Bounty Hunter: Errata

[Geir]

The point of the thing with the Poignard isn't that all of the things are wrong (but perhaps odd choices), but that they don't match the deck plans.

The next one, the Budget Bounty isn't vey cheap for a cutter-sized non-streamlined design:

p. 103 actual errors:

• Minimum Armoury size is 1 ton, ship only has 0.5 tons
• Minimum Training Facility is 2 tons per person, ship only has 1 ton. (was going to say something snide here, but edited it)
• Minimum Vault size is 4 tons. Ship only has 1 ton.
• On the deck plans on page 104, there is no 17 listed, but I think it's meant to be the Brig. Numbering is off because 13 should be the Low Berths and then add one for everything after that.
• Needs to include an Airlock at 2 tons. Small craft no longer get the freebie.

Not errors, but odd choices:

• Concealed M-drives: they only give you half the rated thrust at a premium in space, cost, and for the effective thrust, power. A more versatile design would be to just go with Thrust-3 and improved Stealth for about the same cost (and 2.25 tons less - 3.25 if you dropped a ton off the power plant) - you wouldn't get exactly the same sensor detection DM, but Stealth also gives you the opportunity to also become undetected, and you can also achieve a better stealth-like effect by running silent or slow.
• Also, if you went with a streamlined hull, it would cost an extra MCr 0.5, but you would get the 1 MCr Fuel Scoop for free and just add 0.25 tons for the extra armour at MCr 0.05 (space you'd have saved by not using the concealed drive).
• Plus, no weapons???
• And finally, if it's meant to be uncomfortable, just give everyone Barracks instead of Staterooms and save the space (this is actually less space than Cabin Space - same cost per ton, but double life support per ton... next version of High Guard ought to look into this and adjust).

 

[Geir]

p. 105: Retrofit Launch: Vault too small and needs a 2 ton airlock. But you could reduce the fuel to 0.2 tons and keep the 8 week endurance by Small Craft Catalogue rules.

 

[Annatar Giftbringer]

The point of the thing with the Poignard isn't that all of the things are wrong (but perhaps odd choices), but that they don't match the deck plans.

The next one, the Budget Bounty isn't vey cheap for a cutter-sized non-streamlined design:

p. 103 actual errors:

• Minimum Armoury size is 1 ton, ship only has 0.5 tons
• Minimum Training Facility is 2 tons per person, ship only has 1 ton. (was going to say something snide here, but edited it)
• Minimum Vault size is 4 tons. Ship only has 1 ton.
• On the deck plans on page 104, there is no 17 listed, but I think it's meant to be the Brig. Numbering is off because 13 should be the Low Berths and then add one for everything after that.
• Needs to include an Airlock at 2 tons. Small craft no longer get the freebie.

Not errors, but odd choices:

• Concealed M-drives: they only give you half the rated thrust at a premium in space, cost, and for the effective thrust, power. A more versatile design would be to just go with Thrust-3 and improved Stealth for about the same cost (and 2.25 tons less - 3.25 if you dropped a ton off the power plant) - you wouldn't get exactly the same sensor detection DM, but Stealth also gives you the opportunity to also become undetected, and you can also achieve a better stealth-like effect by running silent or slow.
• Also, if you went with a streamlined hull, it would cost an extra MCr 0.5, but you would get the 1 MCr Fuel Scoop for free and just add 0.25 tons for the extra armour at MCr 0.05 (space you'd have saved by not using the concealed drive).
• Plus, no weapons???
• And finally, if it's meant to be uncomfortable, just give everyone Barracks instead of Staterooms and save the space (this is actually less space than Cabin Space - same cost per ton, but double life support per ton... next version of High Guard ought to look into this and adjust).

Agreed regarding swapping concealed drives for stealth, and streamlining the hull, and weapons are always good to have (hey this one is large enough for two!)

Despite what the text says about comfort, I’m in favor of keeping the staterooms.

Makes it a better base for those that don’t have a larger ship to dock it to.

 

[Geir]

p. 121: the C0N-TAL confuses me, and not just because the second character is a number. Its jump drive doesn't support more than itself, so all those external ships are just visiting? Like a mobile starport? And Medical bay should say 'x2'. And no weapons??? Not even defensive ones like sandcasters and beam lasers (just for point defense, of course)?

p. 129: Rakkar ought to have CHA as well (12 or more, I would guess). And an Age (I know the template doc doesn't include age, but if it's never gonna be there, add it or change the form in the books).

p. 131 Affiliated Broker has both the template data and the form. Erase the template and keep the form.

