I would go with Book 2, with the sole exception of using Book 5 for small craft design.
CT Only: LBB:0 Hidden Setting
- Thread starter mike wightman
- Start date
I would go with Book 2, with the sole exception of using Book 5 for small craft design.
Can they be packed in a little tighter? Say, maybe a 5 subsector by 5 subsector layout (or a 5 down x 6 across), with a single, dense core subsector (or two, if 5 x 6) where the two original factions competed and now live as one polity, with the surrounding 8 (or 10) subsectors as a standard-density mix of member and non-member worlds (as per the source text), and the surrounding 16 (to 18) subsectors as thinnning out to sparse-density Wilds, but in places parts of other polities?
Interstellar boundaries could be non-polygonal as well, with tendrils of Federation member worlds weaving their way outwards, and pockets or short mains of non-member worlds interposed and intertwined among them.
I kind of want to keep the charted space part of the master map relatively compact, for communication purposes as previously mentioned, and also so that the PCs might feasibly be able to Travel to any part of it before they go completely broke and/or die of old age.
But still, over half of the big map can remain under-settled and under-explored edges for development (and alien contact, etc.) as needed.
And of course, all we need to flesh out to begin with is the one "starting" "fringe" subsector.
I do not know that we need to drill down to the level of individual ship designs any time soon, so that real and consequential difference is not a particularly big issue now (if ever).
Note that although B2 lets J-5 in at TL11 as a practical matter, as per B3 you still have to wait until TL15 to feasibly get to J-6 with B2 drives, and even at our top-end here of TL12, J-4 is a practical limit on moving personnel around, with J-3 (or even J-2) usually being more cost-effective for hauling materiel interstellar distances up until TL13.
mike wightman
SOC-14 10K
I thought we said ships could wait lol.
400t packet 77 design
hull 400t
bridge 20t
computer 5t
j drive M 65t
m drive C 5t
pp C 10t
fuel 250t
crew 24t (pnmeee)
passengers 16t
cargo 5t
These are for communication purposes only. Cargo, freight and passenger carriers will have to be lower jump numbers as you say.
400t packet 77 design
hull 400t
bridge 20t
computer 5t
j drive M 65t
m drive C 5t
pp C 10t
fuel 250t
crew 24t (pnmeee)
passengers 16t
cargo 5t
These are for communication purposes only. Cargo, freight and passenger carriers will have to be lower jump numbers as you say.
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mike wightman
SOC-14 10K
I picked an average world density of 30 per subsector, which means 10+ subsectors to give the 300_ worlds described, there will be spill over into the frontier subsectors. Making a couple of dense core subsectors you say...
Yup. it shouldn't be too neat, but this is a broad overview. The critical subsectors are the ones on the frontier where the players will be doing their stuff.
Should be doable for any character with Travellers'.
Once beyond the border subsectors there is plenty of scope for exploration
Completely agree.
Unfortunately, this design isn't valid under CT '81 or Starter CT (and probably not TTB), as the PP is too small.
mike wightman
SOC-14 10K
It is valid as a 77 design though, which is why I said edition matters. Under 81 you would max out at jump 5 as you say, unless drop tanks are a thing for these...
travel times at jump 5 or jump 6 are not going to vary much when you are looking at, there will be a couple of extra jumps at jump 5.
Anyway let's get back to the frontier subsector setting itself, referees can decide which ship rules they will use
travel times at jump 5 or jump 6 are not going to vary much when you are looking at, there will be a couple of extra jumps at jump 5.
Anyway let's get back to the frontier subsector setting itself, referees can decide which ship rules they will use
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So, these two pocket empires who were rivals, but ended up setting aside their differences to form the original covenant of the Moladon Federation: a couple of ground-floor considerations come to mind.
1. Were they both Humaniti cultures, or was one a different Major Race? I am inclined to keep it simple and make them both Human, reserving the Aliens to be a value-add for the outland subsectors of the MolaFed.
2. What was the difference that had to be reconciled? Property rights? Psionic powers? Meritocracy versus Oligarchy? Theology versus Philosophy? Individual versus Collective Rights? What, exactly, set them apart from each other, but had to be bridged? :CoW: I have some ideas about making either Psi or Gov the sticking point, but am open to any thoughtful suggestions.
1. Both human seems simplest.
2. Government seems best, with the two sides not radically apart (ie, not participating democracy vs charismatic theocracy).
And this brings up:
3. Why did they form a federation? I am inclined to use the trusty "external threat", either a human pocket empire with a radically different government or an aggressive alien pocket empire (I favor aslan or k'kree). Actually, the Zhodani work, if we assume they were thoroughly defeated. This would justify a cultural dislike for those with Psi; are they mutant humans or remnants of the Zhodani, plotting to overthrow the federation?
In this model, I am thinking feudal technocracy versus participatory democracy. As both polities grew in population and territory, the former began sliding into oligarchy and the latter into an unmanageable mess. So they ended up talking each other into meeting in the middle -- perhaps with a form of representative democracy where each level of representation (local, regional, continental, planetary, system) selects who will represent it at the next higher level, culminating in the President Pro Tem or Secretary-General or whatever of the interstellar governing body.
