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General Finding a PCs homeworld?!

R

Redcap

SOC-13
Baron
OK, here we go, with another potential :CoW: ...!

I've been merrily working away (read: using a computerised character generator) to develop characters for players to use in a tourny adventure I'm writing. It (the software) generates MT characters, which I then modify to MgT (changing skills as appropriate, and so on). However, there's one problem.

Homeworlds.

How in the seven shades of ding-dong (May his hammer always be ringing your bell loudly) do you determine where a homeworld is, given the sheer volume of worlds out there in the OTU, based on this kind of output: Homeworld codes: Port: C, Size: Medium, Atmosphere: Standard, Hydrographics: Dry, Population: High, Law: High, Tech Level: High Stellar.?!

AFAICS, there's no ability for the Traveller Map to search for this loose a set of specs, so aside from pouring through myriad system lists until my ears bleed, and my brains are mush, has anyone got any helpful ideas or even (gasp) a solution?
 
Redcap said:
OK, here we go, with another potential :CoW: ...!
...
AFAICS, there's no ability for the Traveller Map to search for this loose a set of specs, so aside from pouring through myriad system lists until my ears bleed, and my brains are mush, has anyone got any helpful ideas or even (gasp) a solution?
Click to expand...

Actually, I believe the API does let you look:
https://travellermap.com/doc/api#search-find-worlds-or-regions-by-name-or-attributes

edit: well, no, you are correct - that's for specific UWP specs only.
 
Nathan Brazil said:
Dump them into a database, have a reusable query on the ready. or a spreadsheet. That's what I do.
Click to expand...

I am utterly, completely, and hopelessly no frakkin' good at programming such things. I can masticate - I mean manipulate - words; I can perform surgery on radio electronics (Licenced Radio Amateur over here); I can even wield a tyre iron. But programming databases and spreadsheets? My brain freezes in exactly the same was that anything higher than basic maths causes. It's a non-starter :(
 
Redcap said:
... How ... do you determine where a homeworld is, given the sheer volume of worlds out there in the OTU, based on this kind of output: Homeworld codes: Port: C, Size: Medium, Atmosphere: Standard, Hydrographics: Dry, Population: High, Law: High, Tech Level: High Stellar.? ...
Click to expand...
I search for specific trade codes in a text file that lists all of the systems in a sector. For example, loading the Spinward Marches sector data found at http://wiki.travellerrpg.com/Spinward_Marches_Sector/sector/Milieu_1116 into Notepad, and then using the “Find” function for “Hi” means that each High Population world in the Marches will be revealed. Doing the same for “Ga” leads me to Porozlo (SM2715), a High Population Garden world, which coincidentally has a SAH score of “867” - the same as Terra.

Now, translating a general description into trade code might take some thought, so the description you gave might be more of a “De Hi” world. Searching for “De Hi” in the trade classes, then “ C” in the starport column (note the space before the C), and maybe “Op” in the Remarks might narrow your search down to a few possibilities.

This is a little less tedious than a line-by-line manual search, but it works for me.

73
 
I follow the trade codes side of things.

However, and OK, so I'm slow on the uptake on some things, and this is this is one of them. Here's a listing from CT Book #6 (Scouts), describing tech levels per UWP:

TECHNOLOGICAL LEVELS

Digit - Description

0 - Stone Age. Primitive.
1 - Bronze Age t o Middle Ages.
2 - circa 1400 to 1700.
3 - circa 1700 to 1860.
4 - circa 1860 to 1900.
5 - circa 1900 t o 1939.
6 - circa 1940 t o 1969.
7 - circa 1970 t o 1979.
8 - circa 1980 to 1989.
9 - circa 1990 t o 2000.
A - Interstellar community.
B - Average Imperial.
C - Average Imperial.
D - Above average Imperial.
E - Above average Imperial.
F - Technical maximum Imperial.
G - Occasional non-Imperial.
Click to expand...

