ct adventure problems- spoiler warning do not look here if intending to play ct ads

[hirch duckfinder]

when running the old adventures , seems there are always BIG issues which need explaining which are not addressed in the text . for example in 'death station' how does one get from the part of the station which is spinning , to the part which isn't ? OUCH , SPLATT ! it's possible to explain with LOTS of thought ( and some handwaving ) but tricky on the fly when running the adventure . i suspect this issue was just not forseen in the writing .

anyone else got any more ?

( EDITED IN FROM A LATER POST )--------------------- :

i just wanted to add that this thread is intended to be a light hearted look at at small problems with some suberb adventures which i thoroughly enjoy . great respect is reserved for their creator(s).

 

[mike wightman]

how does one get from the part of the station which is spinning , to the part which isn't ?

Try using the elevator which goes from the pinnace docking ring to location 32, reception

The elevator car must have it's own grav plates and acceleration compensators.

One of the things I liked about the early adventures was the amount of detail that was left to the referee's imagination.

 

[hirch duckfinder]

Originally posted by Sigg Oddra:
</font><blockquote>quote:</font><hr /> how does one get from the part of the station which is spinning , to the part which isn't ?

Try using the elevator which goes from the pinnace docking ring to location 32, reception

The elevator car must have it's own grav plates and acceleration compensators.

One of the things I liked about the early adventures was the amount of detail that was left to the referee's imagination. </font>[/QUOTE]hmmm , i think you have missed my point . unless i have missed something .....the docking ring is not spinning , but the rest of the lab ship is , including the spoke . this makes it tricky to move from one to the other . one is moving , the other still . the doorway from the ladder and the lift shaft exit are constantly moving around the outside of the docking ring , and will only line up for a short time with their corresponding door/shaft component on the docking ring ,how long exactly depends on how fast the ship is spinning . i assume this is quite fast ,as the cetrepetal force generated is equal to 1G . as i say , unless i have missed something ......

 

[mike wightman]

Sorry, I was being flippant, .

My 2 theories for real:

1 the lab ship stops rotating while the pinnace docks and relies on standard grav plates;

or

2 the pinnace enters the docking ring and then begins rolling (or begins rolling on approach while playing the Blue Danube) until it matches the rotation of the lab ship and the doors line up, then the docking clamps are engaged.

And to continue the topic of big issues not explained, how did the Annic Nova jump with no fuel?

 

[Elliot]

IIRC the lab ship can go into spin to simulate the rotation of planetary bodies - it doesn't do it to produce a stream of cool air!

Maybe you just have to wait for the door and the spoke to align - and move quickish!

 

[DElrick]

Originally posted by Elliot:
IIRC the lab ship can go into spin to simulate the rotation of planetary bodies - it doesn't do it to produce a stream of cool air!

Maybe you just have to wait for the door and the spoke to align - and move quickish!

...or wind up with a nickname like 'Stumpy'.

Cheers

David

 

[Elliot]

Here's another problem - if the aliens in Shadows are not Droyne (see descriptions in adventure and stuff that came later) how did a bag of Coyns get into the Alien pyramid?

 

[rancke]

Originally posted by Elliot:
Here's another problem - if the aliens in Shadows are not Droyne (see descriptions in adventure and stuff that came later) how did a bag of Coyns get into the Alien pyramid?

The aliens were excavating an Ancient base somewhere close by.


Hans

 

[kafka47]

The Aliens from Shadows have been confirmed somewhere on the HIWG СD as the H'ktar or those dragons from Vargr space.

I would say the reason that they had coins were they looted them from elsewhere.

 

[Whipsnade]

kafka47 wrote:

"The Aliens from Shadows have been confirmed somewhere on the HIWG СD as the H'ktar or those dragons from Vargr space."


Mr. Kafka,

While the H'ktar(sic) are a good solution for Shadows, I'd take care with any other HIWG pronouncements. Afrter all, they and DGP did give Traveller the Rebellion and that whole rat's nest of problems.

"I would say the reason that they had coins were they looted them from elsewhere."

Nifty! A neat red herring.


Sincerely,
Larsen

 

[Ran Targas]

^ Aren't all self-respecting dragons suppose to have a horde of coins? What, wrong game, sorry!

 

[Elliot]

Ah! - so they were doing some excavations, I see! That would explain why the Shadows pyramid is a totally disfunctional building for a species to live in. They just wanted to look cool while digging up disintegrator guns. Now all is clear.

