Scene Five: Getting Out of Harrowspan
Scene type: Action, ship operations, potential ship combat Location: Harrowspan docking ring, outer approach corridor, slipstream entry point Ships involved: Ember Drift, potentially IRNS Sentinel or Pale Table courier
Running Scene Five
This scene has three layers: the undock, the departure corridor, and the potential pursuit. Not all three are guaranteed. The shape of the scene depends entirely on what happened in Scene Four.
Read the situation tracker at the top of each section to know whether it applies to your table.
The slipstream seam is two legs out from Harrowspan, Short band to Medium and Medium to Long, about sixteen hours at the Ember Drift's Cruise 2. A pursuit on the way out runs as three rounds of ship encounter covering the decisive stretch of that run, not the whole sixteen hours. At the end of Round Three, the crew can jump regardless of tactical position: a pursuer that has not stopped the Ember Drift by then has lost the pursuit, and the rest of the run to the seam is uneventful. The jump ends the encounter.
For new GMs: the ship encounter rules here are simplified from the full Void Drifters ship combat system. What matters is that multiple crew members have something to do each round and that the stakes are clear. You do not need to track every detail. Ask each player what their character is doing on the ship, tell them what check to make, and narrate the result.
Part One: Undocking
The situation determines the difficulty.
| Situation | Pilot Difficulty | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Oll cleared departure, no alarm | Easy | Routine undock, no complications |
| Oll issued a hold order, crew is running | Average | Oll has flagged the departure; the docking controller resists clearance |
| Station lockdown initiated (Scene 4B) | Hard | Clamps engaged on a timer; the controller is actively blocking |
| Clamps physically engaged | Craft check (Average) + Pilot (Hard) | Engineering bypasses the clamp system first; then pilot forces the undock |
Read this when the crew starts the undock sequence:
The Ember Drift's systems cycle up with the reliable hum of a ship that has been here before. The ramp retracts, the docking seal releases, and the bay doors slide open on the black. Harrowspan sits behind you, lights running amber from the access alert. The outer approach corridor is clear. The slipstream seam is ahead, sixteen hours out past the wreckfield, marked on your navigation display as a green bracket.
The question is whether anything is moving to stop you before you reach it.
Part Two: The Departure Corridor
Even without active pursuit, departing Harrowspan means transiting the outer approach corridor, a sixteen-hour run at Cruise 2 from the station's docking ring out through Medium band to the seam at Long band. The wreckfield flanks the first stretch of the corridor on one side, close enough that individual hulks are visible on the sensor screen.
If nothing is pursuing: This is sixteen hours of open transit. Give the crew a quiet moment. Let them breathe. Ask what they do during the transit: check on the container, tend to any injuries, talk to each other. Then move to the jump.
If the IRNS Sentinel is undocking: It clears the station two minutes after the Ember Drift and is the faster ship on the outbound run. The first encounter round begins when the Sentinel closes to combat range on the way out to the seam, a few hours into the run.
If the Pale Table courier is moving to intercept: It is already outside the station. It was parked in the wreckfield, running cold, waiting. It moves to intercept when the Ember Drift clears the bay doors. Round One begins immediately.
Both ships possible: If Oll is an opponent and Sev escaped, both ships may be in play simultaneously. This is a hard scenario. Reserve it for a crew that handled Scenes Three and Four confidently and can manage the complexity. If the crew is struggling, the courier is delayed and only the Sentinel pursues, or vice versa.
Enemy Ship Stats
IRNS Sentinel
Irnan patrol cutter, CM-440, customs enforcement variant.
The Sentinel is a solid, professional ship. It is not designed to destroy the Ember Drift. Oll's standing orders are to force compliance and detain, not to kill a commercial freighter crew over an unresolved cargo inspection. The Sentinel's weapons are set for disabling fire.
| Characteristic | Value |
|---|---|
| Scale | 4 |
| Speed | 4 |
| Handling | +0 |
| Armor | 3 |
| Defense | 0 / 0 |
| Hull Points | 22 |
| System Points | 14 |
| Power Capacity | 13 |
| Heat Dissipation | 4 per round |
| Heat Threshold | 17 |
The Sentinel uses a Military-grade power plant appropriate to its Directorate service role.