So where in the holy heck does "High Stellar" fit (as per the output from the CharGen program)?
 
Why are you generating in Mega then translating to Mongoose?

Here is a Mongoose character generator: http://www.munsondev.com/chargen/

Not mine, but works pretty well.

As to the home world question, that is an easy one. You, the GM make a list of acceptable home worlds, with the codes you find acceptable. Most easily done from the sector your setting is in.

Or you can just let the players pick their home world skills and worry about it later.
 
pendragonman said:
Why are you generating in Mega then translating to Mongoose?

Here is a Mongoose character generator: http://www.munsondev.com/chargen/

Not mine, but works pretty well.

As to the home world question, that is an easy one. You, the GM make a list of acceptable home worlds, with the codes you find acceptable. Most easily done from the sector your setting is in.

Or you can just let the players pick their home world skills and worry about it later.
Click to expand...

I know about the munsondev chargen. However, it takes AGES to generate characters, whereas the MT CharGen runs on my machine, rather than via an online server, and about ten times more quickly than the munsondev one does (and, frankly, with a LOT more ease, too). Which is why I use the MT one, and translate.

As to homeworlds. I find the entire OTU acceptable, it's finding the worlds that conform to the specs that the chargen spits out that's the only pain in the backside. Limiting the number of worlds still leaves the problem of identifying the ideal candidate, purely because of those broad descriptions used by the chargen. As a result, I am looking for a way to identify one or more worlds from those specs within the entire OTU (that doesn't involve frying my brain trying to think like a programmer, which I am not).

As to allowing the players to ID their PCs own homeworlds, yes, in a normal gaming session, I'd likely save myself the trouble, but this is for a tournament game, and time is as a result a somewhat precious commodity, so I need to get that done for them, to allow for more gameplay time.

Hope that clears that up :)
 
If time is that short, what about getting them to pick from a stack of pregenerated characters? If they don't like what they get, give them a couple of retrys. "Do you want a scout who can fly a ship, an ex-Army officer who can blow things up really good, or a doctor who can put people back together after combat?"

Or, if you want to get them to generate their own characters, give them a short list of approved worlds the PCs could be from, have their homeworld skills listed.
 
jcrocker said:
If time is that short, what about getting them to pick from a stack of pregenerated characters? If they don't like what they get, give them a couple of retrys. "Do you want a scout who can fly a ship, an ex-Army officer who can blow things up really good, or a doctor who can put people back together after combat?"

Or, if you want to get them to generate their own characters, give them a short list of approved worlds the PCs could be from, have their homeworld skills listed.
Click to expand...

Usual routine is the generate the PCs along with the adventure, then assign each PC a number, then get the players to pick a number (no duplications, of course!) :) Works just fine :) Problem currently is in ascertaining each PCs homeworld. And that's the current problem *shrug*

I may well leave that bit. Irritating as hell, as I like finishing things off properly, but if it's going to be this much grief, I'll save myself the migraine, and just say "
censored2.gif
it".
 
Redcap said:
How in the seven shades of ding-dong (May his hammer always be ringing your bell loudly) do you determine where a homeworld is, given the sheer volume of worlds out there in the OTU, based on this kind of output: Homeworld codes: Port: C, Size: Medium, Atmosphere: Standard, Hydrographics: Dry, Population: High, Law: High, Tech Level: High Stellar.?!
Click to expand...

I been downloading sector map files for my program to scan them for potential homeworlds for characters. The program can either just pick a world on the map to use, or generate a world and then try to match it with one on the map.
 
ShawnDriscoll said:
I been downloading sector map files for my program to scan them for potential homeworlds for characters. The program can either just pick a world on the map to use, or generate a world and then try to match it with one on the map.
Click to expand...

I'm sorry, which program?
 
