Midweek Musings: A Day Across the Multiverse – The Seven Timelines Publish Date: 10-7-2026

 

Midweek Musings: Recharging the Generators, Zine Dispatches, and A Day Across the Multiverse

Pull up a chair and grab a mug. It’s well past midnight here along the water, the coffee is piping hot, and it feels damn good to be back at the keyboard.

If things went quiet around here from the tail end of August through September, it wasn't by choice. Life threw a heavy combination punch: my primary laptop workstation went completely dark for nearly six weeks, and I spent a good chunk of that time dealing with health setbacks, cycling in and out of the hospital. When you're stuck in a hospital bed without your main rig, you lose track of the days fast. But I fought my way through the medical grind, got the laptop restored and humming, and I am back on my feet just in time for October and the Halloween season.

The engine is firing on all cylinders again, and the desk has been busy.

Dispatch 1: Earl C. Hedges Jr. — The Shreveport Desk

Time: 02:24 AM CDT

Location: The Shreveport Cabin, Twelve Mile Bayou, Louisiana

You don’t need an alarm clock when you live with Pixie Wixie.

I was dead to the world, buried under the quilts with the humid October swamp breeze whispering through the screens, when suddenly—thud. Four little paws landed square on my chest. She pushed her face right into mine, whiskers twitching, and let out that signature sound of hers. It isn't a normal meow, and it isn't a growl; it’s a tight, squeezed-out "erow-meow" that sounds like a rusty tackle box opening up.

From the bedroom, Uncle Bill called out from under his blankets:

"Hey Earl! The cat won’t let us sleep until sunrise, so get up and make some coffee and let me know when it's ready. I'm going to watch the world news at 2:30 AM anyways."

"Alright, Bill, I'm on it," I muttered, dragging myself up.

I slid my feet onto the cold cypress floorboards and shuffled into the kitchen. Outside, Twelve Mile Bayou was slick as black glass under a sliver of October moon. I fired up the burner, filled the pot, and scooped out a stout mound of dark roast. When that water hit the grounds, the rich aroma filled every corner of the cabin, burning the last of the hospital fog right out of my head.

Sitting at the table with both hands wrapped around that steaming ceramic mug, watching Pixie circle my chair while the glow of the TV flicked on in the next room for the 2:30 news, the real world finally felt locked back into gear.

Dispatch 2: The Publishing Front (Trollzine & Troll Con 2 Japan)

While the machine was down, the planning never stopped. I have two major publishing milestones currently rolling:

• New Trollzine Submission: I have been putting the finishing touches on a brand-new article submission for Trollzine. My good friend Sid Orpin has been lending his expert hand to get the piece fully laid out, formatted, and polished for publication.

• Troll Con 2 Convention Support Zine (Japan): I am honored to announce that the Japanese Monsters! Monsters! community is putting together an exclusive Troll Cave zine as official convention support for Troll Con 2. It will be priced at around $15 USD, available in both English and Japanese, with all proceeds directly funding the convention. For this release, they compiled the articles I wrote for the Eastern Lands into a massive 5,000-word campaign primer for the Eastern Valley of Hawthorne Valley. Even better: it features an exclusive, previously unpublished introductory adventure written specifically for this book. I will share purchase links the moment it goes live!

Sitting here at 2:00 AM with fresh brew in hand, thinking about spinning up all these worlds again, I decided to take a look at what "a day in the life" looks like across my distinct personas.

Dispatch 3: Bayou Earl — The Were-Tiger of the Cypress Swamps

Time: Dead of Night

Location: The Blackwater Bends, Twelve Mile Bayou

Down in the bottoms where the Spanish moss hangs thick enough to choke the moonlight, time doesn't run on clocks or chronometers. It runs on the tide, the scent of turned river mud, and the instincts in your blood.

When the night water cools down in October, the swamp gets dead quiet. The cicadas quit buzzing, the bullfrogs submerge, and the only sound across the bayou is the slow, steady drip of cypress sap into the water. That’s the hour when the skin starts to prickle and the stripes beneath the surface itch to break out.

Uncle Bill knows the look in my eye without asking. He keeps the lantern turned low on the porch, a pot of chicory sitting warm on the cast-iron stove, keeping watch on the cabin lines while the Were-Tiger takes the perimeter. Out here, things move in the shadows between Shreveport and the state line that don't belong in polite company. One patrol through the brush, scenting the damp night air and listening to the cypress roots drink, is all it takes to remind the swamp who walks the banks of Twelve Mile.

Dispatch 4: Captain Hedges — Log of the USS Urland (NCC-27011-J)

Ship Time: 02:24 Shipboard Standard

Location: Uncharted Deep Fringe (Temporal Slipstream Fault)

Nobody likes the comm chime at two in the morning.