Weapons:
| Weapon | Type | Damage | Heat | Range | Arc | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Forward Disruption Array | Disruption | 4 | 2 | Medium | Fixed Forward | Targets System Points rather than Hull Points; does not destroy ships |
| Dorsal Ion Cannon | Disruption | 3 | 1 | Short–Medium | Dorsal Arc | Reduce target Speed by 1 per hit; cumulative; Speed returns at 1 per round when not hit |
| Missile Rack (2 salvos) | Guided Ordnance | 6 | 0 | Long | Forward Arc | On hit: add 2 Heat to target; point-defense may intercept |
Defense:
| System | Effect |
|---|---|
| Deflection Screens | Active. Absorb 2 damage per hit, generate 1 Heat when activated |
| Point Defense | Intercepts one missile per round on a successful Average Gunnery check |
| Armor 3 | Reduces incoming physical damage by 3 |
Sentinel's goal: Reduce the Ember Drift's Speed to 0 using the ion cannon, then demand compliance. The crew of the Sentinel does not fire the disruption array until the ion cannon has connected at least twice. They want a living ship to board, not a wreck.
If the Sentinel drops to 12 Hull Points or fewer: Oll orders a halt to offensive action. He opens a comm channel and offers terms: stand down, allow boarding, and he will not pursue charges against the crew personally. This is a genuine offer.
Pale Table Courier
Unmarked fast courier, light-cargo configuration, Pale Table modifications.
The courier is faster than the Ember Drift and lighter. It carries minimal armor and relies on speed and agility. Its goal is to force the Ember Drift to heave-to so Sev (if they escaped) or a second operative can board and take the container. If the courier cannot achieve that in three rounds, it will break off rather than risk the ship.
| Characteristic | Value |
|---|---|
| Scale | 2 |
| Speed | 5 |
| Handling | +1 |
| Armor | 1 |
| Defense | 1 / 0 |
| Hull Points | 10 |
| System Points | 8 |
| Power Capacity | 7 |
| Heat Dissipation | 2 per round |
| Heat Threshold | 8 |
Weapons:
| Weapon | Type | Damage | Heat | Range | Arc | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Twin Kinetic Autocannons | Kinetic | 4 | 0 | Short–Medium | Fixed Forward | Fire twice per round at cost of 1 additional Maneuver for the pilot |
| Tachyon Hook (1 use) | Gravitic | — | 3 | Short | Fixed Forward | Reduce target Speed to 0 for 1 round; Hard Pilot Trial to resist; single use |
Defense:
| System | Effect |
|---|---|
| ECM Suite | Once per round, may add 1 Bane Die to an enemy targeting check as a free action |
| Armor 1 | Reduces incoming physical damage by 1 |
Courier's goal: Use the Tachyon Hook on Round One or Two to stop the Ember Drift in space, then close to Engaged range and attempt a boarding. If the Hook is intercepted or resisted, the courier relies on the autocannons to force a compliance decision. The courier breaks off at 5 Hull Points or fewer.
The Ember Drift's Combat Profile
The Ember Drift is a light freighter, Model 20. It is not a combat ship. It is, however, a solid ship crewed by people who know what they are doing.
| Characteristic | Value |
|---|---|
| Scale | 4 |
| Speed | 3 |
| Handling | +0 |
| Armor | 1 |
| Defense | 0 / 0 |
| Hull Points | 18 |
| System Points | 13 |
| Power Capacity | 8 |
| Heat Dissipation | 2 per round |
| Heat Threshold | 10 |
Weapons (starting configuration):
The Ember Drift carries a forward-arc light kinetic turret, the standard defensive installation for a commercial freighter working the Verge.
| Weapon | Type | Damage | Heat | Range | Arc | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Light Kinetic Turret | Kinetic | 4 | 0 | Short–Medium | Forward Arc | Reliable, low maintenance, no ammunition limits in a three-round encounter |
Note for the GM: Full weapon and module details for the Ember Drift are in Chapter Three. This simplified profile is provided here for quick reference during the Scene Five encounter.