 

[hirch duckfinder]

Part 3
----
why ( and indeed how ? )would you to build an octagonal emergency shelter in a mountainous region miles from anywhere you were likely to be if you weren't looking for an obscure octagonal shelter in a mountainous region ?

 

[hirch duckfinder]

i just wanted to add that this thread is intended to be a light hearted look at at small problems with some suberb adventures which i thoroughly enjoy . great respect is reserved for their creator(s)

 

[Antaine]

Originally posted by hirch duckfinder:
when running the old adventures , seems there are always BIG issues which need explaining which are not addressed in the text . for example in 'death station' how does one get from the part of the station which is spinning , to the part which isn't ? OUCH , SPLATT ! it's possible to explain with LOTS of thought ( and some handwaving ) but tricky on the fly when running the adventure . i suspect this issue was just not forseen in the writing .

anyone else got any more ?

I recently watched a movie on video about an ill fated mission to Mars (the title escapes me at the moment...the LT out of Forest Gump was in it!) and the subsequent rescue mission. They had a great shot in it of transferring from a spinning area to a non spinning central area.

Have a peek and see how simple it was!!

Kiddies, above is an example of what happens to your brain cells after taking Doctors at their word and frying your brain with prescription medications.....you lose your short term recall!!!

 

[Nellkyn]

Originally posted by hirch duckfinder:
Part 3
----
why (and indeed how ?)would you to build an octagonal emergency shelter in a mountainous region miles from anywhere you were likely to be if you weren't looking for an obscure octagonal shelter in a mountainous region ?

The ‘why’ bit is easy. Octagonal structures show up on sensors much better than any other shape. They are also easier to spot as man-made structures in the wilds.

I can’t answer the ‘how’ as I’m not a civil engineer.

Be lucky,

Nellkyn

 

[kafka47]

Plus, until GURPS Traveller...scanners in Traveller could only scan hexagons....

 

[theSea]

Well as I'm currently running 'Death Station' here's how I handled it:

The ring that holds the Research Pinnace has an inner 'cuff' that can spin with the station or not. There is a start/stop control inside the the airlock at the top of the spoke - or you can just go through 'quick like' when the opening comes around


This came in particularly hadny when the PC's decided to magnetically moor their air-raft to the Pinnace. When they spun the thing up to have a look inside they tumbled their escape craft away.

Their reaction was amusing when they got to the Pinnace bridge and found the controls locked down and their ride home spinning out into space.

"What's the task roll to make an unassisted 200 meter jump to a tumbling air/raft?"

"Unskilled? Try 'impossible' with positive die modifiers for str and dex"

"So basically I need boxcars, right?"

"Yup"

"Oops - we're going to have to figure out another way out of here!"

........

I agree - this is an area that was left vague for the ref to figure out. I had some fun with it.

IMTU - the Annic Nova jumps off of it's big freakin' solar charged capacitors. It also misjumps on a 1d roll of 6 or better (usual modifiers apply). It has had many owners and is either sentient, haunted or both - think 'Event Horizon.'

 

[far-trader]

Originally posted by theSea:


<snip>

This came in particularly hadny when the PC's decided to magnetically moor their air-raft to the Pinnace. When they spun the thing up to have a look inside they tumbled their escape craft away.

hehe

They only needed to park on the inner side of the ring, but no then they would have had to walk all the way around to the door right

Anyway I finally recall how we did it way back. We took a page (screen shot?) from the movie "2001: A Space Odyssey" where the PanAm spaceplane docks with the rotating station. They did this beautiful spin while on approach to match the station's spin, et voila, it flies "straight" in the slot. Same thing works for the lab ship*. Line up the pinnace with the docking ring and thrust in, while moving towards it apply spin thrust to match the lab ship's current spin and line up the hatch, bada bing bada boom, home again home again...

(* as long as it's not tumbling too)

Of course the above solution doesn't offer all the RP fun of the analogous spinning blades of death. Giant fan blades in vent shafts and propellers of airplanes you and the villain get into it in front of for a couple examples.

 

[Vargas]

This is the way I always figured it worked:

The docking ring is stationary with respect to space so that the boat pulls in and docks. The ring is then 'clutched' into motion until it has the same rotation as the lab ship. Open doors and voila!