A Universe Of Non-Swimmers ?

[rust]

Well, as far as I can see, there is no Swim skill in MGT.

Moreover, there is also no swimming speed. Which has a certain logic, as
non-swimmers are rarely moving forward in the water.
The good thing is, there are also no rules for drowning, so the characters
cannot swim, but this is no real problem, since they also cannot drown.

So, do they walk across the water, at half normal speed ... ? :shock:

 

[far-trader]

:lol:

Would it be an Athletic skill? Just a wag mind you, not having the book.

Or is it "A Universe of Swimmers?" As in Swimming is second nature to everybody just like walking so there's no need for a skill

...unless you're looking for the Walk skill too

I'm just getting silly now, time to roll my Run check, Away specialization :arrow:

 

[zanwot]

You will also notice that no career gives access to the Seafarer skill. The only way you can get it, without using the contacts rule or other special bonus, is by coming from a water world (hydro 10) and even then you only get it at 0. Water seems to ba a taboo in Mongoose Traveller...

Anyway swimming sounds like a specialisation of Athletics. Personnaly I would not worry too much about the exact speed when swimming.

 

[TrippyHippy]

Yep. Swimming would be a form of Atletics, based upon co-ordination (which is the manner which athletics skills are classified in Traveller).

To a degree, you could also cite the use of Survival as relevent, depending upon the circumstances and environment in which the skill was learned.

As for the speed, I can swim about a mile in a relaxed stroke in about an hour. I could probably reduce this to half an hour, if I could be bothered.

 

[rust]

Or is it "A Universe of Swimmers?" As in Swimming is second nature to everybody just like walking so there's no need for a skill

Well, I will try to find out the next time one of those guys from an as-
teroid belt or a desert world comes to visit my water world ... :twisted:

Seriously, as an obsessive water world builder, I feel more and more
... ignored ... by the MGT rules. I knew I would have to make up much
of the stuff I need for my setting - but almost everything ? :roll:

 

[Twi'lekk_Den-keeper]

the lack of a swimming skill is annoying, but I don't think you're being ignored. Just overlooked. Who wants to go seafaring when you can go spacefaring? :wink:

 

[Tathlum]

Is it a killer though?
The web should give you an idea of average swimming speed and you can use athletics for when people get in trouble. But yeah, it is a bit of a gap for you.

Maybe the seas of Vland were filled with horrible monsters that kept forgetting that Vilani were of no nutritional value to them. And then the Vilani spread this taboo around the galaxy?

 

[rust]

Is it a killer though?

No, just a disappointment.

I mean, those silly belters got their Zero-G skill, but my dolphineers
have to make up their swimming and diving skills.

This is not fair. :wink:

 

[dmccoy1693]

Seriously, as an obsessive water world builder, I feel more and more ... ignored ... by the MGT rules. I knew I would have to make up much of the stuff I need for my setting - but almost everything ? :roll:

IMO, you're being overly sensative. Mongoose tried to streamline the system so some things need cut. Frankly, swimming as its own skill seems grossly underpowered and unimportant when you can have a ship carry you and everything you need into orbit and to the otherside of the planet in minutes with that same skill point. I'm sure they're not ignoring you, but simply trying to do the most good for the most people. Does that mean that not everyone will get what they want, yes. It sucks when it happens, but the majority are served well.

And there's no reason why you can't homebrew together CT and MGT for the parts of MGT that you feel do not serve you well. Or even just use CT if that fits your world better.

 

[EDG]

I'd say Swimming is a pretty obvious physical skill to have missed out actually. If anything it's even more important in Traveller because it's not a given that a PC was in an environment where there was even water present to start with (unless of course he had a watery homeworld). It would have to be something made explicit I think, not just assumed.

I don't think he's being "sensitive" if he's feeling ignored by MGT while he's doing his waterworld settings. If MGT's purpose is to be a generic SF RPG ruleset, then having a genre gap like that indicates that MGT isn't particularly succeeding at being generic.

 

[Klaus Kipling]

I'd just add it as an Athletics speciality, with stuff like scuba or deep diving specialisms of Seafarer.

BTW, Seafarer is available to Barbarians, so it is possible to get it from a career. I think it appears on event tables too.

Not forgetting the Wet Navy career.

For drowning, say you can hold your breath for 1 round per End point?

Kind of an easy fix, but there are a lot of these little niggles with MGT. The underlying structure is totally sound, but there's the odd gap in the plasterwork that lets the wind in sometimes.

Maybe these kinds of rules will appear in the Scouts book...?

 

[grymlocke]

the lack of a swimming skill is annoying, but I don't think you're being ignored. Just overlooked. Who wants to go seafaring when you can go spacefaring? :wink:

write it up...add it to background skillls.

 

[Garuda]

Not forgetting the Wet Navy career.

I think Wet Navy is a very poor term to be used...Why didn't they call it something like Maritime Navy?

Anyway, I agree with those who feel that swimming is an important skill. But it does make sense to use athletics for swimming - and be able to take it as a specialisation too.

 

[MongooseMatt]

Seriously, as an obsessive water world builder, I feel more and more
... ignored ... by the MGT rules. I knew I would have to make up much
of the stuff I need for my setting - but almost everything ? :roll:

Just wait for Supplement 87: Water Worlds.

 

[rust]

I'd just add it as an Athletics speciality, with stuff like scuba or deep diving specialisms of Seafarer.

I made it a background skill, a specialization of Athletics, with scuba di-
ving becoming possible after level 1, and made deep diving a new trade
skill, as this seems to make sense in my setting.

Maybe these kinds of rules will appear in the Scouts book...?

Yep, this was my idea when I started this thread - see what others think
of what I consider an omission, and hope that Mongoose will take a look,
too.

Scouts would be a good opportunity to fill the gap with rules for specific
environments as well as specific equipment, for example some watercraft.
And it could also be a good idea to iron out some of the implausibilities
of the current rules, for example with the Hostile Environment Suit, which
would need a crush depth for underwater use.

Edit.: Well, Mongoose did take a look, it seems ...

 

[Flynn]

Rules for swimming and the like would make a great article for Stellar Reaches... hint, hint...

Still Waiting On The Fair Use Policy,
Flynn

 

[Gruffty the Hiver]

I think Wet Navy is a very poor term to be used...Why didn't they call it something like Maritime Navy?

Yes, that's a much better name!

And swimming is (IMO and ICBW) a specialisation of Athletics.

 

[Shiloh]

I think Wet Navy is a very poor term to be used...Why didn't they call it something like Maritime Navy?

Yes, that's a much better name!

And swimming is (IMO and ICBW) a specialisation of Athletics.

Yeah, and it'd mostly be END-based.

 

[Garuda]

Maybe these kinds of rules will appear in the Scouts book...?

Along with tying knots and singing camp fire songs :wink:

 

[dmccoy1693]

I don't think he's being "sensitive" if he's feeling ignored by MGT while he's doing his waterworld settings. If MGT's purpose is to be a generic SF RPG ruleset, then having a genre gap like that indicates that MGT isn't particularly succeeding at being generic.

That's why there's an OGL. Anyone can take it and add it in. If you want to make an anti-dune setting, adding in a swim skill wouldn't be that hard.

Edit: Generic doesn't mean covering every possible concept, but merely providing a basic framework to add in setting specific concepts. There isn't a Sanity mechanic, but if I wanted to make TravellerCthulu, I could add it in.