Far beyond the range of Earth's telescopes is a massive irregular galaxy surrounded by a halo of gasses. This is Corona Galaxy and the mysteries and legacies of almost 20,000 years await those just now taking their first steps among the stars.
Players in Corona Galaxy have the unique opportunity to play a science fiction game on one or more levels. You play the brave hero or base villain, command a mighty starship, oversee large fleet operations or maybe you are the leader of an interstellar empire who decides whether to go to war or if peace is best for your people. Explore new star systems, make contact with unknown aliens, design and build a space fleet to keep the peace or wage war. The choice is yours!
The galaxy is about 30,000 Ly (lightyears) across, roughly disk shaped with a central habitable zone 1000 Ly thick encompassing more than 700 billion cubic LY of space. There are about 400 billion stars of which 200 million are thought to have habitable planets. On roughly ten percent of those some form of life has arisen and altogether there are believed to be about three million worlds with intelligent life that is a potential space-faring civilization.
Most systems with habitable planets have warp points commonly called Stargates which allows a properly equipped ship to travel between systems very quickly. Relative speed of a ship in a gate warp is 10,000 times the speed of light, allowing a trip of 10 Ly in 8 1/3 hours as we tell time here on Earth. Since these gates are always a light-day from a system's center of gravity and since non-gated ships can only move a maximum speed of about .4 c, 4/10ths of the speed of light, cross system travel may take far longer than interstellar travel in most cases. Gate-to-gate travel across a system will take several days while travel between the stars may only take hours.
Faster-than-light travel without use of the stargates is theoretically possible and some races may have such technology, but it is tremendously expensive to develop and will be fraught with terrible mishaps. With the stargates, the need for such technology is limited to that of cross-system travel and possibly journeys to the few ungated systems that may harbor life. There has never been a gate disappear once it has shown itself so stargates are reliable in addition to being free, fast and relatively safe.
Stargates are always found on a direct line between the two star systems at each end but while this may seem to make locating them easy, it is not quite that simple. A gate may simply appear one day. They may be created anew or they may have been dormant until they appear. Nobody knows whether these gates are a natural phenomenon or artificial constructs and the reasons for their appearance are a complete mystery, though it is always heralded by sudden electromagnetic pulses at each end of the gate. Similar pulses can tell one that an object is en route and if the source system can be determined, an approximate time of arrival can be calculated.
Everything leaves gate at the same speed it enters, dead slow to very fast. Relative speed of gate travel is along the lines of 10,000 times the speed of light and nothing can affect the rate of travel, though lack of the biofield will prevent access to the gate and losing it in transit will cause the ship to disappear en route. When this happens, a much larger pulse is experienced at each end of the warp. It is not enough energy to account for a total conversion of mass to energy so what exactly happens to anything lost in transit is a mystery. Some spacers believe that the crew of a ship that disappears this way is lost forever, their souls adrift in some hyperspace dimension. It is an end that is greatly feared.
Passage through the stargates can be made in both directions at once and while a ship passing through the warp cannot see or scan anything in or out of warp beyond their biofield, an observer aboard the ship will see what appears to be a long, ribbed, grey tube that they seem to be passing through. Neither energy nor matter can leave the biofield and survive so there is no way to light up the inside of the warp or approach the "walls" of the tube. The speculation is that there is no tube structure at all but that this is the warp effect itself that the mind perceives in this way. The "ribs" are literally the folding of space-time around the transiting ship.
Corona Galaxy is designed with three levels of play.
Campaign Level is the empire building part of Corona Galaxy.
Tactical Level is the combat system.
Character Level is the role-playing system.
Corona Galaxy can be played on one, two or all three levels. A game master can even run players on different levels at once. Players do not even have to be together to play in the same game as long as the GM can communicate one player's actions and intentions to another.
Corona Galaxy is designed to give science fiction gamers a venue where they can let their imaginations soar. Everyone who has watched more than a few episodes of their favorite sci-fi TV show has said "What if they went to a world where...?" followed by their own idea for a new world and its people. Is it based on a historical civilization, a philosophical ideal, or did the inhabitants descend from something other than an ape-like biped? The Campaign Level system is designed to let you create and explore your favorite fantasy planet.
The Campaign Level can be played by itself as an interesting exercise in new ideas or as a role-playing game on a grand scale. On the other hand, if you have no such ideas but wish to create a world from nothing to play the other levels of Corona Galaxy, the Campaign Level system will also let you do that. It is designed as the starting point for more in-depth play in the Corona Galaxy universe. When your people encounters other races, there may be tactical and/or character interaction taking place. If the player wishes to pursue these possibilities, this level is designed to facilitate play in the other two levels of the game.
It should be noted that the author is fond of free-form gaming which works well for this if your players do not wish to get into the nuts-and-bolts of the other two Corona Galaxy game levels,but extensive play in these areas rather demands some understanding of those levels unless the GM is very good at free-form gaming.
