mavikfelna
Cosmic Mongoose
Yep. I always have a Translate/0 program going for the local languages. It doesn't help lots but it does help. And the local Library Data from the starport as well.
Starting equipment for TL9-12
- Thread starter mavikfelna
- Start date
MonsterX
Emperor Mongoose
That's perfect. That would have been useful when I had a player eavesdropping on a conversation in a foreign language, and she wanted to run the translator program on her communicator - the problem being, that it would start speaking the translated words out as she tried hide where she could hear through the dumbwaiter shaft. (In the end, she had to just record it and have it translated later.)
Mmm. The point is taken, but the idea of casually wiring up your brain just to avoid using your phone or smartwatch seems a bit extreme.
First thing I'd ask would be "could this be done with a hidden earpiece and mic"?
You can have clothing that's a discreet computer, eyewear that's a discreet display. Programmed keywords to discretely perform functions, or a smart interface that can interpret your needs. My last character mustered out with a double Armour benefit and got a very nice TL12 Vacc Suit with a built in computer (which I further improved with cash).
All of the above is detectable; I doubt any meeting where you would not be allowed to use a hand computer would overlook scanning you for bionics.
Having said that, obviously there will be some situations where it matters. And for some people it's what they want, so full strength to them.
First thing I'd ask would be "could this be done with a hidden earpiece and mic"?
You can have clothing that's a discreet computer, eyewear that's a discreet display. Programmed keywords to discretely perform functions, or a smart interface that can interpret your needs. My last character mustered out with a double Armour benefit and got a very nice TL12 Vacc Suit with a built in computer (which I further improved with cash).
All of the above is detectable; I doubt any meeting where you would not be allowed to use a hand computer would overlook scanning you for bionics.
Having said that, obviously there will be some situations where it matters. And for some people it's what they want, so full strength to them.
MasterGwydion
Emperor Mongoose
Remember, that is more of a cultural thing or your personal opinion. Technophiles and Transhumanists would disagree with you. I know a bunch of people who wish they could use their phones or computers while only using their brains due to a perfectly safe and almost totally controllable implant.
Oh yeah, I am very much framing this as my viewpoint. A player wants to jack in, here's the rules, go for it.
The main drawbacks I see are when it comes to medical treatment (per the rules), or if someone objects to them in a situation and the character has to leave, or have part of their brain disabled.
The main drawbacks I see are when it comes to medical treatment (per the rules), or if someone objects to them in a situation and the character has to leave, or have part of their brain disabled.
ottarrus
Emperor Mongoose
Back to the OP:
'Standard gear' can be kind of limiting. In my experience, players like to shop for themselves or, if they don't want to have to deal with plowing through the Sears Roebuck Catalogue, they like a series of choices so they can get to playing quickly
So... limiting the gear to TL 12 my suggestion is this:
Everyone starts with:
- TL 12 Communicator /Hand Computer with an Agent and TL 12 Encryption
- Clothing appropriate to your Soc, including uniforms if you served in the military, scouts or for a merchant line
- A full month paid accommodations [incl. food] near the starport. This could range from a coffin shop to a nice room at the TAS
- A basic multitool
- Homeworld and Imperial ID with current credit balance
- Up to Cr 10,000 in cash [subtracted from your balance, of course]
If you have Gun 0 or better:
Choice of one:
- Autopistol
- Stunner
- Rifle
- Shotgun
- Weapon includes 100 rounds/charges preloaded in magazines [ball ammo for slug throwers]
- These are the standard non-customized version of the weapon
- If weapons are illegal on-world, they are stored at a locker in the starport
If you have Vacc Suit 0 or better:
- TL 10 Vacc Suit with standard fittings
If you have a technical skill [Mechanic, Electronics, etc.] at level 1 or better:
- A tool kit appropriate to the skill
- This includes a TL 12 Medical Kit if appropriate
It seems to me that this covers about 90% starting gear needs. If the players want to customize, they have their muster out pay to do that with. If a veteran of the Imperial military or Scouts musters out with weapons or armor, the equipment comes with the appropriate licenses and validations. 'Licenses' does not imply a concealed carry permit for every world in the Imperium. A license makes you the legal authorized owner of said firearm, but you remain subject to local laws.
