Life as a Hound

Jaeger Division — The Hounds

"Semper Sequimur — We always follow."

Jaeger Division is Aegis's fugitive recovery arm. There are 12 Hound teams; targets are called Strays. Notable teams are listed below.

Independent Contractors & Threats

Independent bounty hunters work the system's smaller, lower-risk warrants — the jobs Aegis doesn't bother sending a Hound team for.

Most are unremarkable. One isn't: Silas Mercer.

Mercer is a former Hound — once one of Jaeger's best — who went rogue years ago rather than accept that his career was over. He still works the same space Aegis does, chasing the same Strays, and he's good at it. Fast, experienced, and unpredictable. He answers to no Code, no Tribunal, and no chain of command. Hounds who've crossed his path and lived to tell the tale describe him less like competition and more like a hazard that wears a familiar face.

Nobody talks about exactly what happened to him. Word among Aegis old-timers is that it involves his sister — a very senior officer in Jaeger Division — but nobody brings that up around her either.

The Black Flags, covered in Factions, remain the system's other constant threat — less personal than Silas, but far more organized, and the single biggest danger to anyone flying a Core Run.

Terms You'll Hear

• Stray: A bounty target.
• Scent: The trail of evidence/intel that leads to a Stray.
• Collar / Collared: Go after a bounty / a successful capture.
• Bite: The moment a capture turns violent, or a warning that a target is dangerous — "that Stray is known to bite, be careful."
• Going Shield: Leaving OCA service to join Aegis.
• Core Run: A supply voyage between Odysseus and the Core via independent FTL. These carry essential supplies and rare feedstock that can't be replicated on Odysseus.
• Fringer: Someone who lives or works predominantly in the Fringe.
• Gone Fringe: Someone who's abandoned mainstream society for the outer system.
• Deep Fringe / the Drift: The remote Drift and outer-system territory near Nereid and the Black.

Unit H-07

You fly with a Hound fireteam of up to six, plus a pilot and optional android and engineer. You're packed into a Mastiff that's faster than it has any right to be and armed to survive firefights, not win a war (though the Ridgebacks of H-03 would disagree). Your job is recovery, not combat: bring the Stray back per the contract, keep your people alive, and let the Code do the rest when things get complicated.

Contracts start with Milo "Whisper" Venn handing you a Scent. From there it's tracking, surveillance, and legwork before finding the Stray. When things go loud, the Mastiff's Vulcan cannons and your training are there to get you out.

You'll answer to Maj. Anika Mercer, and through her to Commander Vale, Sato, and Odin himself — though if you ever meet the last three in person, something has either gone very wrong or you've made enough of a name for yourself that high command notices.

Your team is H-07, or Seven. Nobody's called you anything else yet.

That part's up to you.

Contents

1. The Setting — outlines the Six Systems and notable historical events.
2. Factions — details the major players in the Odysseus System and what they want.
3. The Odysseus System — a breakdown of the Odysseus system, where the players will find themselves.
4. Technology & Equipment — details technology, items, and equipment found in the setting.
5. Life as a Hound — a breakdown of Jaeger Division, the threats you'll face, and your team.

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