By Bruce Boughner, (repost from d20zines.com), September 2, 2003.

Sizing Up the Target
Aether & Flux: Sailing the Traverse is a 96-page sourcebook published by Dark Furies Publishing. The authors are Steven and Valorie Grover and Brian Moseley. The cover is by Steven Grover and is a view of a planetary orbit seen through a porthole and it is available for $21.95.

First Blood
Aether & Flux is a return to one of my favorite 2nd edition campaign ideas, Spelljamming. I have been suggesting this on the radio show for many months and finally someone brought the idea forward to 3rd edition.

But there are some very important differences. Long gone are the Flow and Phlogiston and are now replaced by Aether and Flux. Aether is a kind of gas-plasma that can react to Flux or arcane energy generating thrust. Also fallen by the way side are Crystal Spheres, normal star systems are gathering points for Aether, where it is the densest and thins in the Void between systems. Flux is a kind of electrical energy that passes through metal and is released in a lightning-like effect. This effect when combined with Aether also provides thrust allowing for interstellar travel. At the edge of each star system, Aether becomes Pale, an almost mist-like fog, it thickens and slows travel through it but it can be passed through.

The discovery of Flux was a collaborative effort of legend. One of the collaborators stole the discovery and fled into the Traverse (or space) to escape pursuit and to profit from the discovery. Flux and Arcane power interacts the same way with Aether, but users of one or the other method are at odds with each other. Magic must be cast to power the ship, add gravity and fresh air while Flux employs machines to do the same.

One of the greatest dangers in the Traverse is the locust-like Ravin. The Ravin are the atypical BEMs that destroyed their home planets resources and now travel the universe looking for more planets to ravage. Organized much like ants or bees with workers (Scales), warriors (Swarmers) and elite (Sirens) castes.

Chapter two is a description of Maythorne’s Wheel, a frontier interstellar harbor. Filled with landlubbers and inexperienced sailors, the Wheel is usually the first stopping point for any green space traveler and also a great source of commerce and trade. The hub is a seven-story structure housing the Three Silver’s merchant house, the harbormaster and berthing quarters for the crew of the wheel. Eight bridges extend spoke-like from the hub allowing access to the outer ring and provide storage. The ring is the merchant’s row; the several story ring allows for a main entrance and gives each merchant storage facilities below decks. Many of the pubs and merchants are then given.

Rigger’s Row is where the Aether ships are docked and most ships follow common sea worthy designs allowing for deck plans from Living Imagination’s Broadsides, Fantasy Flight Game’s Seafarer’s Handbook or any of Mongoose Publishing’s ship books to be used as well as the skills feats and combat rules as well. There are stats listed for many common ships but no deck plans. There are deck plans for the Elvish Ormralest, the Ravin Flea and several esoteric designs.

Chapter three handles serving aboard a vessel. Crew ratings and ranks are given and the rankings are also described with example skill sets. For example, a Landlubber may have simple weapon skill in their class proficiencies but a Deckhand will have the weapon skill and 10 class proficiencies. Ten new feats are also given, the most exotic being Gravity Expertise, the rest could be used with any seafaring campaign as well as in the Traverse. Item for use aboard ship provide nothing new and exotic, however there is a nice visual description of how to make a Monkey’s Fist with rope to use as a Sap. Aethership equipment follows this and this is where the unique stuff comes into play. Cullers and Flux sails are among the ten devices listed. Seven new magic items with a space theme are also described. Prayers and spells are also given. The three spells include Celestial Vision, Miserean’s Air Cleansing and Well of Gravity.

Chapter four deals with the mechanics of sailing the Traverse. Speeds are divided into Traversal and Hull (or Tactical) speeds. The effects of wind and moving to and from a planet’s surface are also given. Tactical maneuvering is broken down with movement being affected by ship’s tonnage speed, crew size and experience with rules for combat and attacking given. Ship’s armament is a huge section with common armament like Ballistae, Cannons and Catapults listed before moving onto Flux weaponry like lightning cannons. Many types of ammunition are listed as well.

The Sea of Stars is chapter five’s topic. Navigation, star charts and gravity open the section before moving onto actual star systems. The Maelstrom is the system described and has over a dozen of celestial bodies ranging from earth spheres to air and water spheres. Stats for populating the Traverse are now shown with instructions on how to build a star system starting with the star and then moving to the planetary bodies. A planet is given many options on its construction; girth, gravity, temperature, atmosphere, water and life are all considerations.

Areas of the ship such as the Captain’s cabin and refitting the ship are the start of chapter six. Then it gives a history of the three ages of Aether exploration, from Emergence to Exploration to Empire. Each is given challenges as adventure hooks to allow for a very long campaign life spanning generations of player characters.

The appendices consist of a Sailor’s Slang dictionary, all the combat charts collected together and a Star System Logsheet and a Planetary Satellites Logsheet. Inside the back cover are card stock cutouts of several ships and Maythorne’s Wheel.

Critical Hits
Aether & Flux: Sailing the Traverse has satisfied what I was looking for, Spelljamming in 3rd edition. This is a smart looking book that is easy to read and follow and without some of the confusion of phlogiston and crystal spheres.

Critical Misses
There was a lot left out of this book. I was hoping for more ships of Dwarven or Gnomish design. More information on the races sailing the Traverse and definitely more creatures waiting for unsuspecting travelers are needed. Maybe Scott Greene will convert all the Spelljammer monsters to 3rd edition so we could have invading armadas of Scro and Neogi.

Coup de Grace
Aether & Flux: Sailing the Traverse is step in the right direction and is figuring high in my ideas to develop. This is Dark Furies first foray into printed material and is an excellent outing. Building on several strong PDF sourcebooks I think we can expect many great things from them.

Fast Tracks Score: (maximum 5 pts for each category)

Amount of Open Game Content: 4.0
d20 Compliance: 5.0
Originality: 4.5
Playability: 5.0
Value for the dollar: 4.5

Overall Rating: 4.60
Final Grade: A+

Bruce Boughner

The original post can be found HERE.