Scholar - A New Book

[rust]

Indeed, robots (or tele-operated drones) are the way to go.

In a realistic setting, yes, drones and robots would be used in all
potentially very dangerous environments and situations, not just
in scientific exploration - but this would remove many (if not most)
of the player characters' opportunities for adventure and make it
more fun to play the drones and robots doing the interesting stuff
instead of the people who have the comparatively boring task to
control them. So, if you want verisimilitude, the marine biologist
will send an ROV down into the deep sea trench to find out what
creatures live there, if you want adventure and fun the marine bio-
logist will take his diving hardsuit and go down himself to take a
look.

 

[alex_greene]

And if they have an engineering background, they can invent whole new technologies to accomplish their goals.

Science Battle Dress might not exist until some enterprising player character invents it and puts it into production. Look at the people who, in history, invented new technologies just to enable them to do things they could not do before, such as Jacques Cousteau - who invented SCUBA just so he could explore the depths of the ocean.

And somebody had to invent the first Vacc Suit.

 

[Lord High Munchkin]

Indeed, robots (or tele-operated drones) are the way to go.

In a realistic setting, yes, drones and robots would be used in all
potentially very dangerous environments and situations, not just
in scientific exploration - but this would remove many (if not most)
of the player characters' opportunities for adventure and make it
more fun to play the drones and robots doing the interesting stuff
instead of the people who have the comparatively boring task to
control them. So, if you want verisimilitude, the marine biologist
will send an ROV down into the deep sea trench to find out what
creatures live there, if you want adventure and fun the marine bio-
logist will take his diving hardsuit and go down himself to take a
look.

And if one likes some personal action... you could be the drone or robot (although likely only temporarily). Teleoperation and such technology as access jacks could allow such.

 

[Condottiere]

Citizens of the Imperium?

Scientists may warrant a book of their own, but the tack you could take is very much the one used for magic-users: instead of magic spells, actions and techno-babble that will resolve situations when the party encounters scientific conundrums.

After all, high enough technology and science may well resemble magic.

 

[alex_greene]

I still think that the sorts of scenarios requiring a scientist and/or Citizen Traveller would require the character to take a rather more hands-on, personal approach.

After all, if the job could be done with drones the Patron would not need the player characters to risk life and limb - drones and remote operators are so much easier to obtain or make and far cheaper to buy and maintain.

So that would mean the characters actually going into the heart of the volcano, however improbable the mission - think of Spock at the start of Star Trek Into Darkness - or taking the plunge to the bottom of the ocean in an experimental DSV, or whatever. Not to mention the kinds of missions which require little more than a keen mind and eidetic memory to solve some bizarre mystery, where a drone would be a ridiculous option.

The point being, it is the scientist or citizen player character doing the adventuring - after all, if you wanted to play a robot, Book 9: Robot is already out.

 

[AndrewW]

The point being, it is the scientist or citizen player character doing the adventuring - after all, if you wanted to play a robot, Book 9: Robot is already out.

Been there, done that...

 

[Lord High Munchkin]

As a "black book" it will need to cover a wide range of styles ranging from transhumanism to the OTU's retro space-opera (or even for 1950's UFO chasing boffins). It'll need to be pretty general without taking any one setting's background as a "fixed" point.

So, what any book should probably do (in my opinion anyway) is stick to general concepts and methods behind scientific activities... methods of research and how, within the game's systems, discoveries and inventions can be undertaken. There can be ideas of what the different types of scientists actually do and how this can be used in an adventure setting.

Oh and equipment... I'm sure there would be plenty of that too.

 

[Condottiere]

Are there any other viable niches that have been under utilized?

 

[MCEvans]

Yes, I totally would enjoy a major expansion on Scholars.

As for the discussion on in person research and field work in hazardous conditions versus remote gathering I will refer to CT history and Ordeal by Eshaar by FASA.

Eshaar 1826 Far Fronters E6C4839-3 , ALL communications 50m line of sight, visibility 50m daytime, nighttime 2m with strong lights. The bodies of liquid are liquid Sulfur and Sulfuric Acid.

As for Scientists and field work the question is not can a mechanical do it, but if given a choice where would the scientist want to be, safe in a protected area or right there doing it themselves.

As for Vulcanologists "running" towards volcanos, I think about various PBS shows like NOVA, that show sensors and monitors all over the place but when a sample is needed it's quicker for the scientist to do it than send in a robot.

For the now future we are getting lots of info on Mars from the various satellites and robot/probes we have there now, but imagine a team of 3-5 scientists and a 'Mars Rover' for one week on the surface. They could cover 10s of square km as opposed to dozens of square meters over years.

Just comments from the 'Peanut Gallery'

 

[MongooseMatt]

Just to let you all know, we have now officially commissioned this book - expect to see more towards the end of this year!

 

[dmccoy1693]

Wahoo!

 

[Condottiere]

I can see it now, Scholars & Starships.

 

[Jak Nazryth]

I LOVE this idea.
Someone early on mentioned the concern of "not enough material/pages to justify the cost" of producing a separate volume. I would like to point out that Nobles have their own book now... "Dilettante" and it is full of useful items.

And to the powers that be... if there is a problem with over stretching Scholar material, you can always combine Citizen and Scholar together... kinda like Civilian and Military Vehicles...

One of the things I would LOVE to see, something I had to wing/"house rule" is more specific information on Laboratories and Medical Bays.

Pleas, please, please Mongoose people... please design more than just 1 size of a med bay!
Here is what I do...
Auto-Doc takes up 1 ton of "floor space"... the device isn't a full 5'x10' (1.5m x 3m) but it does take up the bulk of that floor space with enough room to walk around it, get in, program it, service it if needed.. things like that. Currently people with auto-docs just "have them somewhere on the ship"... stuck in the corner of the common galley I suppose.