The Corona Galaxy Tactical Level system is a combat system in the tradition of board-warfare games. It is useful for ship-to-ship encounters, fleet activities, even ground campaigns. Using this system does not preclude a peaceful outcome to such encounters, but it is a dangerous universe and not everyone believes the same things as your people do. Some of the scenarios that will be made available are strictly combat oriented and all ship designs will include game data for use in the Tactical Level system.
Role Playing Games or RPGs have been a mainstay of gaming for many years. The Character Level system is the role-playing game for Corona Galaxy. Once races meet and assuming they have not blown each other to bits, there will be personal interaction on some level. Who are their leaders? Who will they send as ambassadors? Who will represent their race in battle should diplomacy fail? Who are the movers and shakers? Who are the captains of industry and who are the workers and shop keepers and artisans and crafts makers? These questions are why this level exists.
Note to Game Masters: While Corona Galaxy is designed for all three levels to work together you are welcome to use only one, two or all three levels in your game. You may even wish to run different players at different levels at the same time, acting as the conduit for communications of their actions. Also, if you have combat or role playing systems that you prefer, feel free to use the material presented in Corona Galaxy as background material for your game play. The catalog of races, atlas of worlds and registry of ships are intended as much for this purpose as for use in the Corona Galaxy game system.
Campaign play may easily take place between the Game Master (GM) and players on an individual basis. It is somewhat more difficult to operate the Tactical and Character levels in this fashion unless the player in question is the only one in the game at that moment or unless the GM has previously quizzed his/her other players on what they would do under a given set of circumstances. The purpose of this kind of play is two-fold. First, it allows the game to run over a long period of time and considerable distance if there is no way for the players and the GM to all be together. Second, it simulates the mystery and adventure of real-world space travel. If you do not see the person sitting across from you, you do not know whether you face another race of beings like yourself or some force of nature that your science does not yet understand.
Remember that unless otherwise noted, all rules are at the discretion of the GM and his/her decisions are final. If you disagree with the GM's ruling, either get better at arguing your point or find another game. It should also be noted to GMs that too much monkeying with the rules may seriously unbalance your game. Such fiat must be used with due consideration for balance and fairness.
About twenty millennia ago, there was a cataclysm of galactic proportions. Geological evidence on all known worlds confirms that it was a catastrophe that affected all of space simultaneously. Worlds were hit by killer earthquakes, monstrous tidal waves, and other natural disasters. They were the lucky ones; some planets were shifted in or ripped from their orbits, some were torn to pieces, and some solar systems were entirely obliterated. Most life forms that existed at the time were wiped out. There is no evidence that indicates what caused the cataclysm and if or when it will happen again.
From this common reference point, a Sidereal date and time system has been calculated that allows the chronicling of events that may happen thousands of light-years apart.
The easiest way to understand Sidereal dates and times is to compare them with those we are familiar with...
| Terrestrial Time/Date | Sidereal Time/Date |
| 1 Minute=60 Seconds | 1 Minute=100 Seconds |
| 1 Hour=60 minutes | 1 Hour=100 Minutes Sidereal(2 Hrs. 47 Min. Terrestrial) |
| 1 Day=24 Hours | 1 Day=10 Hours Sidereal(1 Day, 3 Hrs. 47 Min. Terr.) |
| 1 Week=7 Days | 1 Week=6 Days Sidereal(6 Days, 22 Hrs. 40 Min. Terr.) |
| 1 Month=28-31 Days | 1 Month=30 Days Sidereal (34 Days, 17 Hrs. 20 Min. Terr.) |
| 1 Year=12 Months | 1 Year=10 Months Sidereal (347 Days, 5 Hrs. 20 Min. Terr.) |
Time and date entries are made in the following manner...
| Year/Month/Day - Hr:Min:Sec |
| 19783/9/22 - 4:71:89 |
In Corona Galaxy stories and scenarios, SD or Sidereal Date is used as a point of reference. Most entries will have the SY or Sidereal Year listed in the intro. Days, minutes, weeks, etc. will usually be generic or their exact length unimportant to the situation. Where a time reference is specific, it will usually be labeled as being sidereal or local.
