Chamois (world)

Chamois/Trin's Veil (Spinward Marches 3139)
Classic Era (1116)	B544642-5 Starport B Good: Spacecraft Construction, Overhaul, Refined fuel Size 5 Medium (8,000 km, 0.40g - 0.57g) Atmosphere 4 Thin (tainted) Hydrographics 4 Wet World 40% Population 6 Moderate (7 million) Government 4 Representative Democracy Law 2 Low Law (no energy weapons) Tech Level 5 Industrial (mass production)
See also	UWP
System Details
Primary	F9 V
Planetoid Belts	2
Gas Giants	2

style="width: 220px; height: 250px;"

Jump map from Travellermap.com

Chamois is an agricultural, nonindustrial world still lacking adequate means to expand its economy.

• As an agricultural world, this world is a near-ideal environment for producing quality foodstuffs of plant, animal, and other forms. Quality foodstuffs are a major export commodity for this world.
• It requires extensive imports of outside technology to maintain a modern, star-faring society. Having to import most manufactured and high tech goods drives the price up for these items at this world.
• It is a member of the Third Imperium in the Trin's Veil Subsector of Spinward Marches Sector in the Domain of Deneb.
• It is a balmy tropical world, with a climate of high temperatures.
• This world has an Imperial Scout base, capable of handling IISS starships and personnel.
• It is a member of the Dodds Cluster.

Description (Astrography & Planetology)

Stellar Data

Chamois has a solitary primary star.

• It is a white main sequence.

Chamois has a solitary primary star.

Chamois
	Type	Category		Mass (Sol)	Temperature (K)	Luminosity
	F9 V	Main Sequence (Dwarf)		1.13	5990 - 6050	1.53382
	Unit	Diameter	Safe Distance	Habitable Zone	Jump Shadow	M-Drive Limit
	AU	0.0109	0.1027	1.16 - 2.03	1.09	10.9
	Orbit #	*	0	4	3	7
	Remarks

System Data

The worlds of the system have been surveyed. They consist of:

• The mainworld.
• x2 secondary rocky worlds.
• x2 planetoid belts.
• x3 gas giants.

Mainworld Data

Mainworld Size (S)

Chamois is a Meso World between 7,200km and 8,800km in diameter. The world has a standard gravity between 0.4G and 0.57G. The horizon will appear about 4km away.

Mainworld Atmosphere (A)

Chamois has a pressure of 0.43 to 0.70 atmospheres. While the thin atmosphere does not require survival gear this atmosphere also contains an unusual taint such as disease, a hazardous gas mix, pollutants, or sulfur compounds which requires the use of a Filter Mask. Some taints may require more protective equipment. TL–3 or more advanced survival gear is required to settle this world.

• It experiences moderate to high temperatures.

Mainworld Hydrosphere (H)

Chamois has 35-45% of its surface covered by liquid water. There will be a number of small seas or one larger body of water. Wilderness refueling is possible.

Satellites

Chamois retains three small moons.

• They orbit once every few weeks.

Mainworld Geography and Topography

No centrally held map of the world exists within AAB Library Data records.

(Blank map, predominantly dry world.)

Native Lifeforms

Abundant native life occupying every available ecological niche. Its metabolic functions drive the process of atmospheric renewal. Most native fauna have a distinctly insectoid or arachnidoid appearance.

• There is a local species of working beast known as Dust Striders. These large pseudo-insect/arthropods have huge lung-like organs contained within an armored thorax, where their numerous legs work as air pumps. Caravans of wagons drawn by these huge beasts of burden, escorted by nomads astride smaller, faster specimens, trek cross the world's desolate plains and flatlands.
• Packs of barely tamed scorpion-like hound-parallels are kept for defense and hunting.
• Some mountain communities use a species of flying beetle-parallel: this large gliding hunter-killer can be ridden by well-trained warriors, who raise the beasts from hatching.

History & Background (Dossier)

The starport is defended by an array of ground based missile silos. A space elevator built by a megacorporation links to the tethered asteroid. A pair of surplus TL–7 system defense boats (similar to Sheppard Class Patrol Rockets) hang in low orbit on over watch. The port has a small fleet of TL–8 95 ton shuttles assembled locally by outside contractors from offworld kits. Shuttles carry somber robed diplomats from the local government, who are well trained in etiquette and are multi-lingual.

Local starport rumors tell of a group of Vargr corsairs, who during the 5th frontier war were lurking near some ice asteroids. They spotted something around the small ringed gas giant in the system. The wreckage from these corsairs was discovered and recovered by an imperial fleet patrol some time later. Evidence of an anti-matter mine field near a trio of small moons made further investigation difficult.

