Hello Folks,

Need some help understading the layers of communication in the Satr wars universe...

For example.. the Holonet.. how the emperor and Vader talk light years away..

Short range interplanetary?

Short range local space?

HOw do folks find eachother to deliver messages? Mail?? EMail? Data slates???

From what I know, everything is based on the HoloNet, which is like the internet... But in StarWars... And short and long range comm systems. Holonet is only connected to devices that use the HoloNet, it would be like having a specific Holonet projector or node. And just because a HoloNet node is in, let's say a room, doesn't mean everything in that room is also connected to the HoloNet. It's a bit weird as the HoloNet connects everything, but most other tech in StarWars is hardwired and not connected to the HoloNet whatsoever. There is messaging on the HoloNet, such as via an email like Text system AND HoloVids (think YouTube).

For closer communication, there's short and long range comm systems, which function similar to hailing or radio. I don't know exactly what science in the StarWars universe goes behind comm systems, but they seem to function like short range and long range radios in our universe.

Also, Dataslates are also part of the universe and thought of as the most secure method of delivery if they aren't connected to the HoloNet, as the HoloNet is sliceable.

One thing that I find useful is to think of Star Wars, especially the "Edge of the Empire" setting, as having more in common with the Old West than with our more modern era of the internet.

In the Old West, it was possible to send telegraph messages and letters by post but these kinds of communications could play out over months as letters take time to be delivered and received.

If you wanted to have a real-time conversation with somebody your best option was to be in the same room with them.

Note that this is mostly for the players--for the Empire, who has control of an access to the HoloNet, those kinds of intragalactic communications that we see in the movies are more manageable.

For the players, I'd consider that if they're on the run, perhaps concealing their identities, then their best options for communications are to communicate through trusted sources. To visit a trusted contact on a known planet or space station and ask them to get a message to another trusted contact somewhere else, possibly through illegal means. This could mean slicing the HoloNet so as not to leave a trace of the message, or perhaps sending a ship with a messenger on it.

If the players aren't on the run, their identities aren't concealed, and they don't mind registering the true identity of their ship at every port they visit, then they'll probably have more options open to them.

The HoloNet

was a galactic communications grid that was developed, used and maintained by the Galactic Republic and later by the Galactic Empire. The HoloNet was a near-instantaneous communications network commissioned by the Galactic Senate to provide a free flow of hologram communication and information exchange among member worlds. It vastly sped up galactic communications, which had previously depended on more circuitous subspace transmissions or relays.

A message was first broadcast from a planet, a vessel in hyperspace, or from another point of origin; from there, it was then routed from the point of origin's transmitter through potentially millions of hyperwave transceivers suspended in hyperspace to a Holonet relay, where it was sorted, identified and logged by the relay's computer, and then routed further via appropriate transceivers to its destination. The transceivers themselves transferred information across the galaxy through s-threads. This enabled data to be sent and received at faster-than-light speeds, ensuring near-instantaneous communication from one end of the galaxy to the other, by routing information from origin, to transceiver, to Holonet relay, to transceiver network yet again, and finally to its destination.

It should also be noted that information transmitted via the HoloNet was nearly impossible to infiltrate or corrupt, thanks to the s-thread's incredibly narrow hyperspace dimensions. The only way to do so was to attach a listening device to the sender's equipment, the relay station, or at the destination itself.

The HoloNet system was an extremely costly expenditure, both for transceiver placement/maintenance (funded by the government) and for consumer HoloNet equipment. However, it was one of the major methods of communication in the galaxy.

Created thanks to the Galactic Senate's efforts many years before the Clone Wars, the HoloNet quickly expanded throughout the galaxy, ending up with at least one emitter/receiver device located on virtually every planet of the Galactic Republic.

During the Clone Wars, the Confederacy created the CIS Shadowfeed, a network of hyperwave transceivers similar to the Republic's HoloNet News channel. During this time, both sides used the HoloNet to broadcast propaganda.

