Traveller Changing Hands - Q&A

[BeardGoblin]

Dark Nebula/Imperium, Azhanti, Snapshot, Striker? What happens to the Martian Metals and Citadel 15mm portfolio?

Some (possibly all, I'm not sure what the whole range was) of the old Citadel 15mm Traveller Figures are still available from RAFM Minitaures - I just checked, they're still there, though the last time I bought any was (gulp!) a decade ago! The Droyne/Vargr/Aslan appear under generic names. About 15-16 packs of 10-ish models.


More on topic, no questions, just great to see Mongoose carry on the Traveller tradition!

 

[DigrizJB]

Has the Future of the Imperium been foreseen? We’ve reached the Fifth Frontier War, with the hint of possible alternate outcomes to that conflict. Next, will there be an assassination? Or a failed assassination? Or no assassination since there is no metagame reason to reboot the rule set?

Will there be a time when CT source material runs out, and the Classic Traveller universe under Mongoose stewardship can move in a new but contiguous direction away from Assassination, Civil War, Virus Ships, Empress Wave, et al.?

After the FFW, Carnivore Contingency Corporation will be hiring Aslan mercenaries and transporting them across the Imperium to fight and eat as many K’kree as they can defeat. There’s a whole lot of territory available, a mere 200+ parsecs across the Imperium.

 

[Vormaerin]

Has the Future of the Imperium been foreseen? We’ve reached the Fifth Frontier War, with the hint of possible alternate outcomes to that conflict. Next, will there be an assassination? Or a failed assassination? Or no assassination since there is no metagame reason to reboot the rule set?

Will there be a time when CT source material runs out, and the Classic Traveller universe under Mongoose stewardship can move in a new but contiguous direction away from Assassination, Civil War, Virus Ships, Empress Wave, et al.?

After the FFW, Carnivore Contingency Corporation will be hiring Aslan mercenaries and transporting them across the Imperium to fight and eat as many K’kree as they can defeat. There’s a whole lot of territory available, a mere 200+ parsecs across the Imperium.

In the past, Matt has said that they are basically going to make a lot of "what ifs" rather push a time line (assuming I understood correctly). All basically assuming you are starting around 1105 (ish) and the other didn't necessarily happen. The next "What if" coming out is Singularity.

I think it would be great if they did a "what if" core campaign about the build up to the assassination, with various schemes and factions that the PCs could be involved with. I think it would be terrible if they went back to telling the players what happened.

 

[Terry Mixon]

In the past, Matt has said that they are basically going to make a lot of "what ifs" rather push a time line (assuming I understood correctly). All basically assuming you are starting around 1105 (ish) and the other didn't necessarily happen. The next "What if" coming out is Singularity.

I think it would be great if they did a "what if" core campaign about the build up to the assassination, with various schemes and factions that the PCs could be involved with. I think it would be terrible if they went back to telling the players what happened.

As it would definitely mirror some of the events happening in my Traveller universe, I am so looking forward to Singularity. I'll be over the moon when it goes from a "sometime soon" book to one with even a hypothetical release date.

 

[Vormaerin]

I rarely use anything published as written, but I love having different source materials to use for inspiration (or outright theft) and Singularity definitely sounds like one that'll be particularly useful in that regards.

 

[Terry Mixon]

I rarely use anything published as written, but I love having different source materials to use for inspiration (or outright theft) and Singularity definitely sounds like one that'll be particularly useful in that regards.

^^^this^^^

 

[Sigtrygg]

Nexus points:
1110 - FFW outcome
1116 - assassination of Strephon
1130 - Virus
1201 - RC
1248 - TNNE
1900 - Republic of Regina

FFW - stalemate, Imperial resounding victory, Zhodani resounding victory (may allow them to press the button labelled turn off Empress Wave)

Assassination/Rebellion - for goodness sake if you do this start with the PCs involved somehow. They could be in the audience, they could be outside the palace, they could be in the same situation as Lt Windhook.
The release of virus may or may not happen.
No assassination there will still be an Empress Wave to deal with (possibly)

Virus - could something akin to Virus evolve anyway?