I was asleep in my quarters when the duty alert sounded. Beta Shift was just handing over the watch to Delta when the duty officers caught the anomaly and made the right call to wake the captain. I glanced at my communication smartwatch: the digital readout flickered erratically at 02:24 AM, snapped backward to 02:17, paused, and jumped forward again.

The chronometers aboard the USS Urland were having an absolute fit. When you push a Universe-class vessel through a Slipstream Time Drive into unmapped space, the nav-computers don't know whether to log a calendar date or throw their hands up. Outside my viewport, the void wasn't black—it was a churning, oily-violet wash of raw chronal wake.

I pulled on my duty boots, zipped my jacket, and stepped into the dimmed, blue-lit corridors of Deck 1. The bridge was humming with tense energy as I ducked straight into my ready room to slap the replicator for a scalding mug of black chicory coffee before pulling up the tactical screen.

"Gemini," I said, taking that first sip. "Talk to me. Why are the chronometers spinning backward every seven minutes?"

Gemini’s voice chimed through the desk console with cool, measured precision:

"The Slipstream Time Drive has intersected an uncharted micro-singularity with a fractured event horizon. Localized chronal eddies are creating high-frequency shear across our outer shields. We are maintaining spatial coordinates, but the chronometer buffer is oscillating between two overlapping micro-timelines."

"Modulate the main deflector dish zero-point-three micro-dynes," I ordered. "Neutralize the temporal drag and hold steady until Alpha Shift takes the conn at 06:00."

Dispatch 5: El Tigre de Setos — Ring Lore & The Capri Casino Wrestling League (CCWL)

Era: 1980s Territory Circuit to the 1990s Riverboat Boom

Location: The Red River Decks, Shreveport, Louisiana

Under the laced leather mask, you don't answer to standard time; you answer to the bell, the roar of the crowd, and the creak of the canvas.

I cut my teeth working territory rings through the gritty 1980s, trading chops, suplexes, and blood in smoky arenas. But in the 1990s, the game found a brand-new heartbeat right here in Shreveport along the Red River.

When the iconic Isle of Capri riverboat casino opened its doors, a legendary, battle-tested tag team known as The Islanders took their hard-earned ring purses, bought in as owners, and launched their own company: the Capri Casino Wrestling League (CCWL).

They set up the squared circle right on the riverboat decks against the authentic backdrop of Shreveport's neon-lit gaming boom. And at the center of their main event cards stands El Tigre de Setos, bringing masked lucha mastery and old-school territory toughness to the floating casino. Between the high rollers, the smoky backrooms, and the territorial rivalries, CCWL is ready to deliver a full campaign chronicle of promotions, ledgers, and ringside feuds.

Dispatch 6: Rajah Gundam — The Imperial Cartographer of Zimrala

Era: Age of the Ether Dragons

Location: Sovereign’s Bluff Lodge, The Tygerian Isles

High above the crashing shores of the Tygerian Isles, the grand drafting halls of Sovereign’s Bluff Lodge never truly go dark.

As Emperor Rajah Gundam, Royal Cartographer and Supreme Historian of the vast world of Zimrala, mapping is not just geography—it is a sacred science of survival. Armed with the Ink of Anticipation, the Compass of Lost Things, and the Scope of the True Meridian, my desk is covered in living vellum where coastlines shift and ocean currents bleed into the void.

It is my duty to track the great migratory flights of the Ether Dragons through the multiverse portals, log the deep movements of the Zimralan Void-Water Sovereign, and record the true borders where civilization stands against the wilderness. While the rest of the world slumbers, the royal quill never stops charting the annals of the Monsterary.

Dispatch 7: The Journey Ahead & Sign-Off

And of course, these are just 6 corners of the new Urland Universe Multiverse maped out so far. There are plenty of other personas and deep lore archives already published across the website that I plan to delve into as we roll deeper into the season—from the mystical sanctum of the Hedge Wizard at the Shreveport Cabin to the cosmic expanses of the multiverse.

For now, the coffee pot is empty, the laptop is humming strong, and the night watch is winding down.

Yours for now,

Captain Hedges, signing off.

Product Identity & Legal Notice

The following items are designated Product Identity of Arthur Earl C. Hedges Jr. / The Adventures of Captain Hedges:

• The world of Zimrala, the Tygerian Isles, the Ether Dragons, the Kristall Wyrm, the Zimralan Void-Water Sovereign, the Trinity Engine, Rajah Gundam, El Tigre de Setos, the Capri Casino Wrestling League (CCWL), and the Sovereign’s Bluff Lodge.