 

[Nuke16]

Page 12, 1st column, 3rd paragraph. I'll leave this one to the language police, but either seems to fit in this paragraph "for there are those beneath them who would take their place if given opportunity to seize it." or "for there are those beneath them who would take their place if given the opportunity to seize it."

Page 13, 1st column, 2nd paragraph. I'll leave this one as well to the language police, "Oftentimes" is North American English, and I'm not sure if this is in common use in British English.

 

[Tom B]

Page 12, 1st column, 3rd paragraph. I'll leave this one to the language police, but either seems to fit in this paragraph "for there are those beneath them who would take their place if given opportunity to seize it." or "for there are those beneath them who would take their place if given the opportunity to seize it."

Page 13, 1st column, 2nd paragraph. I'll leave this one as well to the language police, "Oftentimes" is North American English, and I'm not sure if this is in common use in British English.

Another one for the language police out-of-date instead of out of date.

 

[CordwainerFish]

Another one for the language police out-of-date instead of out of date.

Ugh no, what is this thing with throwing dashes in where they do not belong that is going around like a plague these days.

 

[Tom B]

Ugh no, what is this thing with throwing dashes in where they do not belong that is going around like a plague these days.

Because it acts as a single word, or something like that? Possibly.

 

[CordwainerFish]

Because it acts as a single word, or something like that? Possibly.

'Acting as a single word' is not a well formed concept.

 

[Tom B]

'Acting as a single word' is not a well formed concept.

I've just looked it up and it depends on the situation.

When should you hyphenate? 5 things to know | Wheatleys

To some they're fussy and best kept to a minimum. To others, they're a mark of precision and subtle meaning. To me? Well, I'm a copywriter. So I try to use hyphens the same way I write everything - in the most reader-friendly way I can. You might guess that puts me firmly in the

www.wheatleys.co

Here since the phrase was 'sell out of date medicines', then according to the above it should have been hyphenated. If the phrase was the medicines were out of date, then it shouldn't have been.

But then I'm not an expert and not that fussy it, to me it looked as if it should have been.

You'll probably be able to find articles that disagree.

 

[Micky]

errata, possible error, or simply a WTF headscratcher of a design choice..

The second character I rolled up did not survive his 2nd term in the field. Bounty Hunting is not a safe career choice, and characters can easily fail a survival role in the character creation process, yet when a character fails that role, they are to roll on the Mishap table by the Core. Yet in the Bounty Hunter book, right below the Mishap chart on page 7 was a rather curious note.


‘If you roll on the Mishaps table, you are not ejected from the career, but you will lose REP’.


Huh. Perhaps it was a layout error and meant only to say that it applied to results on the Events table below the Mishap table that had some events that required a character to roll upon the Mishap chart. It is hard to say whether it was an error or intended. You would think it was an error as you would find it hard to believe that you had a career path in Traveller, much less one of the most dangerous, in which you could sail through your terms without fear of not surviving/being ejected from a career field. Why bother to roll for survival if it wasn’t an error and you don’t have to fear being ejected/ not surviving your career to retirement and mustering out.

Just pointing that out to perhaps avoid that going into the printed version. Not sure if anyone had noticed that yet, but players will for sure.

 

[agentwigggles]

errata, possible error, or simply a WTF headscratcher of a design choice..

The second character I rolled up did not survive his 2nd term in the field. Bounty Hunting is not a safe career choice, and characters can easily fail a survival role in the character creation process, yet when a character fails that role, they are to roll on the Mishap table by the Core. Yet in the Bounty Hunter book, right below the Mishap chart on page 7 was a rather curious note.


‘If you roll on the Mishaps table, you are not ejected from the career, but you will lose REP’.


Huh. Perhaps it was a layout error and meant only to say that it applied to results on the Events table below the Mishap table that had some events that required a character to roll upon the Mishap chart. It is hard to say whether it was an error or intended. You would think it was an error as you would find it hard to believe that you had a career path in Traveller, much less one of the most dangerous, in which you could sail through your terms without fear of not surviving/being ejected from a career field. Why bother to roll for survival if it wasn’t an error and you don’t have to fear being ejected/ not surviving your career to retirement and mustering out.

Just pointing that out to perhaps avoid that going into the printed version. Not sure if anyone had noticed that yet, but players will for sure.

I think its meant to say that Mishaps dont force the Bounty Hunter out of the Career. They lose rep. Which is the mind tickler here. How much rep do they lose. However those do still count as failed terms, so you dont get a Benny roll for them. And the Pension probably defualts to Scout, which means, you dont get any.
I think this is because Bounty Hunter, doesnt require an outside body to facilitate you to be a bouty hunter. You just declare yourself one.
I think this is a fix, as unlike the Drifter career that has automatic entry, so you can keep going back into it.

