Part 6: Glossary of Terms | Star Frontiers

<center>GLOSSARY</center><multicol GUTTER="18" COLS="2"></multicol>Ability score --- A measure of a character's natural physical or mental ability. Characters in STAR FRONTIERS games have eight important abilities, organized in pairs. Strength and Stamina, Dexterity and Reaction Speed, Intuition and Logic, Personality and Leadership. Each of these abilities has a score between 1 and 100. Clip --- An ammunition container or powerpack for a weapon. A clip fits directly into the weapon. Each type of weapon has its own clip. Cover --- An obstacle that can protect a character from gunfire. Credit (Cr) --- The basic unit of money in STAR FRONTIERS games. d10 --- The abbreviation for 10-sided die When preceded by a number, it tells players how many 10-sided dice to roll for a specific result For example. 2d10 is two 10-sided dice. d100 --- The abbreviation for percentile dice. Damage --- An infraction of the effect of a weapon on both people and structures. Whenever a weapon hits its target, it causes damage Damage is subtracted from a character s Stamina. Dexterity (DEX) ---- The ability that measures coordination. Doze Grenade --- A small container that releases a cloud of fast-acting knockout gas. A character affected by a doze grenade will be unconscious for one hour. Dralasites --- One of the four space-faring races in STAR FRONTIERS games Dralasites are blobbish creatures that can change their shape. They are stronger than Humans. but also slower. They love philosophy. debates and weird humor. Frontier --- The star systems where Dralasites, Humans, Vrusk and Yazirians met. It contains many new colonies and unexplored worlds. Gyrojet Pistol --- A weapon that fires small rockets instead of ordinary bullets A gyrojet causes 2d10 points of damage when it hits its target. Hologram --- A realistic 3-dimensional picture that is created with projectors, much like a modern movie. Humans --- One of the four space-faring races in STAR FRONTIERS games They are identical to the humans of Earth, but originated on a different planet. Initiative --- A term used to note which team gets to move and attack first. The character on each side with the highest Initiative modifier rolls 1d10 and adds his IM to the roll. The side with the highest total has initiative for that turn and gets to move and attack first. Initiative Modifier (IM) --- One-tenth of a character's Reaction Speed score. It is used to determine which side has initiative each turn. Intuition (INT) --- The ability that measures a character's creativity, perception and knack for understanding things immediately. Laser Pistol/Rifle --- Weapons that fire pulses of focused light that are so intense they can burn hoIes in metal plates. Leadership (LDR) --- The ability to give orders and command a large group of people. Logic (LOG) --- The ability to think in an orderly way and to solve problems through reasoning. Monorail --- A mass transit system that uses six-passenger cars riding a magnetic cushion on an elevated one-rail track. A character can ride the monorail all day for 1 Cr. Needler Pistol --- A short-range weapon that fires a cluster of small needles, causing 2d10 points of damage when they hit. Non-Player Character (NPC) --- This is any character in a STAR FRONTIERS game that is not being controlled by one of the players. NPCs usually are controlled by the reader or referee. Pan-Galactic Corporation --- The oldest and largest interstellar company. PGC is one of the most powerful organizations in the Frontier. Party --- A group of characters working together on an adventure. Pedestrian Walkways --- Small bridges built across roads and between buildings to make traveling on foot in the city easier and safer. Percentile Dice (d100) --- Two 10-sided dice, rolled together. The darker die is multiplied by 10, and then the two results are added together to get a number from 1 to 100. Personality (PER) --- The character ability that measures charm, physical appearance, friendliness and persuasiveness. Player Character --- A character in a STAR FRONTIERS game that is being controlled by a player. Range Modifier --- A number that is subtracted from a character's Dexterity score when the character fires a weapon. The range modifier increases with the range. Reaction Speed (RS) --- The character ability that measures a character's reflexes and quickness. Reader --- A person who reads a programmed adventure to the players as they play, rather than running a player character himself. The reader is replaced by a referee in the Expanded Game. Role-Playing Game --- A game that allows players to act out the exciting adventures of their characters, without being restricted by rules that limit what they can do. Sathar --- A race of aggressive, worm-like creatures that have attacked and destroyed Frontier outposts and colonies. Very little is known about them because no Sathar has ever been captured alive. Scenario --- A short story or situation. used as the background for a STAR FRONTIERS adventure or shootout. Skimmer --- A five-passenger vehicle that floats on a cushion of air. They can be rented for 10 Cr per day. Spray-Hypo --- A pocket-sized medical instrument that stores drugs under pressure. The spray hypo can inject these drugs painlessly into a patient. Stamina (STA) --- The character ability that measures general health and physical fitness. It also is a measure of how much damage a character can take before being knocked unconscious. Star Law Rangers --- A branch of the UPF that operates as a sort of interstellar police force. It concentrates on finding Sathar agents, but also fights space pirates and other interstellar criminals. Staydose --- A drug that will put a character to sleep for 24 hours and keep him alive after his Stamina is reduced to zero or less. Stimdose --- A drug that can be used either to restore 10 Stamina points to a wounded character or to wake up a character who has been knocked unconscious by wounds or a doze grenade. Strength (STR) --- The character ability that measures muscle power. To-Hit Roll --- A percentile dice roll that determines whether a character hits the target he is shooting at. A character's percentage chance to hit his target is his Dexterity score modified by the range to the target and the target's movement and cover status. Trivid --- Three-dimensional (holographic) television. Turn --- The game turn is the basic measure of time in a STAR FRONTIERS game. Each turn is six seconds long. Playing a turn can take more than six seconds, but the turn itself represents six seconds of time for the player characters. United Planetary Federation --- A loose alliance formed between many planetary governments after the first Sathar attacks. The UPF is not an an interstellar government; it is a defense organization devoted to protecting member planets from Sathar takeover or destruction. The UPF also has its own police force, the Star Law Rangers. The Rangers track down and capture Sathar undercover agents. However, their authority is not recognized on all planets. Vrusk --- One of the four space-faring races in STAR FRONTIERS games. Vrusk resemble large insects, and sometimes are called "bugs" by the other races. Their society is organized around large companies. They love beauty and order. Vrusk are quicker than humans, but not as strong. Yazirians -- One of the four space-faring races in STAR FRONTIERS games. Yazirians are tall humanoids with manes, nicknamed "rnonkeys" by the other races. They are generally smarter and quicker than the other races, but are not as strong. Other races consider them aggressive and pushy.