• The specific personas of the "Hedge Wizard of the Shreveport Cabin," "Bayou Earl," Uncle Bill, and Captain Hedges, as well as the unique narrative composition, the "Cypress Shadow B&B" location, and the "Swamp Dread" mechanics of "The Twelve Mile Terror" campaign.

• Monsters! Monsters!™, Starfaring™, and Humans! Humans!™ (1st Edition) are trademarks of Ken St. Andre and Trollgodfather Press and are used with permission. The Monsterary of Zimrala (MoZ) is the official campaign setting created by Ken St. Andre, with our humble contributions acknowledged in the annals of the work.

• This work utilizes the Open D6 system; mechanics are Open Game Content under the OGL v1.0a. Open D6 mechanics rely on six-sided dice pools under OGL v1.0a and are kept distinct from Monsters! Monsters! 2.7 Monster Rating (MR) rules. All rights to the Starfaring (1976) crystal mechanics are the sole property of Ken St. Andre.

  © 2026 Arthur Earl C. Hedges Jr. All rights reserved.

A Cabin Dispatch: Twelve Mile Bayou: A 4 AM Thank You & Morning Devoti

 

A 4 AM Thank You to Readers Worldwide & Morning Prayer

Introduction

The clock on the cabin wall reads 4:00 AM, the coffee pot is quietly humming, and the mist is hanging still outside over Twelve Mile Bayou.

Over the past week, more than 24,000 visitors stopped by this small corner of the internet. When you have spent weeks dealing with hospital stays, painful physical recovery, and broken machines, it is easy to feel completely isolated. Seeing folks check in from across the United States, Singapore, Brazil, Bangladesh, and dozens of other nations across the globe is a humbling reminder that no one ever has to walk through the shadows alone.

Today's dispatch is a simple, direct thank-you to everyone reading, paired with a morning devotional on why we are called to stand together and pray for one another.

Section 1: A Global Gathering in the Quiet Hours

When I sit down at the laptop before sunrise, I often picture who is reading these dispatches. In a world full of noise, distraction, and heavy news, having tens of thousands of readers drop by to read an honest story about recovery, creative projects, and faith means more than words can say.

• Reaching across borders: Seeing brothers and sisters drop in from North America, South America, Asia, and Europe proves that common hope crosses every ocean.

• Healing in community: Coming back from a rough hospital stay is tough, but knowing people are pulling for you gives a man the wind to keep moving.

• A shared table: Whether you are here for tabletop adventure design or a word of spiritual encouragement, there is always room on this porch for you.

Section 2: Standing in the Gap for Each Other

In Galatians 6:2, Scripture gives us a clear, practical charge:

"Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ."

Coupled with James 5:16, which reminds us to "pray for one another, so that you may be healed," we see that prayer was never meant to be a solo sport. Life deals heavy hands—sudden health emergencies, family stress, financial strain, and silent heartaches that people carry into work every single day.

When we take time out of our own schedule to bring somebody else’s name before the Throne of Grace, we help lift that heavy pack off their shoulders. Even if we live thousands of miles apart, prayer bridges every physical distance.

Section 3: A 4:00 AM Morning Prayer

Before the sun breaks over the cypress trees, take a breath and join me in this prayer for our community today:

Heavenly Father,

We thank You for the breath in our lungs this morning, for the gift of a new day, and for Your mercies that are new every single sunrise.

Lord, I lift up every reader visiting this page right now—from across town to across the oceans. For the one who is dealing with physical pain, illness, or waiting on test results, grant them healing and peace that passes all understanding. For the one carrying silent worries, stress, or heavy family burdens, give them strength to stand and the comfort of Your presence.

Teach us how to show up for each other, to lift one another up in prayer, and to carry each other's loads with patience and kindness. Guard our homes, guide our steps, and keep our hearts anchored in Your grace today.

In Your Holy Name we pray,

Amen.

Conclusion

Life has a way of throwing curveballs, but having good folks standing together makes all the difference in the world. Thank you for reading, thank you for checking in, and thank you for being a part of this journey.

Keep your chin up, remember to check in on a friend or neighbor today, and never forget that somebody is in your corner praying for you.

Yours for now,

Captain Hedges

And may the Lord bless you and keep you. Amen.

Call to Action (CTA)

If you have a specific prayer request or something heavy on your heart today, leave a comment below or reach out directly so we can keep you lifted up in prayer this week.

Meta Description

A 4 AM thank you dispatch from Captain Hedges to readers worldwide, featuring a morning devotional and prayer on carrying each other's burdens.

