For anyone who hasn’t watched Firefly or the follow-up movie Serenity, it was a canceled too soon tv-series lasting only one season. It stood as something unique as a space western and its crew living on the edge of civilization.

It’s turned very much into a cult classic with a die-hard fanbase. Do you have to watch it to know what's going on? No, but it’s still a good show you should watch!

If you love Spaceships and Sci-Fi, Cowboys and Westerns all rolled into one with a dash of cyberpunk, this is the show for you.

Welcome to Firefly!

Looking for a history lesson eh? Fine. Here’s how is it: Long time ago Earth got used up. So we, us humans crammed in massive generational ships and hiked ourselves to a new part of the galaxy and terraformed ourselves some new Earths. As is human nature the central planets formed the Alliance, others protested. Such proceeded a long and bloody civil war.

Now depending on what side you were on, they'll go on and tell a different story, same as depending on who you ask. Point is the protesting party, called Browncoats lost. It’s been eight long years since the Unification War ended and the Systems has all been slow to recover and discontent is still thick.

Just as the dust seemed to start to settle a message was sent out across the ‘Verse to anyone listening. It went and spilled the beans on how Reavers, our resident space cannibals, were up and made by the Alliance. The funny thing ain't no one can prove if it’s true or not in spite of the video broadcast. Some say it was Dust Devil, Browncoat terrorists, kicking up dirt to restart the war. Others up and say its true as true can be and justice needs to be served. No one is sure of anything and a year later its only good to talk about when you wanna pick a fight.

Fact is, for us regular folk, not much had really changed.

A ship would bring you work, a gun would help you keep it. A captain's goal is simple: find a crew, find a job, keep flying

The Alliance is the central government and law-enforcement organization of the Verse. In its present form, it came about after the Central planets fought the Unification War against the Independent Planets that wanted to break away from Alliance jurisdiction. The war raged for nearly six years. However, by 2511 the Alliance had prevailed, and an armistice was signed.

The Unification War was a war fought between the Union of Allied Planets and the Independent Planets from 2506 to 2511. The Central Planets had taken much of the system's resources and technology and left the outer planets to fend for themselves. After years of unsatisfactory talks, the outer planets seceded from the Alliance and gathered the support of other planets. Their aim was to start their own alliance, without the interference of the center planets. The Alliance could not accept this loss of face and so the war began. Of course, like most wars, there was a lot more going on under the surface.

The holidays of Alliance Day and Unification Day were created to celebrate the end of the Unification War and the creation of the Union of Allied Planets.

The Unificators are mercenaries that are operating after the Unification War. They were deputized by the Alliance to hunt down war criminals.

Browncoats were soldiers who fought for the Independent Planets, and who lost to the Union of Allied Planets in the Unification War. They were named after the simple, brown leather trench coats they wore as uniforms. They also wore red scarves around their necks. The simplicity of their gear was because technology and resources were scarce on the Outer Planets. Conversely, the Alliance's soldiers were called "Purple Bellies", because of the purple-tinted body armor they wore on their chests.

After the war's end, clothiers made good money dyeing brown coats blue or gray as folks wanted to forget the past and let the past forget them. Those that still "wear the brown" do it on purpose.

The Dust Devils were created to avenge the loss of the war and targeted Alliance officials. They remain an independent holdout and terrorist organization.

Reavers are believed by most of the 'verse to be men that went insane at the edge of space and became savage. They stared into the void beyond and became what they saw: nothing. They gave into their primal nature and all that was civilized was discarded.

Reaver territory is centered about the rim of known space, and at least one massive gathering was present around the planet Miranda. They do not, however, live on any planet. Instead, Reavers spend their entire lives aboard their grotesque spacecraft, floating through the void and setting planetfall only to raid and pillage before leaving for the hunt once more. Normally they stay within their own territory and only venture out on raids, rather than moving en masse to attack the Alliance or the border worlds.

As of a year ago, Reaver sightings have dropped dramatically as well a strange and sudden shift in behavior making them all the more mysterious.

That being said for the most part they hold a place as the campfire boogymen of space to anyone who hasn’t traversed the Rim.

Folks in the 'Verse speak English or Chinese, one or the other being the dominant tongue most everywhere. It pays to know at least a little of both if you plan to get very far. Of the central planets, Londinium is primarily English-speaking, while Sihnon stands out as a center of Chinese influence.

Hundreds of languages made the great leap from Earth-That-Was and most of them survive in pockets and ghettos on most worlds. Only rarely, will anyone encounter a community that speaks a non-dominant language exclusively. However, many of Earth's languages besides English and Chinese have spread across the 'Verse and are widely spoken by many people next to the two mentioned (and dominant) languages. Examples of such widely spoken languages outside of English and Chinese in the 'Verse include Russian, Hebrew, Arabic, and Hindi.

Human beings have happily fouled the gift of language with whatever inventive, vindictive, and insulting expressions they can imagine. While the traditional English swear words have survived intact, a few additional crude cuss words have been added to the common man's vocabulary.
The basics include Gorram ("Run! It's the gorram law!"), Ruttin' ("It's gettin' too ruttin' hot in here."), and Humped ("He's got a gun on us. We're humped!") Cursing in Chinese is considered more imaginative and expressive, and most everyone does it - at least when his mother has left the room.

The majority of Chinese language influence in Firefly is based on epithets and curses; however, some other terms, such as “mei-mei” (meaning “little sister”) are used between characters at different times, showing that there is more Chinese influence than is commonly used in the show itself. In addition, English-based epithets, generally adapted from current words, continue to evolve.

Some speech isn't cursing by traditional definition, but it will cause fists and bullets to fly just the same. Religion, politics, social class, and wealth are touchy subjects - as is mention of the Unification War.

In English, there are two predominant speech patterns. "Core Speech" is carefully used and grammatically correct. "Frontier Slang" sounds sloppy and quaint to Core speakers, who judge the speaker as poorly educated and low class. Those born outside the Core are more likely to have at least a little of the Frontier in their speech.

GM Info:
@Winters
@MK Blitzen

►If you have a concept that fits this genre - if you LOVE Firefly, like we love Firefly, please drop us a PM! We’re kind of small group-oriented.

►The usual fare - be good to each other. This isn’t the place for politics unless it’s the Alliance vs. the Browncoats.

►This is collaborative work. We plan to discuss the plot rather than keep surprises. We talk plot a LOT, so plot participation is anticipated. Of course, we want to know what your character is up to, we can’t wait to hear their backstory, but the game is about the Lunar Veil. We’re not looking for disjointed vignettes. So on that token, we aren’t allowing player NPCs. If you’d rather play with yourself than with others, you can kindly go do so elsewhere. If you absolutely need a minor NPC for some reason, they belong to the game and are fair game for collateral damage.

►Your character sheet is what you play. That includes History. No adding or changing it randomly. It's a tell-all. If it's not there you can’t use it, unless it’s discussed with the mods. If there is something you don’t want other players to know, the mods need to review the information first. That’s not to say your character can’t learn new skills and grow, but we’re going to be plenty suspicious if your character is a ‘natural’ on the spot.

►No God modding. This is strictly enforced. If you're not sure, ask. Otherwise, we react first and ask questions later. This is your first warning.