Players want to be Comguard...

[jimmyjimjam]

My game is set in 3020.  My players want to be a group of Comguard.  Is this impossible?  If its possible, how do i do it, and what would the PCs get up to?

[monbvol]

Short answers:

1:  Yes it is possible.
2:  A surprising amount of the affiliation data from AToW works perfectly fine for 3020.  A couple as modified by Era Report 3052 work just fine as well.  For a longer answer ask them where do they originally want to come from as no one is "born" into Comstar like they are other factions.
3:  The exact strength of the Comguards is something of a mystery at the specified time frame but they do exist and they are officially charged with primarily protecting HPG compounds and even pirate hunting.  Unofficially they can get into what ever trouble you want them to.  For a longer answer it depends on what kind of campaign you want to run.

[Fallen_Raven]

The Comgaurds in 3020 would not go around in top of the line machines announcing themselves everywhere they went. On the other hand having a well maintained Maurader and not mentioning the "Secret Troops of Blake 1st Company*" happens to be a Comstar unit doing all kinds of secretive things is perfectly reason able. Think Wolf's Dragoons from a different angle, i.e. Clan without telling anyone the Clans exist / Comgaurds without telling anyone Comstar has a legitimate army hiding out.

*Insert misleading unit name here.

[BirdofPrey]

Didn't the Com Guards make a few appearances before the clan invasion though?  No one linked them to Com Star and they hadn't been officially announced, but there were certainly rumors about all white mechs.

[Fallen_Raven]

I can't speak to the "white mechs" but I do recall that many of the HPG stations were protected by mercanaries who were suprisingly well equipped. So up until Tukkayid at least the scale of the Comgaurds was hidden. They were to be the trump card for Waterly during Operation Scorpion, at least in part because the Houses didn't know about them.

On the other hand Hanse had a plan ready for just such a trick suggesting that some people had an idea. Coupled with the discovery of the secret stockpiles during Hanse and Melissa's wedding it seems likely that Comstar's card up the sleeve was expected, they just didn't know what card it was. Until I get ahold of some of the other books I can't say for certain one way or the other, but a covert team would probably be used in some form right up till Focht did his thing.

Until I become a credible source all I can offer is conjecture and "whatever works for your game" formula answers.

[Frabby]

What ComStar did was to raise and maintain a number of ostensibly independent mercenary (or even pirate) units with stock 3025 tech. These were used as a front for training and likely also recruiting ComGuards personnell, and most ComGuards missions were carried out by those "independent mercs" with 3025 tech.

Then there was the real secret ComGuards army which had SL-era tech (but certainly not exclusively!). They were only rarely deployed. One cool campaign would be the termination of the Jolly Roger pirates in the periphery in 3004: Jolly Roger Affair. This was top-secret and completely covered up. (Probably because most of the inexperienced ComGuards died at the hands of the pirates, suffering a 2.3 : 1 kill ratio.)

Keep in mind that the ComGuards were top secret until well after the 4th Succession War (i.e. into the 3030s). They didn't exist as far as everyone else was concerned.
A merc unit that doesn't ask too many questions, with mysterious backing and curious clients on the other hand...

[Grim_Reaper]

Short answers:

1:  Yes it is possible.
2:  A surprising amount of the affiliation data from AToW works perfectly fine for 3020.  A couple as modified by Era Report 3052 work just fine as well.  For a longer answer ask them where do they originally want to come from as no one is "born" into Comstar like they are other factions.
3:  The exact strength of the Comguards is something of a mystery at the specified time frame but they do exist and they are officially charged with primarily protecting HPG compounds and even pirate hunting.  Unofficially they can get into what ever trouble you want them to.  For a longer answer it depends on what kind of campaign you want to run.

1; true but they are known to exist yet
3; see one, the Comguards aren't revealed till after 3030 or so and before that any missions they go on are pretty much covert posing as other known or unknown units.
couple examples would be
the unit that impersonated the Gray Death Legion to frame them in 'The price of Glory'
and the unit that Impersonated the Death Commandos in the attack on New Avalon during the 4Th succession war (duplicated the unit down to the serial numbers on the machines in that case)
and the unit that Impersonated Davion Troops to frame the Fed Suns for an attack on an HPG station for an excuse to place an Interdiction on House Davion.

only 'public' unit Comstar had at the time was the Mercenary unit guarding Terra (Brion's legion IIRC)

[E. Icaza]

Then there was the real secret ComGuards army which had SL-era tech (but certainly not exclusively!). They were only rarely deployed. One cool campaign would be the termination of the Jolly Roger pirates in the periphery in 3004: Jolly Roger Affair. This was top-secret and completely covered up. (Probably because most of the inexperienced ComGuards died at the hands of the pirates, suffering a 2.3 : 1 kill ratio.)

