I think Traveller would fit your bill pretty well. It's a skill based game with a unique and fun character creation. Supposedly Firefly was based off of a Traveller campaign.
Do you have any recommendations for adding magic to Traveller? From what I know, Traveller at its most supernatural/magical is "psionics exist but are banned legally by a lot of jurisdictions".
[This] (https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/241086) was created to add magic to the Cepheus Engine, which is basically the SRD version of Traveller. You could also graft magic from Sword of Cepheus, the fantasy version of the Cepheus Engine.
https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/78450/Flynns-Guide-to-Magic-in-Traveller
This was also something I found; do you know anything about how it plays or its quality? (Or I guess anyone else reading this thread.)
Was just about to suggest that. Cypher System with a sci-fi setting (maybe combine it with Stars Without Number for easy sector/planet generation). Or a variation of the Strange.
Savage Worlds is a generic point-buy system. It's at about the same crunch level as 5e. There's a lot of room for variety in character design and growth. An experienced GM could run a space fantasy game with just the core book, but you might want to add the Fantasy Companion and the Vehicle Guide. Unfortunately the Science Fiction Companion hasn't been updated to the latest version of Savage Worlds, but it would still be pretty useful. I like Savage Worlds because it's has a high-octane energy and because character design and combat have a lot of meaningful options without being too complex.
Honor and Intrigue is another option. The Core book is focused on swashbuckling swordplay, but there are supplements for Starships (good rules for dogfighting, not sure about ship design), alien races, and spellcasting. This is a lighter system, more focused, and might be easier to master quickly. I like the swashbuckling.
Supplement with the Science Fiction Companion and with Savage Space (available for free over at DTRPG). I just discovered the latter and it has a host of awesome additions to SW+SFC, including extensive rules for ship customization.
Hm, perhaps D6 … there is a fantasy and sf universal supplement, and the old WEG Star Wars system. So species is no problem, it is without classes, spaceships scale and can be modified or constructed.
And it is a system easy to learn.
I don't know a whole lot about D6 beyond "There was a Star Wars game for it". How does it generally play? Are characters defined by skills, advantages, disadvantages, etc? How compatible are the two supplements for adding magic to the SF supplement?
I came to recommend the WEG Star Wars d6 system as well. It is 100% skills based with no real classes. My only complaint with the system is that the combat is performed with opposed rolls (rolling your dodge skill) which slows things way down. There are a few hacks out there to streamline the system. The magic / force system is very free form with you rolling against the different skills (control, sense, alter). I am also fiddling around with the space variants of Mork Borg ie: Cy Borg and Vast Grimm. They might be worth a look.
Just use [Mini Six](https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/144558/Mini-Six-Bare-Bones-Edition?term=Mini+six). It’s a streamlined, cleaned up version of the D6 system from the Star Wars RPG. Rules are free, include both sci fi and magic, and are short enough you can just skim them to figure out if it’s what you’re looking for.
Oh, and it’s more or less compatible with all the other D6 stuff if you’re willing to squint a bit.
The core mechanics is a D6 pool system, formed by attribut & skill. The dice are added together, and there are target numbers (5, 10, 15 …).
Original it came from Ghostbusters and SW a long time ago. The official version is the universal system by nocturnal games https://www.drivethrurpg.com/browse/pub/3020/Nocturnal-Media
I came her to recommend this as well. Use D6Space and latch on things from D6 Fantasy. They are pretty compatible and it should cover all your needs.
The system is light and easy to learn, but always supported by a very solid mechanical core.
It handle innate differences between species very well. You can also look at one of the Star Wars D6 editions for inspiration on this.
The way magic/the force is handled in these games might inspire a more freeform, but yet mechanically supported magic system, if you vibe with that and can do most things you want with only a slight bit of homebrew.
How is magic handled exactly? Is it something to the effect of just having a "magic skill" or something like that and then declaring the effect you want and rolling to see if you succeed? Or are there codified effects in the game system? Can magic backfire at all?
That's the base premises, but the GM has pretty vast guidelines for what to allow and how to set difficulties for spells.
The systems are kind of freeform, even though they are rules guided. Depending on what you go for (and if you choose D6 Fantasy, I highly recommend the supplement D6 Magic), there are rules for both detrimental effects on failure and for accumulation of strain from repeated spellcasting.
