
  the Space Man should give bonuses to attack (I recommend +1 or 
  +2 depending on how the grapplers are positioned). A miss has a 25% 
  (Attacker's choice) and can be pushed to the floor with another 
  successful Versus Roll. The Defender can then try to break free 
  again on their next turn, but will be On The Floor and so the  
  Space Man should inflict a penalty...
  chance of hitting another grappler.
  That's it. No more. Moving on.
  manoeuVre I don't really know what I want with this, but it could 
  represent a trick, feint or something similar. If a person wants 
  to trick someone (or someTHING) they are in melee with, they roll 
  Anyway, if the grabbed person is still grabbed on the Attacker's next 
  turn they can suffer Fist or Small Weapon damage automatically 
  (Brain + Mouth) against the target's (Eyes and Ears + Brain). The 
  baddie gets a -2 penalty on their next two rolls if they lose (or four 
  16
  * As chosen by the Space Man.
  
  You could probably have explosive weapons and other awesome stuff, 
  and the Space Man is encouraged to make those up - until I produce a 
  supplement for them, of course*.
  Space Mans: make Boo-Boo'ers fall off ledges - it's fun!
  * Ha-ha!! I'm SO funny!
  wrong-Foot/trIp A person can make another person in melee be a person 
  On The Floor by doing this action. Make a Versus Roll. The Attacker 
  uses (Legs + Arms), whilst the Defender uses their usual melee Defence. 
  If the Attacker wins, the baddie takes 1 damage and is on the ground. 
  Push/Shove Make a Versus roll in melee. Both Attacker and Defender 
  roll (Arms + Skin). (Again, watch out for the Boo-Boo's and ledges.)
  that, you can make up what they look like and the science behind them.
  Enjoy my Weapons Table!
  When you hit someone, you give them as much hurt (more commonly 
  known as 'damage') as your weapon causes. There are three weapon 
  sizes and two weapon types: ranged and not-ranged   melee. Other than 
  weapons and damage! 
  _
  _
  weapon
  damage
  Medium Melee Weapon
  Unarmed/Fist/Kick
  1
  Small Ranged Weapon
  2
  Small Melee Weapon
  rules
  Heavy Melee Weapon
  1
  3
  4
  2
  Need to use 2 hands unless Arms 5+
  Need to use 2 hands unless Arms 8+
  3
  Medium Ranged Weapon
  Heavy Ranged Weapon
  Need to use 2 hands unless Arms 8+
  Need to use 2 hands unless Arms 5+
  17
  
  you only ever suffer the -2 penalty (ie. when you drop to 1 Health). If 
  you have 1 Skin you get no penalties (being that sucky is bad enough).
  natural healIng A person or other living thing regains 1 Health back per 
  week, or 2 if resting/doing light activity (that means "not much").
  health A Crew Member and/or baddie has a number of Health points equal 
  to their Skin, which drops as they suffer damage. They are On The Floor 
  When an Attacker successfully hits their target, a weapon causes the 
  amount of damage (ie. reduces Health, duh!) as stated in the Weapon 
  Table above. A Super Successful hit causes +1 damage, and a Boo-Boo'ed 
  defence roll causes an additional +1 damage.
  and start dying at 0 Health. When someone is dying, they die totally 
  and completely on the Attacker's next turn unless brought up to 1 
  health somehow (it takes one extra turn to 'wake up'). If a Crew 
  Member or baddie's Health drops to the equivalent of negative their 
  Skin Attribute, they are automatically killed (their body has gone all 
  If you lose half (rounded down) of your Health points you suffer a -1 
  penalty when working out Attribute totals. If you lose a quarter 
  (rounded down), it increases to a -2 penalty. If you have a Skin of 2 
  syndrome.
  mushy). Make sure you keep track of this 'negative Health'.
  wound penaltIes To make the game even more nasty, I'll add in wound 
  penalties to remove that silly "I've still got 1 hit point and I'm fine" 
  Remember: A Crew Member's Health can never exceed their Skin.
  other dramatIC rules
  multIple melee attaCkers To make fighting even nastier, if someone/ 
  something gets attacked more than once between their turns, they 
  suffer a cumulative -1 penalty to their defence and reactional Versus 
  rolls per attack made on them after the first.
  For example: Our good friend Brian defends the third attack against 
  him in the same turn with a -2 penalty.
  18
  