For a tournament game I would go with the idea of pre-genned characters. If you're going to have 6 seats at your table, set up say eight PCs pre-genned for the players to pick from. The one convention I was at where I signed up for a player slot the GM gave each of us picks, starting with the first player to sit down. It worked fine and I had fun running a character outside my normal zone. I imagine it saved the GM a lot of time and headache having those PCs already set up so he knew what skills and plot hooks he had to work with.
 
khadaji2002 said:
For a tournament game I would go with the idea of pre-genned characters. If you're going to have 6 seats at your table, set up say eight PCs pre-genned for the players to pick from. The one convention I was at where I signed up for a player slot the GM gave each of us picks, starting with the first player to sit down. It worked fine and I had fun running a character outside my normal zone. I imagine it saved the GM a lot of time and headache having those PCs already set up so he knew what skills and plot hooks he had to work with.
Click to expand...

Aaaaand that's what I'm doing :)

The problem is in identifying, from the very broad stats the chargen software spits out, where these pregenerated player-characters homeworlds actually are.

People seem to be missing that this was the original problem, at the moment. Not the provision of PreGen PCs for players. Not the differences between CT and MgT characters. But the identification of those pregen PCs OTU homeworlds from the broad stats provided by the chargen package...

So, any further ideas, please? Anyone?

Thanks in advance :)
 
Redcap said:
Aaaaand that's what I'm doing :)

The problem is in identifying, from the very broad stats the chargen software spits out, where these pregenerated player-characters homeworlds actually are.

People seem to be missing that this was the original problem, at the moment. Not the provision of PreGen PCs for players. Not the differences between CT and MgT characters. But the identification of those pregen PCs OTU homeworlds from the broad stats provided by the chargen package...

So, any further ideas, please? Anyone?

Thanks in advance :)
Click to expand...

I got with determining what subsector I will be operating in, and then look for worlds within that subsector that might fit what I need, or worlds that are close in adjacent subsectors. I would give you an example, but I am on a backup laptop as my regular one is having problems. I will try to get an example up a little later tonight. As you are in the UK, it will be waiting for you in the morning your time.
 
timerover51 said:
I got with determining what subsector I will be operating in, and then look for worlds within that subsector that might fit what I need, or worlds that are close in adjacent subsectors. I would give you an example, but I am on a backup laptop as my regular one is having problems. I will try to get an example up a little later tonight. As you are in the UK, it will be waiting for you in the morning your time.
Click to expand...

Thanks. I'll have a look when I get up (day off :) )
 
Redcap said:
How in the seven shades of ding-dong (May his hammer always be ringing your bell loudly) do you determine where a homeworld is, given the sheer volume of worlds out there in the OTU, based on this kind of output: Homeworld codes: Port: C, Size: Medium, Atmosphere: Standard, Hydrographics: Dry, Population: High, Law: High, Tech Level: High Stellar.?!
Click to expand...

On the Traveller Map you can use this search:

Code: 
uwp:C[4-7][4-8][0-4][8-F]?[8-F]-[B-F]

In order, that's: Starport C, Size 4-7, Atmosphere 4-8, Hydrographics 0-5, Population 8-F, any Gov, Law 8-F, TL B-F

Docs: https://travellermap.com/doc/about#search-tips
 
inexorabletash said:
On the Traveller Map you can use this search:

Code: 
uwp:C[4-7][4-8][0-4][8-F]?[8-F]-[B-F]

In order, that's: Starport C, Size 4-7, Atmosphere 4-8, Hydrographics 0-5, Population 8-F, any Gov, Law 8-F, TL B-F

Docs: https://travellermap.com/doc/about#search-tips
Click to expand...

You're a star. I completely missed that, thanks :cool:

Result: No joy on a strict interpretation of the specs given
Code: 
uwp:C[5-7][6-7][1-2][9-A]?[8-9]-[E-G]
, but using yours, I got this:

Shiramuunir (Tansa/Gushemege 2507, C544AC8–C), and a reasonable back story for that PC is now created, too :)

Many thanks :)
 
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