Convert a CT Grognard--I Dare You!

[Poppyseed45]

There's some things I don't like about MGT and will be sticking with some earlier version for (what's up with the offworld access column of the law level chart? That would make half of the old CT adventures I ran decidedly different in a not-good way.)

That's very true; I had already houseruled that this was extremely silly (unless I need it for a particular story). Otherwise, it simply isn't there (and anyway, to me, sort of kills the point of the Imperium - they want trade, and wouldn't allow the planet to make itself inaccessible). Same for the tech items allowed to be used - crimping everyone to TL3 on a TL12 world is dumb.

@rust - Thanks mate. As I get older I notice certain things in my gaming become more important. Layout and such matters - it's one of the reasons I like GURPS so much and dislike HERO. The systems are very close to each other IMO, but the layout and the way the text looks on the page...

 

[Sifu Blackirish]

Maybe I should put on my asbestos underwear before I come in...:toast:

As some posters have said, they are sticking with a certain system.

CT does it for me, but I steal crunchy bits from whatever and wherever I can for my ATU. Not just from TRAVELLER, but anything that looks good.

I had a hard time digesting DGPs task system when I first saw it, but when it was explained in MT I was hooked. Same for TNE and the contacts developed during character generation. It made things a lot easier when trying to get newbies to play. And they didn't argue like, "Why do I have to roll 10+ when he only had to roll 8?" Just say it's a Difficult task and continue to march...

Some things I never could understand, such as how I could design STRIKER vehicles but never could do it in MT:nonono:

Heck, I still have a copy of T4 book 0 floating around in my crap. Glanced at it last night and saw some good bits I could still steal...errr...adapt.

An example--I GMed for one of my friends. He had a character that had been abducted and replaced with a pseudobiological double. But the double didn't know he was a robot! When he was in danger, the combat programming took over, leaving his consciousness as an observer of sorts. Rather than strain my brain to give descriptions of the space station he was running through at triple speed, I grabbed a copy of the old TOP SECRET game and used an interior locations chart. Bing bang boom, we're done.

Wow, I just wanted to know if MGT ship rules had crunchy bits usable for CT, not start an all-out grenade flinging festival...

 

[rust]

Wow, I just wanted to know if MGT ship rules had crunchy bits usable for CT ...

It indeed has, but - in my opinion - if you do not mind to have a little more
work to do to adapt them, GURPS Traveller Starships has more, more inter-
esting and more useful ideas than Mongoose Traveller High Guard.

 

[beowulf2044]

The answer is yes.

 

[beowulf2044]

Hmm..Maybe I should elaborate. Hull size is based on Book #2, with sizes ranging from 100 to 2,000 tons and include the odd sizes from 100 through 1000 (100, 200, 300 etc). It contains floorplans for many of the standard designs of Starships and non-Starships. Computers and Electronics are streamlined. Armaments include beam, pulse and particle beam weapons and fusion, along with sandcasters and missle (basic, smart and nuclear). Turrets are single, double and triple with provision for pop-ups, fixed mount and bays along with missle banks. Screens include meson and nuclear dampers. Drones are included (repair, mining and probe). Ship computer software is broken down and outlined (a la Book 2). Radiation damage to crew members is covered and included in Ship Combat.

And my favorite: alternative drives (warp, teleport and hyperspace) and power plants (fission and anti-matter).

There's probably more I'm missing at the moment.

 

[aramis]

HG adds small craft, and capital ships (3K-1M Td), plus bay weapons.

The deletion of power points in the basic really screws the HG design system, tho, as it puts in some rather illogical restrictions on energy weapons.

 

[Poppyseed45]

The deletion of power points in the basic really screws the HG design system, tho, as it puts in some rather illogical restrictions on energy weapons.

In what way? What I mean is, what makes the restrictions weird? I've read HG and was wondering about that as well. The restrictions on weapons seems sort of arbitrary, but I'm not steeped in it enough to know for sure. Can you be specific?

 

[aramis]

A 1000Td 1G P1 ship should be able to easily power a single Plasma Turret. It can't.
A 100Td 5G P5 SDB can mount a 50Td meson bay... The 1000Td ship has the same relationship and a bigger PP....

Meson requires PP5+
Fusion and plasma require PP3+
Neither considers drive sizes, nor inherent surplus of the design.

