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High Frontier is no exception, providing excellent coverage of an important segment of Transhuman Space: Earth orbit, her Lagrange points, and the Moon. With this book a GM can brush the dystopian dust of cyberpunk from her campaign while staying close enough for Terra’s familiar outline to peek through the viewports. Because of the subject matter, this book has applications for other science fiction games as well, in its portrayal of a developed orbital society as a whole, and a selection of the potential inhabitants of such a society in particular.
In fact, there are so many interesting ideas that it’s impossible for all of them to miss the mark; at the end of the book, however, a GM may still wonder how to harness one for use in a game. There are plenty of adventure seeds highlighted in High Frontier, but nothing that would tie them together in an overreaching story arc. I have tried to point out what I think might make for interesting campaigns, but these ideas are mine and not really explored in the text. Readers may have the same problem with my conclusions that they have with the book, but at least you have been officially warned.
This book, and Transhuman Space in general, is “powered by GURPS,” which these days means the third edition. Yet, less than twenty pages contain material exclusive to that system. So fourth edition players have probably worked the bugs out of their conversions, while for non-GURPS players, the book is 85% GURPS-free (and the GURPS material is either character templates or vehicle statistics). Also noteworthy from a design point of view is the number of authors (seven, two of which are on my short list of favorites elsewhere at rpg.net). Substantial parts of this material were rewritten, which (I submit again) is evidence of its importance to the setting as a whole.
Physically the book is a typical specimen of the THS line, with a cover by Jesse deGraff. I miss the Christopher Shy art; instead the majority is line-drawing or computer-generated construction. In broad strokes, the book addresses Earth Orbit, the Moon, and the L4 and L5 Lagrange points in succession. As the part of space with the longest human presence, there are plenty of unique persons, places, and memes to be encountered.
Orbit: These chapters are peppered with the basic underpinnings readers must grasp to take full use of the book: the geography of orbit; living, working and fighting in space; and extensive discussions of satellites and orbital stations. Several specific examples of what can be found in Low, High, Geostationary, and Very High Earth Orbits come next. A large list of resorts, military facilities, factories, and laboratories are all provided, as well as the companies with an orbital presence. Many of them are preparing for the construction of a beanstalk which could revolutionize shipping into space – a fertile theme for a campaign on the surface or up here with the big dogs. Other THS books discuss the possibility of such a campaign, but not here.
Before reaching the moon, the next chapter is devoted to an unusual yet vital part of the orbital ecosystem: Vacuum Cleaners, who divert, appropriate, or destroy unwanted debris that endangers other structures in orbit. Nominally neutral businessmen, trying to make an honest yet dangerous living here and a salvage payoff there, amidst hostile corporations, hostile nations, and hostile competitors? This is not only a colorful addition to the background of Transhuman Space, but a campaign seed tailor-made for interesting adventures; yet again, nothing of the sort is mentioned here.
Luna: Mankind has returned to the Moon for good by the 22nd century. It’s used for a bit of everything – mining, energy, heavy industry, tourism, and astronomy, all tied together by maglevs and an anarchic web of transhumanity. Again, the physical details of the lunar environment are examined, as well as setting specific locations and entities. You’ll visit rescue forces and the lunar credit union, supercolliders and dark-side observatories, military bases, malleable organic settlements, resort towns, and the golf course with the longest hole in the solar system. The largest settlement receives its own writeup - the bioarcology of Luna City, within whose edible walls might lie a criminal fortune.
Lagrange Points: The two stablest points in the Earth-Luna orbital system are filled with more offworld polities: an enclave of happy fascists, backed up by neurological behavior modification; a womyn’s collective famous for its contributions to female well-being; the home of a single man – and twelve hundred of his clones; a secret nanosocialist haven specializing in intellectual piracy; a station built to emulate a beloved sci-fi entertainment franchise; and many more industrial, political, and scientific outposts who above all value independence. Most make for interesting ports of call.
The last few pages of the book detail GURPS-specific rules for the types of habitats to be found in the region, as well as vehicles mentioned in the main text and an update to the design rules found in the main rulebook. Sadly, what may be the biggest flaw in the book is the failure to include a “Campaigns” section that discusses the possibilities of playing a game set in orbit, as well as prominent themes to explore in such games. Seeing as how the Core Book and at least two of the sourcebooks (Fifth Wave and In the Well, if you’re keeping track) include sections like these, I felt it was a glaring omission.
So if this review sounds mostly like a list of unusual settings, with very little tying the whole together, then I say I’ve captured the essence of High Frontier, as well as its shortfall. You get a travelogue of places that would certainly be fun to visit; but it remains largely up to a GM to get a compelling game going. To be fair, I like my metaplots this way - not a train which players must board running; but a boulder perched atop a mountain peak, ready for the smallest push to tumble headlong towards the party ascending the slopes below. The construction of the beanstalk, the smoldering conflicts of earthbound factions and their ideologies, and the clash of sentients’ rights: there is energy in the system, but it’s potential energy, coiled up and waiting. The trouble is, a lot of folks won’t want to disturb things without some concrete idea of what could happen once everything starts moving at once.
