Actually, they are not the standard sidearm per the actual rules - the energy weapons are by TL-15. Prior TL's have the energy weapons as support guns and the gauss rifle as a standard arm, but even before TL-15 they are replaced by the FGMP's once the grav-assist versions for use without BD come online. The fact that versions are available for use without BD being required (aside from there being no mention of it in the rules) has always led me to believe that the energy weapons are not radioactive dangers to bystanders. At least as I read the CT rules, which since those are the ones I use (Striker included) they are the ones I have always used to extrapolate weapons for later design.
Right, by TL15 it says most troops are in BD with FGMP's, I just change that single word to "some" instead. Realistically, equiping millions of troops seems a nightmare for little gain over the standard CA/GR troop. Plus I like to keep BD/FGMP troops a little more rare. Main killers on the battlefield will still be artillery followed by armor; mines, anthor big casualty causer aren't even covered. I do think that Plasma or Fusion weapons would represent some sort of radiation hazard, especially if heavily used in an area, what happens as well if the back pack cell is hit?
Which then makes me crazy when I consider how lethal the mere gauss rifle is to higher levels of armor - an issue primarily linked to the CT all-or-nothing combat system, I know, but rectified by Striker which unfortunately not all players have been as enthusiastic about as I. So I usually end up going back to the original CT system.
I like the CT system for being quick and simple, I will take things from striker, but otherwise I think it has issues. I already mentioned the 600 ton grav apc in another thread, but I think Striker would have been alot better if the baseline was TL15 and backtracking down, rather then TL5 and adapting up, which is what it seems. Some things are giving to role-playing and others to wargaming, I still play and design wargame stuff and there as well is a balance between "game" and "realism", nothing showed me that better than Advanced Squad Leader.
I have fixed that by using a chart that creates a sliding scale for BD and Combat effectiveness at higher TL's than the ones they are first introduced at. It makes levels out the field so it makes more sense to use an energy weapon (or at least a big gun or grenade) to penetrate the heavy armors while not reducing the inherent values of the weapons. So far it works ok in play and it translates reasonably to vehicles so I can integrate the Striker combat system into vehicular combat and then back to CT seamlessly in-game. At least it is for the players, but the workload of the referee is always a thankless task never properly appreciated by players.
Armor is a funny thing, with AFV's, TL is everything and higher TL's will brush aside lower TL vehicles. Infantry and other AT weapons, usually real life, at their proper TL, will take out an AFV with a solid hit. Before Striker came on the scene, I had just adapted LBB2 starship combat using the Non-Starship column of the Table, but mostly a hit is a kill for all intensive purposes.
Besides, players kill themselves off enough already without my having to make it easier for them. So I scale things down and give them the benefit of not having to fight it out with better trained and armed troops all the time by not letting the players have access to the better equipment all the time. That way they get a real thrill if when they do encounter the "real thing" sometimes, too!
By military, I mean just small action, though it might be neat to run a campaign with Tankers as PC's or something. I try not to kill off the PC's as it does make things much less fun as you said.
Always, I was playing wargames a long time before Traveller came out so I take to that aspect of the game like a fish to water. I just wich more players did, but I've noticed that the drop off in wargamey players has been steep since the mid-80's and nowadays they just look at you funny like the wargamer is the nerd and role-player is the norm or something.
I started out with Chess and all the Avalon Hill classics and continue to play wargames, just mostly computer now. There is a wargame club around here called the war college as well.
My IMTU I have recently advanced the universe timeline by 30 years to begin the early days of the Terran Empire. It's the same homemade universe I started with in 76 but just better imagined, filled out, and such and it just uses the original CT rules, Striker, and that's it. No Imperium, etc. SO its both heretical and the real deal all at the same time since the original had nothing but vague hints of what was out there (until the Zhodani came out I could never figure out why psionics were banned) and the ref was free to imagine it all. Had too, actually.
I have run various settings, though now I'm making a campaign setting called
Imperium 1133 (for a year or so now) which has a resurgent Empire Involved in The Great Interstellar War, it follows a lot of the OTU, the Emperor assassinated, civil war, virus, etc. . But The Zhodani have had the life torn out of them and four sectors of their space is now the Zhodani Autonomous Republic, which allows me to bring in all sorts of Zhodani stuff without it being just the "enemy", like Zhodani Free Traders. The Solomani were reincorporated into the Empire through a short war, but as an independent Solomani Republic with the help of Solomani moderates though a "Personal Union" between the Emperor, where they recognize the Emperor as their Emperor as well. This lessens the sort of fascist image of the Solomani and again allows there to be Solomani around without being the enemy, however the extremist do have an anti-Imperial faction called "Sol Invictus" - The Unconquered Sun. Solomani are also co-belligerents in the war against the Hivers-K'Kree, Aslan were on their side as well but they were beaten. The Imperium has also expaned into Vargr territory, so there are alot of Vargr immigrants into the Marches, a byproduct of fighting with the Zho's.
That's just a quick overview; very nice sections on the Terran military in your follow up posts, I should form my scattered notes into a more stable milieu.
