New Flow Chart.

Belisknar

Mongoose
Some thoughts on the new version of the flowchart.

Overall I am much happier with this one compared to the first version.

Likes
-Love that it's all on one page.
-Arrows rather than Dots to guide the flow is perfectly on point. (no pun intended)
-Ticks and Crosses to denote success and failure makes it look much cleaner.

Questions/Dislikes
-The flow doesn't show where to go if you are already in a career when you start a new term. It points you at a qualification roll again. I'm assuming you are expected simply to go to the training section but it's not clearly defined.
-If you fail a qualification roll it goes right to the draft and doesn't mention the drifter option.
-If you fail the survival roll and suffer a mishap that doesn't eject you from your carreer, you are sent back to the training step. Is this supposed to be the training step of the next term? is this supposed to be pointing at the start of a new term? (I ask for those who do not have to leave but who may want to leave the career in question)
-If you fail survival and mishap out of your career, it points you into rolling benefits/mustering out. Should this be the case when moving out of all careers? In the standard flow without mishap the only way into Benefit/Muster out is by choosing to end Character Creation.
 
Agree, this is a much improved flowchart!
Another thought/suggestion: where it says "Choose whether to continue Traveller creation" it should tell/show where you go back in the flowchart to continue again.
 
I have to agree, this flow chart is way better. Belisknar has already pointed out the couple issues I saw so I will not relist them here.

Great change though, much nicer in my opinion.
 
With regards to the blank page opposite, how about having an example of a character being generated? I'm sure that Alexander Lascelles Jamison can be coaxed out of retirement yet again. ;)
 
My question, why show the "Roll for Benefits/Muster Out" ball twice? Just show both inputs pointing to the same ball.
 
Bar-en said:
My question, why show the "Roll for Benefits/Muster Out" ball twice? Just show both inputs pointing to the same ball.
Agreed, but that's why I asked about whether we should be rolling mustering out after leaving each career or only as we are ending Character Creation.
 
Belisknar said:
Agreed, but that's why I asked about whether we should be rolling mustering out after leaving each career or only as we are ending Character Creation.
So interesting question. We always mustered out of a career when you left the career not at the end of character generation. It would be interesting if we have been doing it right or wrong all this time. :mrgreen:
 
So interesting question. We always mustered out of a career when you left the career not at the end of character generation. It would be interesting if we have been doing it right or wrong all this time. :mrgreen:

That's the way all the previous incarnations of Traveller have done mustering out. Just have to keep track of those cash benefits rolls.
 
Bar-en said:
So interesting question. We always mustered out of a career when you left the career not at the end of character generation. It would be interesting if we have been doing it right or wrong all this time. :mrgreen:

That's the way all the previous incarnations of Traveller have done mustering out. Just have to keep track of those cash benefits rolls.
I agree, that is why I just did it that way with Mongoose Traveller as well. Never questioned it. So when someone asks, I am very curious what the answer will be. :D
 
I've only played MGT so I don't have the experience of the older versions to look back on. Any time I've created a character I've rolled all the benefits at the end of CharGen rather than when changing careers... so that's why I'm curious.

I guess it's just a different philosophy of creation. though I can see why you would want to gain your benefits before the next career since there is the chance of characteristic upgrades which can help qualifications etc...
 
Belisknar said:
I guess it's just a different philosophy of creation. though I can see why you would want to gain your benefits before the next career since there is the chance of characteristic upgrades which can help qualifications etc...
Or to have funds to replace the lost limb lost in the last term and the reason for leaving the career. :wink:
 
I know I posed a related question regarding this somewhere, regarding accommodating the use of benefits in following terms, but I'm not sure if there was any official response. Like here, it was likely a question that came up from within a on going semi related thread and not it's own thread, so I can't seam to find it.

My interpretation of the original Mongoose rule
original rules said:
Benefits are gained when a character leaves a career for any reason other than failing a survival roll (willingly leaving the career, an event, an aging crisis, or just wishing to finish character generation).
was that it could easily say such is done when one finishes character generation but it instead says at the end of a career and gives the example of "willingly leaving the career"[for another] as well as "just wishing to finish character generation". I put "for another" in brackets because I feel it is very much implied as it would be quite redundant to have the interpretation "willingly leaving the career"[and finishing chargen] and "just wishing to finish character generation".