When Emperor Palpatine assumed power, large portions of the HoloNet were shut down to prevent news of the Empire's atrocities from spreading quickly. During the time of the Empire, the HoloNet was strictly controlled, used mostly for Imperial Military communications. This greatly inhibited the ability of groups like the Alliance to Restore the Republic to communicate, and arguably also had an isolating effect on the many planets over which the Empire held power. During this period, Ebenn Q3 Baobab created an alternative HoloNet since the official HoloNet disseminated only Imperial propaganda without the "complication" of unapproved free speech. After the Empire fell, HoloNet channels were reopened and security was lifted, restoring free speech.

Hyperspace transceiver

Subspace transceivers, also known as subspace radios and hypertransceivers, were standard devices used for instantaneous, faster-than-light communications between nearby systems. Similar to its shorter-ranged cousin, the comlink, subspace transceivers relied on energy to broadcast signals. Starships carried these units to broadcast distress signals and other important messages. They used subspace as the communications medium. The subspace transceiver of an Imperial Star Destroyer had a range of 100 light-years. Many planetary governments, large corporations, and wealthy individuals maintained private subspace transceivers. Because each radio had a range of up to several light years, governments used these units to connect local planets with a sector-wide communications grid. Although much more powerful than standard comlinks, subspace radios were not nearly as advanced or effective as the HoloNet. Most planets were integrated into local subspace networks that used transceivers aboard deep-space satellites to link dozens of worlds in an instantaneous and continuous flow of data. These networks normally handled news, sports, entertainment, and educational programming. Individuals and corporations purchased broadcast time for private messages, with fees running anywhere from one to twenty credits per ten seconds of transmission time. Hundreds of subspace networks were scattered across the galaxy, so a message could theoretically be sent across the galaxy by bouncing it across multiple networks. While this process was much more affordable than the HoloNet, messages could be delayed for hours or days as they were routed through different networks. Because each network had different communication protocols, messages could be corrupted or lost, and so it was often cheaper and safer to send long-distance messages by courier ships.

Scientific Jargon

^ More 'scientific' explanation than mine .

These are some good explanations, but I like to keep it simple.

Imagine each habitable world has its own communications network. Then that is linked up to a system-wide network, which is then linked up to the HoloNet or its shady alternatives. Thus, intra-system comms wouldn't necessarily ever leave the local network and thus wouldn't really get on the HoloNet that's under Imperial control.

Suns of Fortune lists some non-Holonet inter-system hyperwave communication devices as well, for those deals you'd rather the Empire not know about.

AWesome.. Thanks!

HOw do folks find eachother to deliver messages? Mail?? EMail? Data slates???

Depends on a couple of things:

* The technology level of the area. Courscant is probably going to have better holonet access than Tatooine

* How much is the sender willing to spend? Physical mail and packages? Probably pretty cheap. Real time holonet access across the galaxy? Gonna cost a ton of cash.

* Resources of the sender. Kenobi was hooked up with a pretty nice fighter (and droid to boost the signal) and had government backing to call home from remote areas. Someone a little more. . . slapdash? Probably not so much.

* Needs of the plot. Does your story need real time communication with someone to advance the plot. Then it is so, regardless if your on Hoth with only a penknife and a snuggy as your equipment list.

There does appear to be fairly instant FTL communication in Star Wars, but it appears to be limited to high-level political and military leaders. We can probably figure it's very expensive and maybe not totally reliable -- transmissions can be jammed, after all. Furthermore, that technology appears to have been in common use prior to the Empire, so we can further assume the Imperials placed restrictions on its use for their own purposes.

If you wanted, there could be a quest in there somewhere, in which a ship of rogues tracks down and steals a real-time transceiver for their own use or for a client. I imagine they'd be pretty valuable.

In planning for our new campaign, I'm working out how to have the characters' various contacts communicate with them, and I'm planning to do something like this:

If the player has a TRUSTED contact who knows their ship's actual identity and rough location, they could send some sort of a holomessage to them. But in most cases this isn't going to be more detailed than "Meet me on Ord Mantell at the Lucky Mynock in three days, I have important news for you."

Especially with outlaw types, most people aren't going to want to send details in this way.

That's how I'm planning to manage it.