Skimmer Culture
Skimmers are the least like the other two in the triad of unusual "cultures," but at the same time, they're also the most insular as well. Much of this has to do with where they live; skimmers inhabit gas giants, often ones that exist beyond the snow line, meaning that simply getting to a skimmer habitat is a weeks long, if not months long, trek. Thus, skimmers tend to be isolationist, and the hostile environment across all gas and ice giants tends to breed similar cultural traditions. The result is a highly insular culture that often has very little contact with the outside world.
Where Skimmers LiveSkimmers live in the cloud decks of gas giants and ice giants, which tend to be fairly inhospitable places. Not every gas giant is suitable for skimmer habitation; some gas giants end up being more dangerous for humans and their machines than the corona of a star, and as a result, these gas giants are often avoided. This is especially true of hot jovian worlds (Types I - III, generally), where the the conditions can be so extreme that no tool designed by humanity can survive it. As a result, only specific gas giants get targeted for long-term skimmer habitation.
Skimmers live aboard aerostats, which are large, floating cities that make use of buoyancy and pressure, along with lightweight building materials and reinforced bulkheads, to stay aloft. In many gas giants, they have to produce their own atmosphere, although given the abundance of volatiles (which is why skimmers are often there in the first place) this isn't too difficult. Skimmers tend to be affected by gravity, the exact opposite problem for the other two subcultures on this list; in most instance, they either adapt or select gas giants with gravities comparable to Earth. The last major problem is weather; floating cities are vulnerable to the notoriously violent weather that gas giants produce, and so they have to be aware of weather at all times and have to be very good at predicting it, otherwise they wind up very dead. These problems - weather and gravity - set them apart in some ways from the other two "subcultures" on this list, but in other ways, it brings them together, since it means they live in largely artificial, isolated environments adrift in otherwise very hostile space. |
Skimmer Cutlural TraditionsSkimmers have a number of traditions that set them apart and unify them a culture.
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Who skimmers Are
It takes more than just living on a gas giant to be considered a skimmer, and it takes more than just living in an aerostat to be considered a skimmer; tens of thousands, if not millions, of people live in both environments, often times simultaneously since using aerostats to settle gas giants is a very common tactic. What makes a skimmer is the attitude and the purpose. Skimmers grow up doing a job, and they grow up with an attitude that comes characteristic to that job. They are stepped in the job, are familiar with all aspects of it, and have likely lost love ones to it given the dangerous nature of it, if they have any loved ones to lose. Skimmers are often drawn to the culture because they don't fit in anywhere else; it's common to refer to skimmers as a culture of misfits and social dropouts, but that's not entirely wrong. This, combined with the relative isolation - something skimmers actively seek out, which is why they often avoid aqueous gas giants and prefer gas giants that exist beyond the snowline - is what gives rise to skimmers as a unique cultural entity.
Skimmers, living in the extreme margins of civilization, tend to have a very do-it-yourself attitude towards all things, from food to fashion to implants, which can result in eclectic results; things are repurposed, fashion is designed with the extreme cold in mind (aerostats by their nature have to be thin and lightweight, with large surface areas to trap and lift air, and this means that by their very nature they're exceptionally hard to heat, so even the warmest aerostats can be bone-chillingly cold). The attitude towards fashion produces interesting results. This extends to food as well, which tends to be "just good enough" to eat, which usually means edible, but not palatable.
Skimmers, living in the extreme margins of civilization, tend to have a very do-it-yourself attitude towards all things, from food to fashion to implants, which can result in eclectic results; things are repurposed, fashion is designed with the extreme cold in mind (aerostats by their nature have to be thin and lightweight, with large surface areas to trap and lift air, and this means that by their very nature they're exceptionally hard to heat, so even the warmest aerostats can be bone-chillingly cold). The attitude towards fashion produces interesting results. This extends to food as well, which tends to be "just good enough" to eat, which usually means edible, but not palatable.
Skimmer Culture Template . . . 20 points
Advantages and Perks
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Two of Cybernetics (Protected Sense) [5], G-Experience (Any) [5], Improved G-Tolerance (0.03G) [5], Radiation Tolerance 2 [5], or 5-point talent [5] ● 25 points from among points from among the previous or from among ST +1 to +2 [10/level], DX +1 [20], IQ+1 [20], Per+1 to +4 [5/level], Will +1 to +4 [5/level], HP +1 to +4 [2/level], Basic Move +1 [5], Basic Speed +0.25 [5/level], Absolute Direction [5], Biografts (Any) [Varies], Common Sense [10], Cybernetics (Any) [Varies], Doodads [1/level], Driver's Reflex 1 [5/level], Fearlessness [2/level], Gizmos [5/level], High Manual Dexterity 1-2 [5/level], Master Builder 1 [5], Plant Empathy [5], Rapid Healing [5], Resistant (Single Colony World Hazard) [5], Single-Minded [5], or 10 points in any talent [10] ● Any three of the following Perks: Compact Frame, Dabbler (any eight skills), Efficient (Skill), Focused (Task), Hyperspecialization (Skill), One-Task Wonder, Sealegs, or Teamwork (Skill).
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Disadvantages and Quirks
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-30 points from among Addiction [Varies], Alcoholism [-5*], Bully [-10*], Combat Paralysis [-15*], Compulsive Behavior (Double and triple-checks all airlocks) [-5*], Delusions (about the way the world works) [-5 to -10], Disciplines of Faith (Ritualism or Mysticism) [-5 to -10], Duty (Organization, 9 or less) [-5], Enemy [Varies], Gullibility [-10*], Incurious [-5*], Insomniac [-10 to -15], Jealousy [-10], Kleptomania [-15*], Lecherousness [-15*], Loner [-5*], Low Empathy [-20], Low TL [-5], Miserliness [-10*], Odious Cultural Habit (Any) [-5 to -10], Overconfidence [-5*], Pacifism [Varies], Sense of Duty (Organization or Group) [-5], Social Stigma (Uncultured Rube) [-5] or (Minority Group) [-5], Stubbornness [-5], or Workaholic [-5] ● Three of Aloof, Anarchist, Broadminded, Cautious, Distinctive Features (Any), Distinctive Speech, Dress Code (DIY Fashionista), Fashion Disaster, Forbidden Word (any that would cause bad luck), Ideology (Off-the-Wall ideology), Inaccessible Idioms, Keeps to Self, Superstition (Any).
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Primary Skills
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Computer Operations and Spacer, both (E) IQ [1]-10; Driving (Construction Equipment, Half-Track, or Heavy Wheeled) (A) DX [2]-10; Electronics Operation (Sensors) (A) IQ [2]-10 ● Three of Electronics Operation (Any), Electronics Repair (Any), Merchant, Mechanic (Any), Meteorology (Gas Giants), or Navigation (Air) all (A) IQ [2]-10; Chemistry, Economics, Geology, Geology (Gas Giants), or Metallurgy, all (H) IQ-1 [2]-9; Physics (VH) IQ-2 [2]-8.
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Secondary and Background Skills
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Five of Electrician, Electronics Operation (Any), Electronics Repair (Any), Farming, Freight Handling, Merchant, or Mechanic (Any), all (A) IQ-1 [1]-9; Driving (Any), Piloting (Any), or Vacc Suit, all (A) DX-1 [1]-9; Mathematics (Any) or Market Analysis, both (H) IQ-2 [1]-8; First Aid (E) IQ [1]-10; or two points in any primary skill.
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Features
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Cultural Familiarity (Skimmer), Language (Any, Native), Native Gravity (0.7G - 1.5G)
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