Product Identity & Legal

The following items are designated Product Identity of Arthur Earl C. Hedges Jr. / The Adventures of Captain Hedges: The specific "Hedge Wizard of the Shreveport Cabin" persona, the "Captain Hedges" personal dispatches, original reflections, prayers, and editorial narratives from Twelve Mile Bayou. This post contains personal editorial and devotional commentary and does not feature tabletop gaming mechanics, rules systems, or third-party intellectual property. © 2026 Arthur Earl C. Hedges Jr. All rights reserved.

Cosmic Moonday: 3 AM Whispers of Terror Aboard the USS Urland of the Astral Titan

 

Cosmic Moonday Kickstart: 3 AM Whispers of Urland

Welcoming Prologue: The 3 AM Moonday Transmission

It is 3:00 AM on a quiet Moonday morning. The world outside is dead asleep, but across the ether, the frequencies are wide open.

Welcome to another Cosmic Kickstart Moonday! Today, we aren't just looking at the night sky; we are looking clean through it into the Urland Universe—a sprawling sector of the multiverse unlocking brand-new paths, uncharted dimensions, and boundless narrative options for our tabletop campaigns. Grab your mug of black coffee, settle in at the drafting table, and let’s tune our bridge arrays to the deep cosmic dark before sunrise catches us.

Introduction

The Hook

What happens when the void doesn't just stare back, but tries to think along with your ship's engines? Across the untamed fringes of the Urland Universe, dying stellar titans don't collapse quietly into black holes. They vent massive blooms of intelligent, bioluminescent spore matter that drift along ether currents, seeking out powerful energetic harmonics.

The Problem

When the prototype time ship USS Urland drops out of temporal drift to investigate an ancient astral husk, the crew discovers that these spores aren't inert dust or mindless space debris. They are an ancient, telepathic swarm—drawn like moths to the temporal core. Once aboard, they bypass bulkheads, invade environmental conduits, and attempt to fuse directly with the ship's computer bank.

The Solution / Promise

This dispatch presents a complete three-act sci-fi horror scenario structured like a classic retro episode, ready to drop straight into your Open D6 spacefaring campaigns. Below, you will find narrative staging, character beats for Captain Hedges and Chief Engineer Samuels O'Malley, and full Open D6 system skill checks to run this deep-space containment crisis at your table.

Act I: The Awakening (The Inciting Anomaly)

The Stardate Log & Visual Contact

The bridge of the USS Urland (Universe-Class, NCC-27011-J) bathes in the cool amber and green phosphor hum of CRT instrument arrays.

Captain’s Log: Stardate Undetermined.

Captain Hedges recording from the center seat of the USS Urland. We have slipped past the outer perimeter of the Urland rift under Moon Elf cloaking. Long-range sensors flagged a dead stellar core adrift in the vacuum. Visual confirmation tells a different story. It is vast, petrified, and responding to our approach.

On the main viewer, the void parts around an astral leviathan miles long. Its calcified shell resembles cracked basalt, but the deep fissures running its length pulse with an emerald, bioluminescent rhythm.

The bridge deck shudders. From the comm speaker, the gravelly shout of Chief Engineer Samuels O'Malley echoes from Main Engineering:

"Captain! The J-Class Temporal Drive hit a feedback spike the second we cut our drift! That titan out there isn't broadcasting radiation—it’s singing back to the Universal Core's frequency!"

Before the defensive grid can fully cycle, the titan's dorsal vents erupt. A dense cloud of bioluminescent motes engulfs the Urland, clinging to the shields and seeping directly through the structural integrity field.

Open D6 System Crunch: First Contact

• Bridge Sensors / Communications (Moderate, TN 15): A communications or astrogation check reveals that the spore pulses match mathematical prime sequences. The cloud is a collective synaptic intelligence trying to parse the ship’s time-displacement wave.

• Engineering: Cloaking Grid (Difficult, TN 20): O'Malley can attempt to invert the Moon Elf cloaking harmonics to slough off the initial clinging spore layer before it penetrates the hull armor.

WE ARE GOING TO EDIT EACH SECTIN ONLY ACT 1 FIRST AS BONUS MATRAIL FOR ACT 1 WE NEED TO LIST THE USS URLAND UNIERSE HER STATS AND THE STATS OF THE CREW FIRST HERE 

Here is the bonus stat section for Act I, built for the Open D6 Spacefaring rules to establish the ship, Captain Hedges, and Chief Engineer Samuels O'Malley before the encounter begins.