Ship Combat: Three Rounds to the Jump
The seam is sixteen hours out, well beyond the span of a ship encounter; the three rounds here cover the decisive stretch of the pursuit. The crew can jump at the start of their action in Round Four regardless of tactical position, damage, or whether anyone is chasing them: by then the pursuer has lost them. Oll will not chase a freighter two legs out through the wreckfield on a hold order, and the courier breaks off rather than risk the ship. When the text says the crew jumps, cut to the seam; the rest of the run is uneventful. The jump ends the encounter.
This means three rounds of encounter. Each round, the pursuing ship and the Ember Drift both act. Here is how to run each round.
Round One: Identification and Positioning
What the enemy ship does:
Sentinel: Closes distance if the Ember Drift is at Long range. Fires the ion cannon if at Medium range (one hit reduces Ember Drift Speed by 1). Opens a comm channel demanding compliance. The voice is Oll's. He is professional, not aggressive.
Courier: Uses superior Speed to close immediately. If at Short range by end of movement, fires the Tachyon Hook. If not in range, fires the autocannons and tries to close next round.
What the crew can do:
Pilot: The pilot's primary job this round is establishing position. An Average Pilot check to set favorable range (keep the Sentinel at Long, keep the courier from reaching Short). On a Boon: add 1 Defense to the ship this round from good angle work.
Gunner: If the enemy is in arc, a ranged attack at Average difficulty using the kinetic turret. The Ember Drift's gun is not meant to kill these ships; it is meant to make them respect the space.
Engineer: Assess the power situation. If any weapons are already firing or screens are up, the engineer tracks Heat and Power Load. An Average Craft check to optimize cooling routes gives the ship an extra point of Heat Dissipation this round.
Navigator: Begin Slipstream calculations. This is a two-round process. A Hard Intellect + Astrogation Trial begun on Round One and completed on Round Two locks the jump vector early, meaning the crew can jump at the start of their action on Round Three instead of Round Four. This is the most valuable action available.
Anyone else: Sensor scan of the enemy ship (Average Sensors check) reveals its current Hull Points, System Points, and any active weapon or defense systems. This lets the crew make informed decisions about where to focus.
Stakes in Round One:
If the Tachyon Hook hits (and the crew fails the Hard Pilot resistance): the Ember Drift's Speed drops to 0 for the round. This means no movement maneuver next round. The crew is stationary. This is bad.
If the ion cannon hits: Speed drops by 1, to Speed 2. The ship is slower but still moving.
Round Two: Escalation
What the enemy ship does:
Sentinel: If the ion cannon hit last round, fires again. One more hit drops Speed to 1. Fires a missile if the Ember Drift is still at Long range and won't close. Demands compliance again.
Courier: If the Hook connected last round, moves to Engaged and attempts boarding prep (crew skill rather than weapon). If the Hook missed, closes to Short range and fires autocannons twice (costs the pilot their second Maneuver). At 5 Hull Points or fewer, breaks off.
What the crew can do:
Pilot: If the Ember Drift is still at Long range from the Sentinel, the pilot can attempt an Evasive Movement maneuver (Average Pilot) to add 1 Bane Die to the next attack against the ship. If the courier is at Short or Engaged, the pilot focuses on breaking away (Opposed Pilot check against the courier; on success, open one range band).
Gunner: If the courier is threatening a boarding approach, the kinetic turret is the priority. If the Sentinel is the only threat, keep suppressive fire to make the Sentinel hesitant.
Engineer: The Ember Drift may be taking Heat from defensive fire or damage. Average Craft check to manage Heat. If the ship is at Threshold, the engineer must act: shut down a non-essential system or use Emergency Vent (removes Heat equal to Heat Dissipation immediately, but adds 2 Bane Dice to Signature Management for two rounds).
Navigator: If calculations started last round, complete the jump vector (Hard Astrogation Trial). On success: the crew can jump at the start of their action in Round Three. On failure: try again next round; the jump is delayed.
