Freelance Traveller

Ships of Clement Sector 5: Traders and Scouts

reviewed by Megan Robertson

This article originally appeared in the September 2014 issue.

Ships of Clement Sector 5: Traders and Scouts. Lawrence Whittaker
Gypsy Knights Games http://www.gypsyknightsgames.com
80pp, PDF
UK£6.03/US$9.99

Containing a full seven different starship designs within the category of Traders and Scouts, this is a good place to look if you intend the party to be operating their own vessel.

The first is a smallish trading vessel, just the right size for an adventuring party! Described in the ‘as-real’ pseudohistorical tone used by Gypsy Knights in most of their material, it is presented complete with illustrations and deckplans as well as full statistics.

Next up is the Palomino-class runabout, an historic design that was never a great success in its original incarnation but which is now enjoying a considerable revival amongst those who want a small craft to transport up to four people (although it can be flown solo in a pinch).

Then there’s a larger vessel, a real workhorse of the starways called a Billings-class Free Trader. It needs a crew of five (but has room for more), and can carry ten passengers (and a further ten in cold sleep) in some degree of comfort. The crew and passenger areas are separate, each with their own common area, and there is ample space for cargo as well.

A Goldrush-class belter ship, a very self-reliant craft, an Explorer-class Type LS Long Range Scout and a Ningaloo-class Survey and Exploration ship follow; each fully-detailed with text descriptions, deck plans and statistics and all well-suited to their stated roles. The last has space for scientists, lab space and a magnificent sensor suite.

Finally, there’s the Dromedary-class Tanker. Big and a bit lumbering, it’s designed to deliver fuel supplies to ships and stations out in the black.

As well as all the details provided for each vessel, there are bits of atmospheric fiction and numerous illustrations to set the scene. I’m fond of having a wide variety of ships plying the spaceways in my universe and these will soon be making an appearance.