by Laurie Burns
Del Sato
Type: Loyal CoPilot
DEXTERITY 3D
Blaster 4D+2, vehicle blasters 4D
KNOWLEDGE 3D
Planetary systems 4D
MECHANICAL 3D+2
Astrogation 5D+2, powersuit operation 4D, repulsorlift operation 4D+1, sensors 4D+1, space transports 5D
PERCEPTION 2D+1
STRENGTH 3D
TECHNICAL 3D
Space transports repair 4D
Force Points: 1
Character Points: 5
Move: 10
Equipment: Core Courier Service uniform, blaster pistol (3D)
Capsule: As a young man. Del Sato was advised to “get a good job and dig in.” And though ferrying mail for the Core Courier Service isn’t exactly a thrill a minute, it does pay well, so a lack of excitement is fine with him. An easy-going Corellian, “ambition” isn’t a word in Del’s vocabulary. He worked just hard enough to earn his copilot’s position, then settled in for the long haul, spending the next few dozen years cozily ensconced at the helm of various mail freighters, agreeably taking orders from a series of progressively younger-looking captains and depositing his pay voucher with an affable grin at the end of every run.
Del’s not a go-getter but he’s good enough at his job. His retirement plans include settling back in his comfy repulsor chair, enjoying a cool glass of bubbly bitters, and checking out the latest maxi-series starring that enchanting (if a little over the hill) diva of the holos, Serra Hailey.
The Messenger
Craft: Ghtroc Industries class 720 freighter
Type: Light freighter
Scale: Starfighter
Length: 35 meters
Skill: Space Transports: Ghtroc freighter
Crew: 1 or 2
Passengers: 10
Cargo Capacity: 135 metric tons
Consumables: 2 months
Hyperdrive Multiplier: x1
Hyperdrive Backup: x15
Nav Computer: Yes
Maneuverability: 1D
Space: 3
Atmosphere: 260: 750 kmh
Hull: 3D+2
Shields: 1D*
* The Messenger has 1D of back-up shields. When the 1D of regular shields is lost, if the shields operator can make an Easy starship shields roll, the 1D backup shields come on line to protect the starship.
Sensors:
Passive: 15/0D
Scan: 30/1D
Search: 50/3D
Focus: 2/4D
Weapons:
1 Double laser cannon
Fire Arc: Front
Skill: Starship gunnery
Fire Control: 1D+2
Space Range: 1-3/12/25
Atmosphere Range: 100-300m/1.2/2.5 km
Damage: 4D
Capsule: The Messenger is a standard mail freighter with one very handy modification Taryn made — back-up shields. Although Core Courier Service freighters are maintained by company technicians when in their home port, the company tends to look the other way if captains wish to tinker with them as well, making modifications to improve the ship’s performance. Since Taryn has only recently taken command of the Messenger, she hasn’t gotten as far on the planned modifications as she’d like.
Galactic Courier Services
Whether you’re on the planet next door, or all the way across the galaxy, there are all kinds of ways to keep in touch. But from comm relays to message droids, they all cost credits — and some, such as person-to-person subspace calls, are staggeringly expensive. Consequently, for offworld business and personal communications where timeliness isn’t essential and privacy is, the old-fashioned but relatively inexpensive audio, visual, or written “letter” is still very popular.
Under the Old Republic, a government-sponsored courier service conveyed such correspondence throughout the galactic community, and operated a comm-droid service as well, for those wishing to have their messages delivered to a comnet (similar to the way in which newsnets now operate). But when Emperor Palpatine came to power, he shut these services down, citing a need to stop wasting taxpayers’ money on government “flab.” In reality, his action played havoc with casual communications between worlds, making it easier to establish the New Order of his Empire.
Private courier services swiftly scrambled to fill the gap, but, years later, getting correspondence from here to there can still be a chancy proposition. Senders are faced with a bewildering array of courier services to choose from; some offering delivery within a system, while others service routes scattered throughout a sector. While these smaller couriers’ rates tend to be less expensive, using them can be risky — as shown by the recent discovery of an immense letter-dumping ground just five light-years out of the Averill system. Investigation of the nearly thousand-kilometer-long stream of drifting datacards revealed at least three services guilty of regularly jettisoning their holds.
However, a few reliable, well-established services maintain huge fleets of freighters and have delivery routes spanning entire regions. While the rates of a company such as the Core Courier Service or Stellar CommCour are slightly higher, most customers find that their wide range of destinations and prompt delivery records more than make up for the few extra credits.
With careful planning and complex scheduling, these services usually have ships dropping into each system or space station at least once a day, delivering containers full of datacards and small parcels to company warehouses for droid or electronic distribution, and picking up the outgoing mail. Routes are deliberately kept short, so correspondence gets back to the main warehouse, sorted, and sent back down the line within a reasonable period of time.
As part of its goal to become a functioning government in fact as well as in name, the New Republic has considered resuming the responsibilities of running the galactic comm-courier services. Unfortunately, the fledgling government barely has the resources to keep its own shipping going, and preliminary talks with the larger services about a combined venture have so far come to naught.
The market is ripe for expansion, and many of the larger services are buying out smaller ones, absorbing their ships and routes and adding to the number of delivery destinations they can offer customers. But even with the ongoing consolidation, it will be some time before they can rival the incredible organization, efficiency, and complete coverage of the galaxy that marked the Old Republic’s comm-courier service in its heyday.
From Star Wars Adventure Journal 7 (08-1995)
11.6.18.15.14.5-1