Strontium Dog and Judge Dredd settings:

[Bygoneyrs]

Hello everyone,

Well I got in the mail yesturday my copy of Strontium Dog along with another Traveller book as well too. I read SD from cover to cover and while I feel it is both a good book and good setting, it just doesn't have the flavor or feel that sit s well for me. I guess one might say that both SD and JD are in the same boat for me. For me I have been both a gamer and DM/GM now for over 33+ years. I have collected Comics for almost the same amount of time as well too.

Now being from the USA, both JD and SD have not been a very strong comic over here in the US. Maybe it is the Cultural difference between the UK and USA. The feel for both is off from my perspective, but they still are good products. I will also buy "everything" that relates to Traveller or uses the Traveller engine in a cross-over, but feel that Mongoose might want to choose as their next "cross-over"a USA cultural icon cross over.

Just a thought...


Penn

 

[Bygoneyrs]

Also I wanted to make clear I did think it was a very good product, it is just when I look at this type of style of product I think back to Gamma World is all or Aftermath. They have a different feel or flavor. I know there is no way to ever get a GW license but it would be awesome if your were to.

Penn

 

[B_Steele]

...but feel that Mongoose might want to choose as their next "cross-over"a USA cultural icon cross over.

Just you wait, mate. Just you wait. :_)

-Bry

 

[Dave Chase]

Hello everyone,

...
Now being from the USA, both JD and SD have not been a very strong comic over here in the US. Maybe it is the Cultural difference between the UK and USA.
...
Just a thought...


Penn

Strontium Dog is not as strong in the U.S. as it is in other places.

But Judge Dredd, maybe around where you are but I know of many individuals who knew about JD before the movie and more that got a bit interested after the movie.

I think that JD was a good choice for Mongoose because it is something that would catch many an eye, even if they don't much about it.

Dave Chase

 

[aspqrz]

I have an order in for Strontium Dog simply because it has a magic system and I want to see how the Mongoose folks have done that.

The cover artwork makes the whole background look extremely silly, worse if it accurately represents how the comic presents things, and the written blurb sounds even sillier.

It may be popular in Oz, but I've never heard of it ... course, as an old codger of 55, there may be a reason for that :wink:

Phil

 

[Lord High Munchkin]

Also I wanted to make clear I did think it was a very good product, it is just when I look at this type of style of product I think back to Gamma World is all or Aftermath.

'Aftermath!' (which is still in print and has had new material recently published), is in my opinion, a far superior game to 'Gamma World'—which always did seem a bit "silly".

As to 'Strontium Dog', I always preferred the art to the stories. Judge Dredd is just a delightful fascist... he was often likened here in the UK to Mrs Thatcher with a sense of humour and a night-stick.

 

[Loz]

The cover artwork makes the whole background look extremely silly, worse if it accurately represents how the comic presents things, and the written blurb sounds even sillier.

I'm afraid it is rather silly. 'Strontium Dog' has very strong silly and satirical streaks that are a very British cultural thing. Its not unique to SD either; Dredd is every bit as silly, and many of the strips found in 2000AD, the comic that launched both, has never taken itself too seriously at all. Strips like 'Robo Hunter', 'DR and Quinch' and 'Ace Trucking' get even sillier than 'Strontium Dog'. Its all a matter of taste.

But Strontium Dog does have a serious side to it. Setting aside the daft mutations it tackles the nature of prejudice, notions of morality, and social justice. Some - many - of the stories have a very hard edge to them where the silliness is completely dispensed with.

In many ways 2000AD has been the antidote to some of the rather po-faced American comic books. Its approach has a great deal in common with the anarchic humour of British comedy: Monty Python, The Young Ones, Father Ted... it lampoons quite savagely and throws rationality to the wind in favour of a good story.

So, Strontium Dog might not be to your taste. If you find the cover and back-cover blurb silly, then you'll find the content sillier still. I make absolutely no apology for it; it reflects the source material. It has to. If it didn't, it would be a betrayal of some 30 years of glorious 2000AD anarchy.

 

[rcbecker1]

So, Strontium Dog might not be to your taste.

Never even heard of SD till Mongoose put it out so Im fairly curious, Now I might have to get it.
As for USA Genre we could use a MAD MAX, Road Warrior type thing. Well known here.

 

[The Chef]

As for USA Genre we could use a MAD MAX, Road Warrior type thing. Well known here.

Mad Max is Australian??

 

[BP]

Aye - that it is - but we like it nonetheless

Seriously - while it is more recognizeable to Americans than SD and maybe Judge Dredd - only those of a certain generation have probably been exposed to it...

 

[rcbecker1]

Yes but it is very popular here. Which cable will be showing all 3 in order this week. Yeah Mad Max Marathon.

 

[Travellingdave]

I agree that SD can be pretty silly (which IS true to the source material), but I found it a wonderful alternative sourcebook for Traveller. The original Traveller felt very limited by the OTU, but Mongoose is totally breaking down the walls with these expanded world books. Even if I don't use the worlds as written, each gives me new ideas and game mechanics for expanding my own Traveller game and provides new possibilities for play. I'm now looking at using Traveller for a post-apocalyptic campaign by co-opting much of the technical info from SD. Keep it up.

 

[DB]

Let's see;
Judge Dredd...............British
Strontium Dog............British
Traveller....................American
Hammers Slammers...American
Babylon 5..................American

I believe our friends in the US are doing well enough out of this without introducing a deliberate bias.

 

[domingojs23]

Dear Friends,

For those of you who have the Judge Dredd and Strontium Dog books, I'm wondering how you use them in your respective Traveller Campaigns - as stand-alone settings, or somehow incorporated into a larger universe.

I'm particularly interested to hear from those of you who integrate them in the official / adapted Traveller Universe.

Thanks !

Gary

 

[FreeTrav]

Freelance Traveller would be interested in reviews of the SD and JD books, from people who are familiar with the material that the setting is drawn from. In addition to the more usual review material, we'd like to know how well the setting is captured, and how good a fit for the Traveller rules the setting is.

 

[Bygoneyrs]

Hey guys I started this thread, and own both JD and SD core books. Now I bought the books for a resource for the game and just to have them. In the end I will buy all the JD and SD books for Traveller anyway just to say I own them and to use them"Mine for ideas" for my campaign. There is always good materials in any book for mining, if one looks for it. The magic system in SD was ok, but I perfer the system defined by Flinn's book better.

Just my 2 cents worth...

Penn