IMTU, the best rifle a troop musters out with is an ACR or Laser Carbine, the best pistol is a Gauss Pistol or TL 12 Laser Pistol. If someone expresses a preference for a Snub Pistol or Accelerator Rifle, I'm alright with that.
'Standard gear' can be kind of limiting. In my experience, players like to shop for themselves or, if they don't want to have to deal with plowing through the Sears Roebuck Catalogue, they like a series of choices so they can get to playing quickly
So... limiting the gear to TL 12 my suggestion is this:
Everyone starts with:
- TL 12 Communicator /Hand Computer with an Agent and TL 12 Encryption
- Clothing appropriate to your Soc, including uniforms if you served in the military, scouts or for a merchant line
- A full month paid accommodations [incl. food] near the starport. This could range from a coffin shop to a nice room at the TAS
- A basic multitool
- Homeworld and Imperial ID with current credit balance
- Up to Cr 10,000 in cash [subtracted from your balance, of course]
If you have Gun 0 or better:
Choice of one:
- Autopistol
- Stunner
- Rifle
- Shotgun
- Weapon includes 100 rounds/charges preloaded in magazines [ball ammo for slug throwers]
- These are the standard non-customized version of the weapon
- If weapons are illegal on-world, they are stored at a locker in the starport
If you have Vacc Suit 0 or better:
- TL 10 Vacc Suit with standard fittings
If you have a technical skill [Mechanic, Electronics, etc.] at level 1 or better:
- A tool kit appropriate to the skill
- This includes a TL 12 Medical Kit if appropriate
It seems to me that this covers about 90% starting gear needs. If the players want to customize, they have their muster out pay to do that with. If a veteran of the Imperial military or Scouts musters out with weapons or armor, the equipment comes with the appropriate licenses and validations. 'Licenses' does not imply a concealed carry permit for every world in the Imperium. A license makes you the legal authorized owner of said firearm, but you remain subject to local laws.
IMTU, the best rifle a troop musters out with is an ACR or Laser Carbine, the best pistol is a Gauss Pistol or TL 12 Laser Pistol. If someone expresses a preference for a Snub Pistol or Accelerator Rifle, I'm alright with that.
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You can also augment the Wafer Jack after the fact with a Neural Jack. You don't really need to go for a higher tech version of wafer jack as you can access Expert systems held on external computers (and with multiple dedicated computers you can switch Expert systems at will without having to swap chips in your head during combat). KCr75 is also enough for plenty of software (especially if you stick mostly to Expert/1 and focus on enhancing skills you already have).
Waferjacks via their built in Neural Comm can also control companion droids with thought alone. I use lots of droids that have limited to no agency so they need a lot of explicit instruction (and are often keyed to answer commands from only a specific individual). The ability to discretely command a security droid or surveillance drone without revealing you are the controller is very useful.
I would generally chose to augment my cyberware with invisitech and ruggedised. If you are paying for yourself the cost multiples are a pain, but generally the money you get to spend on a single item of cyberware from the benefit is either far too much or not enough. You might as well trick it out to the max and those options basically mean people can't detect it without psionics or destroy it with a random EM hit.
Waferjacks via their built in Neural Comm can also control companion droids with thought alone. I use lots of droids that have limited to no agency so they need a lot of explicit instruction (and are often keyed to answer commands from only a specific individual). The ability to discretely command a security droid or surveillance drone without revealing you are the controller is very useful.
