A HARD LIFE AMONGST THE STARS - Revision history

Kentti: /* RELIGION */

2021-11-07T18:50:39Z

RELIGION

Kentti: /* ENTERTAINMENT */

2021-11-07T18:48:19Z

ENTERTAINMENT

Kentti: /* COMMUNICATIONS ON THE FRONTIER */

2021-11-07T18:46:15Z

COMMUNICATIONS ON THE FRONTIER

Kentti: /* WORK FOR HIRE */

2021-11-07T18:44:03Z

WORK FOR HIRE

Kentti: /* WORK FOR HIRE */

2021-11-07T17:35:27Z

WORK FOR HIRE

Kentti: /* WORK FOR HIRE */

2021-11-07T17:34:51Z

WORK FOR HIRE

Kentti: /* FUNCTION BEFORE FASHION */

2021-11-07T17:34:12Z

FUNCTION BEFORE FASHION

Kentti: /* FUNCTION BEFORE FASHION */

2021-11-07T17:29:09Z

FUNCTION BEFORE FASHION

Kentti: /* FUNCTION BEFORE FASHION */

2021-11-07T17:28:47Z

FUNCTION BEFORE FASHION

Kentti: /* DEEP SPACE COLONIES */

2021-11-07T17:27:08Z

DEEP SPACE COLONIES

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	'''CHURCH OF IMMACULATE INCUBATION:''' Not much is known about this fledgling group. Some authorities suspect they might be a splinter faction of the infamous Earthsavers cult. A century-old group originally formed by dreamer and self-proclaimed prophet Duncan Fields, the Earthsavers believed that humanity's sojourn to the stars would herald the apocalypse. Like that long dead organization, the Church of Immaculate Incubation places heavy emphasis on the apocalyptic dreams of its fanatical seers. They believe the end times are fast approaching, but their spin is that the only survivors will be those who have sought out and achieved transformation to a higher form. This metamorphosis is attained by accepting what they call the Seed of God into their hearts. With few members and nothing to back up their claims, the Church of Immaculate Incubation is essentially harmless. Believing the alien creature in Robert Morse’s banned book to have messianic significance to the imminent apocalypse, the Church readily distributes illegal copies of ''Space Beast'' throughout the colonies. As they seek to share the dreams of their prophets with their flock, they also actively recruit professional dreamers to their cause. Their enigmatic leader is rumored to be a wealthy man who has forsaken the good life and poured his resources into the Church.		'''CHURCH OF IMMACULATE INCUBATION:''' Not much is known about this fledgling group. Some authorities suspect they might be a splinter faction of the infamous Earthsavers cult. A century-old group originally formed by dreamer and self-proclaimed prophet Duncan Fields, the Earthsavers believed that humanity's sojourn to the stars would herald the apocalypse. Like that long dead organization, the Church of Immaculate Incubation places heavy emphasis on the apocalyptic dreams of its fanatical seers. They believe the end times are fast approaching, but their spin is that the only survivors will be those who have sought out and achieved transformation to a higher form. This metamorphosis is attained by accepting what they call the Seed of God into their hearts. With few members and nothing to back up their claims, the Church of Immaculate Incubation is essentially harmless. Believing the alien creature in Robert Morse’s banned book to have messianic significance to the imminent apocalypse, the Church readily distributes illegal copies of ''Space Beast'' throughout the colonies. As they seek to share the dreams of their prophets with their flock, they also actively recruit professional dreamers to their cause. Their enigmatic leader is rumored to be a wealthy man who has forsaken the good life and poured his resources into the Church.
		+
		+	=== '''LAW ENFORCEMENT''' ===
		+	Insurrections, revolutions, coups, crime, and atrocities are all too common in the colonies. As such, there are various levels of law enforcement on the Frontier.
		+
		+	'''THE OFFICE OF THE COLONIAL MARSHALS:''' The OCM is your local police force. For a colony of 500–3,000 colonists, there will usually be a single marshal, a sergeant, and a group of around a dozen officers. Colonies of less than 300 individuals usually have only one marshal and one deputy. At higher population levels, the marshal's office grows with the importance of the colony itself. They are supposed to enforce colonial law over corporate policy, but many have been paid to look the other way when it comes to company business.
		+
		+	'''UNITED STATES COLONIAL MARINE CORPS:''' Some colonies will have a Colonial Marine Corps office and/or a contingent attached to them. Those that don’t are still under the jurisdiction and protection of the USCMC and the United Americas Outer Rim Defense Fleet, and are usually within days to weeks of receiving support in case of an emergency. Operated by the United Americas Allied Command, they keep order on the borders of known space. While other nations have their own soldiers and support ships, none save that of the UPP come close to matching the strength of the Colonial Marines.
		+
		+	'''CORPORATE SECURITY FORCE:''' In addition to colonial protection, a corporation sponsoring a colony might have its own security force attached to it. This security team would operate outside the jurisdiction of the OCM and the USCMC, and exist to ensure corporate policy is enforced.
		+
		+	'''INTERSTELLAR COMMERCE COMMISSION:''' A central organization that conducts and monitors interstellar trade, the ICC has its own inspectors and agents that enforce regulations and quarantine procedures throughout the colonies. While owned and operated by Weyland-Yutani, they are allegedly an autonomous organization that regulates all trade equally. Allegedly.
		+
		+	{\| class="wikitable"
		+
		+	! <big>THE LOCK UP</big>
		+	\|-
		+	\| When you’ve done the crime, you’ve got to do the time. Frontier jail facilities range from simple barred rooms to sensory deprivation chambers. On space stations, maximum security isolation cells are kept in a state of vacuum and null gravity. Prisoners detained within are suspended in pressure suits.
		+
		+	Prisons are another story. Most correctional facilities are owned by private companies like Weyland-Yutani and the Jĭngtì Lóng Corporation. Why? They provide a plentiful source of cheap manual labor. These prisons are built in extreme environments that are high in resources but too dangerous for civilian employees to exploit in a cost-effective manner. Prisoners work for benefits such as healthcare, interstellar comm calls, and cigarettes. Some of these corporate run maximum security facilities may hold up to two million convicts. In order to keep track of inmates, all are tattooed with a barcode at the base of their neck.
		+	\|}