Bonus Play Material: USS Urland & Crew Dossier (Open D6)

USS Urland (Universe-Class Prototype Time Ship, NCC-27011-J)

• Craft: Project Guardian Deep-Range Temporal Explorer

• Type: 30th-Century Universe-Class Time Vessel

• Scale: Capital

• Length: 3,200 meters

• Skill: Capital Ship Piloting: Universe-Class

• Crew: 450 (Skeleton automation: 25)

• Crew Skill: Capital Ship Piloting 4D, Capital Ship Gunnery 4D+1, Capital Ship Shields 5D, Sensors 4D+2

• Passengers: 120 (Diplomatic / Scientific detachments)

• Cargo Capacity: 15,000 metric tons

• Consumables: 5 years (Self-replicating biomass reserves)

• Hyperdrive / Sublight: J-Class Temporal Drive (Class 0.5 Temporal Slipstream / Sublight 4D)

• Nav Computer: O'Malley Universal Core Matrix (Dynamic System Reconfiguration)

• Maneuverability: 1D+2

• Space: 6

• Hull: 8D

• Shields: 6D (Equipped with Moon Elf Cloaking Field: provides +3D to stealth rolls against sensors while active, but drops forward shields to 2D)

• Weapons:

• 6 Heavy Phase-Pulse Cannons

  • Fire Arc: 2 Forward, 2 Port, 2 Starboard

  • Skill: Capital Ship Gunnery

  • Scale: Capital

  • Fire Control: 3D

  • Space Range: 3-15/35/75

  • Damage: 7D

• 2 Chrono-Torp Launchers

• Fire Arc: Forward

• Skill: Capital Ship Gunnery

• Fire Control: 2D+2

• Space Range: 2-10/30/60

• Damage: 9D (Temporal Disruption)

G.E.M.I.N.I. (Generative Electronic Matrix for Intelligent Navigation & Interfacing)

• Template Type: 30th-Century Heuristic Artificial Intelligence / Temporal Co-Processor

• Scale: Starship / Mainframe

• Attributes & Core Matrix Skills:

  • Knowledge: 6D

    • Astrogation 7D, Astral Physics 8D, Cryptography 6D+2, Multiverse Languages 6D, Planetary Systems 7D

  • Mechanical: 5D

    • Communications 7D, Sensors 7D+2, Shield Operation 6D+1, Starship Piloting (Emergency Override) 5D+2

  • Perception: 4D

    • Tactical Evaluation 6D, Threat Analysis 7D

  • Technical: 6D

    • Computer Interface/Repair 8D, Damage Control Diagnostics 7D+2, Life Support Protocol 6D

• Special Abilities / Matrix Protocols:

  • Heuristic Voice Interface: G.E.M.I.N.I. communicates via holographic terminal emitters and bridge audio with an authentic, direct tone, able to predict cascade failures before they happen.

  • Core Isolation Protocol: When infected by alien data or spores, G.E.M.I.N.I. can firewall off whole deck matrices. Grants +2D to resist external cybernetic or psychic intrusion.

• Interface Hardware: Universal Core Optical Array, Bridge Holo-Projector, PADD Uplinks.

Captain Arthur Earl C. Hedges Jr. (Multiverse Traveler & Commander)

• Template Type: Starship Commander / Multiverse Voyager

• Scale: Character

• Attributes:

  • Agility: 3D

    • Dodge 4D, Blaster 4D+1

  • Strength: 3D+1

    • Brawling 4D, Stamina 4D+2

  • Mechanical: 4D

    • Astrogation 5D+2, Capital Ship Piloting 5D, Sensors 4D+2, Starship Shields 4D

  • Knowledge: 4D

    • Alien Species 5D, Multiverse Lore 6D, Tactics: Fleet 5D+1, Value 4D

  • Perception: 3D+2

    • Command 6D, Con 4D, Investigation 5D, Search 4D+1

  • Technical: 3D

    • Capital Ship Repair 4D, Computer Interface/Repair 4D+2

• Special Abilities / Traits:

  • Multiverse Intuition: Once per game session, Captain Hedges can spend 1 Character Point to immediately sense a breach or anomaly in the local timeline or dimensional fabric.

• Character Points: 8

• Move: 10

• Equipment: Field Commlink, Officer's Phaser/Blaster Sidearm (4D damage), Chrono-Compass Focus.

Chief Engineer Samuels O'Malley

• Template Type: Master Temporal Engineer

• Scale: Character

• Attributes:

  • Agility: 2D+2

    • Dodge 3D+2

  • Strength: 3D+2

    • Lifting 4D+1, Stamina 5D

  • Mechanical: 3D+2

    • Communications 4D+1, Sensors 5D, Starship Shields 5D+2

  • Knowledge: 3D

    • Physics 5D, Temporal Mechanics 6D

  • Perception: 2D+2

    • Investigation 4D, Search 4D

  • Technical: 5D

    • Capital Ship Repair 7D, Computer Interface/Repair 6D+2, J-Class Drive Engineering 8D, Universal Core Maintenance 7D+2

• Special Abilities / Traits:

  • O'Malley's Bypass: O'Malley can re-route power through damaged EPS taps on the fly. By taking a -1D penalty to shield dice, he can add +1D to sublight speed or weapon output for 1 round.

