What was your 1st edition of Traveller?
- Thread starter Infojunky
- Start date
Mark A. Siefert
Mongoose
I didn't start playing Traveller until Traveller 20.
TrippyHippy
Emperor Mongoose
My first edition was actually T4 - which I could see faint lines of style but way too many issues to be useful to me.
The next purchase was the Classic Reprints, which really drove home the potential of what the game could be like with some updates, and why it had all the succes it did have in the first place.
The Mongoose edition, to me, is slightly less stylish (albeit not to the extent that I have a problem with it), but develops all the systems into something that any contemporary casual gamer can understand and have lots of fun with - with the promise of lots of diverse support.
I am also familiar, and have read T20 and T:TNE, with some limited reading of Mega Traveller. For differing reasons, none of these appeal to me.
The next purchase was the Classic Reprints, which really drove home the potential of what the game could be like with some updates, and why it had all the succes it did have in the first place.
The Mongoose edition, to me, is slightly less stylish (albeit not to the extent that I have a problem with it), but develops all the systems into something that any contemporary casual gamer can understand and have lots of fun with - with the promise of lots of diverse support.
I am also familiar, and have read T20 and T:TNE, with some limited reading of Mega Traveller. For differing reasons, none of these appeal to me.
I started Traveller in 1983, 9th grade, with both the deluxe traveller box and the traveller book. Said hardcover is six inches from my leg, and while the cover is badly worn, the book itself is still intact and functional.
Now, mind you, I'd been doing D&D for several years. I'd been trying to write somthing akin to D&D as a 4th grader... the very concept of going on a dungeon adventure had cropped up in some story in a magazine... and I wanted to play it. But I had no knowledge of RPG's at that point; during 4th grade, I was introduced to AH's Survival by my shrink, and RPG's were a natural evolution from character scale boardgames. When, two years later, I got hold of D&D basic, I was both wowed and relieved that it had already been done.
Now, mind you, I'd been doing D&D for several years. I'd been trying to write somthing akin to D&D as a 4th grader... the very concept of going on a dungeon adventure had cropped up in some story in a magazine... and I wanted to play it. But I had no knowledge of RPG's at that point; during 4th grade, I was introduced to AH's Survival by my shrink, and RPG's were a natural evolution from character scale boardgames. When, two years later, I got hold of D&D basic, I was both wowed and relieved that it had already been done.
I started RPGing with D&D back in 1981, but I only got interested in Traveller in the last year.
I got interested in GURPS 4e after hearing the positive reviews (GURPS 4e is excellent by the way, although it may be too crunchy to ever use with my players). I was also getting interested in Sci-Fi games at the time and picked-up GURPS: Traveller Intersteller Wars. Now my interest was piqued, I'm old-school by nature and I found myself wanting to find out more about Traveller.
This led me to buying the Classic Traveller CD from Far Future Enterprises and increasing my interest in the Traveller universe.
Researching Traveller led me to the new edition by Mongoose. MGT being billed as a updated, streamlined version of Classic Traveller really resonated with me. I want to be able to easily use the information in the CT CD in an "improved" version of CT.
I like Mongoose Traveller (MGT) more than Classic Traveller (CT) and it does seem to be true to its claim of being an update of CT and the CT material should need little conversion. I have yet to run a game of Traveller, but I'm looking forward to it.
How's that for a convoluted history?
Now that I am into Traveller though, I have discovered the amazing amount of quality material put out for this system. It's a bit overwhelming, BITS, FASA, T20 (Gateway), ETC.
MGT is perfectly timed for me, I'll be able to wade into the Traveller ocean at a measured pace with a new publisher who appears to be doing a very good job so far.
I got interested in GURPS 4e after hearing the positive reviews (GURPS 4e is excellent by the way, although it may be too crunchy to ever use with my players). I was also getting interested in Sci-Fi games at the time and picked-up GURPS: Traveller Intersteller Wars. Now my interest was piqued, I'm old-school by nature and I found myself wanting to find out more about Traveller.
This led me to buying the Classic Traveller CD from Far Future Enterprises and increasing my interest in the Traveller universe.