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	stories and adventures in their subconscious minds. Those sponsored by corporations—which is most of them—insert subliminal messages into your mind as you sleep. With some skill, it’s possible to use dream monitoring equipment combined with a Neuro Visor helmet to consciously enter the dream of someone in stasis and communicate with them.		stories and adventures in their subconscious minds. Those sponsored by corporations—which is most of them—insert subliminal messages into your mind as you sleep. With some skill, it’s possible to use dream monitoring equipment combined with a Neuro Visor helmet to consciously enter the dream of someone in stasis and communicate with them.
	\|}		\|}
		+
		+	=== '''RELIGION''' ===
		+	Devotion to God is a force to be reckoned with. Traditional religions still exist in the 22nd Century, and are represented on the Frontier in one form or another. Due to the economic depression and rigors of life in space, extreme offshoots and sects are more commonplace. Apocalypse cults, fundamentalist missionaries, and spiritual gurus travel the Frontier, recruiting colonists and strengthening their flock.
		+
		+	In fact, the one egg that corporations seem to have been unable to crack is religion. Even small cults can be fanatical enough to evoke change, and companies want employees with that kind of fervor working for them. Corporate execs have even attempted—so far without success—to create a cult or two of their own. Some have come to the conclusion that beliefs can’t be manufactured, only sponsored. To that end, corporate reps have begun approaching existing religious groups in the hopes of aligning goals in the name of the almighty profit margin.
		+
		+	'''MILLENARIAN DOOMSAYERS:''' Fundamentalist groups that believe the end times are near, millenarian doomsayers await their final judgment and the coming of God. Vowing celibacy, members of these apocalyptic brotherhoods seek to atone for their past sins through hard labor and devout penance. Unsurprisingly, the largest fanatical followings are on prison colonies, where the population has nothing to do but await apocalyptic redemption. As such, doomsayer groups often attract reformed murderers and rapists. Punishment for those who stray is often severe, ranging from isolation to starvation, severe beatings, and even mutilation.
		+
		+	'''MONASTIC ORDER OF ARCEON:''' An anti-technology movement that started on Earth, the Order of Arceon grew exponentially when a computer virus wiped out a huge portion of the world’s data. After it was exposed that a member of the Order was responsible for the virus, the movement was deemed a global threat by the Three World Empire. Those directly responsible were arrested and Weyland-Yutani was contracted to contain and move the rest of the Order’s members to an offworld location. The movement was squashed and the Order was transplanted to the artificial satellite world of Arceon. There they live a monastic and mostly technologically free existence on a space station that ironically could not exist without technology.
		+
		+	'''PRACTITIONERS OF THE HOLY IMMOLATION:''' A quasi-religious pacifist group in direct opposition to the corporate domination of the colonies, the Practitioners of the Holy Immolation first emerged during the Tientsin Campaign. Since then, these fanatics have become known for staging protests where one or more of their members will immolate themselves in the name of a free Frontier. Mostly a threat to themselves, they sometimes endanger others when their fires grow out of control in sensitive areas, such as in a biodome or on a space station.
		+
		+	'''CHURCH OF IMMACULATE INCUBATION:''' Not much is known about this fledgling group. Some authorities suspect they might be a splinter faction of the infamous Earthsavers cult. A century-old group originally formed by dreamer and self-proclaimed prophet Duncan Fields, the Earthsavers believed that humanity's sojourn to the stars would herald the apocalypse. Like that long dead organization, the Church of Immaculate Incubation places heavy emphasis on the apocalyptic dreams of its fanatical seers. They believe the end times are fast approaching, but their spin is that the only survivors will be those who have sought out and achieved transformation to a higher form. This metamorphosis is attained by accepting what they call the Seed of God into their hearts. With few members and nothing to back up their claims, the Church of Immaculate Incubation is essentially harmless. Believing the alien creature in Robert Morse’s banned book to have messianic significance to the imminent apocalypse, the Church readily distributes illegal copies of ''Space Beast'' throughout the colonies. As they seek to share the dreams of their prophets with their flock, they also actively recruit professional dreamers to their cause. Their enigmatic leader is rumored to be a wealthy man who has forsaken the good life and poured his resources into the Church.

