Feri and the Reconciliation Summit
Warbler Adventure: The Feri Reconciliation Summit
Overview
The crew arrives at Feri expecting a world engulfed in civil war.
Instead they find:
- A prosperous highport
- Heavy traffic
- A charity gala
- Peace negotiations
- Famous socialites
- Suspiciously active trade routes
The deeper they dig, the more they discover that many powerful interests profit from the war continuing.
The players are not expected to solve the entire conspiracy.
The goal is to expose one thread of it.
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Act 1: Arrival at Feri
Opening Description
As the Warbler emerges from jump, Feri Orbital hangs ahead.
The highport is enormous by frontier standards: a wheel-and-spindle structure several kilometers across, ringed by docking arms, repair berths, fuel depots, and hundreds of running lights.
Traffic control sounds almost annoyed.
"Warbler, proceed to Holding Pattern Indigo Three. Delay approximately thirty-two minutes."
For a world supposedly consumed by war, traffic is remarkably heavy.
Sensor Contacts
Roughly 30–40 vessels visible.
Legitimate Traffic
- Patrol cruiser Resolute Duty
- Scout courier Lonesome Surveyor
- Customs cutter
- Three Oberlindes freighters
- Tukera packet ship
- Bulk grain carrier
- Hospital transport
- Relief freighter
- Troop transport
Ships Worth Noticing
Reliable Venture
400-ton merchant.
Regular route:
- Feri
- Pixie
Manifest:
- Pharmaceuticals
- Machine parts
- Environmental equipment
Too much cargo for a population of only a few thousand.
Dusky Mallow
Far Trader.
Legal.
Perfect paperwork.
Cargo hold suspiciously empty.
Red Harvest
Subsidized merchant.
Route:
- Feri
- Pixie
- Boughene
- Kinorb
Carries unusually sophisticated sensors.
Almost like somebody searches asteroid belts for a living.
Early Clues
Any experienced spacer notices:
"For a world at war, there are surprisingly few warships."
The Feri Pattern
At first glance:
Random merchant traffic.
After analysis:
Every ship involved has visited at least two of:
Feri Pixie Boughene Kinorb
Signals occur:
within 20 minutes of docking within 20 minutes of departure
Always.
Never violated.
The messages are tiny.
Sometimes only 12-15 bytes.
Too small for reports.
Too regular for personal traffic.
Perfect hacker bait.
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Act 2: The Highport
Atmosphere
Nobody seems worried about the war.
People discuss:
- Shipping contracts
- Fashion
- Celebrity gossip
- Summit schedules
The war exists.
But somehow feels distant.
Upcoming Events
The port is buzzing about:
Feri Reconciliation Summit
Official peace conference.
Charity Gala
Attended by nobles, executives, celebrities.
Retired Admiral Sir Gurech of Pixie will appear.
Many local dignitaries attending.
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Act 3: Charlie Gurech
Introduction
The crew first encounters Charlie in a lounge overlooking the docking bays.
Immediately obvious:
She is the center of attention.
Charlie "The Bather" Gurech
Age 26.
Daughter of Sir Gurech.
Became famous after accidental publication of footage showing her bathing in a scenic lagoon years ago.
Instead of becoming scandalized:
She became famous.
Now appears in:
- Advertisements
- Luxury travel promotions
- Fashion campaigns
- Charity functions
Profession:
None.
Officially a Dilettante.
Appearance
Charlie is not exotic.
Charlie is effortlessly beautiful.
Never overdone.
Never underdone.
Always exactly right.
If Mittensby is present:
Immediate rivalry.
Personality
Unexpectedly pleasant.
Remembers names.
Remembers details.
Remembers conversations.
Collects information without trying.
Secret
Charlie may be the best gossip collector in Regina Subsector.
Not intentionally.
People tell her things.
Charlie's Entourage
Bembry Quast
Social climber.
Claims to be:
- Art dealer
- Wine importer
- Cultural consultant
Useful knowledge source.
Knows rumors.
Favorite phrase:
"Now, I shouldn't be saying this..."
Drusilla Pank
Stylist.
Bodyguard.
Media insider.
Can obtain:
- Guest lists
- Recordings
- Photographs
Nunk Veder
Former naval steward.
Served under Sir Gurech.
Knows military gossip.
Only person Charlie obeys.
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Act 4: The Gala
Purpose
Give the players freedom to mingle.