 

[Micky]

I think its meant to say that Mishaps dont force the Bounty Hunter out of the Career. They lose rep. Which is the mind tickler here. How much rep do they lose. However those do still count as failed terms, so you dont get a Benny roll for them. And the Pension probably defualts to Scout, which means, you dont get any.
I think this is because Bounty Hunter, doesnt require an outside body to facilitate you to be a bouty hunter. You just declare yourself one.
I think this is a fix, as unlike the Drifter career that has automatic entry, so you can keep going back into it.

Yikes man I would hope that was NOT the intent and was an error. The key.. the calling card of the game of Traveller is Character Creation is it not. The key to that is and has been since day 1 is that like real life .. things don't turn out the way you want them to. Your fresh faced 18 year old character who dreams of being a Bounty Hunter... good luck with that... in ten years you'll just as like be pumping gas at a starport and dreading going home to a wife who hates your guts and a stack of bills that can't be paid haha.

There is so much wrong IMO with that notion that... of a automatic career it is worthy of a separate thread/discussion. Which I was planning on doing anyway as I've been working on a variant to the Bounty Hunter career as presented in the book (now in v.3) and got permission to post it here on the forum, and fine tuning it running a bunch of new characters through it.

Bounty Hunting is dangerious... a dangerous field... and character character creation is not a means to an end and creating the character you want but a game within a game and pushing your luck in character creation throug the terms and balancing getting more skills (more REP) versus bad luck or fate kicking you out of the career you (your character) wanted it to have.

 

[Arkathan]

Yikes man I would hope that was NOT the intent and was an error. The key.. the calling card of the game of Traveller is Character Creation is it not. The key to that is and has been since day 1 is that like real life .. things don't turn out the way you want them to. Your fresh faced 18 year old character who dreams of being a Bounty Hunter... good luck with that... in ten years you'll just as like be pumping gas at a starport and dreading going home to a wife who hates your guts and a stack of bills that can't be paid haha.

There is so much wrong IMO with that notion that... of a automatic career it is worthy of a separate thread/discussion. Which I was planning on doing anyway as I've been working on a variant to the Bounty Hunter career as presented in the book (now in v.3) and got permission to post it here on the forum, and fine tuning it running a bunch of new characters through it.

Bounty Hunting is dangerious... a dangerous field... and character character creation is not a means to an end and creating the character you want but a game within a game and pushing your luck in character creation throug the terms and balancing getting more skills (more REP) versus bad luck or fate kicking you out of the career you (your character) wanted it to have.

I disagree.
Bounty Hunters are their own boss, even if they are contracted out to a corpo or guild. Like Drifter, no one can tell you you cannot hunt bounties. You may have to run to another planet and scrape the bottom of the barrel with misdemeanant bail jumpers, paying hundred(s) for your efforts, but you can still be a bounty hunter.
The loss of rep, lowering your earning prospects, and not gaining skills is a fitting mechanism for this class. All of the other classes have a boss that can force you out... or in the case of pirates, mutiny and leave you on a rock with a weapon loaded with a single bullet. Just like being a Drifter, desperation over a crappy character is the only force driving a departure from Bounty Hunting.

 

[Geir]

Bounty Hunters are their own boss, even if they are contracted out to a corpo or guild. Like Drifter, no one can tell you you cannot hunt bounties.

I both agree and disagree. When I saw it in the book, I thought huh, that's new.

And accepted it with your logic. But... Drifters do get ejected from the career on a failed Survival roll, it's just that they can go back in next term anyway. Since this trait is, by the Core book, only available to Drifters and draftees (note: I don't think it says anywhere that you can't ever go back into a previous career, just that you can't do it next term), then to avoid making this Core book stipulation an obsolete statement, not having the a Mishap automatically end the career allows the effect to avoid invalidating that Core text. You still loose REP as indicated by the mishap and you lose benefits for the term (because that rule wasn't mentioned as modified), so there's still a bit of penalty.

And after that paragraph of scattered thought, I think I'll stick with acceptance of the non-ejection stipulation - since other careers also have Mishaps that do not automatically eject you from the career.

Note that the "you get kicked out if your Advancement roll is less than or equal to the terms served" rule is also still in effect (That rule says "you cannot continue in this career after this term" - if the key word is 'continue' then I don't see why re-qualification in some later term is not allowed, but if the key word is 'after' then maybe not. In either case, I would imagine Rank drops to 0. But that's not the point of this discussion, just random a thought flotsam).