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	Intersystem call cards are tied directly to a specific recipient. These cards provide you with a direct line to your loved ones—Network and distance permitting. Often used as business cards by corporate reps, these transparent prism plastic cards will automatically connect to the rep’s receiver when inserted into a comm terminal. The charge is usually billed to the company, but can legally be reversed if a corporate deal goes sour.		Intersystem call cards are tied directly to a specific recipient. These cards provide you with a direct line to your loved ones—Network and distance permitting. Often used as business cards by corporate reps, these transparent prism plastic cards will automatically connect to the rep’s receiver when inserted into a comm terminal. The charge is usually billed to the company, but can legally be reversed if a corporate deal goes sour.
		+
		+	=== '''MEDIA''' ===
		+	There is no such thing as the free press on the Frontier. Most journalists are corporate-owned, and the few that aren’t are either spin doctors for their government or just haven’t been bought off yet. Propaganda is the norm as each company decides what news to broadcast. Colony-based signals broadcast local news. Due to transmission times, Network broadcast Interstellar News is often weeks out of date, so most colonies have stopped tuning in—something that could be potentially catastrophic if an enemy or alien threat were to make its way along the frontier.
		+
		+	=== '''ENTERTAINMENT''' ===
		+	Just like in every age before, 22nd Century people are easily bored. On the Frontier, that boredom is remedied through music, drink, and recreational drugs prescribed by company physicians. On the music scene, classic rock and country have seen a resurgence along the outer colonies. Recordings are downloaded from the Network and copied onto disposable cassettes. If one pays heavy subscription fees, broadcast entertainment can also be accessed. Most of the recreational content on the Network exists to promote a company's products and consists of reality programming, shopping networks, and glorified corporate propaganda. Just as it is with computer equipment, entertainment technology ranges from high-end holographic representations to the standard monotone, two-dimensional monitors. Entertainment terminals on colonies, stations, and even some ships provide access to a variety of electronic games.
		+
		+	'''RECREATIONAL DRUGS AND DRINK:''' Time to get your buzz on. Alcohol remains the old go to, with whiskey and vodka dominating the market. The beer of choice on the frontier is Weyland-Yutani’s original and genuine “extra strong” Aspen beer. It’s watered down and tastes like piss but it gets the job done—and it’s better than that Souta Dry crap. Other substances and supplements are covered under Pharmaceuticals.
		+
		+	{\| class="wikitable"
		+	! <big>PERCHANCE TO DREAM</big>
		+	\|-
		+	\| As noted earlier, a lot of time in space is spent in cryosleep—a state in which your bodily functions and aging are slowed to the point of near suspension. Your mind, however, can dream. In fact, an entire industry is devoted to manufactured and creative dreams. Talented dreamers can manipulate their own dreams, which can be recorded by expensive monitoring equipment and played back for the entertainment of less imaginative sleepers. Skilled dreamers weave and craft
		+	stories and adventures in their subconscious minds. Those sponsored by corporations—which is most of them—insert subliminal messages into your mind as you sleep. With some skill, it’s possible to use dream monitoring equipment combined with a Neuro Visor helmet to consciously enter the dream of someone in stasis and communicate with them.
		+	\|}

