G'Naakbusters
Cosmic Mongoose
We could have a book detailing common lifeforms that have established themselves on various worlds, either as domesticated livestock, pests and invasive species, sacred symbols, etc.
A chapter on "vermin", for example, giving both an overview of the type of animal (what makes a given lifeform successful as an opportunistic stowaway) and then specific examples that have been very successful and could show up nearly anywhere.
Or perhaps a breakdown by sector/region, like "Common invasive species Behind the Claw", "Livestock of the Solomani Sphere", "Infamous trophy predators of Core", "Ceremonial flora and fauna of the Aslan".
There could also be sections on how each major power/faction deals with cross-contamination of ecospheres, traces/catalogues biology, handles its crops/livestock, etc. Complete with scenarios; e.g.
"Vargr Faction A wants to undercut a rival's charisma by proving that Vargr Faction B's sacred bird actually originates on Vargr Faction A's planet";
"Solomani-Hiver political dispute over Hiver introduction of larvae-eating predator to a border world colony that spreads disease to a Solomani food animal"
"You're hired by the K'kree to destroy the last population of the rare Horse-Munching Beast of Planet Y" (alternatively, you're hired by Save The Horse-Munching Beast of Planet Y to prevent another group from messing up the local ecology).
A chapter on "vermin", for example, giving both an overview of the type of animal (what makes a given lifeform successful as an opportunistic stowaway) and then specific examples that have been very successful and could show up nearly anywhere.
Or perhaps a breakdown by sector/region, like "Common invasive species Behind the Claw", "Livestock of the Solomani Sphere", "Infamous trophy predators of Core", "Ceremonial flora and fauna of the Aslan".
There could also be sections on how each major power/faction deals with cross-contamination of ecospheres, traces/catalogues biology, handles its crops/livestock, etc. Complete with scenarios; e.g.
"Vargr Faction A wants to undercut a rival's charisma by proving that Vargr Faction B's sacred bird actually originates on Vargr Faction A's planet";
"Solomani-Hiver political dispute over Hiver introduction of larvae-eating predator to a border world colony that spreads disease to a Solomani food animal"
"You're hired by the K'kree to destroy the last population of the rare Horse-Munching Beast of Planet Y" (alternatively, you're hired by Save The Horse-Munching Beast of Planet Y to prevent another group from messing up the local ecology).