In lieu of conventional proxies, this Senate/Parliament/Congress/Assembly/whatever uses a ranked-choice voting methodology, with each representative getting a number of votes equal to their mainworld's Pop digit, to spread around as they like in support of or opposition to resolutions before the body. This vote-splitting should also create a dynamic political forum without our relying on multi-world political parties to keep it lively. Votes of No Confidence may be called at any level of this RepDem hierarchy, except the very bottom, where elections are scheduled to recur on a regular basis.
Just a (rough) thought...
Economics. More efficient, more productive, more stable, more resilient. One market, one currency, one set of regulatory standards. Higher quality of life for all concerned.
See also one of my favorite thought experiments, Ken Pick's monograph on the qualitative shifts implied by Tech Levels, which suggests that it is a mistake to try an advance beyond TL11 without a functional, ubiquitous interstellar government. (It takes a robust, developed society to accommodate things like PGMPs and AIs, yet remain standing for long.)
Hence the MolaFed advancing on to early TL12, while its (frankly, behind the curve) neighbors are just now barely able to climb out of their own gravity wells without relying on -- Sol help me -- rockets, for Goodness' Sake.
mike wightman
SOC-14 10K
Yup, I would go with that too.
Agree again.
No OTU races... there can be analogues but lets try to do something different.
The federation formed as a response to a threat - psionics, AI, transhumanists, a rival interstellar polity...
The federation worlds came together to throw off the yoke of tyranny - rebellion against an Imperium, monarchy, religeous dictatorship - they had the advantage of tech breakthroughs and industrial worlds...
mike wightman
SOC-14 10K
I am liking this
Okay.
There are these samurai catmen, see, and these Viking dogmen ...
No no no... Viking Kittens!
I am liking this
OK, doubling down: how the MolaFed government is organized at the PC's level.
The MolaFed Interstellar Navy
The FIN is the military arm of the Federation, charged with defense and keeping the peace. Local, planetary navies may not be Jump-capable (and indeed, are encouraged to stick to small craft exclusively, for customs duties, search & rescue, and the like); if a star system needs help patrolling to suppress a recent upswing in piracy from outsystem, the mainworld calls in the FIN. (It is, after all, a large part of why they pay their taxes.) Planetary defenses are typically ground-based laser batteries, augmented by missile-launching submarines if practical -- local Army and Wet Navy stuff respectively, there.
The MolaFed Marine Corps
The FMC are the folks that drop from orbit after (or even during) the bombardment to re-secure the situation on the ground. There are no local marines, only MolaFed ones. They are often the last thing an enemy of the Moladon Federation ever sees.
The MolaFed Scout Service
If the FIN (and the FMC) are the Iron Fist of the Federation, the FSS is the Open Hand. They provide cultural outreach to non-member worlds, facilitate cultural exchange and economic & technological development among member and client worlds, coordinate disaster relief everywhere as needed, and support law & order as may occasionally be necessary; they are generally the public face of the Federation wherever possible. UPPs are generated by their surveys, by the way.
The MolaFed Merchant Marine
As there are no megacorporations as such within the MolaFed, the FMM coordinates all trade & commerce within, and into or out of, the Federation -- setting commercial rates, legal and safety standards, and even overseeing the Postal Union (especially important in the case of cross-border delivery, and in cases where Mail routes need to run outside of the regular Trade Lanes). If a member world -- or even a prospective member world -- cannot afford or does not recognize the need for subsidized trade, the FMM steps in and underwrites to make it happen. The MolaFed Merchant's Bank is by far the primary lender to small, single-ship merchant concerns. During wartime or natural disasters, the FMM becomes an auxiliary branch of the FIN. In the same vein as the Iron Fist and the Open Hand, the Merchant Marine is the Cornucopia of the Federation.
The Militias
The Moladon Federation does not, as per the covenants/concords/articles/constitution/whatever, maintain a standing Army. Local, planetary armies are the rule. Some are large, full-time forces -- especially on environmentally-challenging worlds; others are small cadres supported by a volunteer/conscripted force of part- and short-timers. Local Field Marshalls have the ultimate authority over their own worlds' defense; FIN Fleet Admirals and FMC Force Commanders only overrule them if the Federation at large it as stake. (Which it usually is, but hey, it is a professional courtesy to let worlds at least have a semblance of autonomy initially.) Local armies are encouraged and facilitated by the FSS to cross-train with neighboring systems (and the FSS usually handles transport so the FIN stays out of it), as well as pursue innovation in tactics and battlefield tech. The Militias are the Bedrock of the Federation.
...and to my mind, that pretty much covers the 5 default, non-Other prior careers in BT/CT in a manner that is quick and simple to explain, but which refs and players can expand and complexify easily, to suit.
as others have said - I am liking this (similar to the way I really liked the JTAS articles on expanding the world UWP into something more).
And as always - follow the money. That's why (and where) most things happen.
Yes! "We come from a Land of Ice and Snow!"
And weren't they originally Sioux dogmen, when introduced in JTAS?
mike wightman
SOC-14 10K
Very good point.
Consider what we know:
Does this mean conflict between states within the federation (Texas vs Arizona), conflict between the states beyond the federation, or conflict between the outer federation states and the worlds outside the federation...
Piracy beyond the border, piracy between raiders from beyond and the federation border worlds may be another matter.
It also mentions it is a century since the last major war - who was this war with? Are pocket empires beyond the federation making ready for the next wave of federation expansion?
How can PCs make their fame and fortune in the border subsectors and beyond?