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	\| Elite Occupations \|\| $1,300 $20,000 \|\| CEOs, chairpersons, entertainment professionals, dreamers, scientists, doctors, elite assassins, governors and high ranking military		\| Elite Occupations \|\| $1,300 $20,000 \|\| CEOs, chairpersons, entertainment professionals, dreamers, scientists, doctors, elite assassins, governors and high ranking military
	\|}		\|}
		+
		+	=== '''COMMUNICATIONS ON THE FRONTIER''' ===
		+	Interstellar space is vast. Transmissions are not instantaneous, sometimes taking weeks or months to reach the recipient. Fortunately, Weyland-Yutani has built a sophisticated communication satellite grid surrounding most inhabited sectors of space. Known as the Network, all signals are routed through it, sometimes bouncing off of thousands of comm arrays before reaching their destination.
		+
		+	Intersystem communications are much more immediate, ranging from real time to a short lag, depending on how far out one is from the recipient.
		+
		+	Massive antenna arrays and satellite dishes dominate spacecraft, stations, and ground facilities, and a viable hard-wired uplink to them is necessary for transmissions of any kind. Both interstellar and intersystem long distance personal calls can be extremely expensive, and if there are few comm facilities available or there is high comm traffic across the Network, you can find yourself waiting days before you receive authorized time for that critical call.
		+
		+	As it can take extended periods for a reply, most colonial general managers, marshals, and military commanders are forced to make decisions based on their personal interpretation of policy without the approval of the company or Colonial Administration. As life out on the ass-end of space can take its toll on the psyche, this sometimes leads to bizarre extrapolations of laws and procedures.
		+
		+	'''LOST IN TRANSMISSION:''' No one can hear you scream, but you can hear a star sing. Space is also noisy. Pulsars, black holes, and other stellar phenomena all produce transmissions on a wide variety of frequencies. Communication buffers weed out these errant signals, but because of this, legitimate transmissions with weak signals can sometimes be lost in the mix.
		+
		+	Intersystem call cards are tied directly to a specific recipient. These cards provide you with a direct line to your loved ones—Network and distance permitting. Often used as business cards by corporate reps, these transparent prism plastic cards will automatically connect to the rep’s receiver when inserted into a comm terminal. The charge is usually billed to the company, but can legally be reversed if a corporate deal goes sour.

