The Curiosity Mission was originally conceived of as a project within the Church of Minn, following a religious impetus from the Gold of Salt and Energy. The scientific processes needed to get a ship full of people to another planet were long and costly, but the mission soon attracted attention from the universities and guilds, both sensing a chance to make a profit.

The ship will, at time of Landfall, been in flight for a little under a year. It is likely that friendshipsp will have been forged, though, with a crew in the high hundreds and a passenger body of several thousand, it is highly unlikely that anyone will have a knowledge of everyone onboard - and likely that some people may have slipped onboard under the radar.

The crew of the ship is broadly composed of members of the Voidstar Navigation Corps and the Union of Shipwrights and Starship Builders, who comprise the body of sailors, navigators and engineers who keep the ship flying, and flying in the right direction. Other roles in the crew have been filled out by members of other guilds. At the top of the hierarchy is the captain, Jocasta Goldgear, along with the head representative of the Church of Minn, Leopold Savona, who claims authority as representing the primary sponsor of the mission.

In addition to the crew are several thousand passengers, whose places have been sponsored by various different organisations. Those with specific interests on the new world - such as the IMSC - have sent greater numbers, but most major guilds and universities, along with all five churches, are well represented. The crew have tended to ignore the differences in status between any passengers, much to their chagrin in some cases.

A form of naval-style justice has been in operation: members of the crew are to be obeyed by the passengers, junior members of the crew are to obey senior members. Like on the Homeworld, it is assumed that civil offences, should they occur, will be dealt with by the organisations involved. Should people prove to be troublesome, the ship has holding cells where they can be kept safely.

Broadly speaking, conditions onboard ship have been cramped, but not unpleasant. Passenger accommodation has broadly taken the form of two- or four-person bunks. While people have generally been accommodated with other members of their sending organisations, there have been some random matchings where the numbers did not match up.

All crew and passengers receive rations in a large mess hall towards the centre of the ship, which has also been used for such events as concerts and dances to provide people with some entertainment on the long flight. Adjacent to the mess hall is an area that functions as a miniature town centre, with public houses, shops, and other facilities for people to meet and socialise. As all non-rationed goods have been brought on by means of paying an exorbitant cargo fee, all goods have been sold for exorbitant prices.

Once Landfall is made, it is expected that this area will remain intact and continue to serve much the same purpose.