  armour If the Space Man(ager!) is allowing armour in his/her game, it 
  has Armour Points (oh, how original). These reduce the damage suffered 
  Remember: A Crew Member's Health can never exceed their Skin (deja vu).
  If someone has successfully aided a dying person, the 'die-er' wakes up a 
  turn later with 1 point of Health, or 2 points with a Super Success, but 
  automatically dies with a Boo-Boo.
  knoCkIng someone out This is always so complex in RPGs, so let's simply 
  say that when you kill someone you can shout: "I choose to knock 
  them out instead". They are at 1 Health, but not dying. They wake 
  a -2 penalty to their Attribute total. Ask your Space Man if you 
  (can) have one**.
  FallIng If someone falls, they get hurt (that's what artificial gravity 
  up a number of minutes later equal to double the negative health they 
  would have ended up with (minimum 2 minutes)*. Moving on now.
  depending on the range). To stand up from the floor, a floored thing 
  must use it's move action for the turn, and curse lots whilst doing so.
  FIrst aId I guess I should write some rules so that you can first aid 
  someone on your turn. An injured person can only be successfully first 
  aided once per injury. 
  was designed for). The fallee suffers damage/loses Health equal to a 
  third of the number of metres fallen. They end up On The Floor after.
  on the Floor When attacking someone On The Floor, melee attackers 
  get a bonus (+2) and ranged attackers get a penalty (-1 or -2 
  Oh, you what more detail? Let's say the First Aid roll is (Brain + 
  Fingers), and the result is that the injured people person regains 1 Health 
  (2 with a Super Success). Without a medical kit, a first aider suffers 
  by that amount. Space Mans: When allowing armour, I recommend 1 or, at 
  a real push, 2 Armour Points maximum.
  *** Digestives would be nice.
  ** I recommend waiting until (s)he's in a good mood. Maybe crack a joke or two, or 
  make them a cup of tea served with a biscuit or 2*** - that sometimes helps.
  _
  19
  ' `
  * You could square root it and multiply by four after, if you're one of "those" people.
  
  Humans can survive in a vacuum for a number of turns equal to half 
  their Skin (rounded down). After that, their bodies say, "I don't like 
  this" and shut down (ie. they drop to 0 Health automatically). 
  They die one turn later (I guess we'll make the turn 10 seconds long in 
  this case, and they die on an Attackers turn, if applicable). Unless, of 
  course, they are rescued, First Aided and stuff.
  make shIt up Ok, the possibilities are endless. That's why we play these 
  does a space suit's oxygen supply last, when it's been damaged? Common 
  sense, my dear Space Man and players. Please use it.
  surVIVIng In VaCuum HA! I just remembered about this important 
  space thing that I can('t) see through the porthole and, as the 
  game is about space, I think it might be important to add in.
  games, am I right*? The Space Whatever-I've-Called-Them, should make 
  up actions and WRITE THEM DOWN so you can use them again in the 
  future. I'll even leave space for you here. Let me get your brain 
  juices flowing: How would you let someone break their fall? How long 
  20
  * Gimme a "HELL YEAH!"  **
  ** I can't hear you!!
  
  * Which means you are giving these to the Crew Members, if you let them win - 
  the thieving bastards!
  things, I'll just give you some ideas. Actually, I'll make up some guidelines 
  To keep it short, I won't be writing one of those big beastyery-chapter-
  If it wasn't obvious, this chapter is written for Space Mans.
  so you can make up some baddies or even nice friendly people, like 
  blacksmiths mechanics, sanitation engineers and... er... other nice 
  friendly people. 
  How skilled do you want the baddie to be? Simply give them a number of 
  Attribute points, Specialties and Flaws based on how adept they are. 
  See the following Table (or just ignore it and do what you want): 
  are stuck on a ship with a space creature (commonly called an 'alien') 
  which has nasty claws and an insatiable appetite for HUMAN FLESH? 
  In this case, the baddie has medium melee weapons instead of hands**!
  You can give them whatever equipment and weapons you want them 
  to have or use*. This equipment can also be incorporated into the 
  baddie's body. For example, have you seen that film where a ship's crew 
  Chapter VbaddIes
  ** Ha! I'd like to see the Crew steal those! (On second thought, maybe I wouldn't.)
  _
  _
  adept-ness
  attrIbute 
  poInts
  Skilled Man/Lady
  Amateur
  30
  35
  Average Dude
  speCIaltIes
  X-fu Master 
  (where 'X' is what they 
  are a Master of)
  1
  40
  50
  2
  3
  Flaws
  4
  3
  3
  3
  2
  21
  (and nICe people)
  