Introduce every major faction.
Nobody appears villainous.
Oberlindes Representatives
Harlowe Brint
Regional cargo coordinator.
Profits from wartime logistics.
Velma Pottick
Insurance executive.
Has noticed strange cargo patterns.
Growing concerned.
Tobin Gragg
Retired merchant captain.
Talkative when drinking.
Knows far more than he should.
Feri Political Delegates
President Olwen Drax
Needs war to continue economically.
Chancellor Merrick Bole
Still convinced victory is possible.
Has believed this for twelve years.
Minister Yselle Vint
Actually wants peace.
Therefore everyone distrusts her.
Imperial Representatives
Percy Smeed
Trade Commissioner.
Signs exemptions.
Accepts gifts.
Never cash.
Always gifts.
Dame Audra Kettleby
Possibly corrupt.
Possibly investigating corruption.
Nobody knows which.
Ganton Peel
Port Inspection Director.
Suddenly wealthy.
Gets nervous whenever Pixie is mentioned.
Vargr Intermediaries
Lucky Claws Vaerr
Broker.
Fixer.
Smuggler.
Always smiling.
Throekh Firetail
40th Squadron commercial representative.
Knows Jockitz Wolfram.
Vekhra Two-Tickets
Transport fixer.
Surprisingly competent.
Possible Meamone Cutouts
Albin Rusk
Antiquities investor.
Pays too much.
Sister Perdita Vale
Funds archaeological projects.
Has an uncanny interest in Ancients technology.
Orlo Fenwick
Quiet accountant.
Tracks shell companies.
Extremely dangerous.
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Act 5: The Auction
Purpose
Get artifacts into player hands.
Lot 17
Black stone sphere.
Described as:
"Pre-Imperial ceremonial object."
Starting bid:
500 credits.
Potentially priceless.
Lot 22
Metallic navigation plaque.
Covered in strange geometric symbols.
Pixie researchers would recognize them.
Lot 31
Crystal prism.
Recovered from a battlefield.
Possibly.
Clues
Streetwise
"Funny thing. Nobody can identify which battlefield supposedly produced these artifacts."
Broker
Prices make no sense.
Social
Bembry casually mentions:
"Lady Kettleby purchased six of those spheres last season."
Nobody buys six decorative stones.
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Act 6: Frorn Whelper
Frorn Whelper
Vargr archaeologist.
Works the Pixie ruins.
Nervous.
Sleep deprived.
Obsessed.
What He Knows
Artifacts are being removed from:
- Pixie
- Nearby sites
- Restricted digs
and entering normal commercial traffic.
His Discovery
He has evidence linking:
- Pixie excavations
- Wartime shipping exemptions
- Specific merchant vessels
- Politically connected buyers
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Act 7: Something Goes Wrong
Choose one:
Option A
Frorn disappears.
Option B
Frorn is publicly discredited.
Option C
Frorn suffers an "accident."
Option D
Evidence vanishes.
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Act 8: The Revelation
The players gradually discover:
The war itself may be helping facilitate:
- Artifact smuggling
- Shipping exemptions
- Restricted access zones
- Movement of contraband
Beneficiaries
Part of Oberlindes
Not the company.
Specific individuals.
Several Feri Governments
War justifies budgets.
Certain Imperial Officials
War reduces scrutiny.
Vargr Middlemen
Profitable cross-border trade.
Unknown Buyers
Possibly connected to Meamone.
Possibly not.
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Act 9: Endgame
The crew must decide:
Expose the Scheme
Creates enemies.
Sell Information
Creates different enemies.
Keep an Artifact
Creates long-term adventure hooks.
Walk Away
The conspiracy continues.
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Future Hooks
Charlie
Remains a recurring celebrity contact.
Jockitz Wolfram
Can trace the Vargr side.
40th Squadron
Artifacts may be reaching Uthith.
Potential connection to Mittensby's father.
Prison Station 17
Someone imprisoned there knows more.
Meamone
May eventually emerge as a buyer several layers removed from the thefts.
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GM Notes
The conspiracy should never feel monolithic.
No single villain controls everything.
The war persists because multiple groups benefit:
- Politicians
- Smugglers
- Shipping interests
- Corrupt officials
- Artifact collectors
- Intelligence services
The players are not expected to end the war.
Success is exposing one piece of the machinery and deciding what to do with that knowledge.