What SM subsector to start in...

[Hoplite]

A simple question - what SM dubsector would you lot advise starting a campaign in that would allow the widest scope for different types of adventures?

I'm about to start a campaign, but I'm not sure what kind of adventures I need to setup for - and if things go as usual, my players won't know until they have their characters sorted out. Hence, my need for a location that will allow a wide range of adventure - be it military, political intrigue, exploration, trade etc...

My guess would be somewhere like Jewel, but I'd like to hear what you'll think and why.

 

[Klaus Kipling]

District 268 would be my pick.

Lots of world varieties, from high tech to asteroid belts, with an Imperial presence, a cold war between 2 independent worlds, and Sword Worlder influence. Also the link on the Spinward Main into Glisten from Lunion, and next door to the wilder Five Sisters.


My second pick would be Lunion. A crossroads on the Spinward Main, with 2 high tech industrial worlds, and a good variety of others, and the Sword Worlds just next door.

In both subsectors a J2 vessel can visit most places, even if the route is a bit more contricted. Good for trade, espionage, and crime, with the occasional justification for some military action. D268 is a good place for piracy to exist (main trade route + weak Imperial presence + in built conflict).

 

[GypsyComet]

Depends on the mix you are planning, and whether or not they are free to wander around.

I rather like the subsectors that are adjacent to the Sword Worlds, though Vilis and Lanth are a bit sparse due to the Abyss Rift.

A game I ran many years ago now had great fun in Lunion. The game I'm running now is probably going to spend quite a lot of time in D268, but I know the PCs want to get to Glisten. That hi-tech allure...

Rhylanor and Mora and Trin's Veil all have good potential, but lack a handy border (off map to Trailing is all Imperial space).

You will find a lot of older material for Regina and Aramis (Kinunir and The Traveller Adventure, respectively, among others), and Aramis in particular has some interesting worlds already detailed for you in TTA, but their border is with the Vargr and the Zhodani Buffer Zone.

Since I'm reasonably certain that Mongoose will NOT revisit the Marches in comprehensive and excruciating detail, you may want to hunt down a copy of the GURPS Traveller version of the sector ("Behind the Claw") as a companion volume to the Mongoose book. While many folks didn't like it because of its departures from traditonal Traveller terminology, as a *companion* book to MGT SM it can help you the Referee by providing instant color for the planets your PCs visit.

And lets be frank. Any work you don't have to do but can benefit from is a good thing.

 

[Zowy]

Darrian or Five Sisters so they can goto the Foreven sector :twisted:

 

[daryen]

Personally, I tend toward Regina/Aramis because much of the early material was focused there. As GC says, Aramis was covered in The Traveller Adventure. In addition, Regina was covered in The Traveller Book. (And I still love both.)

There are a variety of worlds there, and there are the wilds of Vargr space just coreward of the border. That also means that plenty of Vargr are running around in the two subsectors, too. So, you get an instant alien presence. (Unless the space-wolves just leave you cold. Personally, I like 'em.)

However, for a non-grognard, District 268 wins hands down. Really, I can't see how there is even a contest. It has a real, honest-to-God trade war in full flower. It has a backward religious dictatorship. It has a primitive race who sentience is questioned. It has the beligerent Sword Worlds just to coreward. It has a couple Imperial worlds for color, but is almost entirely unaligned. It has a hi-tech hi-pop crap world, but also has a no-pop garden world. It has an under-populated asteroid belt. It is surrounded by other great subsectors, too.

Seriously, it has just about every single "gritty" SF trope all in just one subsector. And if your players get bored anyway, just toss in a Darrian trade ship, or mysterious Droyne scout on a mission, or a small Aslan ihatei fleet causing trouble, or something.

You can't go wrong starting your players off in District 268.

 

[GypsyComet]

and there are the wilds of Vargr space just coreward of the border. That also means that plenty of Vargr are running around in the two subsectors, too. So, you get an instant alien presence.

More specifically, you get a *foreign* alien presence. The Vargr are all through the Marches and the rest of the Imperium, having cheerfully integrated into the society of the most charismatic leader around (the Emperor).

What you get in Aramis, Regina, and Jewel is non-Imperial Vargr. Outsiders.