  If you REALLY want XP in your game, then the Space Man can allow 
  you to raise an Attribute by one, or take/learn/gain an extra 
  Specialty every now and then if you've succeeded doing a thing at least 
  5 times. Space Mans should award this once every 2-4 sessions*.
  Chapter VI
  experIenCe
  * Ha! Like you're going to play this game for that long!
  22
  
  Ideas
  coincidence that you want to ask me that, as I have several ideas to 
  give you.
  Unfortunately, as my brain is beginning to shut down**, I have to be 
  quick. Here's a list:
  - The ship has one or more space monster(s)*** aboard, and it's
  (they're) eating people. It's survive or be... survived!
  - The Crew are on a drifting ship and the life support will only last 
  drifting through space. Perhaps there are parts on it that the 
  Crew could use to make their drifting ship no longer drifting? Time 
  to suit up.
  Last chapter, I promise*!
  I can hear that you're begging to ask: "Mr. Genius RPG Designer, 
  what great stories can we tell with your awesome game?" It's a 
  - The drifting ship drifts closer to another drifting ship that's 
  for 3 more hours. Thing is, the rescue team will be here in 5 hours. 
  If only there weren't so many people left alive... Do the maths.
  - Boarded by space pirates ("ARRGGH!!) or ninjas ("...").
  *** Read - alien(s).
  Chapter VII
  story
  * More to myself than you.
  ** 29 minutes left!
  23
  
  ...Or not. I just remembered that I still have to make that 
  character sheet...
  to fix their ship to get home. However, the natives aren't helping.
  - The Crew are space-mercs running from the law and can only get by 
  by offering their services to people in need. Maybe they're called the 
  S-Team*?
  - The drifting ship crash lands on a distant planet and the crew have 
  - The ship's artificial intelligence** has it's own agenda. Can you say, 
  "government conspiracy"? Dun-dun-Duuunnnn!!
  - A mixture of two of the above.
  huzzah! I'm FInIshed!!
  - A mixture of three of the above***.
  ** If it didn't have one, it does now.
  * You know. Like that old show? See what I did there?
  *** Ok, I'm clutching at straws here...
  24
  
  braIn 
  skIn
  arms
  FIngers 
  legs 
  eyes and 
  ears 
  mouth
  _
  _
  _
  _
  _
  _
  _
  attrIbutes
  speCIaltIes
  Flaws
  weapons & 
  equIpment
  _
  _
  _
  _
  _
  _
  _
  _
  _
  _
  _
  _
  attaCk/
  aCtIon 
  deFenCe/
  reaCtIon
  melee
  Arms + Fingers *
  Lowest + highest of
  Arms, Legs, Fingers
  ranged
  Legs + Eyes and Ears
  Fingers + Eyes and Ears **
  _
  _
  _
  _
  * Swap Fingers for Legs if kicking.
  ** If primitive, eg. a javelin or bow, use (Arms + Eyes and Ears).
  health
  Skin
  _
  max.
  Current
  armour
  _
  Wound penalties:
  -1 if under half * max.
  -2 if under quarter* max.
  *rounded down
  _
  maneuVre
  Brain + Eyes and Ears
  Brain + Mouth
  _
  _
  wIthdraw
  Legs + Brain
  Legs + Eyes and Ears
  _
  _
  wrong-Foot/
  trIp
  Melee Defence
  Legs + Arms
  _
  _
  push/shoVe
  Arms + Skin
  Arms + Skin
  _
  _
  _
  SPACE
  Through
  Drifting 
  
  Michal
  Thank you for reading Drifting Through Space.  
  I hope you enjoyed it!
  I look forward to hearing from you!
  michal@modiphius.com
  This game is in constant flux and is continually being 
  improved and refined. If you have any comments or 
  suggestions to make this game better (or simply tell me how 
  awesome it is!), please email me at:
  
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SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Drifting Through Space/MPS02011i Drifting Through Space.pdf