Researching Traveller led me to the new edition by Mongoose. MGT being billed as a updated, streamlined version of Classic Traveller really resonated with me. I want to be able to easily use the information in the CT CD in an "improved" version of CT.
I like Mongoose Traveller (MGT) more than Classic Traveller (CT) and it does seem to be true to its claim of being an update of CT and the CT material should need little conversion. I have yet to run a game of Traveller, but I'm looking forward to it.
How's that for a convoluted history?
Now that I am into Traveller though, I have discovered the amazing amount of quality material put out for this system. It's a bit overwhelming, BITS, FASA, T20 (Gateway), ETC.
MGT is perfectly timed for me, I'll be able to wade into the Traveller ocean at a measured pace with a new publisher who appears to be doing a very good job so far.
LBB's with change left over from buying SPI's 'Airwar'...late '77 I think...it was a long time ago.
I bought everything I could get my hands on for Trav, but ended after MT because I can't keep spending money on things I pretty much already have, so I pick and choose pretty ruthlessly. I play heavily houseruled MT.
I am a heretic who thinks the canon OTU has overwhelmed the game and keeps real progress from occuring...
I now play/tinker with my own TU with the Imperium being somewhere "over there" and cherry-pick ideas I like and scrap ones I don't.
My vision of Trav is closer to 2300 and aliens than the OTU...
but then, thats what I love about Trav...it can fit my vision/universe instead of my universe being forced to fir Trav.
I bought everything I could get my hands on for Trav, but ended after MT because I can't keep spending money on things I pretty much already have, so I pick and choose pretty ruthlessly. I play heavily houseruled MT.
I am a heretic who thinks the canon OTU has overwhelmed the game and keeps real progress from occuring...
I now play/tinker with my own TU with the Imperium being somewhere "over there" and cherry-pick ideas I like and scrap ones I don't.
My vision of Trav is closer to 2300 and aliens than the OTU...
but then, thats what I love about Trav...it can fit my vision/universe instead of my universe being forced to fir Trav.
Ah! Time to reminisce.
Let's see. It was 1985 and I had just been introduced to D&D, then AD&D that summer. I started thinking about a sci-fi game based on the AD&D rules (I didn't know about Star Frontiers yet) when a friend in High School told me about Traveller. He had just about everything at that time. The Boxed set with the LBBs and tons of expansions. I myself bought the Traveller Book that fall and I still remember my 1st character. A Scout who went by the name "Starhustler". The name comes from this guy who ran a short astonomical show that came on after Dr. Who on PBS back in those days. Jack Horkhimer of Miami's Space Transit Planetarium. I thought the name was cool and went with it. I totaly thought the Type S was far superiour over the Type A and pushed the Book 2 system to the limit modifying that thing! Thank goodness for High Guard.
Lets see. We played in the Regina subsector right before the 5th FW. Our party consisted of my Scout, a Marine, a Naval Admiral (the old man) and a Secret Agent, the career which came out of a copy of Dragon. We messed around Regina and then made our own homebrew subsector, placed somewhere in what is now the Vargr extents. We didn't use too many aliens back then, but I learned about Vargr and they had to be included. They were my first and favorite OTU aliens. The Zhodani came next and were my favorite villains.
Then one day I went to college and all that CT stuff ended. I soon found 2300AD and then MegaTraveller. But that is another story...
Let's see. It was 1985 and I had just been introduced to D&D, then AD&D that summer. I started thinking about a sci-fi game based on the AD&D rules (I didn't know about Star Frontiers yet) when a friend in High School told me about Traveller. He had just about everything at that time. The Boxed set with the LBBs and tons of expansions. I myself bought the Traveller Book that fall and I still remember my 1st character. A Scout who went by the name "Starhustler". The name comes from this guy who ran a short astonomical show that came on after Dr. Who on PBS back in those days. Jack Horkhimer of Miami's Space Transit Planetarium. I thought the name was cool and went with it. I totaly thought the Type S was far superiour over the Type A and pushed the Book 2 system to the limit modifying that thing! Thank goodness for High Guard.