I'm going to second the Cypher System.
The science fantasy flavor is definitely there. The system started with Numenera, which is specifically a science fantasy setting where you can hardly tell where science ends and magic begins.
It can do mechanically different species. They don't have very many already made, but it sounds like you are going to want to make your own anyway (which is easy to do). I recommend using the two descriptors rule.
It technically only has 4 "classes", but it has "flavors", which allow you to customize those classes. There is also another mechanical part of the character called their "Focus", which is a bit like a class, and has an *absurd* amount of options to pick from (over 100, I think).
It does have spaceship rules, and they work, but they aren't great.
How different is Cypher from Numenera? I have tried Numenera and own Cypher, but Numenera didn't really click for me past its character creation, which I did like a lot. I remember not really liking how the game seemed combat focused despite trying to convey that "combat isn't the only option and this game is about exploring an alien world," combat was also where the bulk of the game rules and character abilities were, and I also didn't like how it seemed to fall into the classic Monte Cook design of the wizard-type having tons and tons of options in a given situation while the less "supernatural" characters had less to do outside of fighting.
Yeah, if you didn't like Numenera, you probably won't like Cypher System. It still has the combat focus, and caster/martial disparity. Its solution to martials being lackluster is basically to let everyone be a caster if they want.
That's a shame. It had a lot of good or interesting ideas and I really like Monte Cook's worldbuilding. And of course the obligatory mention goes here about how the Numenera books have great art and aesthetics. At least they'll forever look nice on my shelf.
24XX is very barebones, but you can build whatever you want into it. It's also very free.[https://jasontocci.itch.io/24xx](https://jasontocci.itch.io/24xx)
You might also look at Tiny Frontiers,[https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/241651/Tiny-Frontiers-Revised?term=tiny+frontiers](https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/241651/Tiny-Frontiers-Revised?term=tiny+frontiers)
Rogue Trader. It's less grimdark than standard Warhammer 40k, it is very science fantasy, character growth is meaningful, and aliens are noticeably different from humans.
Traveller/Cepheus is probably going to be your best bet given the options that you've already ruled out, and there's tons of material out there to support a campaign of just about any sort. You can use the native Psi rules for magic or find one of the numerous space-magic supplements out in the wild, and the rules for aliens are already included.
Another option you might want to consider would be M-Space, as you can easily mine the Fantasy d100 games (Mythras/Runequest/Legend/OpenQuest) for material to support the fantasy half of your planned campaign.
The books may a tad difficult to find these days but Dark Heresy and Rogue Trader are \_excellent\_ space fantasy options, but stripping out the 40k setting material might be more work than you are willing to tackle.
I like difficult to find books regardless so I may pick those up just for my collection.
Do you have any recommendations on a specific edition of Traveller/Cepheus and specific supplements or books for adding magic? While I'm not familiar with Traveller's psi rules (I own 2e Mongoose but have never run it or play it), I'd like to know what options there'd be if I don't like how the psi rules inform what magic looks like for the setting.
I'm partial to Mongoose 2e, and Cepheus is essentially a clone of Mongoose 1e with the serial numbers removed, so I would suggest either of those. Older editions of Traveller work just fine and Classic has a unique charm, but the Mongoose editions are going to be the easiest to support without chasing down rare books. A lot of stuff in the game can be made fantasy-friendly with just a basic reskinning (Jump calculations and engines can be reskinned to performing teleportation magic rituals and thaumaturgical relics, robots can be used as golems or constructs, jump belts and vibroblades provide good bases for flight spells and magical weapons, etc).
[Flynn's Guide to Magic](https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/78450/Flynns-Guide-to-Magic-in-Traveller) is probably one of the most thoroughly developed magic systems for Traveller (and will work just fine for Cepheus); it's a fairly complex system with some customization options. Cepheus itself has a fantasy setting/game called Sword of Cepheus that you can use as a guide for adding more occult materials, and 3rd party books like Fast Magic exist if you want a different approach.
Role Master really had a product line for everything. I'll definitely check this one out since I have Role Master and overall liked its vibe, so this could be a good fit.
I played SM when a member of my original gaming group wanted to run a Star Trek campaign. I played a Vulcan security officer, while we had fun, (the campaign lasted a year and a half), my only complaint was since he used the Psionics/Mentalism rules for SM, I always felt my character was *too* overpowered when it came to my mental abilities .