 

[daryen]

and there are the wilds of Vargr space just coreward of the border. That also means that plenty of Vargr are running around in the two subsectors, too. So, you get an instant alien presence.

More specifically, you get a *foreign* alien presence. The Vargr are all through the Marches and the rest of the Imperium, having cheerfully integrated into the society of the most charismatic leader around (the Emperor).

What you get in Aramis, Regina, and Jewel is non-Imperial Vargr. Outsiders.

Quite so. Sorry for being unclear. Actually, you get lots of both. The coreward border subsectors of the Imperium are likely to have many more assimilated Vargr, so they should be much more ubiquitous.

Plus, with the foreign Vargr, you can get lots of variety. Of course, there are the Corsairs causing problems. Then, the standard Vargr traders. They are honest traders, but approach a little differently. Past those, however, you have Emessaries working across the borders, dissident groups in the Imperium, refugees from the innumerable Vargr conflicts, and so on.

 

[kristof65]

I'm partial to Rhylanor, since it was the first world/system I sat down and detailed for MTU. Most of my campaigns have the PCs travelling between there and Darrian, for a large variety of reasons.

 

[Rikki Tikki Traveller]

District 268 would be my pick.

Lots of world varieties, from high tech to asteroid belts, with an Imperial presence, a cold war between 2 independent worlds, and Sword Worlder influence. Also the link on the Spinward Main into Glisten from Lunion, and next door to the wilder Five Sisters.


My second pick would be Lunion. A crossroads on the Spinward Main, with 2 high tech industrial worlds, and a good variety of others, and the Sword Worlds just next door.

In both subsectors a J2 vessel can visit most places, even if the route is a bit more contricted. Good for trade, espionage, and crime, with the occasional justification for some military action. D268 is a good place for piracy to exist (main trade route + weak Imperial presence + in built conflict).

What he said.

The District and Lunion were always my favorite subsectors.

In the District, you can even bring in the Darrians to push the cold war between them and the SW if you like. There are several worlds in the NW (Core-Spinward) part of the District that have Darrian populations, even if they are not part of the Confederation. Glisten is also very close for a nice high tech source of goods

IMA LOVE THE DISTRICT.

 

[MrUkpyr]

Regina, District 268, and Rhylanor.

 

[Tipsy]

I just started mine on Regina since I could offer the PCs three directions to head in that corresponded with different campaign flavors. Currently they are making their way down the Lanth main.

And may I say that I actually prefer not looking at my copy of Behind the Claw? It is a remarkable book, but I am digging the hell out of unpacking UWPs on my own. I think the real beauty of the Mongoose Spinward Marches/Classic Spinward Marches approach is that it gives you a ton of data and does the heavy lifting for you, while allowing you to color your universe any way you want.

 

[Cowboy]

Option 1: Choose a world at random, look at the UWP, try to embellish on it and think of an adventure that could take place there.

Option 2: Think of a fun sort of adventure to start out with, then find a world with a UWP that will support that adventure and start there.

 

[Hoplite]

So it seems the District is the 'popular choice'.

I had originally thought of Jewel due to the presence of the Arden Confederacy and the Zhodani, and all the possibilities that opened up. But having a think about it, i think the District will provide the same possibilities but with a little more subtlety. Then there's that whole right on the frontier thing going on...

So, thanks for the replies everyone - I think I'll start fleshing out the District and sub sectors around it. Though I'm bound to find that when the players make their characters somewhere else will suit better. Players are horrible like that!

 

[kafka]

I always liked Chronor when thinking about the Spinward Marches but until this last campaign I only used the Marches for ideas for other Sectors. Now, I find that I use the convinent plot device of misjump to direct players wherever I want them to go...despite their intended destination. Helps keep players on their toes and not to buy books intended for Referees only.

 

[GypsyComet]

D268 also has even more non-aligned space nearby in Trojan Reach sector to rimward, and once you get around that Imperial blob to spinward, lots and lots more non-aligned worlds in Foreven and The Beyond.

 

[AKAramis]

I almost always start in Aramis, Regina, or Lanth... and usually on Wypoc/Lanth, Regina/Regina, or Aramis/Aramis. The latter only when running TTA.

I've often transplanted the Shadows adventure to Wypoc.