 

[Ewan]

In intersting campaign would be the assassination fails and the rebellion is contained to the Core sector.

 

[MasterGwydion]

In intersting campaign would be the assassination fails and the rebellion is contained to the Core sector.

They would have to make sure the Aslan ambassador doesn't get killed as well, otherwise you still lose the whole Trojan Reach.

Plus, Dulinor wasn't from Core Sector.

 

[ottarrus]

I understand that Mongoose will be concentrating on the 5thFW for the near future, but does Mongoose intend to change the canon future of Traveller?

 

[MongooseMatt]

I understand that Mongoose will be concentrating on the 5thFW for the near future, but does Mongoose intend to change the canon future of Traveller?

No decision yet made.

If we covered these precise eras, no doubt something would be tweaked/added/changed/deleted, because that is how creativity works and there are always better ideas. But we have absolutely no plans to do so at this time. Plenty of space to explore in 1105 and the FFW first.

 

[collins355]

TBH I still like M0 as a setting, and one that allows for a lot of authorial creativity without trashing the Imperium first (see TNE).
Give the players some agency in establishing the Imperium (or trying to stop it). Add some mysteries and deep, dark secrets to be uncovered. A gritty TL11/12 universe with no FGMPs for the munchkins. Plenty of uncharted spaces for those who like exploration.

I just didn’t like the rules (or the errata) of T4.

 

[Geir]

TBH I still like M0 as a setting, and one that allows for a lot of authorial creativity without trashing the Imperium first (see TNE).
Give the players some agency in establishing the Imperium (or trying to stop it). Add some mysteries and deep, dark secrets to be uncovered. A gritty TL11/12 universe with no FGMPs for the munchkins. Plenty of uncharted spaces for those who like exploration.

I just didn’t like the rules (or the errata) of T4.

I like the idea of the M0 setting, but they could never really decide which century it was, which would have made it difficult to write adventures for it, since it would be hard to sustain a campaign that way. And I didn't care for the 'fact' that the future was entirely fixed. Doesn't matter for a heist scheme, but it would for an empire building scheme.

What would be to me an ideal 'new setting', would be to go back to TL13 at the highest (a few very elite battledress and other high tech things, but mostly TL10-12) and set it in about 1400 - long after the Empress wave is gone and put it the campaign anywhere but the Spinward Marches so the future of the Republic of Regina 400 years from now becomes entirely irrelevant. There might still be a cache of TL14/15/16 goodies along from the 'Before Times' for adventurers to discover, but it would have all the potential of a new empire-building phase without the baggage of knowing what's to come in the 'official' universe.

 

[MasterGwydion]

I like the idea of the M0 setting, but they could never really decide which century it was, which would have made it difficult to write adventures for it, since it would be hard to sustain a campaign that way. And I didn't care for the 'fact' that the future was entirely fixed. Doesn't matter for a heist scheme, but it would for an empire building scheme.

What would be to me an ideal 'new setting', would be to go back to TL13 at the highest (a few very elite battledress and other high tech things, but mostly TL10-12) and set it in about 1400 - long after the Empress wave is gone and put it the campaign anywhere but the Spinward Marches so the future of the Republic of Regina 400 years from now becomes entirely irrelevant. There might still be a cache of TL14/15/16 goodies along from the 'Before Times' for adventurers to discover, but it would have all the potential of a new empire-building phase without the baggage of knowing what's to come in the 'official' universe.

I always figure the future isn't fixed once you introduce players. Their actions can change the future. That is kind of the whole point. I use the Assassination of Strephon, the Civil War, The Virus, the Empress Wave, all of it. If I am running a campaign that has the players on Capital and they prevent the death of Strephon or the death of the Aslan Ambassador or the Princess, then the future changes. It is as simple as that. No one actually plays in the OTU. As soon as you sit down for the first session of your Traveller game, the future has already changed. It is the job of the Ref to decide how those changes will affect the larger universe.

Edit: The Official Timeline is just a guideline for what will happen if things are allowed to continue as written.

 

[wintertraveller]

Congratulations to Matt, Mongoose Staff, and all the contract writers and artists! This change is a reflection of your great work with Traveller. I am delighted to read this news.