Possible Alternative SF settings for Mongoose Traveller

alex_greene

alex_greene

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Some possible alternative settings for Traveller which I would love to see:-

- Larry Niven's Ringworld / Known Space setting

- Farscape

- Stargate SG-1 (I'd love to write up that one, focusing particularly on the military backgrounds of characters; seeing as I did the writeup for White Wolf's World of Darkness: Dogs of War in days of yore, it shouldn't be too hard for me to do the necessary background research)

- Some sort of treatment that allows Referees to run a more Douglas Adams - style, humorous or light-hearted SF campaign, or indeed something resembling Mel Brooks' Spaceballs

- Doctor Who (Gods, what if Mongoose secured the IP license from the BBC for that? Imagine the coup!)

- Heinlein's Future History (that of Lazarus Long, et al)

- Asimov's Foundation series

If I think of others, I'll let you know.
 
alex_greene said:
- Doctor Who (Gods, what if Mongoose secured the IP license from the BBC for that? Imagine the coup!)
Click to expand...

Not going to happen, considering that Cubicle 7 have released the Doctor Who Roleplaying Game.
 
Here's a couple I was thinking of:

- Hammer's Slammers (I know it's on the way but I wanted to mention it).

- The Last Legion (series of Sci-Fi books by Chris Bunch).
 
Speaking of The Last Legion, how about The Last Legionary - a quintet of books written for young adults by the late Douglas Hill.

Of course, for over-the-top space advanture, who can forget E E "Doc" Smith's Lensmen series? I'd have serious doubts about being able to port the setting into Traveller, but it'd be fun imagining ...
 
Here are a few video games that I think could be adapted quite easily:

Halo
With the potential problem of everybody wanting to be a Spartan (superhuman killing machine), this particular setting addresses a number of topics. Religious-based genocide, survival, and civil war come immediately to mind, along with discovery of advanced technology.

Homeworld
Though, originally a strategy game, this setting provides some fun opportunities for purpose-driven exploration (finding a new place for your entire race to live). Colonization might be a little different when you've only ever lived in space. Space combat could also be emphasized.

Mass Effect
I believe Gareth cited this game as an inspiration (Signs and Portents 55, page 49) for Mongoose Traveller. It is easy to see why. I think it would be fun to repay the favor by creating a supplement or two for this beatiful setting.

Star Control
Specifically, I would use the setting of Star Control II:The Ur-Quan Masters. I think one of the most important pieces of this setting is inter-species communication and cooperation, giving diplomatic characters a chance to really shine.

Starcraft
Another strategy game, this setting I envision focusing more on an "in the trenches" feel, perhaps with additional rules for large scale "mass combat".

Wing Commander
This setting has a few eras of play. First, the Terran-Kilrathi War, with its fighting for the survival of the human race (includes WC I-III). Then, there is the civil war with the borderworlders. Without the common enemy of the Kilrathi to hold the human race together, the Terran Confederation begins to fray. Disputes between the "haves" (Core Worlds) and the "have nots" (Borderworlders) begins to form that has a bit of political intrigue thrown in for good measure (includes WC IV). Finally, a new enemy emerges unlike any before (includes WC V). Throughout the wars there are still free traders and colonists. The Wing Commander setting could also include the spin-off: Privateer.

Each has a rich history and backstory with plenty of opportunities for exploration and adventure, not just combat. Each could also provide stats and details for the numerous vehicles, weapons, races, and worlds unique to each setting. Granted, licensing would probably be quite expensive for a few of them.
 
I hadn't thought about it before but Mass Effect could be a pretty good setting to use with a lot of backstory hinted thoughout the game.
 
How about Ian M Banks The Culture universe.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Culture

Think of tooling around in on of those General Contact Units on the cultures fringes working for Special Circumstances :)
 
What about the Riddick 'Verse??
I believe that it is mentioned in S&P #64 under the video reviews.

Drawing on "Pitch Black", "Chronicles of Riddick" and the game "Escape from Butcher Bay"; it's almost ready made for Traveller.
 
Riddick would be interesting, although I wonder if it would be more suited to 4ed. Vin Diesel envisioned it as sort of a far future D&D-type universe.

I agree Halo would make for a rather interesting RPG. And while the idea of playing a SPARTAN II would be understandably popular, I'm sure a lot of people would find some of the other options interesting. Imagine being a squad of Marines encountering the Covenant on an outer colony world. You're fighting hard, and you've finally started to push them back, when the GM gives you a transmission across all frequencies that the Covies are moving into position to glass the planet...

Or maybe you've got naval crew on a frigate, trying to survive encounters with the vastly superior Covenant Fleet. How about an ONI prowler?

Shoot, you could play as insurrectionists, hating the UNSC just as much as the Covenant. Or maybe an Elite, pre-schism or otherwise.

And of course, don't forget fighting the flood...

Yesh, this could be fun.
 
In addition to most of the ones already mentioned, I'd buy any of these:

Crimson Dark - crimsondark.com

Mike Shepard's Kris Longknife series

Jack Campbell's Lost Fleet series

Steven Kent's Clone Republic series

EC Tubb's Dumerest of Terra series
 
Gears of War

After reading the book it seems that it is a nice mix of scifi and Twilight. On the other hand there are a lot of common with Starship troopers except for ... starships :P
 
Hi,

I would like to see a supplement that was based on Kim Stanley Robinson's Martian Trilogy.

Hope springs eternal...


Ian
 
Another one.

Iron Empires based on comics by C.J.Moeller. It should be pretty easy to do but there is already a game based on it, Burning Empires. The hard part is that it is a competitive RPG where I would like to see a bit more classical game.
 
Just thought of another couple:

Anne MacCaffery's Brain-Brawn universe which also allows for the Crystal Singer stories.

Anne MacCaffery's Catteni Sequence.
 
Arakor said:
Just thought of another couple:

Anne MacCaffery's Brain-Brawn universe which also allows for the Crystal Singer stories.

Anne MacCaffery's Catteni Sequence.
Click to expand...

Now don't leave out the Planet Pirates world.
 
Walter Jon Williams' Hardwired. It's already been written up as a supplement for 1st ed. Cyberpunk (by the author himself no less) but that was a long time ago and we've all passed a lot of water since then. It's certainly a setting with lots of game potential.
 
AndrewW said:
Arakor said:
Just thought of another couple:
  • Anne MacCaffery's Brain-Brawn universe which also allows for the Crystal Singer stories.
  • Anne MacCaffery's Catteni Sequence.
Click to expand...
Now don't leave out the Planet Pirates world.
Click to expand...

Believe it or not, I haven't actually read them, which is probably didn't mention them.

Oh, just in case I haven't mentioned them (or anyone else hasn't), what about Chris Bunch's Last Legion?
 
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