Emerging Vituperations of the Gaean Reach

As you scour the spacelanes of the Gaean Reach for traces of Quandos Vorn, the interstellar arch-criminal you have sworn at all costs to destroy, you may find it advantageous to familiarize yourself with the very latest terms of abuse. Although humanity in its vast sprawl through the galaxy has retained a common language, local slang terms continue to form, mutate, spread, then fall into disuse. Spurred by ever-present bureaucratic obstruction, the language hungrily seeks new ways to express frustration, contempt and calumny. You may need to know these terms to understand when you are being mocked, or to spur the laggardly into satisfactory action.

Armback: a stupid and/or gullible person. As in, you could convince him he has a third arm growing out of his back.

“No, you wretched armback! I don’t want you to perform the emergency procedure! I want you to learn the emergency procedure!”

Blurniquet: a generally useless person or thing. Derives from the story of Blurn of Blurn’s Planet, notorious for selling substandard or quack medical supplies.

“Don’t just lie there like a blurniquet! The leopards are invading the station!”

Borb: a person whose conversation one immediately wishes to extricate oneself from.

“Why in the name of Diana’s moons did you not rescue me from that unrelenting borb?”

Corruction: to punish with enforced party attendance. Often connotes metaphorical or literal coercion to consume heavy intoxicating or psychoactive substances.

“Beware, Spavine, or we shall subject you to corruction at the nearest star port.”

Glummiker: a complainer or congenital pessimist, especially one who cannot respond in kind to any expression of hope or pride.

“Well, we see who the glummiker is on this mission.”

Goyster: a person or situation that fails to live up to initial promise. Named from the delicious-looking false oysters of Goyanus Prime, a rare example of a food whose nutritional content is negative.

“The intersplit drive looked like a bargain, until I got under the console and saw it was an utter goyster.”

Hasbad: a once fearsome, now risible, individual.

“Take the projac, for all the good it will do you, you pathetic hasbad!”

Quasling: a wishy washy person, who is neither here nor there. A waffler.

“After six hours of interminable blather the quasling would still not definitively say if he has the supplies we need.”

The Gaean Reach, the Roleplaying Game of Interstellar Vengeance, brings to your tabletop the legendary cycle of science fiction classics by the great Jack Vance. This ingenious hybrid fuses the investigative clarity of the GUMSHOE system with the lethal wit of the Dying Earth Roleplaying Game. Purchase The Gaean Reach in print and PDF at the Pelgrane Shop.