@@ Line 131: / Line 131: @@
 ! OCCUPATION !! WEEKLY SALARY RANGE !! INCLUDES BUT IS NOT LIMITED TO
 |-
-| Colonial Labor || $500 $640 || Miners, prospectors, farmers, drivers, mechanics, and service personnel
+| Colonial Labor || $500    $640 || Miners, prospectors, farmers, drivers, mechanics, and service personnel
 |-
-| Commercial Employees || $400 $960 || Space truckers, officers, technicians, cargo handlers, pilots, navigators, medical and science officers
+| Commercial Employees || $400    $960 || Space truckers, officers, technicians, cargo handlers, pilots, navigators, medical and science officers
 |-
-| Corporate and Government Officials || $540 $1,200 || Administration, execs, secretaries, sales persons, auditors, hitmen, and agents
+| Corporate and Government Officials || $540    $1,200 || Administration, execs, secretaries, sales persons, auditors, hitmen, and agents
 |-
-| Law Enforcement || $400 $700 || Colonial Marshals, federal investigators, colonial guard and security
+| Law Enforcement || $400    $700 || Colonial Marshals, federal investigators, colonial guard and security
 |-
-| Military Officers and Enlisted Personnel || $500 $760 || All Army, Marines, and Navy roles
+| Military Officers and Enlisted Personnel || $500    $760 || All Army, Marines, and Navy roles
 |-
-| Elite Occupations || $1,300 $20,000 || CEOs, chairpersons, entertainment professionals, dreamers, scientists, doctors, elite assassins, governors and high ranking military
+| Elite Occupations || $1,300    $20,000 || CEOs, chairpersons, entertainment professionals, dreamers, scientists, doctors, elite assassins, governors and high ranking military
 |}

@@ Line 107: / Line 107: @@
 |-
 | $2,000 || Luxurious
 |}

@@ Line 94: / Line 94: @@
 {| class="wikitable"
-! '''LIVING EXPENSES'''
+! <big>LIVING EXPENSES</big>
 |-
 | Nothing is for free on the Frontier, not even breathing. The chart below shows typical living expenses, depending on your taste for luxury and what you can afford.

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	=== '''FUNCTION BEFORE FASHION''' ===		=== '''FUNCTION BEFORE FASHION''' ===
	On the Frontier, you dress for success, and here that means practical. Clothing is usually overalls, jumpsuits, leather gloves, bomber jackets, and ball caps, all in muted colors and often decorated with colorful patches and corporate logos. On colder worlds, colonists and explorers wear dark, layered parkas and form-fitting leather aviator helmets or fur-lined, billed hats with ear flaps. Marshals generally wear blue, gray, or tan utilitarian uniforms, and military personnel of course dress in khakis and olive drab. Company reps often wear suits in inappropriate places, distinguishing themselves from the blue-collar workers. Corporate fashion includes dark gray, navy, and black with white shirts and upturned collars along with skinny ties. On planetoids with nebulous atmospheres, compression suits are worn, ranging from cumbersome padded models to the sleeker, more advanced corporate spacesuits.		On the Frontier, you dress for success, and here that means practical. Clothing is usually overalls, jumpsuits, leather gloves, bomber jackets, and ball caps, all in muted colors and often decorated with colorful patches and corporate logos. On colder worlds, colonists and explorers wear dark, layered parkas and form-fitting leather aviator helmets or fur-lined, billed hats with ear flaps. Marshals generally wear blue, gray, or tan utilitarian uniforms, and military personnel of course dress in khakis and olive drab. Company reps often wear suits in inappropriate places, distinguishing themselves from the blue-collar workers. Corporate fashion includes dark gray, navy, and black with white shirts and upturned collars along with skinny ties. On planetoids with nebulous atmospheres, compression suits are worn, ranging from cumbersome padded models to the sleeker, more advanced corporate spacesuits.
		+
		+	{\| class="wikitable"
		+	! '''LIVING EXPENSES'''
		+	\|-
		+	\| Nothing is for free on the Frontier, not even breathing. The chart below shows typical living expenses, depending on your taste for luxury and what you can afford.
		+	\|-
		+	! WEEKLY COST !! LIVING STANDARD
		+	\|-
		+	\| $25 \|\| Minimum
		+	\|-
		+	\| $100 \|\| Basic
		+	\|-
		+	\| $300 \|\| Normal
		+	\|-
		+	\| $2,000 \|\| Luxurious
		+	\|}