When talking about over 700 billion cubic Ly of space it is easiest to talk about area in progressively smaller terms. Below is a chart of terms used in Corona Galaxy and their meanings.
| Quadrant: 1/4 of the galaxy divided into Southwest, Northwest, Southeast, and Northeast quadrants. (Galactic "North" is calculated to be the direction from which the galaxy originated, the location of the "Big Bang." Galactic "South" is the direction the galaxy is headed in relation to the rest of the universe.) |
| Sector | 1,000 Ly by | 1,000 Ly or | 1,000,000 sq. Ly |
| Division | 100 Ly by | 100 Ly or | 10,000 sq. Ly |
| Section | 10 Ly by | 10 Ly or | 100 sq. Ly |
| Grid | 1 Ly by | 1 Ly or | 1 sq. Ly |
| Z-Grid | On Ly measurement from the center of the galactic plane. |
| Sectors are read left to right, up to down and are numbered 1 to 30 by 1 to 30. Divisions, sections and grids are numbered 1 to 00 (100) and are read in the same manner. Z-grids are the number of Ly below(1-500) or above (501-000) the center of the galactic plane. |
Stellar coordinates (the location of a star system, for example) are read like this...
| SE:03:15:62:00:07:976 |
| Quadrant | Southeast |
| Sector | 3 across by 15 down (Sec. 3/15) |
| Division | 62 |
| Section | 100 |
| Grid | 7 |
| Z-Grid | 976 (476 Ly above the galactic plane) |
Tech Levels (TL's) give a general idea of a civilization's level of technological advancement as it pertains to four key areas of development. With Travel, Weapons and Communication it represents the absolute best a race is capable of. In the case of Physical Sciences it represents the fields of study that are just beginning to be looked into seriously, the cutting edge of scientific research.
The following chart plots the development of the mythical "average" civilization up to FTL travel capability.
| T=Travel | W=Weapons | C=Communications | P=Physical Sciences |
| .0 | T | By foot to hunt and gather |
| W | Clubs and stones | |
| C | Limited interpersonal | |
| P | Fear or apathy toward the unknown |
| .1 | T | Organized and intentional migration |
| W | Stone axes and spears | |
| C | Extensive interpersonal | |
| P | Superstition and religion |
| .2 | T | Domesticated animals and animal-drawn vehicles |
| W | Swords and short range projectiles (Bows and arrows) | |
| C | Relay systems (Runners and riders) | |
| P | Metallurgy, agriculture, limited astronomy and astrology |
| .3 | T | Roads and small sea-going ships |
| W | Gunpowder and explosives | |
| C | Coded signals (Drums, smoke and reflected light) | |
| P | Chemistry, anatomy, medicine, basic physics |
| .4 | T | Steam engine, limited mass transit, large sea-going vessels |
| W | Chemical projectile systems (Rifles, pistols, cannons) | |
| C | Wire signals | |
| P | Steam Power, electromagnetics |
| .5 | T | Internal combustion engines (automobiles), submarines |
| W | Chemical and nerve agents, armored ground vehicles | |
| C | Radio waves (Audio only) | |
| P | Electronics, microbiology, molecular physics |
| .6 | T | Prop driven and lighter-than-air craft |
| W | Armed aircraft, missiles, atomics | |
| C | Television | |
| P | Basic atomics |
| .7 | T | Jet and chemical rockets, nuclear powered ships and submarines, deep-sea craft |
| W | Cartridgeless, explosive, and "smart" projectiles, advanced atomics | |
| C | Microwave and full radio spectrum | |
| P | Subatomics, solid state electronics, genetics, robotics |
| .8 | T | Nuclear and ion rocket, electric, solar, and magnetic powered vehicles |
| W | Energy and particle beam | |
| C | Etherics(Energy and particle beam radio) | |
| P | Microatomics, artificial intelligence, superconductivity, nanotechnology |
| .9 | T | Sublight and near-light speed, stargate, solium power |
| W | Sonics and isolated energies (High energy lasers and particle beams) | |
| C | FTL particles (T-comm) | |
| P | Binding forces, FTL objects, biomagnetics |
| 1.0 | T | FTL, Space warp (Theoretical) |
| W | Overlapping energies (Lasersonics) | |
| C | Subetherics (Hyperwave radio) | |
| P | Normal-space warps, basic hyperspace |
Important note: The system is designed as a general guideline and in actual practice most civilizations will be anomalous or "out of the ordinary" since there are many factors that determine where a society will place emphasis in their research. A strong aversion to polluting the environment may have people riding horses while talking to each other by wrist TV communicators. Somewhere else, a race that is fascinated by loud noises and things that go boom might live in thatched huts but be able to kill hundreds or thousands with a single weapon. Present day Earth would be a middle 0.8 with some elements of a 0.9 tech level.
In Corona Galaxy, most civilizations have a slightly stunted development with regards to space travel and some of the sciences involved with it. The existence of stargates negates many of the pressures for an expanding culture to develop faster-than-light drive systems until later than normal in their development. Without pressing physical or political reasons, such technology may not occur for many centuries after the development of stargate technology.
It is important that the player understands that this is a money pit which will drain vast resources and kill an awful lot of a race's best and brightest before there is a hope of any return on investment. If you are off in a corner of the galaxy by yourself, that's fine, but if you may need those resources to defend your people, you could have a problem.