1/2 ton to 1 ton = aid station... recessed alcove/closet with wall mounted medical devices/scanners, with fold-out cots, cabinets, storage, and disposal units. larger station can handle more people...
2 tons = med/exam bay, large enough for 1 bed/exam table and a desk for a doctor with storage cabs. Think of the size of a room everyone goes to when they see their own doctor... just a high tech version of that.
3 tons allows 2 beds with doctor station between (or 1 bed separated by an auto-doc on the other)
These first two sizes can treat serious wounds, infections, "the flu" and allow for minor surgery, but complex stuff like open heart surgery, cybernetic implants, viral/contamination rooms, etc... will of course require larger rooms.
For cost in my house-rule examples from above, I just extrapolate the costs from cannon.
The larger you go the more advanced/difficult surgeries you can do, but that should not remove a basic med bay from a typical tramp.
Obviously on smaller freighters you don't need a surgery center, but without a small med-bay anyone with medic skill has to "remove the bullets" on the kitchen table! lol... so who cleans up the blood so the other paying customers won't get messy walking through the common room?

I would also like to see perhaps something on specialized airlocks. Do "typical" airlocks allow for absolute sterilization, or just "typical" things. When you see and movie or show on TV with scientist going into a lab or hospital to work on an extreme case, they always go through a very complex and thorough decontamination chamber... read any Micheal Crichton book on high tech / lab environments for inspiration.

Along with specialized equipment and components Travellers can incorporate into their smaller tramp freighters, a more thorough and wide ranging set of careers would be great, as many others have covered in earlier replies.

A handful of new scientific/medical ship designs would also be nice. Not every lab ship in known space is a spinning doughnut I hope.

And I love the idea of medical school prior to entering an "working life", similar the way High Guard treats the Naval Academy.
Just my 2 credits.

 

[CosmicGamer]

I would like to point out that Nobles have their own book now... "Dilettante" and it is full of useful items.

But it also should be pointed out that the Dilettante book is more about social standing and wealth than nobility.

nobility is a major part of political and administrative authority of
many star systems, it does not necessarily correspond that the
highest Social Standing values should be limited to them.

So what exactly is a dilettante? The nominal meaning of the
word is a person who dabbles in a field of knowledge or art for
their own amusement, rather than as a profession. However, for
the purposes of this book we shall take this definition a stage
further. In Traveller terms, a dilettante is someone who can
practice their avocation because they are, or have become,
independently wealthy and do not need to work.
Thus dilettante characters operate at the higher levels of society.
They can be artists that create great or whimsical works for the
ages, athletes pitting themselves against the highest physical
pinnacles of their species or celebrities that embody the hopes
and aspirations of their fans. They can even be nobles without
a position of responsibility, who lacking any direction in life,
undertake eccentric tasks or causes.

 

[alex_greene]

And this book is going to be about the kinds of people who live on their Intelligence, Education and skills.

 

[AndrewW]

A handful of new scientific/medical ship designs would also be nice. Not every lab ship in known space is a spinning doughnut I hope.

They aren't. There's the Galileo Research Vessel in Merchants and Cruisers.

 

[Jak Nazryth]

Well, one more is a good start.

 

[GypsyComet]

I LOVE this idea.
Someone early on mentioned the concern of "not enough material/pages to justify the cost" of producing a separate volume. I would like to point out that Nobles have their own book now... "Dilettante" and it is full of useful items.

I was pointing out that the obvious chapters would be a bit sparse, and some of the obvious topics are already covered in some form.

Pleas, please, please Mongoose people... please design more than just 1 size of a med bay!
Here is what I do...
Auto-Doc takes up 1 ton of "floor space"... the device isn't a full 5'x10' (1.5m x 3m) but it does take up the bulk of that floor space with enough room to walk around it, get in, program it, service it if needed.. things like that. Currently people with auto-docs just "have them somewhere on the ship"... stuck in the corner of the common galley I suppose.

I'm sure some of you will already suspect this, but I mine other editions for options, in addition to the Mongoose options in the Core Rule, High Guard, and Trillion Credit Squadron.

A handful of new scientific/medical ship designs would also be nice. Not every lab ship in known space is a spinning doughnut I hope.

T4 and T20 had other hull forms for the Type L. The T4 ship has deckplans, but like a lot of T4's plans they are a bit rushed. The T20 ship didn't get official plans, but there was a fan set around for a while. Other types of ships are certainly possible and appreciated.

 

[Alric]

Indeed, robots (or tele-operated drones) are the way to go.

In a realistic setting, yes, drones and robots would be used in all
potentially very dangerous environments and situations, not just
in scientific exploration - but this would remove many (if not most)
of the player characters' opportunities for adventure and make it
more fun to play the drones and robots doing the interesting stuff
instead of the people who have the comparatively boring task to
control them. So, if you want verisimilitude, the marine biologist
will send an ROV down into the deep sea trench to find out what
creatures live there, if you want adventure and fun the marine bio-
logist will take his diving hardsuit and go down himself to take a
look.

In a realistic setting most scientists won't be able to afford drones and robots. Sure you could just deploy a "VolcanoMaster x52" robo-drone to fly down and take a sample but unfortunately they cost 250k a pop and our operational budget is 15k and a voucher for cheap gas.

 

[Lord High Munchkin]

I think it might come down to the types of Sci-Fi envisioned... "shiny high tech" or "retro hands on".

I'd go for uploading a mind-state into a wee micro drone (not the huge things that the basic rules seem to picture). That should be cheap enough for a parsimonious academic expedition.

Bring on the knife-missiles!