Chapter 26 — Signal Loss (Sci-Fi Colony Demo)

Part VI — Starter Worlds

A walkthrough of the sci-fi colony starter.

Setting

A distant colony loses contact with Earth. Power reserves are finite and shared — every system you run drains the same pool. Something is alive in the caverns below the signal tower, and it perceives your colonists as “disruptive resonance patterns.”

Contents

Element	Description
Command Module	Starting zone — console, holotable, crew bunks
Hydroponics Bay	Supply zone — growth pods, water recycler, nutrient tanks
Perimeter Fence	Defense zone — motion sensors, damaged gate, watchtower
Signal Tower	Communication zone — antenna array, relay console, strange signal
Alien Cavern	Hostile zone — bioluminescent walls, resonance field, crystal formations
Dr. Vasquez	NPC — scientist, awareness 7, alien signal briefing quest
Chief Okafor	NPC — security chief, engineering 5, command 6
Breached Drone	Enemy — malfunctioning bot (engineering 6, awareness 2)
Resonance Entity	Enemy — alien presence (awareness 9, command 4)
Emergency Cell	Item — restores 20 power
Commander	Progression tree — field-engineer → sharp-sensors → unshakeable

Ruleset: colony-minimal

Stat	Role
Engineering	Fix, build, and maintain colony systems
Command	Leadership, crew management, morale
Awareness	Sensors, perception, anomaly detection

Resource	Range	Notes
HP	0–25	Physical health
Power	0–100	Shared colony resource, regens 2/tick, cascading shutdown on depletion
Morale	0–30	Crew cohesion and willingness

Unique verbs: scan (sensor sweep), allocate (redistribute power between systems).

How the Systems Interact

1. Dialogue — Dr. Vasquez briefs the commander on the alien signal, colony power politics, and the cavern situation. Choosing to investigate sets the cavern-mission global flag.

2. Environment — Two hazard types: power drain affects all zones (representing degrading infrastructure), resonance fields near the cavern reduce both morale and power simultaneously.

3. Cognition — The alien perception presentation rule makes the Resonance Entity perceive colonists as “disruptive resonance patterns” — it’s not aggressive, it’s trying to dampen interference.

4. Combat — Two enemy archetypes: Breached Drones are engineering-heavy but sensor-blind (hack or outmaneuver), Resonance Entities have extreme awareness but limited physicality (requires brute force).

5. Factions — The colony council controls the main settlement zones, while the cavern zones are unclaimed territory with unknown presence.

Install

npm install @ai-rpg-engine/starter-colony

import { createGame } from '@ai-rpg-engine/starter-colony';
const engine = createGame(42);