Starfinder Society Quest: "Into the Unknown" [RPG]

NO SPOILERS

Into the Unknown is the first "Quest" for Starfinder Society.  Quests are a little bit different than standard scenarios because they're a series of five 1-hour long encounters that can be played together to get a complete story or individually (even out of order) to get a taste of what the game is like.  If you sit down and play through it from beginning to end, you won't notice any difference between a Quest and and a standard scenario.  I ran this for three experienced players running their own characters.   It's not a challenging adventure, but it has a great starting hook and a good understanding of science fantasy story beats. I think Into the Unknown does a nice job introducing players to some of the core concepts of Starfinder, such as the Starfinder Society, Absalom Station, space combat, exploring alien planets, and so forth. I can't quite recommend this whole-heartedly because of how easy it is (especially the starship combat), but overall it's a solid introduction to the system and its setting.

SPOILERS

The hook is solid: months ago, a Starfinder Society ship named the Unbounded Wayfarer was on a long-range exploration mission in the Vast when it suddenly ceased contact.  Back on Absalom Station, the Society presumed the ship was lost forever until word arrived that someone was on the Station selling the crew's insignias at a local pawn shop!  Obviously, someone knows something about the missing ship.

In the first quest, "Station," the PCs are dispatched to the pawnbroker to persuade him to divulge information about the seller of the insignias.  The pawnbroker is given a classic "blustering tough-guy" personality, and this is a good role-playing scene for new players.  From one perspective it's a bit silly in that, whether the PCs make or fail their Diplomacy/Intimidate checks, they get the information they need to continue to the next scene, but drafting non-railroady adventures is difficult in this context.  The PCs then follow the information to an interesting setting that helps show why Absalom Station is unique: the "Vat Gardens", a place where impoverished locals are allowed to dump the bodies of their deceased loved ones for free (and, in return, the bodies serve as nutrients for the soil).  Here, a disguised ghoul named Exegara is collecting skulls, protected by some recently-hired mercenaries.  The PCs need to capture or destroy Exegara, because she's the one who sold the Starfinders' insignias.  I like the encounter, because it has some elements that complicate things: walkways around the vat, issues with concealment, etc.  When the PCs succeed, they discover that Exegara was part of the crew of a Corpse Fleet (undead separatists from the planet Eox) ship called the Endless Threnody that was damaged in a fight with space pirates and is floating in the Drift (Exegara was dispatched via shuttle to collect skulls to repair its necromantic generators).  The undead crew recovered the Starfinder insignias from a crash site on a distant planet, but the planet's coordinates are in the computer databanks on board the Endless Threnody.

The second quest, "Adrift", has the PCs set off to find the Endless Threnody aboard their own vessel, the Loreseeker.  A starship battle ensues immediately.  The Corpse Fleet vessel doesn't have operative shields and is relatively lightly armed, so it shouldn't be a challenge, especially if the PCs have a decent pilot and the basic strategic awareness to stay out of the Endless Threnody's forward arc, where its only decent gun is mounted.  The Quest writer, Ron Lundeen, kept this combat simple for brand-new players: there's only one enemy vessel and no obstacles or complications to the encounter. (GMs should note that the stats given for the Loreseeker in the PDF are incorrect, and that there's an important errata thread in the forums).

"Boarding" is the third quest, and it has some interesting elements.  As the PCs explore the Corpse Fleet vessel, they realize it's suffused with necromantic energy and that the longer they stay aboard the more their life will be sapped.  Anyone good with computers can mitigate or even completely shut down the effect, but I thought it was a clever hazard that fit the setting well.  (Many GMs have had difficulty figuring out where the listed necromantic generators are because the included map is vague; the forums are helpful in this regard.)  The combat encounter for this mission is against a crew of skeletons.  Pretty standard stuff, and I wish the included picture had been more space-themed rather than "sailing crew" themed.  After the battle, the PCs can try to access the coordinates of the planet where the missing Starfinder vessel crashed.  I quite like that there were consequences for failed Computer checks (waves of necromantic energy), as skill checks can be boring if they can be retried with no penalties.

"Salvage", the fourth quest, takes place on a desert planet called Ulmarid.  As the PCs walk to the crash site of the Unbounded Wayfarer, they suffer through a storm of poisonous crystals!  The concept is a bit weird, but I like environmental hazards and a reason for PCs to be good at Survival.  At the crash site, they're attacked by a scary, burrowing monster.  The creature is described well and is probably the most dangerous thing in the entire quest pack.  I only wish there was a picture, but perhaps imagination is better.  I particularly liked that the writer added a salvageable anti-personnel starship weapon that the PCs could use.  Encounters that have things the PCs can interact with are always fun and turn the mundane into the memorable.  The crew of the Unbounded Wayfarer, alas, are all long dead.  It's kind of a bummer that is realistic but could make some players think the adventure was pointless; perhaps a trail leading to a sole survivor holed up in a nearby cave would have been better, but I digress.

The last mission is "Lawblight", which is the name of the pirate vessel that the PCs have to fight once they leave Ulmarid.  There's a bit about an asteroid field the PCs have to navigate when they enter and leave the planet, but the consequences of failing a Pilot check are so minor as to be laughable.  As for the space battle itself, all I can speak to is my experience GMing it: the PC ship ran rings around the Lawblight and were barely scratched, but the encounter still took a long time to resolve.  Successfully completing earlier quests gives the party "clues" that provide mechanical advantages during the battle.  I think there are issues in Starfinder starship combat around the fact that critical hits don't do double damage, that critical hits aren't very meaningful or memorable (a "Glitched" system is minor and easily repaired), and that turret weapons reign supreme.  None of those issues are the scenario writer's fault and it's early days, but I do think Starfinder Society will have to work hard to make starship combat fun, fast-paced, and challenging (while putting in workable contingency plans if the PC ship loses).

Overall, I thought Into the Unknown had a solid premise and an interesting story.  Apart from the wrinkles with starship combat that need to be ironed out, I imagine new players will really enjoy playing it.