Stakes in Round Two:
If the Ember Drift is at Speed 1 or 0: the Sentinel is now likely to board next round. The crew needs to either destroy the ion cannon or deal with a boarding attempt.
If the courier attempts boarding: this is a Hard Pilot check for the courier to match velocity and grapple. On success, the crew has an internal threat in Scene Four (boarding) or they must disengage by force. On failure, the courier overshot and must spend a Maneuver closing again next round.
Round Three: The Jump Window
What the enemy ship does:
Sentinel: If Oll has a boarding opportunity, he takes it. If not, he makes one more firing pass. He is professional and persistent but he will not risk his ship in the wreckfield.
Courier: Last chance. The courier knows the crew is about to jump. If they have not stopped the Ember Drift, they make a desperation move: fire everything at once (both autocannon shots plus any remaining salvo), accepting the Heat cost.
What the crew can do:
Jump available if navigation succeeded in Round Two: The navigator can initiate the jump as their action on Round Three. The Slipstream drive engages. The pursuit ends. The crew is gone.
Jump not yet available: The crew has one more round of combat before the pursuit breaks off. The navigator initiates as their action (an Easy check at this point, the calculations are complete), and the drive engages at the end of Round Three.
Regardless of tactical position: The crew initiates the jump at the end of Round Three at the latest. Nothing the enemy ships do can prevent the jump without a gravitic disruption weapon or a direct Slipstream drive hit. Neither pursuing ship has those capabilities in this encounter.
The Jump
When the crew initiates the jump to Saint Orra's Rest, read this aloud.
The Slipstream drive winds up with a sound the crew has heard enough times to find comforting: a rising harmonic that moves from the deck plates through the hull and into the air itself. On the forward screen, the space ahead distorts, folds, and then opens. The wreckfield, the station, the pursuing ships, the amber station lights — all of it compresses into a single band of light at the edges of the view and then the band closes behind you.
The Ember Drift is in transit.
For a long moment, no one moves.
The Transit: In Between
The jump to Saint Orra's Rest takes approximately one day. Nothing will intercept them in transit. There is no pursuing ship in Slipstream.
This is a quiet scene. Use it.
Give the crew three or four prompts to settle the story before the resolution chapter. Choose the ones that fit what actually happened at the table.
Prompt One — The container: Someone goes down to the cargo bay to check on the container. It is still sealed. It is heavier than a medical sample container should be. The registration markings feel ordinary in a way that now seems deliberate. What does the crew member do?
Prompt Two — Vorn: The crew can comm Vorn from Slipstream transit. The relay is slow but it works. What do they tell him? What does he say?
Prompt Three — What they know: At some point, the crew should talk through what they actually know. They are carrying navigational charts for a newly discovered slipstream corridor that bypasses Irnan checkpoints. The Nerezza Compact hired a transit agent to move them without declaration. The Pale Table tried to take them. An Irnan inspector was watching the transfer. Maren is dead. What does the crew think about delivering them to Dr. Caern at this point?
Prompt Four — The ship: If the Ember Drift took damage in the pursuit, this is when the engineer goes through the ship and assesses. Have them describe what they find. Let it feel real. The ship is their home. Damage to it matters.
What Comes Next
Scene Five ends when the crew reaches Saint Orra's Rest. The resolution of the adventure — delivering the container, meeting Dr. Caern, deciding what to do with what they know — is covered in Chapter Ten.
The transit prompt about what they think of delivering the container is not a decision point. It is a question for the characters to sit with. Let the crew answer it in their own words before they arrive. Then let them make the actual choice in Chapter Ten.
If There Was No Pursuit
If the crew departed Harrowspan cleanly — Oll cleared them, no pursuit, no fight: Scene Five is the departure and the transit, without the ship encounter.
Read the first read-aloud block (undocking) and skip to the jump. The quiet moment in transit still applies. Let the crew breathe.
The absence of pursuit is its own kind of satisfaction. They handled it well. Acknowledge that.