What would you do IF...?
- Thread starter Jak Nazryth
- Start date
alex_greene
Guest
I'd rather not direct vitriol at either Marc or Matt. Big bottles of primo single malt, maybe, out of gratitude for Traveller.
However, while it is impossible to separate the 3I entirely from the sourcebook, nonetheless it is possible to create a setting - neutral bulk of the sourcebook and relegate the basics of the 3I setting to the last section, including a basic map of the Spinward Marches, and set the specific parameters regards the law levels, tech levels, attitudes towards psionics and so on.
That includes the alien profile types which are present at the beginning of the current book.
However, while it is impossible to separate the 3I entirely from the sourcebook, nonetheless it is possible to create a setting - neutral bulk of the sourcebook and relegate the basics of the 3I setting to the last section, including a basic map of the Spinward Marches, and set the specific parameters regards the law levels, tech levels, attitudes towards psionics and so on.
That includes the alien profile types which are present at the beginning of the current book.
alex_greene
Guest
I'd also look at releasing the sourcebooks as epub and mobi formats alongside PDF, for downloading onto ereaders.
Jak Nazryth
Mongoose
I would completely revamp the way staterooms, common space, and utility spaces are calculated.
Currently common space is simply part of staterooms. But this breaks down when you want to create different sized rooms, suites, cabins, bunk rooms, etc...
Personally I would make lounges a factor of maximum capacity (total people) instead of "about 1 ton out of a 4 ton stateroom".
Mostly this becomes a problem when trying to create deck plans. A 4 ton stateroom and a 4 ton med bay, library, shop, etc... are not interchangeable. Some version of Traveller (Like GURPS and T20) use "about half" when it comes to stateroom actual size vs. stateroom design size. This means most GURPS and T20 staterooms are actually 2 ton rooms (4 squares) with 2 tons of "common space" distributed throughout the ship.
If I were to start from scratch, I would give specific sizes for different staterooms; basic, standard, high, suites. Basic for instance would not have it's own fresher unit and be just large enough for bunks, a desk and small closet. That would be a 2 ton space.
Suites could go up to any size you want, 8 tons or even higher.
Common space like lounges, galleys, etc... would be based on capacity. You count up the total number of passengers per stateroom, give 2-4 tons per person, and that determines your common space... (which includes circulation space like corridors, stairs, lifts, etc...)
Then I would size life support based on capacity as well. 10 people = 1 ton, 100 people = 8 tons or something like that.
This would also fix the problem with bunkrooms. Currently bunkrooms are technically a group of staterooms without walls. The total occupancy for bunkrooms work the same as individual staterooms. If you've served in the military before, you'll know a bunkroom has many more racks than a traveller bunk room. You simply count the number of bodies and factor that number into the size of the life support space.
It's more work, but for designer/architect/deck plan geeks like me, I like those kind of specifics.
In the current system, where is main life support? Where is the water purification systems? LOX supply/scrubber/convertors? If a ship takes internal damage would it make since for a ships mechanic to scramble and fix life support if it takes a hit? Currently life support is generically tied to the power plant.. "if you lose your power plant, or run out of fuel, you die from lack of air" etc...
Anyway, these are a couple things I would change.
4 tons per stateroom as a "catch all" space just seems a little to generalize for me.
BTW... GURPS Traveller actually takes some of this into consideration with "utility" spaces, covering life support and artificial gravity machinery.
Currently common space is simply part of staterooms. But this breaks down when you want to create different sized rooms, suites, cabins, bunk rooms, etc...
Personally I would make lounges a factor of maximum capacity (total people) instead of "about 1 ton out of a 4 ton stateroom".
Mostly this becomes a problem when trying to create deck plans. A 4 ton stateroom and a 4 ton med bay, library, shop, etc... are not interchangeable. Some version of Traveller (Like GURPS and T20) use "about half" when it comes to stateroom actual size vs. stateroom design size. This means most GURPS and T20 staterooms are actually 2 ton rooms (4 squares) with 2 tons of "common space" distributed throughout the ship.
If I were to start from scratch, I would give specific sizes for different staterooms; basic, standard, high, suites. Basic for instance would not have it's own fresher unit and be just large enough for bunks, a desk and small closet. That would be a 2 ton space.
Suites could go up to any size you want, 8 tons or even higher.
Common space like lounges, galleys, etc... would be based on capacity. You count up the total number of passengers per stateroom, give 2-4 tons per person, and that determines your common space... (which includes circulation space like corridors, stairs, lifts, etc...)
Then I would size life support based on capacity as well. 10 people = 1 ton, 100 people = 8 tons or something like that.
This would also fix the problem with bunkrooms. Currently bunkrooms are technically a group of staterooms without walls. The total occupancy for bunkrooms work the same as individual staterooms. If you've served in the military before, you'll know a bunkroom has many more racks than a traveller bunk room. You simply count the number of bodies and factor that number into the size of the life support space.
It's more work, but for designer/architect/deck plan geeks like me, I like those kind of specifics.
In the current system, where is main life support? Where is the water purification systems? LOX supply/scrubber/convertors? If a ship takes internal damage would it make since for a ships mechanic to scramble and fix life support if it takes a hit? Currently life support is generically tied to the power plant.. "if you lose your power plant, or run out of fuel, you die from lack of air" etc...
