| Term | History |
|---|
| 1 | Became a Surveyor at age 18 |
| 1 | When dealing with an alien race, you botch an opportunity to gather extra intelligence about them. |
| 1 | Lightly injured, no permanent damage. Fully recovered. |
| 2 | Voluntarily left Surveyor |
| 2 | Became a Merchant Marine at age 22 |
| 2 | Is now a Crewman |
| 2 | Refuse to smuggle illegal items onto a planet. Gain an Enemy. |
| 2 | Forced to continue current assignment |
| 2 | Promoted to rank 1 |
| 2 | Is now a Senior Crewman |
| 3 | Continued as Merchant Marine at age 26 |
| 3 | Imperial trade restrictions force you out of business. |
| 4 | Became a Line/Crew at age 30 |
| 4 | Is now a Crewman |
| 4 | A romantic relationship ends badly. Gain a Rival or Enemy. |
| 4 | Promoted to Line/Crew rank 1 |
| 4 | Is now a Able Spacehand |
| 5 | Voluntarily left Line/Crew |
| 5 | Switched to Free Trader at age 34 |
| 5 | Bankrupted by a rival. Gain the other trader as a Rival. |
| 6 | Became a Field Researcher at age 38 |
| 6 | Refuse to join a cheat in some fashion. |
| 6 | Promoted to rank 1 |
| 7 | Continued as Field Researcher at age 42 |
| 7 | Caught cheating in some fashion, advancing your career and research by stealing another’s work, using an alien device, taking a shortcut and so forth. |
| 7 | An expedition or voyage goes wrong, leaving you stranded in the wilderness. |
| 7 | Gain an Enemy |
| 7 | Promoted to rank 2 |
| 8 | Continued as Field Researcher at age 46 |
| 8 | A disaster or war strikes. |
| 8 | Injured. Fully recovered. |
| 8 | The planetary government interferes with your research for political or religious reasons. You continue working openly and gain an Enemy. |
| 9 | Continued as Field Researcher at age 50 |
| 9 | A rival researcher blackens your name or steals your research. Gain a Rival. |
| 9 | Promoted to rank 3 |
| 10 | Continued as Field Researcher at age 54 |
| 10 | Advanced training in a specialist field. |
| 10 | Promoted to rank 4 |
| 11 | Aging Crisis. Owe 60,000 for medical bills. |
| 11 | Continued as Field Researcher at age 58 |
| 11 | A rival researcher blackens your name or steals your research. Gain a Rival. |
| 12 | Aging Crisis. Owe 20,000 for medical bills. |
| 12 | Continued as Field Researcher at age 62 |
| 12 | Your work is sabotaged by unknown parties. You may salvage what you can and give up. |
| 13 | Retired at age 66 |
| 13 | Moved to a new world. |
| 14 | Aging Crisis. Owe 10,000 for medical bills. |
| 14 | Moved to a new world. |
| 15 | Aging Crisis. Owe 20,000 for medical bills. |