Mass Effect variant

[Tarrien]

I'm not sure if this has been discussed anywhere else on this site so pardon me if it has.

The players in my RPG group have all enjoyed the Bioware Mass Effect games and have been looking into turning it into a table top setting. One of my members ran across a site that has been looking into using WotC's Star Wars Saga rules. I also found a forum where someone had used the old West End Games d6 verion of Star Wars.

The main problem we have is that is our group despises any of the 4e versions that WotC came up with to suck more cash out of their customer base.

A few of us have been long time Traveller players and thought that the traveller rules more closely relate to Mass Effect than the Star Wars rules do (any version of Star Wars for that matter). It would not take a lot of tweaking of the Psion rules to mimic the Biotic powers of Mass Effect, plus the rules system is already geared to an Earth centric Human culture and the weapons in Mass Effect pretty much have a direct correlation to weapons already in Traveller. The same applies to ships.

I for one think the Mongoose version of the Traveller rules are the cleanest ever produced. I started playing Traveller back in 1978 and have all the verisons GDW produced plus T4 and T20 (never got into the SJG versions).

So, I guess my question is if my group wanted to put up a fan site like the group using Star Wars did (Bioware has fansite kits), what could we actually do as far as developing content using the new Traveller rules?

Could we create and post things like character generation info for the various races in Mass Effect? How about adapting and posting Life Event tables for them as well? How about Biotic rules bases of off the Psion classes?

Also, how could we legally indicate that Traveller was the rules set used for the basis of the setting? Would it be possible to use the Traveller logo?

There is just so much that could be done and posted it is difficult for us to figure out what would be acceptable under the liscensing agreement, or if anything is allowable at all.

 

[apoc527]

Traveller has an SRD much like d20 did. It can be found on the Mongoose Traveller site under Developer's Kit or something like that.

Basically, you can do almost anything you want with Trav's core rules. You can't mess with the OTU, but that's not a danger for a Mass Effect conversion. I believe Mongoose is planning on updating the SRD too, possibly to include the vehicle creation rules.

 

[Klaus Kipling]

Go for it.

The only thing Traveller is missing is shields, and that's very doable.

I specced up an OTU version of the Normandy (kind of a hybrid of sr1 and sr2) over on the sfrpg forums, if that's any use at all.

Also, CB3 will have some ME inspired careers in it, tho unsure when that will end up coming out...

I'd love to contribute, if there's room for more. I seem to be ME's biggest fanboy on these here forums; at least, I'm shouting loudest about it.

 

[Sturn]

A few of us have been long time Traveller players and thought that the traveller rules more closely relate to Mass Effect than the Star Wars rules do (any version of Star Wars for that matter).

When I played the first Mass Effect, I speculated that the game designers had first planned a Traveller video game, but didn't get the proper license or changed their minds. Mass Effect had many things that reminded me of Traveller down to outfits that seemed 1970ish to me.

 

[strgzr]

I'm VERY interested in any progress of this suggestion.

 

[rinku]

The main people to check with about doing something like this will be Bioware, as Mass Effect is their IP. Dunno what their policy is re fan development of traditional RPG stuff, but there might be something on their website, or at least a contact email.

 

[Stainless]

My speculation, which might be wildly wrong, is that Mongoose will be announcing a Mass Effect license at GenCon (RPG and miniatures).

Even if they don't, it looks like I should investigate this game. Is it for the PC?

 

[hdan]

My speculation, which might be wildly wrong, is that Mongoose will be announcing a Mass Effect license at GenCon (RPG and miniatures).

Oh, I sincerely hope so!

Even if they don't, it looks like I should investigate this game. Is it for the PC?

PC and Xbox360. I've only ever played the 360 version and consider it one of my top favorite games of all times, but the PC version is supposed to look and play better. (I don't have a PC beefy enough to do much gaming on)

 

[rinku]

The PC version (the only one I've played) supposedly has better vehicle controls and they fixed some game issues that came up after release. The Wiki writeup has some stuff on that.

You should be able to pick up a cheap copy - I got mine on special about 6 months ago for AUD$10.

Highly reccommended. It has a bit in the middle where you can put the main story on hold and run around planets doing side missions which can get a bit boring, but since these aren't a required part of play it's hard to criticise that part of the game too much (mainly for completeists and if you need to advance a few levels). The main plot is exciting, varied and cool. You get to make genuine choices, although this mainly determines which of a number of characters live or die, but these choices do carry over to Mass Effect 2 (ME2 reads your ME1 save and continues the story).