Supplement 14: Space Stations

Smaller than planets, often larger than capital ships, space stations are a key part of any system’s military, economic and social construct. Indeed, in some systems the majority of the local population may be housed on stations with only a few making their lives on planets and moons in the area. Either way, stations are almost universally present in any system able to build them.

The core of this book is focused on the design and construction of space stations. New power-plants and grav drives provide the much less intensive needs of a space station, while new hull forms allow for cheaper structures to be built without the anti-gravity plating normally mounted within every ship. Facilities enable space stations to take part in local, inter-planetary and interstellar production and trade, to become population centres, install shopping districts and construct their own starships for sale or personal use.

Further chapters give more detail to station facilities and how they function, as well as offering new docking options for larger spacecraft and even capital ships. Stations can be the home ports of entire fleets, and without sufficient docking and recreation space, a fleet will soon fall apart.

This book covers a wide variety of types of station, and also the running of a station, involving building, staffing and setting up the imports that will be its life blood. You will read about the continued running of a station and the end result; profits. Finally, you will discover adventure hooks, setting suggestions and example stations to populate your Traveller universe with.