Getting to grips with Traveller

[IanBruntlett]

I'm trawling for ideas...

We've been playing Traveller for some months now and we've assimilated some of the rules. Character creation is OK. Skills and Tasks are OK but the latter part of that chapter is just about to be tackled. We've penciled in page references between the Combat chapter and the Equipment chapter - that helps a lot when you are in a hurry.

Some of our players are "floaters" - they come in on an ad hoc basis and they can't handle a chapter of rules as easily as more committed players can.

Having multiple copies of the core rule book has turned out to be a godsend.

Some of the untouched stuff like Combat, Spacecraft operations, Psionics, Trade have been handled in play but not in any great detail.

This evening I set out to type up a reference card for combat in Traveller. The more detail I got into, the more it just looked like a regurgitation of the core rulebook. I've stopped doing that.

Some time ago I read a book about thinking (sorry, can't remember which) and it recommended the use of properly spaced reviews of information can keep recall constantly high:-
Start : 0 minutes elapsed : Read the text
1st Review : 10 minutes elapsed : Read the text
2nd Review : 24 hours later : Read the text
3rd Review : 1 week later : Read the text
4th Review : 1 month later : Read the text
5th Review : 6 months later : Read the text

Any ideas?

Thanks


Ian

 

[BP]

Assuming you are asking for yourself as referee...

Just reading and re-reading the rules may or may not do it - for me it mainly means I would know where to look to confirm what I believe I read.

Since you are talking roleplay 'rules' a better approach might be iterative simulation - i.e. play testing the rules.

For combat - make up some characters and have it out with pencil and paper (or better yet - spreadsheet). Make notes as you go along. Try to do everything the rules allow and then come up with scenarios they don't explicitly cover. Simulate dice roles by picking values for effect - then backtrack and try other results.

If you are a visualizer - make flowcharts - software like Visio ($$) or Inkscape (free - multi-OS) can help (there are many more - Creative Docs - also free - is well suited except it crashes often for me). Your adhoc players might even benefit from this directly.

After you've done this a number of times, you should have a great grasp and be able to write up your own synopsis, play aids, etc.

[I haven't done this with MgT combat myself yet - but am planing on it...]

 

[kristof65]

I can't help you with the reading progression, but I've seen the system you're talking about mentioned.

What I can do is direct you to the MGT Aids group on Yahoo Groups http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/MGT-Aids/

In the files section there are some excellent flow charts regarding combat and task checks. Unfortunately, I can't remember the name of the gentleman who uploaded them, but IMO, they should be added to the core book.

Those flowcharts allowed my group of Traveller newbs to understand the combat system in a snap.

 

[IanBruntlett]

>What I can do is direct you to the MGT Aids group on Yahoo Groups http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/MGT-Aids/

Thanks for that.

I've never been a fan of Yahoo Groups. Just dug up my Yahoo ID and password. Will take a look at it over the weekend.

 

[saundby]

Run a solo campaign to try rules on for size. Challenge yourself on the results to make yourself check to see you haven't missed something in the rules. "Soldier A never did hit me, I was covered!" "Wrong, you were concealed and Soldier A blew out your liver along with a chunk of the wall you were behind!"

It's a good place to forge NPCs, too. Even if it's more a series of vignettes, it helps.

I keep notes on paper the first couple of times I run through something, too. I often will go over the rules again after a "cooling off period", look at my notes, and see that I missed something last time. "Oops, didn't track ammo properly for burst fire!"

Just be prepared for the funny looks you'll get when your family sees you making your minis argue with each other.