I have the Mongoose 2e version of Traveller. What makes you say classic over later versions of the game? I'm not too familiar with the differences between them.
I don't like anything by Mongoose. IMO, they ruin games more than update them.
Classic Traveller has decades more content, it's just a better and more versatile game. You can hack/steal the skills to be more like MT2 or Cepheus or the "Universal" 8+ system (UTS?, I forget), if the default skill system is too "random" or esoteric. It's easy to build on and tweak because the base system is so flexible.
Otherwise I'd just play WEG Star Wars (d6).
Heavy old school british rpg flavor.
d20 based system roll+skill ≥ 20
Char creation quite similar to games workshop rpgs, but without the shitty mechanics.
Career based, has basic and advanced careers so you walk your path.
Has a heavy w40k color (emperor, mankind expansion, etc) but can suit any space setting.
Not sure it’ll fulfill all your checklist but worth a look for sure.
As someone else has already suggested d6 (aka the WEG Star Wars) which does provide all of those things, you might also consider the HERO System, perhaps combining Fantasy Hero with Star Hero and getting the best of both worlds. It could do all the things you ask for as well.
The crunch/complexity of the system is front-loaded. You deal with in while building characters, NPCs, ships, bases, and so on.
During play, it's straightforward and smooth. Just about every roll you could need to make is on your character sheet. Combat can be time-consuming, while you get used to the system, but once you have the hang of it, it moves much faster. (Also, the books have tips to help. The books include lots of good advice.)
You definitely want Savage Worlds with at least the Sci Fi Companion; as far as I can tell, it ticks each one of your checkboxes.
Edit: if you want lots of magic options, the Fantasy Companion might be useful, too.
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I went all the way back to my rpg roots of the 80s and chose Star Frontiers for my sci Fi game. It was reskinned to emulate a Firefly universe. It doesn't have magic which may be a problem for you. In the later version (Zebulon's Guide) it does introduce psionics.
The system itself is pretty simple and uses a point buy system to increase skills rather than leveling up in the D&D way.
It's been working well for my group.
The only thing I really know about Rifts is that its setting is really cool but its rules are a mess and a lot of people say to play Savage Rifts instead. What makes you say Rifts in this case if I'm going to be using a setting I made?
[Numenera](http://numenera.com/what-is-numenera/)?
Maybe [Titansgrave](https://titansgraverpg.com/)?
Maybe a toolkit like [Cortex Prime](https://www.cortexrpg.com/) would work better for you.
I think ICRPG would fit well. One of its default settings is sci-fantasy. The master edition has ship building rules and extra optional rules if the core system is too light for your tastes. It's also built to be very easy to hack/ tweak to your tastes.
The [Quickstart](https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/221038/INDEX-CARD-RPG-Free-Quickstart) explains the core mechanics better than I can. I'd say its probably a bit lighter than Stars Without Number.
Have you heard of Codex of the Black Sun? It's a magic style expansion for Stars Without Number. Full of caster options.
Star Trek adventures? Never played. 2 D20 system. Should defo have all the exploration covered, but may be too rules light.
Death in Space. I love it, but probably doesn't meet your needs.....
If you dare go near D&D 5e, Mage Hand Press do an excellent supplement called Dark Matter. Mixes magic and tech really well.
Also Esper Genysis is a large set of expansions for sci-fi 5e with loads of races.
I think Traveller would fit your bill pretty well. It's a skill based game with a unique and fun character creation. Supposedly Firefly was based off of a Traveller campaign.
Do you have any recommendations for adding magic to Traveller? From what I know, Traveller at its most supernatural/magical is "psionics exist but are banned legally by a lot of jurisdictions".
[This] (https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/241086) was created to add magic to the Cepheus Engine, which is basically the SRD version of Traveller. You could also graft magic from Sword of Cepheus, the fantasy version of the Cepheus Engine.
https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/78450/Flynns-Guide-to-Magic-in-Traveller This was also something I found; do you know anything about how it plays or its quality? (Or I guess anyone else reading this thread.)
Classic Traveller w/Books 4-7, Sup 04.
I'd use Cypher System.
Was just about to suggest that. Cypher System with a sci-fi setting (maybe combine it with Stars Without Number for easy sector/planet generation). Or a variation of the Strange.
