Side Project: Stars Without Number – One Shot

This past Friday evening into the early morning hours of Saturday, I played in an InnRoads Ministries Summer One Shot of Stars Without Number. Quite a few months ago, Jeff Romo, a leader of InnRoad’s Ministries, had put a shout out for players on InnRoad’s Facebook group, The Tavern. I have wanted to try online roleplaying, so I signed up for an upcoming D&D 5th Edition game along with this Stars Without Number. This was my first time playing on Roll20 and roleplaying with this group of players. I went in a bit nervous about online gaming and playing with a group I had never met, but that quickly melted away once the session began.

After some chatting and getting to know each other, we all dove right into our characters and the game. I was amazed at how well Roll20 kept the game system out of the way and let us focus on playing our characters and digging into the story Jeff had created for us. We had some minor technical difficulties with some web cams and lag, but not enough to ruin the experience. I still prefer a game sitting around the table with friends, chatting, eating, and having a wonderful time. But, if you don’t have a local gaming group, or the friends you want to game with live far away, then I can honesty say Roll20 is a very viable way to roleplay for a smaller group.  Let me give you a little taste of our night of online roleplaying with this Intro and Overview Video and some info about the game itself.

Game 

Session Title: “Incident on Erginus Station”

A routine salvage job on the edges of Grimhild finds the crew of the Razorback trying to outrun Trehuvian Pirates to reach Erginus Station 1742. Rumor on the spaceways is an ancient piece of tech could bring new fortunes for the first crew to the recovery.

But Erginus Station 1742 is a Reformist Installation. Those lunatic scientists drift along the fringes of what’s meant to exist and what most assuredly should not. If the crew survives the Trehuvians, will they survive 1742?

Jeff Romo as the Game Master
Jay Saunders | Creative Contributor

Players:

Me as Roy “Professor” Sloan – Former Xenoarchaelogist and Ship’s Pilot and Astromechanic
Chris Lawrence as William Lavrentios – Combat Medic and Ship’s Communications Officer
Zach Lorton as Zoldak Miru – Soldier and Ship’s Gunner
Justin Lowmaster as Jase Pere – Musician and Ship’s Navigator

My character – Roy  “The Professor” Sloan

Renowned lecturer at the University of Mavroudis where he teaches xenoarchaeology and anthropology. At least he was a renowned lecturer, that is until he lost his tenure and was branded a heretic for his teachings on the origins of the Scream. He was accused of mythmaking and fear mongering for his theories. His research led to papers and lectures on the possible connection of the Watchers found on Typhon with the Watchers mentioned in the non-canonical Book of Enoch as ancient aliens who, over eras, had visited worlds throughout the universe, seeding and grooming them for reasons yet determined. When the planets were not progressing as expected, planet-wide calamities would occur on the worlds that are recorded in myths such as planet-killing asteroids, global floods, exploding moons, and recently the Scream. When Dr. Sloan would not back down from his well-researched papers, he was taken before the University leadership, and eventually the Council of Elders, where he was branded a heretic likely to be imprisoned until he recanted or possibly even executed. Friends within the University faculty and leadership smuggled him out of the city before his final trial. He took passage on a ship as an astromechanic’s apprentice, using his understanding of pretech to pick up mechanics. Today, he makes his way as a ship’s astromechanic and a salvage expert…occasionally spouting off some academic jargon about items found. He is the most polished and educated mechanic on the fringe.

Stars Without Number Character Sheet for Roy Sloan for those that know the system.

Thanks to Jeff Romo and the players of the Summer One Shot of Stars Without Number. I had so much fun getting to know these guys and gaming with them. Just one night of gaming together and we had already begun to build friendships. I look forward to gaming with these guys again someday and hopefully getting to meet them face-to-face. I am looking forward to my next One Shot, which will be D&D 5e, also run by Jeff Romo. I am also looking into running a game myself on Roll20 so I can experience how the system works from a GM’s perspective. If you get a chance, I highly recommend signing up for one of Jeff Romo’s online games. He is a great storyteller and does a wonderful job of keeping everyone engaged.

Have you ever roleplayed online? Did you run the game or play? What did you think of the experience?