Blasting your characters into space means a lot of art and battlemaps for regular fantasy just can’t keep up. Thankfully, third-party creators like us have created worlds of sci-fi adventure for your 5E game, whether you play online or in person.
While these may not be the 10 best maps on the entire Internet (because really, who could travel that entire universe?), they are our 10 favorites from CzePeku, friends and frequent collaborators on adventures for Dark Matter. Our sci-fi universe of ships, blasters, sorcerers and supernovas pairs perfectly with the beautiful map design on their website and Patreon.
Here are ten adventures based around sci-fi battle maps for your next game night.
1. Flying Saucer
This classic UFO has been a sci-fi staple since the earliest examples of the genre. In the Dark Matter universe, the very definition of alien is the amoeboids, an amorphous group of inquisitive technophiles first discovered along with the interstellar portals called Maws.
This flying saucer makes a great transition from a fantasy game to a sci-fi one. What happens when it lands in the courtyard of the castle your party is guarding? Or perhaps your party was contracted to retrieve an heirloom sun blade from mysterious invaders, but instead of being stolen by a rival family’s mercenaries it was retrieved by amoeboid scientists, and taken aboard the flying saucer for further study.
2. Epidemestus
“Space is disease and danger wrapped in darkness and silence,” or so the saying goes. As your party adventures in the ‘Verse, they might encounter the smallest spore of a transmutative alien disease. Before long, the ship itself is covered in strange organisms immune to the hazards of unprotected space travel. There are maps for every stage of this infection. What is this creature, and how does it change your party?
3. Corp Tower
Neon lights and endless rain set the perfect ambience for this rooftop scene in a cramped, futuristic city.
It’s the perfect setting for android hunting, corporate espionage, or a hot drop of illicit goods right under the authority’s noses.
4. Blue Swallow
Fun fact: 75% of Dark Matter adventures start with a distress signal. What better ship to send one than a signal relay ship?
CzePeku made a special variant of this ship called the Blue Jay for an adventure called Bluejay’s Call, where a derelict signal vessel leads the party into wild space adventures.
5. Ancient World Forge
The bird-headed Avia-Ra are one of the first races to have achieved interstellar travel, and relics of their ancient culture are scattered all across the ‘Verse—even, perhaps, in ancient Egypt.
This avai-ra solarium might be the last link to the sacred Solar Citadel, with the party racing against avia-ra worshippers and heretics alike to open the portal within. If the party can retrieve the magical Vestments of Ra, they might stand a chance!
6. Hawkeye
A bounty hunter is only as good as their ship: Spike Spiegel and the Cowboy Bebop, Boba Fett and the Firespray. So who flies the Hawkeye?
This hyper-agile, twin-cannoned ship is a high-speed striker, perfect for a crew of interstellar adventurers who hold nothing back. See you space cowboy!
7. Horus 918
You never know when you need a hyperspace jump point! Horus 918 is a hub for interstellar travel uniting races from all over the ‘Verse. Strange that the tariffs on Crash, the universe’s favorite soda, are so high this time; what are you going to do about that pallet of it in the hold?
My personal favorite variant of this map is one where the jump point drifts in shattered, charred fragments after a cataclysmic explosion—it’s just called “whoops.” Can your party find out who did a whoopsy before private military enforcers from The Coalition show up to haul you all to a prison transport?
8. Planatus
This moth-inspired research vessel is a biological haven for green and growing things in a dark, freezing void. One of the Great Houses of spacefaring star elves has invested heavily in this ambitious project, and they’re willing to pay handsomely if you can figure out which specimen doesn’t belong. Has the garden of weird alien plants gone evil? What do you think?
Ever since you visited this celestial garden, you’ve been hearing noises in the ductwork of your ship. What are you going to do about the infestation of thwirrels you picked up while you were there?
9. Squengi’s Grill
Even spacers need to eat. The best burgers in the ‘Verse come from Squengi’s Grill, an interstellar food truck built directly into an asteroid. When that bright neon “EAT” sign comes into view, good times are sure to be ahead. But what is the chrome-finished interior of the restaurant hiding in the back?
Is Squengi’s Diner a front for the Firm? What happens when your party is hired to find out? This is an early adventure in a series of adventures called Contractor Corp, and you can get it on the Mage Hand Press Patreon.
10. Macrocheira
The ‘Verse is spotted with Dead Magic Zones where no arcana can exist. Repair vessels like these are built by the enigmatic, life-suit wearing nautilids to search Dead Magic Zones for clues to their former homeworld. What happens when the magical relic you dig up begins to function again outside the zone?
With these maps and many more, Cze Peku can bring your Dark Matter adventures into vivid color. Give them a look and let them know we sent you!