A PP system is, simply put, far more realistic. One was part of the playtest, and was rejected in playtest not because it didn't work, but because the specifc costs put forward in the playtest docs were badly broken for maneuver and jump drives. Worse, more than 6 of us put forward simple and reliable fixes, coming up with the same fix independently, and it was ignored or rejected.

It was the only truly boneheaded thing in MGT Core. (Calling guys on grav-bikes infantry is right close... but that's in MGMerc.) The LL effects table is fine for non-OTU applications, but invalidates a lot of canon adventures. And Mongoose was made aware of that within a week of adding it to the playtest.

 

[Poppyseed45]

Interesting, interesting. Thanks for the reply. Anyone come up with any fixes (that are allowed to be shown, per past agreements?

 

[aramis]

2pp/drive letter generated
2pp/drive letter for MD operation
6pp/drive letter for jump initiation
6pp/drive letter capacitors

1pp/laser
3pp/plasma
5pp/meson or fusion.
Barbette: x5
50Td Bay: x50
100Td Bay:x100
Note: not the same PP totals as in the playtest.

 

[Psion]

Yeah, ship design is another thing I am considering leaving behind. It does seem easier to use than most older versions.

But the designs seem to deviate from the prior norm. One major bennie of MongT is that its fairly plug-and-play with older materials. I have deckplans and adventures I would like to re-use, but there are non-whitewashable differences in the MongT designs (e.g., the Far Trader lacks an air/raft, which is on all my far trader deckplans; gazelles lack drop tanks and the PA barbette, etc.)

 

[MongooseMatt]

But the designs seem to deviate from the prior norm. One major bennie of MongT is that its fairly plug-and-play with older materials. I have deckplans and adventures I would like to re-use, but there are non-whitewashable differences in the MongT designs

This is true to a large extent - we are quite pleased that you can pick up almost any CT and run it pretty much straight, with little to no conversion. Ships were always going to be the bugbear, because we did want to make things a lot more simple.

The flipside of this, with our pledge to create deck plans for every ship that comes from Mongoose (and thus, hopefully, encourage the third parties to do so as well) is that, within a year or so, there will be such a large fleet available, that you should be able to make wholesale switches between ships in original material with the Mongoose equivalents. Therefore, run a CT adventure 'straight' and just have another book open with the relevent ship.

By the end of March, as well as the ships in the core book, we will have another three packed full of them (Traders, Fighting Ships and Warships of B5). With another 'ships' book planned more or less every year and more appearing in S&P, a lack of ships is _not_ going to be a problem with this game!

 

[Qstor2]

By the end of March, as well as the ships in the core book, we will have another three packed full of them (Traders, Fighting Ships and Warships of B5). With another 'ships' book planned more or less every year and more appearing in S&P, a lack of ships is _not_ going to be a problem with this game!

Oh wow...in peoples TU you could arm the Imperium with Whitestars

Mike

 

[robject]

By the end of March, as well as the ships in the core book, we will have another three packed full of them (Traders, Fighting Ships and Warships of B5).

TOTALLY awesome. It's about time!

Hmm, will I be able to pit a Plankwell squadron against a Primus squadron?

 

[MongooseMatt]

Hmm, will I be able to pit a Plankwell squadron against a Primus squadron?

That is _exactly_ what you will be able to do. You can then take the battle planetside, and pit Judges on Lawmasters against Battledress marines. . .

 

[Imperial Planetologist]

That is _exactly_ what you will be able to do. You can then take the battle planetside, and pit Judges on Lawmasters against Battledress marines. . .

The Mongoose version of Traveller does nothing for me, but I have to admit that this is pretty cool.

I'll be taking a look at the Starship Troopers book when it come out.

 

[Galadrion]

That is _exactly_ what you will be able to do. You can then take the battle planetside, and pit Judges on Lawmasters against Battledress marines. . .

Does this mean - dare I hope - that you guys are going more off of Admiral Bob's masterpiece and less off of that celluloid abomination? (Pleasepleasepleaseplease...)

 

[Allensh]

Does this mean - dare I hope - that you guys are going more off of Admiral Bob's masterpiece and less off of that celluloid abomination? (Pleasepleasepleaseplease...)

noted and seconded!

Allen

 

[Dead during chargen]

noted and seconded!

Allen

You guys didn't like Melrose Space?

Also, thirded...

 

[spinwardpirate]

...

Dead during chargen... great name!