I really like the OTU and Traveller, always have. Unfortunately, my gaming group as a whole HATED the Classic Traveller ruleset. Why the hate? Character Advancment, pure and simple.
We were all still in grammer school, in pre-Internet days. I was the only one with a wargames/simulationist background because of my dad's hobby store. Sure, they like science fiction, but not Traveller as a set of rules. Their connection to RPGs were AD&D, Gamma World, Space Opera and Top Secret. Except for AD&D, I was the one who got them in RPG's. Once I understood how CT worked in high school, it was too late. They were all power hungry xp munchkins. Remember, as a whole we had NO OTHER EXAMPLES or advisors to play.
So how to suck them in? Conversion of the OTU to rule systems that they liked and familiar with. This also addressed silly things like not giving up their beloved yada yada character from whatever game. And the questions of vital importance to young people like:
"Who would win in a fight, Han Solo or Captain Kirk".
"If I was in Greyhawk, what would my stats be?"
I originally got the idea from the AD&D DMG which had conversions from Boot Hill and Gamma World to AD&D. Then, once they liked the universe, I could lead them back to CT. If not, at least I was doing games in the OTU. So my my first conversion was Traveller to Gamma World. Experience points and level advancement. Just what my players wanted. Carnivorous anthropomorphic mutant bunnies with laser rifles and PGMPs were awesome. Then I did one for Top Secret. By then, I got them on board for CT. But the bug got to me and I have done conversions back and forth between rule systems and campaign universes.
So I have done back and forth conversions of the CT/OTU over the years with:
Gamma World
Top Secret - Yea, that one sort of sucked
Spacemaster - Because they all wanted psionics.
Doctor The Roleplaying Game (FASA) - DW had TL and World Profiles! No level advancement! A natural!
Fringeworthy
Marvel Superheroes - Yes, I went there.
Alternity
Champions/4th ed. Hero System - I am particularly proud now of that one as I did it in the late '80s/early '90 long before Hero Games did their Hero Traveller. Hero System became my Rosetta Stone between rule systems for a long time. It established my general system for conversions (self-taught). Once you have data points established between systems, conversions are easy.
Recently I have worked on others.
BRP/Legend/d100
Cortex System (Serenity/Firefly)
Cypher System (Numenara, The Strange)
