Small scale musings

O

OriginalCaruso

Cosmic Mongoose
I have run my game for a few years now and whilst I don’t have a deep knowledge of lore and even of all the rules, my players enjoy the game and keep on coming back for more. I try to deliver something fresh for every session, and mostly scrape through unscathed. I don’t let the rules get in the way of the fun but keep things pretty close. Yes, we are not hard-core Traveller fanatics, feel free to move on to another thread.

Mega themes form a backdrop, I’m not interested in learning the lore and history of the 3rd Imperium. Matters not who is Emperor or what they are up to, the backdrop serves my purposes only.

What I don’t need are more expansive theme books. And thinking through this post, I may have stumbled upon a reason “why” Traveller is not so popular amongst TTRPG players. Assimilating the growing Traveller context and expanse is hard work. Whilst I buy all the books, they sit on my shelves as a collection. Except for the adventures - these get far more attention, and this is why I am posting.

For my game, and I appreciate my need probably won’t apply to other games, I need small scale “things” to amuse and engage my players for 2-4 hours at a time. I have run a few published adventures which are great and span a few sessions. We started Secrets of the Ancients but found the story arc challenging to stay within the broad bounds but served as a springboard for our current play.

And this is where things get interesting for those averse to using AI. Like most people I am time-poor, preparation is often reading the previous session notes a few minutes before we play. I am toying with the idea of using AI to generate vignettes and short adventures. I’m learning to use AI at work, as it happens I’m responsible for spinning up an AI function therefore have a vested interest, so I might as well use my knowledge to benefit my Traveller game.

If anyone is interested I’ll publish my prompts, early results are encouraging… let me know?
 
I am certainly interested! Like you, the AI function in my work reports into me, so it tends to bleed into my private time, too.

Personally, when I read an adventure I tend to give it a quick read to get the larger "shape" of the story, and major protagonists, then I go back and give it a detailed read. One thing I have found useful is to feed the pdf to an LLM (ChatGPT for a long time, but Gemini does better, now) and ask it to summarise it.

I then ask it to give a critique of the structure and make editing suggestions, and to do so using the voice of a senior editor at a games publisher.
Finally, I ask it to give suggestions for improving specific areas, using the style and approach of an experienced gamesmaster.

Obviously, a few of the ideas are dumb, and sometimes they are cliched, but the overall approach does work for me: it deepens and accelerates my understanding of the material, I am far less likely to miss something major (which does happen!) and it will sometimes make a suggestion that I incorporate.

The preparation routine of a referee/GM/DM is often a lonely one: you cannot discuss the adventure in advance (or during the adventure) with your players beyond gathering broad feedback at the point where it is in contact with the enemy. Having a way to discuss it and to iterate on that discussion is useful. There's Discord and this forum, of course, but any attempt in those media is pretty likely just to get derailed into a heated debate about how anti-missile warheads killed the missile meta, whether piracy is viable, or the dreaded n*ar-c-r*cks.
 
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Open a new tab and navigate to https://gemini.google.com/app

Paste the below prompt into Gemini:

"You are an expert TTRPG games designer specialising in Mongoose Traveller 2.0. We are developing a stand-alone scenario referencing the core rules and creatures found within the Mongoose Traveller 2.0 publications. You may reference Travellers Aid Society articles to source information. The proposed scenario must contain references to original source material where possible, otherwise highlight newly created information. Each section must contain two parts: 1) A public section enclosed within a box for disclosure to the players. 2) A private section containing information for the Games Master. We are developing a scenario where the Travellers seek a low impact and low value artefact which increases the range of their ship jump drive by one jump. The artefact occasionally misfires resulting in either an extra two jumps instead of one, or no extra jump at all. Please generate the requested scenario"

I am astounded at how complete the response is and interested in feedback please - I deliberately omtted adding the Gemini response to "blind test"
 
I find I can generate a usable skeleton for a short adventure by entering the results from the encounter tables. I do upload the books so it can reference the rules. While not perfect I can modify it to work as a small adventure.
 
This is a very interesting post - a lot of games are run like this - on small nuggets or vignettes.
Small-scale action is easier to manage and easier for the players to remember and process. Giving bite-sized chunks instead of a deluge of lore.

The big Imperium lore is great background reading, but most tables are really playing in local situations. There might be a dodgy cargo contract, a weird research outpost, or a derelict ship. Those are the things that actually fill a 3–4 hour session.

So your instinct about using AI for short scenario vignettes makes a lot of sense.

One thing I’ve been experimenting with is using AI to generate session-scale problems, not full adventures.

For example:
  • a misjumped courier ship
  • a mining station hiding something in the ore shipments
  • a survey probe returning bizarre sensor data
Basically, things that give the players a situation to react to rather than a plotted story.

I’m very curious to see the Gemini output from your prompt. Traveller is actually a great stress test for AI because sandbox play exposes weak prompts really quickly. If you’re willing to share the results, I’d love to see them.

A few of us have been experimenting with this kind of thing in a small Skool community for GMs using AI for prep work (never during play). If you feel like comparing notes, you’d definitely fit right in. It's free for now.