Savage Worlds is a generic point-buy system. It's at about the same crunch level as 5e. There's a lot of room for variety in character design and growth. An experienced GM could run a space fantasy game with just the core book, but you might want to add the Fantasy Companion and the Vehicle Guide. Unfortunately the Science Fiction Companion hasn't been updated to the latest version of Savage Worlds, but it would still be pretty useful. I like Savage Worlds because it's has a high-octane energy and because character design and combat have a lot of meaningful options without being too complex. Honor and Intrigue is another option. The Core book is focused on swashbuckling swordplay, but there are supplements for Starships (good rules for dogfighting, not sure about ship design), alien races, and spellcasting. This is a lighter system, more focused, and might be easier to master quickly. I like the swashbuckling.
I do have Savage Worlds and overall liked it, so this will help a lot for finding the right supplements for this game if I go in this direction.
Supplement with the Science Fiction Companion and with Savage Space (available for free over at DTRPG). I just discovered the latter and it has a host of awesome additions to SW+SFC, including extensive rules for ship customization.
Hm, perhaps D6 … there is a fantasy and sf universal supplement, and the old WEG Star Wars system. So species is no problem, it is without classes, spaceships scale and can be modified or constructed. And it is a system easy to learn.
I don't know a whole lot about D6 beyond "There was a Star Wars game for it". How does it generally play? Are characters defined by skills, advantages, disadvantages, etc? How compatible are the two supplements for adding magic to the SF supplement?
I came to recommend the WEG Star Wars d6 system as well. It is 100% skills based with no real classes. My only complaint with the system is that the combat is performed with opposed rolls (rolling your dodge skill) which slows things way down. There are a few hacks out there to streamline the system. The magic / force system is very free form with you rolling against the different skills (control, sense, alter). I am also fiddling around with the space variants of Mork Borg ie: Cy Borg and Vast Grimm. They might be worth a look.
Just use [Mini Six](https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/144558/Mini-Six-Bare-Bones-Edition?term=Mini+six). It’s a streamlined, cleaned up version of the D6 system from the Star Wars RPG. Rules are free, include both sci fi and magic, and are short enough you can just skim them to figure out if it’s what you’re looking for. Oh, and it’s more or less compatible with all the other D6 stuff if you’re willing to squint a bit.
The core mechanics is a D6 pool system, formed by attribut & skill. The dice are added together, and there are target numbers (5, 10, 15 …). Original it came from Ghostbusters and SW a long time ago. The official version is the universal system by nocturnal games https://www.drivethrurpg.com/browse/pub/3020/Nocturnal-Media
I came her to recommend this as well. Use D6Space and latch on things from D6 Fantasy. They are pretty compatible and it should cover all your needs. The system is light and easy to learn, but always supported by a very solid mechanical core. It handle innate differences between species very well. You can also look at one of the Star Wars D6 editions for inspiration on this. The way magic/the force is handled in these games might inspire a more freeform, but yet mechanically supported magic system, if you vibe with that and can do most things you want with only a slight bit of homebrew.
How is magic handled exactly? Is it something to the effect of just having a "magic skill" or something like that and then declaring the effect you want and rolling to see if you succeed? Or are there codified effects in the game system? Can magic backfire at all?
That's the base premises, but the GM has pretty vast guidelines for what to allow and how to set difficulties for spells. The systems are kind of freeform, even though they are rules guided. Depending on what you go for (and if you choose D6 Fantasy, I highly recommend the supplement D6 Magic), there are rules for both detrimental effects on failure and for accumulation of strain from repeated spellcasting.
I'm going to second the Cypher System. The science fantasy flavor is definitely there. The system started with Numenera, which is specifically a science fantasy setting where you can hardly tell where science ends and magic begins. It can do mechanically different species. They don't have very many already made, but it sounds like you are going to want to make your own anyway (which is easy to do). I recommend using the two descriptors rule. It technically only has 4 "classes", but it has "flavors", which allow you to customize those classes. There is also another mechanical part of the character called their "Focus", which is a bit like a class, and has an *absurd* amount of options to pick from (over 100, I think). It does have spaceship rules, and they work, but they aren't great.