Lets see. We played in the Regina subsector right before the 5th FW. Our party consisted of my Scout, a Marine, a Naval Admiral (the old man) and a Secret Agent, the career which came out of a copy of Dragon. We messed around Regina and then made our own homebrew subsector, placed somewhere in what is now the Vargr extents. We didn't use too many aliens back then, but I learned about Vargr and they had to be included. They were my first and favorite OTU aliens. The Zhodani came next and were my favorite villains.
Then one day I went to college and all that CT stuff ended. I soon found 2300AD and then MegaTraveller. But that is another story...
Infojunky said:
In middle school and high school I was lucky, I had a game store on my way home, I frequently would save up all my lunch money from the week and walk home on friday with a new digest sized book.
In the ensuing years I have manage to wear out at least 3 different copies of the basic black books.
Then TNE hit, I ran two campaigns over 4 years and then mostly nothing, my enthusiasm just wasn't there. When Gurps 4th came out I had spark, but the only thing they wanted was DnD..... Well, I have to give it Mongoose it hooked me and my mates. So back on the band wagon. I have the books, I have the figures, and once again the will.... Game on.
I'm off to teach the boy the grand old game He is a geek, and has been asking. So what is a dad to do.
Travellingdave
Banded Mongoose
I picked up the LBBs in 1980 and never looked back. I bought just about everything that came out through 1985 but started to lose interest in new product about the time of Megatraveller. Between the more complicated rules and the Rebellion, it just wasn't my cup of tea.
Nonetheless, I continued with MTU (a heavily modified OTU with many of my own ideas spun in) and for over 11 years my players and I had two of the best campaigns I can remember. My players explored (and exploited) the Spinward Marches, ran weapons behind Zhodani lines during the FFW, found lost technology and built their own corporation on the patents, and then travelled to Terra to visit the holy home of humaniti where they rescued a psionic savant and took her back to set up a psionic refuge in the SM.
God, we had a great time. Many of the ideas might seem cliched on distant reflection, but we didn't care. We just had FUN!
I'm reading MGT very eagerly now, hoping that this version my help me rekindle the flame. So far, so good ....
Nonetheless, I continued with MTU (a heavily modified OTU with many of my own ideas spun in) and for over 11 years my players and I had two of the best campaigns I can remember. My players explored (and exploited) the Spinward Marches, ran weapons behind Zhodani lines during the FFW, found lost technology and built their own corporation on the patents, and then travelled to Terra to visit the holy home of humaniti where they rescued a psionic savant and took her back to set up a psionic refuge in the SM.
God, we had a great time. Many of the ideas might seem cliched on distant reflection, but we didn't care. We just had FUN!
I'm reading MGT very eagerly now, hoping that this version my help me rekindle the flame. So far, so good ....
FallingPhoenix
Mongoose
I don't know if I could call myself a rarity, cause there's probably a lot more out there like me than I know...
I'm sort of a young old-timer as far as RPGs. I dug the LBBs out of my dad's desk drawer and devoured them, but as I was only 9 at the time, iirc, no one would really play with me. My Dad was running Star Wars, and we got lots of supplements for that, so Traveller kind of faded to the background until I got a copy of TNE for Christmas. Rather enjoyed that one, although the rules seemed a little klunky (then again, I played Shadowrun for quite a number of years, so I'm not sure why I thought TNE was klunky...).
Anyway, here I am back into Traveller! And this time I have my own money to spend on books!
I'm sort of a young old-timer as far as RPGs. I dug the LBBs out of my dad's desk drawer and devoured them, but as I was only 9 at the time, iirc, no one would really play with me. My Dad was running Star Wars, and we got lots of supplements for that, so Traveller kind of faded to the background until I got a copy of TNE for Christmas. Rather enjoyed that one, although the rules seemed a little klunky (then again, I played Shadowrun for quite a number of years, so I'm not sure why I thought TNE was klunky...).
Anyway, here I am back into Traveller! And this time I have my own money to spend on books!
lastbesthope
Mongoose
Mongoose Traveller is my first foray into traveller.
LBH
LBH
Greg Smith
Mongoose
The Deluxe box set was my first ever RPG, back in about 1982.
Matrix Cypher
Mongoose
Infojunky said:
Same here.
