TPoD Campaign Book 1, pp21,22
Any system with sufficient resources and trade will maintain a fleet of system defence boats (SDBs) and customs vessels. Even on technologically primitive worlds, the government will either hire private contractors or request Imperial aid. These SDBs patrol the space around the mainworld, as well as other key locations in the system such as gas giants or asteroid belts. While the main purpose of an SDB fleet is to protect against invasion, they hone their skills hunting pirates. Pirate hunting can also be an important duty for the Imperial navy and subsector navies. The Imperial navy only bothers with pirate hunting when training new crews, or when a nest of pirates proves especially troublesome. Many years can go by before the navy bothers to act; but when they do, they use overwhelming force. Imperial navy ships are deployed to besiege and destroy pirate bases. Subsector navies are much more active when it comes to pirate hunting, and it is one of their primary roles. Subsector navies use much smaller and more agile warships, making them ideal for patrols and anti-pirate operations. Pirates often operate across subsector borders to avoid subsector fleets – the dead hand of bureaucracy is a powerful weapon in the stratified Imperium, and one duke may be unwilling to allow a neighbour’s ships to enter his space. Any of these pirate hunters may respond to a distress call from a merchant ship. Roll on the Response table when the pirate attack begins.
Apply the following modifiers. Backwater System: DM-1 Dangerous World: DM-1 High-Traffic System: DM+1 Secure World: DM+1 Capital or other key System: DM+2 Naval Base: DM+2
Customs ships are small, fast-moving lightly armed vessels, designed to intercept smugglers and patrol the spaceways. A customs ship is not designed to get into a shooting match with another vessel, although most could inflict significant damage on a small pirate. Customs vessels are normally the first to respond to a pirate attack, although they will call in support from SDBs if necessary.
System Defence Boats vary wildly in size. The largest SDBs are hollowed-out asteroids bigger than any capital ship; these supermonitors are designed to fight off invading fleets, and could swat every pirate in the subsector with a single broadside. The SDBs normally encountered by pirates are much smaller escorts. SDBs are extremely dangerous, as they are faster and better armed than any pirate ship. They are incapable of jump travel, though, and their crew may not be as skilled as a hardened pirate band, so a clever pirate can avoid or escape a SDB.
Q-ships are merchant vessels with concealed weapons, used as lures for pirates and commerce raiders. Most subsector navies have a few old q-ships in storage that are hauled out when pirate activity becomes a problem. The q-ship then ‘conveniently’ jumps into dangerous systems and offers itself as a tempting target for pirates. When the attack begins, the q-ship responds by revealing its weapons and launching fighters. Some worlds use a variant on the q-ship concept, where they send freighters loaded with booby-trapped cargo into dangerous space. When the pirates steal the cargo, the booby trap is activated. High-explosive charges are the most common form of booby trap, but other q-ships have concealed armoured marines, lethal toxins or even nuclear mines.
Small naval vessels like the Gazelle-class close escort are ideal pirate hunters. These vessels can outgun or outrun most pirate ships, and unlike an SDB they have skilled crews and can chase corsairs from one system to another. Naval vessels may also carry high-acceleration fighters, which can chase down pirate vessels in the same way pirates chase down prey. Small naval vessels are the bane of piracy. The only chance for the pirate is to flee to a less well-patrolled subsector and start again. Actually destroying the naval vessel is the worst possible course of action, as it ensures the pirate will be hunted down and exterminated by the navy. At least surrendering means the pirate may survive.
Massive capital warships are much too large and expensive to be ‘wasted’ on pirate hunting. Nonetheless, pirates do sometimes encounter capital ships. There are two likely scenarios – either the navy has detected a pirate base, and wish to pound it into free-floating dust, or some influential noble or corporation has made a fuss and the navy wishes to show how seriously it takes the pirate situation. Both scenarios involve a great deal of overkill.
If all the above pirate hunters are unable to deal with a particularly troublesome corsair, then the time-honoured system of bounties can produce results. Putting a price on a pirate’s head (or hull) means that every adventurer and bounty hunter in the subsector will be looking for him. Usually, this price ends up getting collected by another pirate.