World Starport (St)

Chamois has a Class B Starport, a good quality installation which includes all the expected amenities including refined fuel for starships, brokerage services for passengers and cargo, and a variety of ship provisions. There is a shipyard capable of doing annual maintenance, overhauls and most kinds of repair, and construction of non-starships. Most ports of this classification have both a Highport and a Downport.

• The world is host to a Scout Base.

World Population (P)

Chamois has a population of 7,000,000 sophonts (millions).

• This is a Nonindustrial World, too small to support the complete chain of production of most goods from start to finish.

Urbanization

Within the capital city, adjacent to the down port, loud, brightly dressed street merchants sell printed tee shirts with funny sayings and pictures. They can provide for a nominal fee, “genuine relic statues” (a tarnished copper wash over molded aluminum), and fragrant tanned hides of local mega-fauna. Some booths specialize in low cost, low quality knock offs of name brand items. Vast city environmental domes preclude the filter mask required outside the city. Visitors however, must expect to pay higher prices, nothing is for free, drinks, restaurants, hotels and discos that cater to off-worlders have a high mark up. There is an aggressive local sales staff willing to barter and haggle to get the best business deals. They will warn tourist about the pick-pockets common in crowded public areas, train stations and markets. VIPs have materials delivered and avoid travelling on foot for this reason. Nobles bring retainers and bodyguards to discourage the petty thieves. Some criminal networks use the local species of hound to assassinate enemies. These bomb equipped bio-weapons are scent triggered and run down their prey at four times the speed of a typical human.

Just outside the cities, next to the pipe fed waste reclamation systems are the rings of agricultural domes which provide limited surplus produce for sale.

Outside of the small cities, if outsiders tend to get too aggressive, they are shunned and the locals hide until they get the message to go away. The locals have slant-sided white washed bunkers of reinforced concrete to shield them from the hostile environment. A maze of underground tunnels, which outsiders are forbidden to enter, connect the bunkers. Travellers tend to report a lot of dusty ghost towns, as a result. Some nomad traders and raiders use hydrogen airships. They aggressively use their flying beetle-beasts to launch airborne raids from out of the clouds.

Linguistic Topography

The following languages are most commonly heard:

• Anglic, one of the two official languages of the Imperium.
• Vilani, one of the two official languages of the Imperium.

World Technology Level (T)

Chamois possesses a Technology Level of TL–5.

• Common Communication technologies for this TL include: Telephone, radio, and television.
• Common Power Generation technologies for this TL include: Electricity, hydrocarbon internal combustion, and the most fundamental atomic energy.
• Common Transportation technologies for this TL include:
  • Land: Ground cars or automobiles and tracked vehicles.
  • Water: Large ships and submersibles with steel hulls.
  • Air: Early aircraft including seaplanes and very early unmanned rockets.

The locals produce limited amounts of TL–5 equipment and materials. Some higher tech equipment is associated with the downport, but isn't found in general use across the majority of the planet.

Older types of equipment (such as TL–4 beast-drawn carts) are still widely used.

World Government (G)

Chamois is governed by a Representative Democracy where government leadership is by representatives elected by eligible voters. What determines an eligible voter varies. The representatives determine policy, including selecting members of the bureaucracy. There can be referenda, votes by eligible voters on specific subjects.

The local government maintains a group of monastery raised Sanctions (assassins) on call, to be deployed as needed for death sentence crimes. These laws are the only ones regularly enforced. Injured parties can appeal to a local boss to retain their services if they feel strongly about their claim, can afford the service and can convince the boss of their merit. Most decision making is distributed and local, councils only meet for bigger issues in response to large popular demand.

World Military

In theory there is an all-volunteer colonial defense force which combines army and naval functions. All males from 18-45 are subject to mobilization. A small officer and NCO cadre of Marshals is maintained to facilitate training. This Liberty Legion has a checkered history and imperials are highly skeptical of its military value. The orbital HQ is on the tethered asteroid, a military academy and civilian university are located here as well. A faculty of 12 androids were left behind to teach the locals how to maintain the advanced technology. Those students meeting the IQ testing requirements receive good pay by local standards but sign contracts for at least four years to service and maintain starships for imperial concerns. A constellation of crude TL–6 satellites relay radio signals for communication, navigation and entertainment.

A small flotilla of watercraft and submersibles patrol the tiny hydrosphere. They must surface to launch their artillery rockets for shore bombardment.

World Law (L)

Chamois has a low law level. There are few laws, covering only important areas. There may be few or no law enforcement officers, the expectation is citizens will bring law breakers to the attention of the Judicial system. Legal proceedings will be fast, with few people involved. For interactions outside of the framework of the laws, cultural norms dominate. Portable energy weapons, body pistols, explosives, and poison gas are typically regulated or prohibited.