What is fuzzy about this section of the original rules is that it seams one may not roll for benefits at the end of a career when they fail a survival roll - even if they served 5 terms and are rank 3, and eligible for several benefits. But this isn't about the original rules.

The current version is briefer and perhaps clearer in some ways
2e rules said:
Benefits are gained when a Traveller leaves a career. A Traveller gets one Benefit roll for every full term served in that career.
To me this also seams clear that it is at the end of a career and not

"Benefits are gained when a Traveller completes chargen. A Traveller gets one Benefit roll for every full term served in every career."

We know from page 16 that a failed survival roll results in losing a benefit for the term so I guess it is not a "full term served". Of course this leaves one with wondering how long is a term where one fails a survival roll which will "force you to leave the career immediately"? 2 years, 3, roll a die 4?
 
In the late October version, there should be one of pass/fail indicators that shows that if the character makes the advancement roll, he or she gets a bonus skill roll.

2nldd1x.jpg
 
All good points about the Flowchart. I think it would be a good idea as well to include it in list form like this.

1. Roll for characteristics and determine DMs (pg 8-9)

2. Choose Background skills (pg 9)

3. Decide whether or not to go for pre-career education (pg 14-16). If yes continue to step 4, if no proceed to step 5

4. Choose whether to go to University or a Military Academy
..........4A. Roll for entry
..........4B. Gain Skills
..........4C. Roll for event
..........4D. Roll for graduation if yes gain graduation benefits. Either way continue to step 5

5. Choose career (chart on page 19. The careers themselves are on pages 20-43; prisoner career on pg 54 - 55; psion on 204 - 205)
..........5A. Roll for qualification. If successful continue to step 5B, if not roll for the draft or
...............enter Drifter career and then continue to step 5B
..........5B. If this is the first career for this character gain all skills under "service skills" at
...............level 0.If not only gain one of the skills at level 0.
..........5C. Choose a specialization in your new career and then continue to step 6.

6. Start a new term. Note the new term on your character sheet and increase age by 4 years

7. Roll for survival. If successful continue to step 8, if not roll for mishap and then leave the career, make an aging roll if necessary and then proceed to step 15 unless otherwise stated. Otherwise do as the mishap says. If using Iron Man character creation the character is dead; start over at step 1.

8. roll for event

9. If commission is possible (first term or SOC 9+) then choose if you will roll for commission, if not continue to step 10. If successful continue to step 9A, otherwise proceed to step 11.
..........9A. Gain benefits for first rank of commission and then proceed to step 11.

10. roll for advancement. If successful gain benefits of new rank and note it on your character sheet.

11. Roll for skills (skill descriptions are on pages 62 - 69) . One roll for the term and one bonus for commission or advancement

12. If this is your fourth term or more roll for aging (pg 47).

13. Decide if you will take another term in this career. If so proceed to step 6, otherwise continue to step 14. If your advancement roll was lower than the terms served in this career continue to step 14. If your advancement roll was a natural 12 then you must proceed to step 6.

14. Roll for mustering out benefits (pg 44 - 46)

15. Decide if you will play this character as is or try to go into another career. If you want to join another career proceed to step 5. If you wish to play this character continue to step 17.

16. Resolve pension and medical debt (pg 46 - 47).

17. Form connections and gain new skills (pg 17)

18. Buy gear (pg 91 - 129. Vehicles on pg 138 - 141 and ships on pg 164 - 195)

17. Finishing touches. Flesh out any details of your character's backstory.



I put the connections part at the end because characters don't all take the same number of terms and therefor I like to wait until the end. After all, if you form a connection early in your career to another character but then you take way more terms then them the connection might not make sense any longer ("How could you have possibly worked with me on a dangerous mission at that time, I would have been a child?"). I also included Iron Man character creation in there because my group actually uses it and I think Mongoose should at least mention it briefly as an optional rule like they did in the last edition. Sure it might not be as popular these days but it's a nice nod to the original and one thing I love telling people about Traveller is how in older versions (and my version) you can actually die during character creation. Oh and one more thing, if you see this Mongoose, feel free to use my list.
 
thesmiths4 said:
In the late October version, there should be one of pass/fail indicators that shows that if the character makes the advancement roll, he or she gets a bonus skill roll.

2nldd1x.jpg

Been away for a bit. Based on the latest version of the core rules, this didn't seem to make the cut. Or did I miss something?
 
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