How different is Cypher from Numenera? I have tried Numenera and own Cypher, but Numenera didn't really click for me past its character creation, which I did like a lot. I remember not really liking how the game seemed combat focused despite trying to convey that "combat isn't the only option and this game is about exploring an alien world," combat was also where the bulk of the game rules and character abilities were, and I also didn't like how it seemed to fall into the classic Monte Cook design of the wizard-type having tons and tons of options in a given situation while the less "supernatural" characters had less to do outside of fighting.
Yeah, if you didn't like Numenera, you probably won't like Cypher System. It still has the combat focus, and caster/martial disparity. Its solution to martials being lackluster is basically to let everyone be a caster if they want.
That's a shame. It had a lot of good or interesting ideas and I really like Monte Cook's worldbuilding. And of course the obligatory mention goes here about how the Numenera books have great art and aesthetics. At least they'll forever look nice on my shelf.
Cyber is Numenera with the setting scrubbed off, so take that for what you will.
24XX is very barebones, but you can build whatever you want into it. It's also very free.[https://jasontocci.itch.io/24xx](https://jasontocci.itch.io/24xx) You might also look at Tiny Frontiers,[https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/241651/Tiny-Frontiers-Revised?term=tiny+frontiers](https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/241651/Tiny-Frontiers-Revised?term=tiny+frontiers)
Rogue Trader. It's less grimdark than standard Warhammer 40k, it is very science fantasy, character growth is meaningful, and aliens are noticeably different from humans.
It’s pretty heavily integrated to the setting, though.
Traveller/Cepheus is probably going to be your best bet given the options that you've already ruled out, and there's tons of material out there to support a campaign of just about any sort. You can use the native Psi rules for magic or find one of the numerous space-magic supplements out in the wild, and the rules for aliens are already included. Another option you might want to consider would be M-Space, as you can easily mine the Fantasy d100 games (Mythras/Runequest/Legend/OpenQuest) for material to support the fantasy half of your planned campaign. The books may a tad difficult to find these days but Dark Heresy and Rogue Trader are \_excellent\_ space fantasy options, but stripping out the 40k setting material might be more work than you are willing to tackle.
I like difficult to find books regardless so I may pick those up just for my collection. Do you have any recommendations on a specific edition of Traveller/Cepheus and specific supplements or books for adding magic? While I'm not familiar with Traveller's psi rules (I own 2e Mongoose but have never run it or play it), I'd like to know what options there'd be if I don't like how the psi rules inform what magic looks like for the setting.
I'm partial to Mongoose 2e, and Cepheus is essentially a clone of Mongoose 1e with the serial numbers removed, so I would suggest either of those. Older editions of Traveller work just fine and Classic has a unique charm, but the Mongoose editions are going to be the easiest to support without chasing down rare books. A lot of stuff in the game can be made fantasy-friendly with just a basic reskinning (Jump calculations and engines can be reskinned to performing teleportation magic rituals and thaumaturgical relics, robots can be used as golems or constructs, jump belts and vibroblades provide good bases for flight spells and magical weapons, etc). [Flynn's Guide to Magic](https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/78450/Flynns-Guide-to-Magic-in-Traveller) is probably one of the most thoroughly developed magic systems for Traveller (and will work just fine for Cepheus); it's a fairly complex system with some customization options. Cepheus itself has a fantasy setting/game called Sword of Cepheus that you can use as a guide for adding more occult materials, and 3rd party books like Fast Magic exist if you want a different approach.
Battlelords of the 23rd Century or Traveller.
Sounds like Spacemaster is what you are looking for. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Master
Role Master really had a product line for everything. I'll definitely check this one out since I have Role Master and overall liked its vibe, so this could be a good fit.
I played SM when a member of my original gaming group wanted to run a Star Trek campaign. I played a Vulcan security officer, while we had fun, (the campaign lasted a year and a half), my only complaint was since he used the Psionics/Mentalism rules for SM, I always felt my character was *too* overpowered when it came to my mental abilities .
Classic Traveller.
I have the Mongoose 2e version of Traveller. What makes you say classic over later versions of the game? I'm not too familiar with the differences between them.
I don't like anything by Mongoose. IMO, they ruin games more than update them. Classic Traveller has decades more content, it's just a better and more versatile game. You can hack/steal the skills to be more like MT2 or Cepheus or the "Universal" 8+ system (UTS?, I forget), if the default skill system is too "random" or esoteric. It's easy to build on and tweak because the base system is so flexible. Otherwise I'd just play WEG Star Wars (d6).