1773595209194.png 1773595274917.png


Either way, please post the Gemini output if you’re open to it. I’m always interested to see how different prompts behave with Traveller scenarios.

There's also a lot of AI Art and Chatbot discussion over at my Discord. We also run Virtual GM tests with multiple players -it's very fun - join us!
 
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As a military oriented Traveller player I have (since 1981!) had a great affection for Mercenary Tickets, such as are contained in the original CT Book 4 and in CT 76 Patrons. They are a nice, short setup for an adventure - often even if you don't have a mercenary outfit.
 
Open a new tab and navigate to https://gemini.google.com/app

Paste the below prompt into Gemini:

"You are an expert TTRPG games designer specialising in Mongoose Traveller 2.0. We are developing a stand-alone scenario referencing the core rules and creatures found within the Mongoose Traveller 2.0 publications. You may reference Travellers Aid Society articles to source information. The proposed scenario must contain references to original source material where possible, otherwise highlight newly created information. Each section must contain two parts: 1) A public section enclosed within a box for disclosure to the players. 2) A private section containing information for the Games Master. We are developing a scenario where the Travellers seek a low impact and low value artefact which increases the range of their ship jump drive by one jump. The artefact occasionally misfires resulting in either an extra two jumps instead of one, or no extra jump at all. Please generate the requested scenario"

Response

This is an intriguing design challenge. To maintain the grounded, "used-future" feel of Mongoose Traveller 2e, we should frame this artefact not as "magic," but as a highly experimental or ancient piece of precursor tech—likely a Jump Governor or a Flux Harmonic Compensator from an era like the Ancients or a forgotten Rule of Man laboratory.

Below is the framework for a scenario titled "The Lagrange Hiccup."

Scenario Overview: The Lagrange Hiccup​

The Travellers are hired by a minor academic institution or a desperate salvage broker to retrieve the "Phase-Shift Inductor," a device rumored to optimize jump bubble geometry.

Section 1: The Hook​

Player Briefing

You have been contacted by Dr. Aris Vane of the University of Selasia. He has tracked a "Minor Anomalous Signature" to a derelict scout ship, the Sovereign Seeker, currently caught in a complex gravitational dance between a gas giant and its moon. Dr. Vane claims the ship carries a prototype engine component that could "revolutionize fuel efficiency." He’s offering 50,000 Credits for its safe recovery, no questions asked.
Click to expand...
Referee Information

  • The Artefact: The Phase-Shift Inductor is a small, iridium-cased cylinder (Size: Small, Weight: 10kg).
  • Source Material: Reference High Guard for jump drive mechanics.
  • The Twist: The device is unstable. When installed, it provides a passive +1 Jump range (e.g., a Jump-2 ship becomes Jump-3). However, during the Jump roll, a Natural 2 results in no extra jump (the fuel is spent but the distance is standard), and a Natural 12 results in a +2 Jump (J-2 becomes J-4), potentially overshooting the destination system.
  • The Risk: Dr. Vane isn't telling them that the Sovereign Seeker is currently being scanned by a Zhodani reconnaissance drone (Reference: Core Rulebook, p. 222).

Section 2: The Derelict​

Player Briefing

The Sovereign Seeker is a Type S Scout/Courier (Reference: Core Rulebook, p. 166). It is spinning slowly, venting a faint trail of frozen atmosphere. There is no power, and the hull shows signs of micro-meteoroid pitting. To get the Inductor, you’ll need to perform an EVA and manually decouple it from the Jump Drive in the Engineering section.
Click to expand...
Referee Information

  • The Hazard: The ship’s interior is at 0-G and vacuum. Travellers must succeed in a Dexterity (Athletics/Dexterity) check (1D seconds, Average) to navigate the cramped, darkened corridors.
  • New Content (The "Hiccup" Residue): The Engineering bay is coated in a strange, bioluminescent fungus that feeds on the radiation bleed from the artefact. Touching it without a vacc suit requires a STA check (10+) to avoid "Jump Sickness" (DM-1 to all checks for 24 hours).

Section 3: The Extraction​

Player Briefing

As you uncouple the Inductor, the ship groans. The device emits a soft, rhythmic pulse—a low-frequency hum that vibrates through your suit. Suddenly, your ship's sensors (relayed to your comms) scream a warning: a vessel has just transitioned out of cloak. It’s not a rescue ship.
Click to expand...
Referee Information

  • The Combat: A Zhodani Light Scout is moving in to claim the tech. Use the Space Combat rules (Core Rulebook, p. 150).
  • The Choice: If the Travellers install the Inductor immediately (requires an INT (Engineer/Jump Drive) check, 10+, 1-6 minutes), they can attempt an emergency jump.
  • The Misfire: This is the perfect time to introduce the "extra jump" mechanic. If they roll high and jump +2, they might end up in an uncharted system or a hostile territory, setting up the next session.
Before we flesh out the specific deck plans or the Zhodani pursuit tactics, I'd like to narrow down the "vibe" of your table. Are your players more interested in the crunchy engineering checks and ship management, or are they the type to try and sell the artefact to the highest bidder the moment they find out it's glitchy?
 
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