While waiting for Knights of the Hidden Sun I thought I’d throw a quick comment on the setting’s “holes” and opportunities.
Roaa is not a kind place. It’s a galaxy on the brink of chaos. Pirates threaten travelers and unguarded worlds. Those who hunt them do it without mercy or regard for anyone who stands between the warring sides. Galactic democracy is paralyzed, serving innumerable, greedy special interests. A monolithic merchant house controls the fate of billions with no oversight. Runecrafting guilds vie for dominance; in secret labs, masters merge howling ghosts ghosts in hope of becoming gods. Two CENSORED* clash in secret but the reverberations from their epic conflict strike everyone.
There is no Heaven or Hell.
Souls feed the splendor of the rich.
See what’s missing?
Heroes.
This setting has no Luke Skywalker, no John Sheridan. It doesn’t have a Star Fleet or a Gondor to fall back on. There are good people in the Roaa but they’re too few, far between and powerless compared to the major powers. Hope rests with player characters.
I’ve left Hidden Sun with holes in it for you to fill. Malcolm mentioned that it’s hard to see where the metaplot will go. That’s because it’s been written so that you can decide. PCs are called Main Characters in Hidden Sun for a reason, and the system reinforces their centrality. They may not instigate the plot — there are other forces in the galaxy, and they’re on the move — but there’s always a “hole” in the story that’s the exact shape of your heroes. Nobody else fits.
* Sorry Chris, we’re not giving that way quite yet. ~ Malcolm