@@ Line 67: / Line 67: @@
 === '''DEEP SPACE COLONIES''' ===
-The concept of the colonies that was sold to the
+The concept of the colonies that was sold to the general public was one of an off-world paradise. While some planets did eventually become just that, they are the product of the blood, sweat, and tears of generations of colonists.
 general public was one of an off-world paradise.
-While some planets did eventually become just
+'''TERRAFORMING:''' Terraforming began at home in the 2010s, repairing the earth’s ecosystem from the ravages of war and pollution. The next step was the Moon, where localized areas were pressurized and transformed. Mars soon followed. While global warming was arrested as soon as the processors took effect, it still took decades to make the Earth whole again. In a move to acclimate people to the idea of life amongst the stars, Sir Peter Weyland offered incentives to move off-world and colonize the solar system while the Earth healed. The strategy was successful, and soon colonies were popping up as far away as Saturn. Within a decade of the inception of the FTL drive, Weyland Industries had set up an Atmospheric Processing Plant (APP) on an extrasolar world, and it wasn't long before people were eager to colonize there as well. In the 21st Century, terraforming helped humanity to settle the stars. The costly process was exacting and only performed on planets that had near earth conditions, thus prompting the planet to help sustain itself once the expensive terraforming was complete.
 that, they are the product of the blood, sweat, and
-tears of generations of colonists.
+When the Yutani Corporation merged with Weyland Corp at the start of the 22nd Century, terraforming was deemed unprofitable and put to rest. Instead, W-Y astronomers searched the heavens for planets that could support human life on their own. Colony missions like the Affiance and the ill-fated Covenant were sent off to start life on newly discovered Earth-like planets. Without the enormous economic strain that the Weyland Corporation had endured in their efforts to transform entire worlds, Weyland-Yutani prospered. The new model wouldn’t last. As more and more people relocated to the existing off-world colonies, populations on these worlds soared and resources again diminished. Soon, the supply of habitable worlds was outweighed by demand.
 TERRAFORMING: Terraforming began at
-home in the 2010s, repairing the earth’s ecosystem
+'''BUILDING BETTER WORLDS:''' Over the next fifty years, more and more resources were found on barren worlds along the shifting Frontier, prompting Weyland-Yutani to resurrect terraforming and create a new fast and dirty form of atmospheric processing. Recycling a hundred-year-old ad campaign, Weyland-Yutani again boasted they were “building better worlds.” The claim was and still is debatable. Colloquially called a “Shake and Bake” colony, an Atmospheric Processor (AP) is introduced to a planet or moon to scrub its atmosphere without the safety standards of the original Weyland APPs. Essentially giant fusion reactors, these completely automated W-Y APs still require constant monitoring and maintenance, and colonies are often set up on worlds for the sole purpose of servicing them. Weyland-Yutani has deployed APPs across the Frontier, creating colonies on any world that might have exploitable resources.
 from the ravages of war and pollution. The
-next step was the Moon, where localized areas
+Terraforming can be a misnomer. It can take decades to transform a planet’s ecology, and it doesn't always hold. Most of the worlds undergoing the process will never become earth-like. They are barren, desolate, and alien places that the processors can only alter enough for man to survive on without a pressure suit. Some of these worlds even require APs to constantly run in order to maintain a suitable atmosphere, making the processor a prime target for enemy powers and insurgents. Some planets or planetoids that are rich in mineral resources are simply unable to even begin to support the terraforming process. In those cases, pressurized facilities are built on the surface to house laborers and their families. Because of this, colonies can be built in nearly any environment. Ocean, jungle, desert, arctic, and barren worlds are all common.
