The Free Captains

Anyone who regularly traverses the space lanes is aware of the threat posed by space pirates, and within the Galactic Alliance no pirates are as infamous—or as successful—as the Free Captains. More a coalition of independent starship captains than an organized pirate fleet, the Free Captains primarily operate out of the myriad floating asteroids of the Diaspora, but their influence stretches out to the Veskarium, Near Space, and even the Vast.
An elected council of pirate lords serves as the organization's ostensible leaders, and any Free Captain “right and true” has the right to vote for council members and to present grievances and other business before the council. However, the Pirate Council's authority over individual Free Captains depends on the strength of the pirate lords' personal influence and the might of their individual pirate fleets.
What truly joins the Free Captains together is the pirate code they all share—a loose set of rules that nevertheless provides some structure to the pirates' depredations and serves as a unifying influence when the Free Captains are faced with outside threats from local and interplanetary security forces. Many of the pirate code's “rules” leave plenty of room for interpretation, however, and while one Free Captain might set prisoners free once she has relieved her captives of their valuables, another might be a cutthroat buccaneer with no compunction about taking innocent lives.
Piracy in the Galactic Alliance is a serious concern for any corporation that needs to ship goods from one planet to another. While the wealthier companies are able to outfit their cargo ships with enough firepower to fend off raiders or hire mercenary escorts, smaller vessels need to be fast or stealthy to avoid the predations of space pirates. Most private citizens rely on Warden Corps and Bounty Hunter Guild patrols to keep space safe, but those forces can't be everywhere at once.

Space Pirates

Space pirates are any rank-and-file crew members found aboard a pirate vessel. They may have taken to a life of piracy because of a criminal past or a lack of other opportunities, or because they were press-ganged, or they may even have been born into a family or clan of pirates. Given the barest basics of pilot training, space pirates focus most of their abilities on combat and intimidation, serving as gunners for the ship’s weapons and as members of boarding parties.
Some Free Captains aren’t particular about the kind of crew members they recruit for their vessels, taking any bodies they can find. Others are looking for only the cream of the crop, but they are willing to train those who appear to have potential.
Free Captain Those pirate captains with their own ships who are successful and gain the respect of established Free Captains are awarded full membership in the loose confederation of buccaneers that is the Free Captains, usually with a raucous ceremony on Eclipse Gamma. A Free Captain whose initiation is attended by one or more pirate lords generally has a promising career ahead. Most Free Captains command just a single starship and know every inch of their ships from fore to aft. They are usually beholden to or allied with a more powerful pirate lord. Free Captains are seldom encountered alone, as their ships and crews are never far away, if the captain can help it.

Pirate Lord

The Pirate Council of Eclipse Gamma provides what little leadership and direction the pirates of the Diaspora will accept, but only the most infamous and successful Free Captains are considered pirate lords and nominated for positions on the council. This political process is fraught with backstabbing and betrayal, as the current members of the Pirate Council are often reluctant to share their power with those whom they consider newcomers.
Each pirate lord commands a fleet of starships and controls one of the innumerable asteroid bases, hidden dockyards, and pirate ports in the Diaspora. A few pirate lords own gaudy mansions on Eclipse Gamma and spend a lot of their time lounging within them, delegating control of their fleets to trusted underlings. Other pirate lords tend to scoff at these hands-off pirate lords.

Type

Illicit, Pirate Crew