Imperial Landed Nobility

Chamois, as a member world of the Third Imperium, holds the estate of an Imperial Landed Knight who acts as an Imperial representative to the world, and the fiefdom of a member of the Imperial Landed Nobility, who oversees affairs regarding the world at an Interstellar and Imperial level.

• It holds the estate of an Imperial knight, the Imperial representative to the world.
• It holds the fiefdom of an Imperial baron.

Trade Data

• Importance: 0 (unimportant)

World Economy

• Resources: 8 (moderate)
• Labor: 5 (hundreds of thousands)
• Infrastructure: 4 (very limited)
• Efficiency: -4 (very poor)

Tourism and safaris are popular and profitable. EZ Tours is a locally run, wholly owned megacorporation subsidiary, who specializes in facilitating discrete corporate infiltrations and ensuring smooth exfiltration if the price is right. Expeditions into the dry desert areas to visit ancient monuments, relics and archaeological sites which hint at ancient settlements. There are vastly ancient crumbling temples, necropolises, towers and pyramids built from cyclopean blocks of local quarried stone.

World Culture

• Heterogenity: 2 (monolithic)
• Acceptance: 6 (aloof)
• Strangeness: 1 (very typical)
• Symbols: 1 (extremely concrete)

World Timeline

Major events that have affected this world and the wider region that it lies within:

• The Year 0: the Third Imperium is founded.
• 300-420: the Imperial First Survey charts the system.
• 589-604: First Frontier War.
• 604-622: the Civil War.
• 615-620: Second Frontier War.
• 624: the Express Boat Network is established.
• 979-986: Third Frontier War.
• 995-1065: the Imperial Second Survey charts the system.
• 1065: the Second Survey is published. Information about the system becomes widely available.
• 1082-1084: Fourth Frontier War, also known as the False War.
• 1107-1110: Fifth Frontier War.

Old Spacer's Tale

Bridge of Sorrows

An Old Spacer's Tale about a scout team's mysterious discoveries is doing the rounds.

The story tells of a group of Ancients sites hidden on Chamois' three moons. The scout investigative crew who discovered them termed them the Bridge of Sorrows.

• The site consisted of a series of interconnected teleportation pads which linked the world's moons.
• Getting to the pads and working out how they operated cost the lives of a number of the scout team.

Space Wreck

The investigation team discovered that the pads had an additional destination: a huge derelict vessel, larger than most Imperial capital ships, orbiting within the atmosphere of one of the gas giants within the system, and apparently masked from detection. The crew found themselves aboard the relic amid massive weapon bays, all manner of interior spaces of unusual design and esoteric purpose, holds filled with mysterious containers, and pods containing insectoid bodies in suspended animation. When they finally stumbled across what seemed to be the engineering section they found that most of the machinery had been smashed, apparently by energy weapons fire.

An enormous device resembling a jump drive, seemingly linked to "extra-dimensional" fuel sinks hidden deep in the gas giant that appeared to have refueled the vessel, showed the possibility of being functional, but the team chose not to activate it. The ship's AI eventually noticed their presence and used a group of "alien warrior cyborgs", as they were termed, to "encourage" the surviving investigators to leave. These monsters appeared to have been built from the bodies of the hibernating aliens.

The last surviving scouts found and activated a teleportation device on the ship and returned to the three moons of Chamois, but after their return the teleportation pads became inactive.

References & Contributors (Sources)

This article has a secret.

This list of sources was used by the Traveller Wiki Editorial Team and individual contributors to compose this article. Copyrighted material is used under license from Mongoose Publishing or by permission of the author. The page history lists all of the contributions.

• Marc Miller. The Spinward Marches (Game Designers Workshop, 1979), 34-35.
• Marc Miller. The Spinward Marches Campaign (Game Designers Workshop, 1985), 18-19.
• Marc Miller. Imperial Encyclopedia (Game Designers Workshop, 1987), 94-100. (UWP only)
• Rob Caswell. "Domain of Deneb: Sector Data." MegaTraveller Journal 3 (1992): 47-58. (UWP only)
• Dave Nilsen. The Regency Sourcebook (Game Designers Workshop, 1995), 51. (UWP only)
• Martin Dougherty, Neil Frier. Behind the Claw (Steve Jackson Games, 1998), 122.
• Mike West. The Spinward States (Avenger Enterprises, 2008), 115. (UWP only)
• Martin Dougherty. The Spinward Marches (Mongoose Publishing, 2008), .
• Martin Dougherty. Behind the Claw (Mongoose Publishing, 2019), 133-138. (UWP only)
• Contributor: Lord (Marquis), Captain, and Lead Naval Architect Ronald B. Kline, Jr. of the Imperial Navy