Why are things so easy?

[apoc527]

I need some advice. I'm GMing my first Traveller game using MGT and I've come across something interesting. I decided to put a cap on the number of terms the players could take, which was 6. Each player ended up going 6 terms. I suspect this had a lot to do with wanting to try out the chargen system rather than everyone wanting to be old, but regardless, that's the scoop.

In game, everyone seems to roll extremely high Effect on many skill rolls. It could just be my perception, but I figured the game would be fairly difficult with the 2d6 curve. Instead, I'm routinely seeing Effects of 4 to 6 or higher on the PC's primary abilities (obviously, they aren't as successful on untrained or lesser trained skills).

Am I not using enough negative DMs? Is it SUPPOSED to be relatively easy to succeed at times?

Also, has anyone else had a problem with the various aiming devices from CSC? The HUD seems REALLY powerful. A +2 DM to hit at all ranges without Aiming converts a Gun Combat 0 character into a combat machine with a simple piece of tech. Any suggestions on dealing with this? My general rule is MAD (mutually assured destruction), so if the PCs can equip their weapons with HUDs, so can the enemies. I'm worried this may lead to excessive death, but perhaps that's just Traveller.

Thanks for any input or observations from your own games!

 

[BP]

6 terms can rack up a lot of skills. In that time, each PC can become an 'expert' in more than one skill. Experts, by definition will be more successful at tasks.

If they have slightly better than average characteristics (and by rights, they normally would have at least 1 to 2 higher roles out of the 6), a character with level 3/4 of a skill and a +1 or better characteristic DM is likely gonna get a lot of decently high Effect.

If you are allowing characters that experienced, then you need to make suitable challenges - i.e. more difficult tasks (by changing the environment for example) so you can apply the negative task DMs - as well as like skilled opponents.

 

[rust]

Is it SUPPOSED to be relatively easy to succeed at times?

I think so, and this is just realistic. Someone with a little talent (above
average characteristic), a good training and many years of experience
is likely to be good enough in his chosen field(s) to solve most problems
most of the time.

In Mongoose Traveller a skill level of 2 is the equivalent of a doctorate,
someone with skill level 4 is a famous expert, and with 6 career terms
he has more than 20 years of experience. Everything that is not too dif-
ficult for a normal member of his profession is likely to be an automatic
success for him.

And therefore I usually ignore the dice when it comes to such tasks, it
is slightly boring to roll routine success after routine success, and use
them only when the task is difficult enough to make a blunder plausible.

For example, the surgeon character does not need the dice to remove
the appendix of a human patient in a well equipped hospital, he just
does it.
But when that Bwap with the bad experience with the natives and those
five poisoned arrows in his body is delivered to the ship's sickbay that
has no operating table and an unreliable power plant that turns off the
lights at irregular intervals, the dice come out ...

 

[Stainless]

Also, keep in mind that it is a game and so a form of entertainment. The PCs are supposed to be adventurers; slightly larger than life individuals doing exceptional things. Granted, Traveller arguably isn't about feats of heroic and legendary proportions, but is more gritty and realistic (in a sci-fi suspension of disbelief kind of way). Thus, it's not much fun if your PC can't even tie their own shoe laces. :roll:

 

[kristof65]

In addition to what the others have said, keep in mind that there are so many things in the Traveller universe that not even the most skilled character can overcome - like breathing in a vacuum.

So it helps to set challenges that aren't merely about making the roll, but about thinking about how to creatively avoid an impossible "challenge". Since all the PCs know they can't breath in a vacuum, a sudden atmosphere leak in the abandoned research station they're exploring becomes more about them creatively figuring out a way to stop the leak and/or get back to thier vac suits than it does about the skill rolls they use to do so. It's even better if you can spin the solutions to require them to work together as a team, so not only does one person have to make a roll, but several have to make their rolls in order for the plan to succeed.

So maybe a solution is something like Sally will provide covering fire from the aliens who busted the atmosphere dome, while Bob gets the power back on, which will allow Dave to hotwire the door control system to seal off part of the station before it loses atmosphere completely. In something like that, even if they easily handle those tasks, they could then find themselves cut off from their vac suits and thus their ship, while air is running out and hostile aliens are closing in, necessitating yet another creative solution where the three of them have to work together.

To add to the challenge, you could use a real life time limit* to give the players a sense of the pressure they're under as well - then it doesn't really matter how easy the rolls are, as long as they can think of something to do in time.


----
* note - I'm aware that setting real world time limits on PC actions isn't everyone's cup of tea. I've had groups where it's worked beautifully to add to the sense of immersion in RPing, others where it becomes an argument. YMMV

 

[kristof65]

My general rule is MAD (mutually assured destruction), so if the PCs can equip their weapons with HUDs, so can the enemies. I'm worried this may lead to excessive death, but perhaps that's just Traveller.

In my Traveller games, it doesn't take long for the players to figure out that non-combat solutions are almost always better than combat solutions precisely because of MAD. In order to reinforce that thought, though, I now like to have a mock combat session or two early on, where they can get used to their PCs and the combat system, without worrying about the results affecting their PCs in the actual game. To quote one of my players after one of those mock sessions:

"Holy Crap, combat is deadly - let's avoid that!"

 

[rust]

So it helps to set challenges that aren't merely about making the roll, but about thinking about how to creatively avoid an impossible "challenge".

Indee, this is a very important point.

In my view a Traveller game is not so much about rolling dice to see whe-
ther a character succeeds, it is far more about the players developing the
strategies that allow their characters to apply their skills in a meaningful
and successful way - the dice rolling comes at the end to decide whether
the players had good ideas and their characters were lucky, but the actu-
al roleplaying is the part before the dice are rolled.

 

[Treebore]

There are comparatively very few people out there, but there are people who never/rarely miss, are never/rarely wrong, etc... So since your dealing with highly trained people with 24+ years of experience, your dealing with a group of people who are simply that good.

Still make sure to use every modifier you can to keep it challenging for them, but their being that good is the simple reality.