 

[Sigtrygg]

Bounty Hunter is a career, like being a Scout or a Merchant.

Once you muster out you are an ex-Bounty Hunter (4 terms) and are now a Traveller.

 

[agentwigggles]

I both agree and disagree. When I saw it in the book, I thought huh, that's new.

And accepted it with your logic. But... Drifters do get ejected from the career on a failed Survival roll, it's just that they can go back in next term anyway. Since this trait is, by the Core book, only available to Drifters and draftees (note: I don't think it says anywhere that you can't ever go back into a previous career, just that you can't do it next term), then to avoid making this Core book stipulation an obsolete statement, not having the a Mishap automatically end the career allows the effect to avoid invalidating that Core text. You still loose REP as indicated by the mishap and you lose benefits for the term (because that rule wasn't mentioned as modified), so there's still a bit of penalty.

And after that paragraph of scattered thought, I think I'll stick with acceptance of the non-ejection stipulation - since other careers also have Mishaps that do not automatically eject you from the career.

Note that the "you get kicked out if your Advancement roll is less than or equal to the terms served" rule is also still in effect (That rule says "you cannot continue in this career after this term" - if the key word is 'continue' then I don't see why re-qualification in some later term is not allowed, but if the key word is 'after' then maybe not. In either case, I would imagine Rank drops to 0. But that's not the point of this discussion, just random a thought flotsam).

There are several events/mishaps where you gain a mishap but dont get ejected from the career, so that isnt new in of itself. It is novel that its a gimmick of the career itself.
And yea, you can keep reentering the same career if you get kicked out, you just need a term in between. And then you start at Rank 0.

 

[Micky]

Bounty Hunter is a career, like being a Scout or a Merchant.

Once you muster out you are an ex-Bounty Hunter (4 terms) and are now a Traveller.

yeah.. spot on. this is Traveller the game where you can play a Bounty Hunter.. not Bounty Hunter the game where you use the Traveller rules.

I mean Bounty Hunters are no different than most any other career, and should not be, if bad luck or fate (a failed survival roll) gets you.. you are out. Either to become a Bounty Hunting Traveller or off to a different career.

The crux of the biscuit could be looked at this way.. who is playing or using this ...

your standard session 0 group... most like they simply jump to a different career before finally giving up and mustering out when they've gained a sufficient skillset to thrive and survive as a Traveller

or those who mean to play a Bounty Hunter themed game and are rolling up characters from session 0. What good is a 26 year old bounty hunter who fails the SR in the 2nd or 3rd team with little to no rep.. few skills... what career as an independent are they really going to have. I've rolled up about 10 characters so far and only a third of them survived 6 or 7 terms to become... ahhh hah... the real crux.. cinemaatic type Bounty Hunters. Probably best to bring a large stack of character sheets till you finally roll up a character who survives... or just create one and skip Character Creation if you want to play a Traveller Boba Fett kind of character. The type of book and movie. That is not is what Traveller is, is it. Cinematic hero based power gaming. It is about normal Joes who have big dreams and get them crushed.. and then end up as Travellers out trying to survive and get ahead in the big bad universe out there.

I get there is the 'play it the way you want it' and one can ignore the long established .. iconic notion in Traveller that Character Creation is not a mere process to create the perfect bad ass character.. the cinematic hero that gets you bad Disney films made about you. They can ignore them.. but that should not be the default way the Bounty Hunter career is presented IMO. Again I would hope that mishap table mention is in error.. perhaps meant to be below the Events table.. not the Mishaps one but .. if it wasn't... I don't think people are going to like it. I mean people are still unhappy you can't die during Character Creation.. now have a career that is just an excuse to build characters which are sort of anathema to what Traveller is really about. They really wouldn't like that lol.

 

[agentwigggles]

I think the number of folks who dont like you cant die, have moved or have grown smaller as a percentage as as a whole.

 

[Micky]

I think the number of folks who dont like you cant die, have moved or have grown smaller as a percentage as as a whole.

and what has replaced them... what has sold the new blood to try to this game... fall in love with it.

hint... and saved to the point at hand he made...

the game within the game...

Bounty Hunter character creation as written gets away from what makes the game so great. Forget the fear of dying.. you can't even get kicked out.. you are just rolling up big score/high skill super heroes to get your Bounty Hunter pop culture freak on... that isn't Traveller now is it. It is the foul preversion of what D&D has become from its original version...... epic power gaming by superhero wannabes where death.. the fear of death .. is just something the old farts playing AD&D or BX only have to worry about. Give me my super powers damnit!!! Or skills.. or high REP...

IMO of course..

for discussions sake lol.