People are superstitious by nature, and when you combine dangerous work with a lack of control over their circumstances, those superstitions become even more powerful. Given the nature of their work, it’s unsurprising that spacers who travel the voids between worlds have slews of traditions that they insist be maintained by all onboard their vessels in order to maintain good luck for their voyages between the stars.

Some of these superstitions trace back to the old beliefs and practices of world bound sailors. Others came about only after vessels went to space, and found themselves in an environment even more hostile and unpredictable than the waters of the seas. While the specific superstitions will vary from world to world, ship to ship, and even from one spacer to another, these are some of the more dominant superstitions one is likely to run across if they spend any real amount of time trekking across the blackness beyond the sky.

To use the list, either roll d100 for a random result or select appropriate ones manually.

Here are some sample results:

46. Spending money like a spacer is a common enough saying, but there’s a particular superstition in many ports concerning void treaders and their credits. It’s considered ill luck to get on a ship with scrip still in one’s pockets, and many spacers go so far as to ensure their credit keys and valuables are kept in trust with a bank that has a good reputation specifically so those items aren’t onboard with them. They venture out into the void without riches, because it’s said the stars will smile on those who come to them in need. However, those who come with wealth in their holds are likely to receive nothing but scorn from the stars, which can result in trials and tribulations to teach a crew humility.

47. Spilling the salt onboard a vessel is bad, and to avoid being a part of this misfortune many spacers won’t actually hand spice pots to one another around the galley table. Instead, the tube must be closed, set down, and left to sit for a moment before the new spacer picks it up and opens the pot again. All it takes is a single dropped pot to spill valuable contents, and that’s blame for all parties involved. While some vessels merely treat this superstition as an old habit that’s best not taken seriously, some will invoke serious consequences for spacers who break from this tradition… especially if they do something as reckless as actually tossing a spice tube to someone!

48. Departing spacers always look to cross paths with certain kinds of people on their way out of port. Tipping a prostitute, for instance, is said to be good luck. So is receiving a kiss from one. Paying for the kiss, though, is said to taint the luck, and to curse a spacer’s journey. A hand clasp from a retired spacer is said to give one a touch of the good fortune that saw the old hand through their own career in the void, as well. The particular individuals may vary from world to world and culture to culture, but this is a commonality among those in the star faring trade.

Released: 17th September 2022 Pages: 19

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Neal Litherland Reads “Voices in the Void”