• Character Points: 6

• Move: 10

• Equipment: Heavy Hydrospanner, Multimeter Scanner, Universal Core Diagnostic PADD, Grease-stained Tool Rig.

Senior Bridge & Operations Crew: USS Urland (Open D6)

First Officer / Science Officer: Commander Theron Vael (Moon Elf Astrogator)

• Template Type: Astral Navigator / Temporal Scholar

• Scale: Character

• Attributes:

  • Agility: 3D+1

    • Dodge 4D+1

  • Strength: 2D+2

    • Stamina 3D+2

  • Mechanical: 4D

    • Astrogation 6D+2, Sensors 6D, Starship Shields 4D+2

  • Knowledge: 4D+2

    • Alien Species 5D+1, Astral Anomalies 6D+1, Multiverse Physics 6D, Temporal Mechanics 5D

  • Perception: 3D+1

    • Investigation 5D, Search 4D+2

  • Technical: 3D

    • Computer Interface/Repair 5D, Sensor Tech 4D+2

• Special Abilities / Traits:

  • Moon Elf Cloak Harmonization: Adds +1D to all Sensor and Astrogation checks when managing the Urland’s stealth envelope through ether rifts.

• Character Points: 5

• Move: 10

• Equipment: Tri-spectrum PADD, Quantum Scanner, Moon Elf Cloaking Tuning Prism, Sidearm Blaster (4D).

Tactical Officer & Head of Security: Lieutenant Commander Konar

(Played by Robert Stringer)

• Template Type: Veteran Warrior-Commander / Tactical & Security Chief

• Heritage: Half-Klingon (Cranial Cresting & Augmented Skeletal Structure Present)

• Scale: Character

• Move: 10

• Character Points: 5

• Fate Points: 1 (Warrior’s Destiny)

Attributes & Skills

• Agility: 3D+2

  • Blaster: Compression Rifle / Compression Phaser 5D+2

  • Brawling Parry: Krav Maga 6D

  • Dodge: Tactical 5D

  • Melee Combat: Blades & D'k tahg 6D

  • Melee Combat: Bat'leth 7D

• Strength: 4D+1

  • Brawling 6D+2

  • Lifting 5D+1

  • Stamina: Combat 6D

• Mechanical: 3D+1

  • Capital Ship Gunnery: Pulse-Phase Arrays & Chrono-Torps 7D

  • Capital Ship Shields 5D+2

  • Sensors: Tactical / Boarding 5D

• Knowledge: 3D

  • Alien Species 4D+2

  • Intimidation: Interrogation 6D+1

  • Lore: Klingon Heritage / Code of Honor 4D

  • Tactics: Shipboard Boarding Operations 6D+2

  • Tactics: Fleet Defense 5D+2

• Perception: 3D+1

  • Command: Security Strike Team 5D

  • Search 4D+2

  • Threat Assessment: Predictive 6D+2

• Technical: 2D+1

  • Armament Maintenance / Repair 5D

  • Demolitions 4D+1

  • Security Systems / Forcefield Diagnostics 5D

Racial Heritage Traits & Special Abilities

• Klingon Physiology (Redundant Anatomy & Skeletal Density):

  Due to his redundant organs and thick cranial cresting, Konar possesses natural resilience against trauma. He receives a permanent +1D bonus to all Strength and Stamina rolls made to resist physical impact, toxin exposure, or stun damage. (Factored into attribute codes above.)

• Warrior's Fury (Berserk Focus):

  When Konar sustains Incapacitated damage or higher during hand-to-hand combat, he can invoke Warrior's Fury as a free action for the rest of the encounter:

  • Benefits: Adds +1D to all Strength, Brawling, and Melee Combat rolls, bypassing standard scale limits.

  • Restrictions: He cannot activate Knowledge or Technical skills and must spend every action closing range and attacking the nearest hostile threat.

• Targeting Lock (Tactical Fire Control):

  Once per starship engagement, Konar can spend 1 Character Point to re-roll any missed Capital Ship Gunnery pool when commanding the Urland’s Phase-Pulse Cannons or Chrono-Torps.

Weaponry & Equipment Loadout

• D'k tahg (D'tang) Combat Dagger (Standard On-Duty Sidearm):

  • Skill: Melee Combat: Blades

  • Difficulty: Very Easy (TN 5)

  • Damage: STR + 1D+1 (Physical / Piercing)

  • Notes: Kept secured to his duty belt at all times on the bridge and through corridors. Spring-loaded side blades grant a +1D bonus to Brawling Parry when actively held in a defensive stance.