Anyway, these are a couple things I would change.
4 tons per stateroom as a "catch all" space just seems a little to generalize for me.
BTW... GURPS Traveller actually takes some of this into consideration with "utility" spaces, covering life support and artificial gravity machinery.
Jak Nazryth said:
In my game standard staterooms take 6 tons. 3 tons for the room itself, 1 ton passageways, 1 ton for lounge/dining, 1 ton split between life support & food/water. Now, I don't charge players the insane costs per stateroom. They just get charged based on the level of food offered. Also, passage rates earn more per ton of stateroom that average freight rate/ton....
Reynard
Emperor Mongoose
I don't remember the original history of Traveller's game mechanics but it seems the OTU came (soon) after Traveller hit the market in response to the way the game created its universes.
Very importantly, the character system created the Social attribute which is fine but the naming convention to use nobility and royalty titles at the higher levels took some neutrality away. If I were to make any change towards a 'universal' system it would be making Social classless and representing a variety of social models bottom to top. I believe Dilettante does this but it should become the core rule.
There needs to be an alternate way to create world populations and governments. The rules we see are based on random rolls very popular with rpgs decades ago. Create a sector or even a subsector and it's pure chaos! Each time I create a star group using the Traveller world generators I have to assume this is the result of some historical apocalyptic aftermath with worlds bombed back to the stoneage. When I created a campiagn based around the actual systems within 25 light years of Sol, I set negative modifiers to world populations at each Jump band to represent Core, Colonization, Frontier and 'wilderness' as well, to a much lesser degree, for Tech level. Maybe we need a system that creates core worlds then expands out with secondary, tertiary and lesser worlds with less randomness.
Better yet, have a system that lets a GM tailor worlds as backdrops rather than massively fleshed out. How about a way to build a world like we build starships so it's just what the GM needs and helps them imagine what could be possible. Tech level could be a great influence in the population side of design.
Those are my big change ideas to a more universal and neutral system.
Very importantly, the character system created the Social attribute which is fine but the naming convention to use nobility and royalty titles at the higher levels took some neutrality away. If I were to make any change towards a 'universal' system it would be making Social classless and representing a variety of social models bottom to top. I believe Dilettante does this but it should become the core rule.
There needs to be an alternate way to create world populations and governments. The rules we see are based on random rolls very popular with rpgs decades ago. Create a sector or even a subsector and it's pure chaos! Each time I create a star group using the Traveller world generators I have to assume this is the result of some historical apocalyptic aftermath with worlds bombed back to the stoneage. When I created a campiagn based around the actual systems within 25 light years of Sol, I set negative modifiers to world populations at each Jump band to represent Core, Colonization, Frontier and 'wilderness' as well, to a much lesser degree, for Tech level. Maybe we need a system that creates core worlds then expands out with secondary, tertiary and lesser worlds with less randomness.
Better yet, have a system that lets a GM tailor worlds as backdrops rather than massively fleshed out. How about a way to build a world like we build starships so it's just what the GM needs and helps them imagine what could be possible. Tech level could be a great influence in the population side of design.
Those are my big change ideas to a more universal and neutral system.
Nathan Brazil
Banded Mongoose
I know of 6. The first two were sold at all fine computer stores.F33D said:
Games
Megatraveller 1 - The Zhodani Conspiracy
Megatraveller 2 - Quest for the Ancients
DOS games Published by Paragon early '90's. I still own the original disks and use them. MT2 had an awesome MT character generator which allowed you to have character skills tailored to Spinward Marches homeworlds (or any standard UWP you input).
Aids
Traveller Navigator (there were 4 of them)
These were Windows Help Files (old 3.1/95 Help) which did stats for worlds and ships and other information back the mid '90s. Contained TNE and I think Rebellion era data by Planet 3 Software.
Nathan Brazil
Banded Mongoose
Found them. There were 5 which brings total up to 7. The contained data for the following sectors:
Spinward Marches
Deneb
Reft
Diaspora
Old Expanses
Spinward Marches
Deneb
Reft
Diaspora
Old Expanses
Nathan Brazil said:
I can see where you got confused. I'm talking about commercial stand alone game AIDS for design. Not computer games of Traveller (Marc approved an iPad based game a couple years ago). Planet Three simply produced static clickable files where you could pull data on sectors & ships specs.
Nathan Brazil
Banded Mongoose
F33D said:
Your earlier posts were not sufficiently explicit regards to design software, my mistake for not reading better. With regards to some of your other comments and implications:
As far as game aids go, the Navigator software was extremely useful for printing detailed library data for presentation to players. The Megatraveller 2 game while not purpose built as an aid, allowed for one to make official by the book Vargr and Human characters. Very useful.
I do not know Mr. Miller, but the fact that these software products exist shows that Mr. Miller has not always been hostile to licensed software of one form or aother. I suppose those more actually involved in the business of gaming would know what his actual philosophy is in this regard. I have written my own spreadsheets and databases for each iteration of the game with cross-linkages and conversion queries. Still, I still would like to see a professional product on the market.
