Placing the Nebula in Dark Nebula

As I developed my house version of Dark Nebula sector, I turned to the usual sources: CT Atlas of the Imperium and Alien Module 1, Aslan; MT Solomani and Aslan, GURPS Traveller: Alien Races 2, and MgT Alien Module 1, Aslan. But I also took a hard look at a more unusual source, the GDW board game Dark Nebula (1980), a two player chit-and-hex wargame based on the earlier Imperium game.

While the board game has some familiar elements from the Third Imperium setting, the game precedes the CT alien module by four years and some of these elements are rather different from later incarnations. Yes, one player controls Aslan (or more properly, “Aslanic”) forces. And yes, the other player controls a “Solomani Confederation” force. There are jump drives and a few other familiar looking bits—but otherwise, the game seems to take place in a completely anachronistic setting untethered from the OTU. The introduction describes the game as occurring “far rimward of the Imperium” which only makes sense if we are thinking of the Spinward Marches as the Imperium. And the default map positions appear to show the Aslan Hierate on what we would call the trailing side of the board and the Confederation on the spinward side.

So I was left to wonder: (1) Can any relationship be discerned between the Dark Nebula board game and the OTU sector, and (2) Is there actually a dark nebula in Dark Nebula? These questions seemed worth chasing: the Dark Nebula maps and world names are extremely evocative and I find them considerably more interesting than most subsector maps. Evidently Andy Slack did also, as he developed a nifty rescaled and reversed version of the map for some GURPS Traveller games.

Of course, even with these changes the map does not obviously line up with the canonical sector maps in Atlas of the Imperium or Solomani & Aslan. Only two systems share names between the board game and sector data.

But one of those systems is Kuzu/Kusu/Kusyu. And if we take Slack’s map, superimpose it over the Traveller Map, and rotate it around Kusyu a few degrees clockwise, interesting things start to fall into place. The neutral human world Sequel (2225) lines up with the boardgame Mizah system, a neutral human world. The board game Mechane lines up with Earltras (2527); both are part of the board game “Solomani Confederation.” And we see an isolated cluster of four systems in Yohkui subsector that lines up with the board game dark nebula.

From there, it’s not hard to begin connecting board game systems with Traveller Map systems. Some matches are rougher than others, but for the record, here’s my take on matching the two sources:

Dark Nebula Board Game Systems

Region	System	Match
Vecinos	Eski	Uiwealirlao (2435)
Vecinos	Duduki	Erelefo (2335)
Vecinos	Changa	Euhisai (2434)
Vecinos	Bulan	Jingleswelt (2732)
Vecinos	Karpos	Ewausiaktiy (2136)
Vecinos	Irbev	Irihroalea (2432)
Vecinos	Janibor	Eahkihkao (2033)
Vecinos	Salan	Oiirl (2430)
The Fastness	Umuru	Styaroir (2325)
The Fastness	Omoro	Styaroir (2325)
The Fastness	Kov	Louhtah (2128)
The Fastness	Mizah	Sequel (2225)
The Fastness	Salia	Kihahouwu (2028)
The Fastness	Simba	Iyhahorl (2125)
The Fastness	Tangaa	Hakhyas (2027)
Solomani Quadrant	Zloban	Macario (2829)
Solomani Quadrant	Llavia	Gallbre (2529)
Solomani Quadrant	Avair	Aokhiyfti (2728)
Solomani Quadrant	Merchane	Earltras (2527)
Solomani Quadrant	Rishi	Eiouktoh (2427)
Solomani Quadrant	Kamat	Eiouktoh (2427)
Solomani Quadrant	Omyl	Arakhal (2729)
Solomani Quadrant	Maadin	Arakhal (2729)
Solomani Quadrant	Gazzain	Wusihahai (2327)
Solomani Quadrant	Icat	Iweakhte (2426)
Rift Routes	Dim	Syailei (1724)
Rift Routes	Astek	Syailei (1724)
Rift Routes	Mir	Aiwaosois (1821)
Rift Routes	Amani	Hyesiyr (1622)
Rift Routes	Kinada	Easouyao (1721)
Moralon	Drax	Aftea (1826)
Moralon	Craco	Aftea (1826)
Moralon	Oja	Heahelie (1629)
Moralon	Dno	Lahaih (1627)
Moralon	Valka	Aowaelr (1529)
Moralon	Godoro	Tenarna (1825)
Moralon	Enjiwa	Riyikahail (1628)
Moralon	Pasar	Hlokiye (1725)
Dark Nebula	Osa	Ualaohei (1934)
Dark Nebula	N5	Ehalrlwa (2131)
Dark Nebula	N6	Ehalrlwa (2131)
Dark Nebula	Taida Na	Hiwoieikh (2832)
Dark Nebula	N4	Troutiyka (2230)
Dark Nebula	N2	Oakheiye (2031)
Dark Nebula	N3	Troutiyka (2230)
Dark Nebula	N1	Hkyosali (2132)
Bright Star	Hasara	Fyawahrl (2026)
Bright Star	Daanarni	Steiaseah (1927)
Bright Star	Ria	Troi' (1923)
Bright Star	Alis	Troi' (1923)
Bright Star	Simsek	Iyaiah (1925)
Aslan Hierate	Rosa	Iyohkeih (1427)
Aslan Hierate	Panas	Aiearye (1428)
Aslan Hierate	Blatta	Weisaow (1327)
Aslan Hierate	Xida	Weisaow (1327)
Aslan Hierate	Kuzu	Kusyu (1226)
Aslan Hierate	Bors	Hlitilar (1224)
Aslan Hierate	Ikona	Hlehekah (1127)
Aslan Hierate	Vaxt	Ftaosye' (1225)