This.

Also, they could be placed on extended training maneuvers in the Periphery hunting pirates and/or hunting out additional Star League caches or equipment primarily to keep them out of the hands of the Successor States and Periphery powers.  Or, they could be attached to the Explorer Corps mission.

For a non-combat heavy game, the Explore Corps idea makes the most sense.  The Corps would need experienced Drop/JumpShip pilots & crew, diplomats, security personnel/infantry, technicians and scientists, etc.  Also, the Corps was used by ComStar as a dumping ground for malcontents and troublemakers, so it is just the sort of unit that PCs thrive in in my experience.

"Space:  The Final Frontier.  These are the voyages of the JumpShip Jerome Blake.  Its five-year mission:  to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man has gone before...and bring the heathens and heretics into the fold of humanity under the diving light of Blake's teachings."

[JadeHellbringer]

Bonus points if they keep to the religious nature of the Order from that era- incantations when they start up their Mechs, that sort of thing.

[Bluemax]

Bonus points if they keep to the religious nature of the Order from that era- incantations when they start up their Mechs, that sort of thing.

I can't get all of my guys to do this in my Explorer Corps campaign and it hurts my soul.  Why would you want to play 3020 Comstar without the color?

BlueMax

[AnubisZombie]

I can't get all of my guys to do this in my Explorer Corps campaign and it hurts my soul.  Why would you want to play 3020 Comstar without the color?

BlueMax

Maybe they should get a visit from ROM with some threats of a tour in a brianwashing reeducation camp [copper]

[Peter Smith]

2:  A surprising amount of the affiliation data from AToW works perfectly fine for 3020.  A couple as modified by Era Report 3052 work just fine as well.  For a longer answer ask them where do they originally want to come from as no one is "born" into Comstar like they are other factions.

The characters could be Terrans.

[monbvol]

The characters could be Terrans.

While that is a possibility just being born in the Sol system does not make a person a member of Comstar.  It is easier to think of Comstar as a corporation rather than a government since there is no automatic 'in' like there is in AToW conventions with governments and the order does take in people from all over the sphere of humanity.

[Paul]

While that is a possibility just being born in the Sol system does not make a person a member of Comstar.  It is easier to think of Comstar as a corporation rather than a government since there is no automatic 'in' like there is in AToW conventions with governments and the order does take in people from all over the sphere of humanity.

I agree, and there's several examples of that in canon. Heck, weren't each of the First Circuit Precentors and the various primus's non-Terrans?
But I'll note that it's got to be points in your favor to be a Terran. ComStar's had that place under their exclusive control, with 0 outside influence for centuries now...

Paul

[monbvol]

Quite likely and in all probability the bulk of Comstar's members probably do come from Terra.

But as they say variety is the spice of life.

[Peter Smith]

While that is a possibility just being born in the Sol system does not make a person a member of Comstar.

I know. I was just giving an example of being a Comstar character without having a major affiliation.

[Tslammer]

My game is set in 3020.  My players want to be a group of Comguard.  Is this impossible?  If its possible, how do i do it, and what would the PCs get up to?

WOB ROM agents have detected your transmissions and have in a preemptive strike killed all your Player Character at the end of Life Path 4. 

[Grunt213]

This sounds like a fun campaign... You should work in that raid on the NIAS during the 4th SW.

And if I remember correctly some of the Comguard were, or at least the guys doing security on Hilton Head during Hanse and Melissa's wedding were periphery bandits or something like that..

[Bluemax]

WOB ROM agents have detected your transmissions and have in a preemptive strike killed all your Player Character at the end of Life Path 4.

The funny thing about my campaign, nobody wanted to play the embedded ROM agent on the ship.

Leaving that to NPCs...

BlueMax

[Darthvegeta800]

WOB ROM agents have detected your transmissions and have in a preemptive strike killed all your Player Character at the end of Life Path 4.

Please elaborate on this for I am ignorant and seek enlightment!  [notworthy]

[truetanker]

At the sound of silence, the thermonuclear fuel air explosion will occur.

Have a Nice Day!

TT

[BirdofPrey]

Lucky for us that is impossible.

A fuel air mixture isn't anywhere close to reaching critical mass required for a nuclear reaction.

[PurpleDragon]

While that is a possibility just being born in the Sol system does not make a person a member of Comstar.  It is easier to think of Comstar as a corporation rather than a government since there is no automatic 'in' like there is in AToW conventions with governments and the order does take in people from all over the sphere of humanity.

That's funny, not trying to step on any toes here, I've always equated Comstar to something like the Catholic Church.  They have a presence in most factions in the inner sphere and their services are sought out by most who even know about them...

[monbvol]

Pre schism they were certainly a bit of both corporation and religious organization.