I would generally chose to augment my cyberware with invisitech and ruggedised. If you are paying for yourself the cost multiples are a pain, but generally the money you get to spend on a single item of cyberware from the benefit is either far too much or not enough. You might as well trick it out to the max and those options basically mean people can't detect it without psionics or destroy it with a random EM hit.
MonsterX
Emperor Mongoose
A lot of people take steroids just so they can look big and puffy (or rather, in most cases, just look even bigger and even puffier than they already look). As a result, they get awful side effects and shorten their lifespan.
So for me it is not at all a stretch to think that some people would put chips in their head for actual useful reasons. Many would not, but some would.
MonsterX
Emperor Mongoose
If the surgeon is going to get the bonesaw out, probably best if it is only once, and not every time you want to add a feature to your implant....
And you don't want it breaking first thing, so you're stuck with a useless bit of metal in your head.
To Tha Moon!
Cosmic Mongoose
Those are the ones.
Anstett
Emperor Mongoose
For my players: https://dragonslayer-traveller.com/index.php?n=Main.1105-013-Torpol
Meeting with a noble in charge of a growing corporation who is paranoid. Forced to lock up everything, including detaching the bionic arm.
Asked if there would be any medical problems when they would enter a faraday cage office set up.
Quint
Mongoose
I handle it similarly in my own campaign, but even a bit more streamlined-
"Rather than waste time with equipment purchasing, we are assuming that the players are starting the game just after mustering out of their last service – and that because they live a life of travelling, they (like all who do without a starship of their own) travel light.
Various of the professions also have somewhat ubiquitous bits and bobs of “flavor” that accompany them, challenge coins for the military, field jackets for the scouts, etc. but that said, everyone can assume that they have a few changes of clothing, any equipment or possessions that were generated as part of the mustering out process of course, plus their Imperial Multipass, their Aide, and their Data Store – plus their life savings on account.
Assume that anything from now (or history) exists in the Imperium, either in an equivalent or an even more high-tech form. Rather than provide a confusing equipment list for people to buy from, if someone thinks that they should have some particular piece of gear before starting play just let me know and we’ll figure it out. You can assume that you are travelling with luggage the size of a footlocker or steamer trunk (aka a “jump trunk” – designed for interstellar travel). If you are wealthy then you have more space and can certainly have more gear. If you are dismally poor, you will have even less space for luggage to travel."
Most players (successfully) make a bid for some type of weapon and some type of armor, (service pistols are common result, as are combat fatigues with some AP), various characters often have augments due to their previous enlistment, and I embraced more recent sci-fi and everyone's Aide is a high-tech, almost AI (an "Expert Intelligence") that essentially becomes a henchman of sorts (or alternately a grog in the Ars Magica sense). I'm not super-interested in playing Traveller: The Shopping Trip, so this works pretty well for letting people have what they want and not get bogged down in the minutia of allocating every credit...
D.
ottarrus
Emperor Mongoose
@Quint
Well, we know that the Navy has three or four 'service pistols', a Gauss pistol, a Snub pistol, and a laser pistol.
We also know that the Army has one service pistol, the Gauss pistol.
Strangely, the CSC has done away with the 'middle armor' of LLBB 4 Mercenary: the Combat Environment Suit. But TL 10 Cloth substitutes for it very well, without the need for chill cans.
Well, we know that the Navy has three or four 'service pistols', a Gauss pistol, a Snub pistol, and a laser pistol.
We also know that the Army has one service pistol, the Gauss pistol.
Strangely, the CSC has done away with the 'middle armor' of LLBB 4 Mercenary: the Combat Environment Suit. But TL 10 Cloth substitutes for it very well, without the need for chill cans.
mavikfelna
Cosmic Mongoose
One thing to note, I keep seeing Gauss Pistols here, but they are outside the range of the weapon benefit at TL13. I would generally allow them anyway, but RAW they are not eligible.
It's in the 2023 CSC on page 33 with the military vacc suits and combat armor.