 were pressurized and transformed. Mars soon
-followed. While global warming was arrested
+=== '''LIVING QUARTERS''' ===
-as soon as the processors took effect, it still
+In space, no one can hear you snore… in hypersleep, at least. When not in stasis, however, you need a place to bed down and call your own. Here are your options.
 took decades to make the Earth whole again. In
-a move to acclimate people to the idea of life
+'''ON ROTATION:''' As a mining and construction worker, you are often on rotation, and therefore do not rate for full quarters. Instead, you bunk in communal sleeping areas called cages. These facilities have stacked levels of meshed enclosures just long enough for a bedroll and tall enough to sit up in. A small locker and personal effects area is built into the headboard, and privacy is accomplished through the use of blinds. Just as on starships, showers and toilet facilities are shared.
 amongst the stars, Sir Peter Weyland offered incentives
-to move off-world and colonize the solar
+'''LONG HAULS:''' On military and commercial starship runs, most of your sleep time is done in stasis pods. For personal time while traveling in system, many freighters have a common area with recessed bunks built into the walls. Like the  cages, these accommodations can be closed off with blinds or curtains, and can be decorated according to your discerning tastes (or lack thereof). Showers, the bathroom, galley and mess area are all communal on these service ships, so the coffin-like bunks offer the only private place for most military and long-haul crews.
 system while the Earth healed. The strategy was
-successful, and soon colonies were popping up
+'''CRAMPED QUARTERS:''' On some space stations, populations are high, and space is optimized. Don’t expect to get too comfortable in such places. The lower levels of stations like Gateway have tight hallways and cramped studio apartments with kitchenettes and bathroom facilities all in the same small area. These apartments can be so small that it is uncomfortable for two people to navigate one at the same time.
 as far away as Saturn. Within a decade of the inception
-of the FTL drive, Weyland Industries had
+'''GALAXY STANDARD:''' Crew quarters on colony and scientific exploration ships are often more roomy, consisting of a standardized studio area with a small private bathroom. If you’re skilled enough, you might even rate your own viewport.
 set up an Atmospheric Processing Plant (APP)
-on an extrasolar world, and it wasn't long before
+'''LUXURY ACCOMMODATIONS:''' Don’t expect to spend much time in any of these. Lavish to the extreme, these penthouse apartments on starships and stations are sometimes located on a separate module with its own support system and supplies. They are spacious, extravagantly stocked with food, drink, and whatever its occupants might need to survive for up to two years on their own.
 people were eager to colonize there as well. In
-the 21st Century, terraforming helped humanity
+=== '''FUNCTION BEFORE FASHION''' ===
-to settle the stars. The costly process was exacting
+On the Frontier, you dress for success, and here that means practical. Clothing is usually overalls, jumpsuits, leather gloves, bomber jackets, and ball caps, all in muted colors and often decorated with colorful patches and corporate logos. On colder worlds, colonists and explorers wear dark, layered parkas and form-fitting leather aviator helmets or fur-lined, billed hats with ear flaps. Marshals generally wear blue, gray, or tan utilitarian uniforms, and military personnel of course dress in khakis and olive drab. Company reps often wear suits in inappropriate places, distinguishing themselves from the blue-collar workers. Corporate fashion includes dark gray, navy, and black with white shirts and upturned collars along with skinny ties. On planetoids with nebulous atmospheres, compression suits are worn, ranging from cumbersome padded models to the sleeker, more advanced corporate spacesuits.