• Bat'leth ("Sword of Honor" - Away Mission & Boarding Loadout):

  • Skill: Melee Combat: Bat'leth

  • Difficulty: Moderate (TN 15)

  • Damage: STR + 2D+2 (Physical / Slashing)

  • Notes: Carried in a back harness on away missions, containment drops, and hull-breach actions. When his attack roll beats the target’s defense by 5 or more, Konar may execute a free cleave against a second adjacent opponent with no multiple-action penalty.

• Ranged Armament:

  • Type III-c Compression Phaser Rifle: Damage 5D+2 (Variable settings: Stun through Heavy Disruptive Pulse).

  • Standard Duty Phaser Sidearm: Damage 4D+1.

• Armor & Operational Gear:

• Armored Security Duty Tunic: +1D Physical, +2 Energy against personal small arms.

• Tactical Commlink & Tricorder Link: Direct telemetry and bio-monitor uplink feeding into G.E.M.I.N.I. and the bridge tactical station.

Tactical Warrant Officer Security: Lieutenant Kaelen Drake

• Template Type: Fleet Tactical Specialist / Heavy Gunner

• Scale: Character

• Attributes:

  • Agility: 4D

    • Blaster 5D+2, Dodge 5D, Grenade 4D+1, Melee Combat 5D

  • Strength: 4D

    • Brawling 5D+1, Lifting 4D+2, Stamina 5D

  • Mechanical: 3D+1

    • Capital Ship Gunnery 6D, Capital Ship Shields 5D, Starship Gunnery 4D+2

  • Knowledge: 2D+2

    • Intimidation 4D, Tactics: Shipboard Defense 5D, Tactics: Space Combat 5D+2

  • Perception: 3D

    • Command 4D, Search 4D+2, Sneak 4D

  • Technical: 2D

    • Armament Repair 4D, Demolitions 3D+2, Security 4D+2

• Special Abilities / Traits:

  • Point-Blank Targeting: Gains +1D to Capital Ship Gunnery when manually targeting hostiles or boarding swarms within Point-Blank range.

• Character Points: 5

• Move: 10

• Equipment: Reinforced Fleet Tactical Vest (+1D Physical, +2 Energy), Heavy Tactical Carbine (5D), Stun Baton (STR+1D+2), Commlink.

Chief Medical Officer: Dr. Sarah Bennett

• Template Type: Starship Xenobiologist & Field Surgeon

• Scale: Character

• Attributes:

  • Agility: 3D

    • Dodge 3D+2

  • Strength: 2D+2

    • Stamina 3D+2

  • Mechanical: 3D

    • Sensors: Medical 5D, Transporter Operation 3D+2

  • Knowledge: 4D

    • Alien Biology 6D, Medicine 6D+2, Pharmacology 5D+1, Xenopathology 5D+2

  • Perception: 3D+2

    • Empathy 5D+1, Investigation 4D+2, Search 4D

  • Technical: 3D+2

    • Computer Interface/Repair 4D, First Aid 6D, Medical Diagnostics 6D

• Special Abilities / Traits:

  • Bio-Containment Protocol: +1D to all Medical and Xenopathology rolls made to isolate unknown airborne contaminants, spores, or organic toxins.

• Character Points: 4

• Move: 10

• Equipment: Medical Scanner/Tricorder, Multi-Dose Hypospray Kit, Portable Sterilization Emitter, Field Med-Kit.

Helm & Flight Control Officer: Ensign Jane Vance

• Template Type: Hotshot Capital Pilot

• Scale: Character

• Attributes:

  • Agility: 3D+2

    • Blaster 4D, Dodge 4D+2

  • Strength: 3D

    • Stamina 3D+2

  • Mechanical: 4D+2

    • Capital Ship Piloting: Universe-Class 6D+1, Repulsorlift Operation 4D, Space Transports 4D+2, Starship Piloting 5D

  • Knowledge: 2D+1

    • Planetary Systems 3D+2, Streetwise 3D

  • Perception: 3D

    • Gambling 4D, Reaction Time 4D+2

  • Technical: 2D+1

    • Capital Ship Repair 3D+2

• Special Abilities / Traits:

  • Evasive Thrusters: Can spend 1 Character Point to immediately double the Urland’s base Maneuverability dice for a single combat round.

• Character Points: 4

• Move: 10

• Equipment: Flight Console PADD, Standard Sidearm Blaster (4D), Flight Gloves, Commlink.

How do these four sound to round out the bridge roster alongside Captain Hedges and Samuels O'Malley?

