Merely wondering

[Vecna Anneto]

Alright guys, potentially stupid question here. Me and some of my pals just decided to start up a traveller group in our spare time, so I bought the core rulebook. What else do I need to acquire in the ways of game material to start up a campaign relatively quickly and smoothly?

 

[Matt Wilson]

The core book is pretty self sufficient, I think. Nothing comes to mind that's flat-out "missing".

There are some supplements that further expand specific campaign types, so if you want a trading/merchants campaign, for example, you could pick up the Merchant Princes book, etc.

If you're the GM and don't want to create the entire setting from scratch you could pick up one of the setting books, e.g. The Spinward Marches, Solomani Rim, or maybe Outer Veil if you want something different from the Third Imperium.

But seriously, the core book will get you a long way.

 

[Infojunky]

As an old Traveller Hand my 1st suggestion is do a search ot the web, with sites like FreelanceTraveller and the like there is a lot of free material out there.

But to be honest the Main rule book is a great start. Take a Subsector Map and roll up 4 or 5 worlds and explore them, adding worlds as you need them. it is a great way to start....

 

[dragoner]

Probably best is to pick a rules set and then use:

http://travellermap.com/

http://wiki.travellerrpg.com/Main_Page

Additional material can be purchased as needed.

 

[CosmicGamer]

Alright guys, potentially stupid question here. Me and some of my pals just decided to start up a traveller group in our spare time, so I bought the core rulebook. What else do I need to acquire in the ways of game material to start up a campaign relatively quickly and smoothly?

Two six sided dice. Character sheets. Pencil and eraser.

Seriously though, more info would be needed to fine tune an answer to your personal needs.

For starters

1)Are you
A) creating your own subsector and setting
B) want a setting that is populated and detailed for you

2)Are you
A) creating your own adventure(s)
B) want premade adventures?

For the A) answers, as people said, the core rules are all that's needed to get you started.

For B) answers, more details regarding the type of game, adventures, and setting you would like, budget, and so on would be needed to point you towards the appropriate materials.

 

[ShawnDriscoll]

LBB 9 Library Data. That is if you want game setting info.

 

[Hopeless]

When I did mine I came up with a premise and then got my players creating their characters.

The amusing part is that I also got them to design their home system which in one case resulted in a potential campaign in itself!

Its a shame we only had the one session on the game I had already thought up with the aid of a scenario idea from drive thru rpg but maybe you ought to see what your players come up with and then design your game around their ideas.

For example in the one session game I had a scientist who has his own lab ship that spent a tour in repairs after a former friend turned on him, another is a former psion adept turned lawyer, the third is a former Sword Worlds Marine turned Corporate Agent or Security chief for the scientist and the last a former Sword Worlds Citizen turned former Scout who has shares in the scientist's newly inherited mining vessel.

The game involved them fulfilling the last bequest of the scientist's late uncle by delivering supplies to a nearby system unaware they were being set up by the same people who killed the Uncle and nearly destroyed the scientist's lab ship forcing him to serve a tour in the Scouts to get it repaired.

The scientist's player came up with a detailed design of his character's home system that left me worried they'd just explore the system, it was almost a shame they didn't given all the potential game ideas that provided!

Let them design their characters' you focus on a few movies or tv series of your preference and whilst reading their characters imagine what you'd like to run with those characters as the stars of your show!

 

[High Orbit Drifter]

Give your players some freedom but don't let it get beyond what you can control.

There is a lot of stuff online to get you started on a subsector, if you don't want to create one youself. And if you don't want to go with Spinward Marches, Solomani Rim or another well documented area (where you have to buy a sector book), either go with a pre-mapped area, with no published material, or just make up something yourself.

Definitely go to Freelance Traveller to take a look at a ton of good material. NPCs, adventures, settings, equipment and ships. All the sector books are pretty good to great, if you want to buy material. Solomani Rim is excellent.

But remember the free ranging nature of travelling can get out of control pretty fast. You write up an adventure and give your players a ship and boom! They decide they want to meet some Aslan, or overthrow the Emperor, or something else that totally ignores your well crafted ideas. Don't railroad them but make sure your premise is understood. Talk to your players - do they want to be mercenaries? Merchants? Explorers? Do they want to save the universe? Its easy enought to start a campaign on any of these ideas.

 

[bestial warlust]

As as new player (just bought the core book 3 weeks ago). I'm only planning on using the core book and one supplement, The Outer Veil by spica publishing. I find that to be a good setting. It has everything I need in one book. The TL is what I wanted to use. I've looked at the other books and besides getting some adventures from Signs and portents I find very few other books tempting to buy.

My opinion is just the core book.