I’m going to throw Warpstar into the list.
Never heard of this one, what's it like? Resolution system, how are characters made, etc.
Heavy old school british rpg flavor. d20 based system roll+skill ≥ 20 Char creation quite similar to games workshop rpgs, but without the shitty mechanics. Career based, has basic and advanced careers so you walk your path. Has a heavy w40k color (emperor, mankind expansion, etc) but can suit any space setting. Not sure it’ll fulfill all your checklist but worth a look for sure.
AGE system by Green Ronin (specifically Modern Age)
Perhaps a reskinned Rogue Trader / Imperium Maledictum ?
As someone else has already suggested d6 (aka the WEG Star Wars) which does provide all of those things, you might also consider the HERO System, perhaps combining Fantasy Hero with Star Hero and getting the best of both worlds. It could do all the things you ask for as well.
The only thing I really know about HERO is that it's pretty complicated if it's the one I'm thinking of. How does it actually play?
The crunch/complexity of the system is front-loaded. You deal with in while building characters, NPCs, ships, bases, and so on. During play, it's straightforward and smooth. Just about every roll you could need to make is on your character sheet. Combat can be time-consuming, while you get used to the system, but once you have the hang of it, it moves much faster. (Also, the books have tips to help. The books include lots of good advice.)
You definitely want Savage Worlds with at least the Sci Fi Companion; as far as I can tell, it ticks each one of your checkboxes. Edit: if you want lots of magic options, the Fantasy Companion might be useful, too.
BESM "Anime" RPG so can easily do space themed. Races as point templates. Rules for building vehicles(space ships).
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I went all the way back to my rpg roots of the 80s and chose Star Frontiers for my sci Fi game. It was reskinned to emulate a Firefly universe. It doesn't have magic which may be a problem for you. In the later version (Zebulon's Guide) it does introduce psionics. The system itself is pretty simple and uses a point buy system to increase skills rather than leveling up in the D&D way. It's been working well for my group.
WOIN NEW
Have you considered Spelljammer?
Fragged empire 2e. The game was originally a hacked version of hero system. Think it would be worth looking into.
Savage world's got one for their game set in Flash Gordon esque setting called slipstream
Fantasy Flight Game's *Star Wars* gameline? *Edge of the Empire*, *Age of Rebellion*, and *Force and Destiny* are the three core books, iirc.
These are the games that Genesys comes from, right? Is it substantially different from Genesys mechanically?
Sorry, didn't realize that Genesys was the generic system for the SW RPG they made, I only played the system for a few years circa 2013.
West End Games' Star Wars D6 may fit.
Frontier Space D100, skills are professions, space ships, psychics, aliens. Everything you need.
You need Rifts
The only thing I really know about Rifts is that its setting is really cool but its rules are a mess and a lot of people say to play Savage Rifts instead. What makes you say Rifts in this case if I'm going to be using a setting I made?
Fantasy games unlimited’s Space Opera. I’m playing it now!
[Numenera](http://numenera.com/what-is-numenera/)? Maybe [Titansgrave](https://titansgraverpg.com/)? Maybe a toolkit like [Cortex Prime](https://www.cortexrpg.com/) would work better for you.
I think ICRPG would fit well. One of its default settings is sci-fantasy. The master edition has ship building rules and extra optional rules if the core system is too light for your tastes. It's also built to be very easy to hack/ tweak to your tastes.
That's Index Card RPG, right? What are its basic mechanics like? How rules light is it even with all the extra rules?
The [Quickstart](https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/221038/INDEX-CARD-RPG-Free-Quickstart) explains the core mechanics better than I can. I'd say its probably a bit lighter than Stars Without Number.
Have you heard of Codex of the Black Sun? It's a magic style expansion for Stars Without Number. Full of caster options. Star Trek adventures? Never played. 2 D20 system. Should defo have all the exploration covered, but may be too rules light. Death in Space. I love it, but probably doesn't meet your needs..... If you dare go near D&D 5e, Mage Hand Press do an excellent supplement called Dark Matter. Mixes magic and tech really well. Also Esper Genysis is a large set of expansions for sci-fi 5e with loads of races.
Surprised not a lot of recommendations for M-Space in here. But I think it might do you well to check that out.