Quint
Mongoose
@ottarrus
My own campaign is admittedly "loosely inspired by canon" these days, but yes, this means often a gauss pistol. In one case there was also a noble who was noted duelist who had a couple of dueling pistols and a sword (taking some cues for T4) and my favorite character who was a minor bureaucrat who had minimal pistol skills but argued for a 'target pistol' for the range and we mutually decided to make it the most useless low-caliber but ultra-tricked out piece of gear we could manage with the rules, basically an Olympic racegun. It was ridiculous (and fairly useless overall), but amusing as all heck.
D.
My own campaign is admittedly "loosely inspired by canon" these days, but yes, this means often a gauss pistol. In one case there was also a noble who was noted duelist who had a couple of dueling pistols and a sword (taking some cues for T4) and my favorite character who was a minor bureaucrat who had minimal pistol skills but argued for a 'target pistol' for the range and we mutually decided to make it the most useless low-caliber but ultra-tricked out piece of gear we could manage with the rules, basically an Olympic racegun. It was ridiculous (and fairly useless overall), but amusing as all heck.
D.
As a point, Gauss pistols are only sometimes legal, being auto weapons. The rules aren't crystal clear where they fall, but I group them with submachine guns, illegal at LL4. As military weapons, Gauss rifles are illegal at LL3, of course.
Law Level isn't part of the mustering out limits, but I'd always mention it when players are making their choices. Mostly so they are aware their special toy may need to be left behind (have you considered a shotgun as a backup?). Of course it DOES affect gear purchase aside from mustering out benefits.
Law Level isn't part of the mustering out limits, but I'd always mention it when players are making their choices. Mostly so they are aware their special toy may need to be left behind (have you considered a shotgun as a backup?). Of course it DOES affect gear purchase aside from mustering out benefits.
Condottiere
Emperor Mongoose
It simplifies things if gauss weapon systems are classified as military.
As regards automation, it would be more if you're caught with one, since modifying it isn't that difficult.
As regards automation, it would be more if you're caught with one, since modifying it isn't that difficult.
Yeah, but for some reason submachine guns aren't classed as military.
Prohibition era rules, I guess...
ottarrus
Emperor Mongoose
Any weapon with an autofire setting is classed as 'military'. Simple logic.
IMTU, the Imperial Army service rifle is the Gauss Rifle so it's out of bounds already. As for the Gauss Pistol, it's TL 13 and shades the TL 12 rule just a hair. However, the Gauss Pistol is still illegal at LL 4 because of it's autofire capability.
Depending on the LL and culture of a given world a high Soc veteran might be excused ONCE for carrying his service pistol, but that warning will be something like, "Sir, I have to write you up for the pistol. Why don't you put that aboard your ship before somebody takes real official notice, eh?"
The fact that the PC in question got a ticket for carrying an illegal firearm would be a matter of record and would show on any ID check, but it's minor... a misdemeanor. This could possibly happen on a world like, say, Jewell pre-5FW. It's a militarized society but an LL of 9. But you'd get no such love on Pretoria/Pretoria... Captive Government [still under IN administration] and LL 7.
IMTU, the Imperial Army service rifle is the Gauss Rifle so it's out of bounds already. As for the Gauss Pistol, it's TL 13 and shades the TL 12 rule just a hair. However, the Gauss Pistol is still illegal at LL 4 because of it's autofire capability.
Depending on the LL and culture of a given world a high Soc veteran might be excused ONCE for carrying his service pistol, but that warning will be something like, "Sir, I have to write you up for the pistol. Why don't you put that aboard your ship before somebody takes real official notice, eh?"
The fact that the PC in question got a ticket for carrying an illegal firearm would be a matter of record and would show on any ID check, but it's minor... a misdemeanor. This could possibly happen on a world like, say, Jewell pre-5FW. It's a militarized society but an LL of 9. But you'd get no such love on Pretoria/Pretoria... Captive Government [still under IN administration] and LL 7.
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