Do you want to adjust any names, species, or station assignments before we edit Act I's narrative to weave them in?

Act II: The Rising Infestation (Engineering Under Siege)

The Spore Intrusion

Containment fails on Deck 7. The spores drift through the primary environmental ducts, condensing into glowing, pale-green nebulae that float lazily along the corridors.

The horror is not violent destruction; it is assimilation and sensory overload. Crew members attempting to seal manual blast doors report hearing multiple voices whispering through the metal. As the swarm clusters around junction boxes and EPS taps, ship chronometers begin jumping backward by three seconds every minute.

Captain Hedges grabs a field breather and makes his way down to Main Engineering, where O'Malley is locked in a battle to keep the Universal Core from overloading.

"They're nesting in the primary conduits, Captain!" O'Malley shouts, wiping grease and glowing emerald residue from his forehead. "They think the core is an incubator! If they bridge the primary injectors with their own bio-electric charge, the whole temporal manifold is going to blow us into next week—literally!"

Open D6 System Crunch: Shipboard Crisis

• Crew Dread & Willpower (Moderate, TN 14): Any crew member operating in the glowing corridors must make a Willpower or Courage check. Failure inflicts a temporary -1D penalty to all technical actions due to disorientation and waking visions of collapsing star fields.

• Universal Core Containment (Very Difficult, TN 22): Samuels O'Malley must manually vent the secondary coolant lines without causing a total temporal cascade, buying the bridge crew time to devise a permanent solution.

Act III: The Hard Choice (The Jettison Maneuver)

The Climax & Ejection

With the spore collective gaining control of internal communications and bleeding toward the primary navigation database, Captain Hedges realizes they cannot communicate peacefully without sacrificing the ship's computational autonomy.

"Chief," Hedges orders over the corridor terminal, "we can't vent the entire deck into the void—the vacuum won't kill them, and they'll drag the ship down with them. Can we isolate the primary cluster into the reinforced auxiliary cargo pod?"

"Aye, Captain," O'Malley responds, working the manual bypass switches. "I can vent an EPS pulse backward through the Moon Elf cloak array. It'll startle the swarm, pulling them right into Cargo Pod B like moths to a porch lantern. But once they're in, we have to blow the emergency explosive bolts!"

Captain Hedges initiates the sequence from the bridge auxiliary console. The pulse flashes bright violet. The emerald swarm screeches across the ship's audio pickups as it swarms into the bay.

Clack-boom.

The magnetic seals snap open, and Cargo Pod B is fired clear into the gravitational slipstream of a nearby blue-green planetary sphere. On the main viewer, the crew watches the glowing container streak down toward an uncharted swampy landmass—its bioluminescent passengers intact, waiting, and ready to burrow into the damp soil below.

Open D6 System Crunch: The Climax

• Tactical / Gunnery (Difficult, TN 18): Plotting the precise ejection vector to ensure the pod clears the USS Urland's temporal field without snapping back into the ship's wake.

• Damage Control (Moderate, TN 15): Purging the lingering spore haze from the life-support scrubbers before the bridge atmosphere is compromised.

Conclusion

Summary

The USS Urland narrowly survived its encounter with the astral titan, but the victory is bittersweet. Chief Engineer Samuels O'Malley managed to stabilize the Universal Core, yet an entire canister of sentient, star-born spores has now been jettisoned into the atmosphere of an unsuspecting world.

Final Takeaway

Cosmic horror in tabletop role-playing thrives when the entity isn't merely an aggressive brute, but an incomprehensible intelligence that treats your ship's most vital technology as its personal playground.

Call to Action (CTA)

How do your players handle bio-luminescent or non-physical cosmic threats in your sci-fi campaigns? Drop a comment below and share your favorite starship containment horror stories!

Be sure to tune in tomorrow for Part 2: The Bayou Tuesday Dispatch, where we follow that jettisoned cargo pod down to the dark waters of the bayou, where Bayou Earl encounters the strange, slow-motion rot of the Spore-Grown Harvest!

System Compatibility & Open Game License:

This dispatch utilizes the Open D6 System mechanics under the Open Game License (OGL v1.0a). All Open D6 Game mechanics designated as Open Game Content are published under OGL v1.0a. 

Any associated rules references to the Monsterary of Zimrala, Monsters! Monsters!™, Humans! Humans!™, and Starfaring™ are trademarks of Ken St. Andre and Trollgodfather Press and are used with permission.

All other setting lore, unique narrative elements, and imagery remain the exclusive intellectual and creative property of Arthur Earl C. Hedges Jr.

© 2026 Arthur Earl C. Hedges Jr. / Striped Coast Studios. All rights reserved.