Yeah, I realize this a little insane—but I can’t have been the first person who ever wanted to reconcile these two sources. So if we have figured out where the board game might fit in the Third Imperium setting, then next question is when. Although the Solomani Confederation and Aslan Hierate are said to be engaged in a series of border skirmishes during Classic Traveller and MegaTraveller (approximately 1085 to 1130), the system names, setting description, and technology don’t really line up with the period. We know that in the OTU timeline, the region will be devastated by Virus so the board game doesn't fit a near or far future, either.

So that leaves the past: the overall setting described in Dark Nebula fits pretty well with what we know of the Aslan Border Wars, which lasted from -1100 to 380. Except for one big problem: the Solomani Confederation was not formed until 871. We learn from Alien Module 6 - Solomani (1986) that Admiral Estigarribia first used the word “Solomani” around -2200, so it’s possible that other, earlier “Solomani Confederations” might also have existed. Or the term used in the board game was either a misnomer or anachronism. For my own background I have written a “Suleimani Confederation" into the history of Dark Nebula during the Border Wars. It’s not a great fit but it works for my purposes.

What I like about placing the board game during this period is that we are given a potential springboard for developing interesting stories set during the Border Wars, which is mostly just one big blank in canon, particularly for this area of space. It’s not hard to imagine the board game taking place during the depths of the Long Night (say, -800 or so), when the Aslan have finally reached tech parity with the Terrans and begin pressing trailing into areas settled by the humans.

The Dark Nebula on Traveller Map.

But the most important implication of this exercise is that the dark nebula is a real thing, located in and around the cluster of worlds that includes Troutiyka (2230). This cluster is surrounded by a stellar rift, and is as good a candidate as any for locating a dark nebula in Dark Nebula.

As I was working through all of this, the Mongoose Traveller Great Rift kickstarter landed, which provides details on astronomical anomalies such as black holes and stellar nebulae. The Traveller Map was updated to include many of these new features so I proposed adding a nebula to Dark Nebula running roughly from hex 2328 to 1837 or so. I am tickled that Joshua Bell took me up on this—I don’t know that this idea was ever blessed by Marc, but for now it’s out there for other Traveller fans to play with.

Imagine a small molecular cloud, over twenty-six light years across—a cloud that somehow interferes with jump drives. During the Interstellar Wars early explorers approaching from the direction of Terra enter this cloud and never return. Soon everyone knows to avoid this region, and Terran settlers heading spinward either divert far coreward or far rimward, missing Kusyu altogether. By -2205 you have settlements in the spinwardmost section of Dark Nebula and even in Iwahfuah, but you don’t have Terran-Aslan first contact until two centuries later, when Terran development finally “backfills” the sector map.

The Dark Nebula interferes with jump drive operations to such an extent that it represented a significant navigation barrier for early Terran and Aslan explorers. Per the rules in the Great Rift Book 4: Deep Space Exploration Handbook, treat the Dark Nebula as a protostar instead of a nebula. Ships jumping into or out of the Dark Nebula (or from point-to-point within it) are more prone to misjumps, with DM-8 imposed on Engineer (j-drive) checks made to jump into or out of the Nebula and DM-4 applied to jumps passing through it. Ship movement within the Dark Nebula is as normal but sensor operations are subject to DM-4.

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