Freelance
Traveller
Authors: J. Andrew Keith / Jim Cunningham
Publisher: FASA
Format: 64 page LBB
Price: Variable (Second Hand Market)
The FASA Double Adventure (there is only one) gives us what I can only describe as two detailed mercenary tickets as both adventures are about a small commando team being dropped off on a world to achieve a specific aim. The first, The Stazhlekh Report, is all about the extraction of an individual who has vital information about an ensuing war, and the second, The Harrensa Project, is about obtaining reports and samples from an underwater facility.
J. Andrew Keith sets The Stazhlekh Report in the Far Frontiers sector of charted space following a time line directly after the Sky Raiders Trilogy, and uses events in those books to provide background to this adventure. Pregenerated characters are provided along with a mission briefing, world map, library data, NPCs and troop listings, and maps of the villa and town that the PCs will have to extract the target from. There are a couple of options to broaden the range of the adventure as there is a diversionary attack on the planet to hopefully aid the PCs landing, and this can easily be played out between the players and the Referee as an aside to the main mercenary ticket as details of the ships are given. There is also a possibility of a space battle between a squadron of fighters and the PCs ship that depends on the outcome of the adventure and some reaction rolls, but basically The Stazhlekh Report is a stand up mercenary ticket about the extraction of a man with useful information. Everything you need to play, with the exception of LBBs 1 through 4, is included.
Jim Cunningham sets The Harrensa Project in the Old Expanses, and the basic plot is that the PCs team is to be dropped on planet where they have to make their way to an underwater facility to steal all reports and samples to do with "The Harrensa Project". The PCs need to trek across the ocean floor of a water world encountering animals along the way with an ATV that is provided for them, and that is described in detail in the book. When they arrive at the facility they have little trouble until they try to escape. There is an underwater fight scene and then a chase to the pick-up point where they will find a commando unit waiting to try and stop them. If they survive all this then there are two fighters to get through on their way to the jump point. As written you only need books 1 through 3 to play the adventure as it isn't supposed to be a mercenary ticket, however I would suggest that any Referee look at beefing the pregenerated characters up with book 4 as if the PCs encounter the two commando squads at the end I wouldn't hold out much hope of their survival. Another approach might be to drop the opposition's numbers to give the players a chance. Again everything needed to play is included; characters, NPCs, fighter stats, and aqua-driver stats and deckplans. It shouldn't take much work to get this adventure up and running.
Overall both adventures are ok, there is nothing really to shout about, but there is nothing bad about them either. The good thing about the double adventure I think is the wealth of reusable material included within them. There are a bunch of book 1 and 4 pregenerated characters and NPCs, a couple of sections of troops, a map of a villa and a small town, stats and deckplans for a far trader and submersible ATV, stats for three other starships and three fighters, along with two planetary maps and encounters for a water world. This is a bunch of help for any Referee and as quite a few of these double adventures have come onto the second hand market recently (at the time of writing) if you are able to pick a copy up for only a dollar or so you'll get good value in my opinion.