Rules - INDEX Thread

[Supplement Four]

Fiddling With Stuff

Do GMs fiddle with equipment enough?

I would suspect not.

I suspect that most GMs use the equipment listed in the books "as-is", copied directly onto the character's sheet.

These pieces of equipment (and weapons too) were meant to be used as examples, baselines, inspiration for GMs to create their own stuff.

I think, too often in the modern world of gaming, GMs are loathe to create their own designs.

Let me direct your attention to pg 17 of LBB3. There, it states that the items listed are described as if they were manufactured in a TL 10+ interstellar society. Should the players visit a lower tech world and buy something, then it is suggested that the items be altered. They should be both bulkier and inexpensive.

[EDIT: LBB 4, pg. 43, addresses the TL/price issue.]

I think this idea has become diluted in later versions of Traveller, and I think that many GMs will be surprised when they read what I wrote above on pg. 17 of LBB 3.

So, if the characters are on Aramis, a TL B planet in the Spinward Marches, and a mechanical tool set is purchased, then GMs should consider using the set of tools as is--necessary for making many task rolls involving the Mechanical skill.

But, let's say the crew travels one parsec to TL 4 Pysadi, and there they buy some binoculars. Should those binoculars purchased on Pysaidi be the same as those purchased on Aramis? I mean, binoculars are TL 3, so both societies can easily produce them.

According to what's stated on pg 17 of LBB 3, the TL 3 binoculars purchased on Aramis should closely resemble the description in LBB 3. But, the ones purchased on Pysadi should be bulkier and heavier and probably cost more as well.

Think of the big, heavy, bulking binoculars that were available in WWI, then compare that to the light, fit-in-your-pocket binocs, made in a synthetic case, that you can pick up at your local sporting goods store today.

Both binocs can be manufactured at TL 3, but those manufactured at a higher tech level are vastly different from the introductory versions.

This is something for GMs to keep in mind.






GMs should also consider altering equipment and weapons just to make the game more interesting. A certain company on Aramis might be known for their tools. Most mechanical tool sets are simply required to attempt tasks using the Mechanical skill. But this company on Aramis, They really know how to make tools! If you pick up a mechanical tool set from them, you get a +1 DM on all your Mechanical skill based tasks!

Don't be afraid to make weapons unique. Change the range mods a tad. Alter weight. Think of accessories that are desireable for the weapon. Come up with alternate ammunition. Maybe modifications are needed to the weapon to use alternate ammo (a bigger bore?). Maybe certain versions of the weapon by specific manufacturers have ammo clips that hole more ammo.

"This Armington-Sturgeon bolt-action rilfe comes stock with a scope. The butt is actually made from a ceramic material, believe it or not, that makes it lighter than most weapons of its class. There's a special design holding breach unique to this weapon that preps the round before it is fired. A&S believe this all but eliminates misfires, but in effect, what it does is allow the weapon to carry two extra rounds of ammunition when fully loaded--and extra one in the prep-breach, and one in the barrell. This weapon has a shorter barrell than most rifles of its class, filling a need for mid-range target rifles. The weapon receives a +1 DM at Medium range but is -1 DM at Long and Very Long."

You get the idea.

Players in D&D get attached to their vorpal weapons. Well, create something in your game that will excite them as well.

When the pick an SMG off a dead guard, don't just call it an SMG and go on the game. Describe the weapon. Maybe make it unique in some ways. Players might even start to reconize weapon manufacturers that they like.

You could even do the opposite. Create weapons by a cheap get'em-out-the-door manufacturer. Maybe these weapons are prone to misfire. If you do, you'll get situations like this in your game, "What he carryin'?"

"Looks like an SMG of sorts."

"Check the brand. Recognize it?"

"Looks definitely imported. Wait...it's a STUDZ MULTI-GUNN."

"STUDZ-MULTIGUNN? Forget it. It's trash. Check his other equipment."

I've focused on weapons, but my point here can easily be applied to almost any type of equipment.

This kind of stuff can even lead to the "pull" of an adventure.

 

[Supplement Four]

On GMing...

Good GMs don't antagonize players. They don't consider themselves as "playing against" the players.

A good GM should be an impartial judge, and if he's on anybody's side, it should be that of the players.

It's not about the GM vs. the player. It never has been. The GM will always win anyway, since he decides the rules.

A good GM is akin to a good movie director, guiding the players (actors) to great academy-award-winning performances.

It's always been my experience that I have the best time during a game when the players are having a good time.

Drama is conflict. If a GM is to be a good story-teller, then he must hit the group with a hefty amount of conflict. But, it's only the bad GMs that consider themselves "winners" when/if they use whatever device it is to cause the conflict at the expense of the group's enjoyment.

Good GMs are writing "novels" with their best selling characters. How interesting would later Fleming books be if Bond had been killed off?

What it all boils down to is trust. A good GM will have his player's trust.

Players have to believe that the GM has the best intentions for the mutual story they are creating at heart, even when the GM is enforcing conflict.

If the the GM is trusted, though, players will follow him anywhere.




The Games Master is the coach of the team. One of the duties the title of GM holds is to help his players grow in their ability to role play.

The player you cite here obviously has some growing to do. He's playing the game as if the GM were his opponent.

The player cited is a slave to modern rules-bloated games. Once he finds enlightenment (hopefully at the hands of a good GM), it will be only then that he discovers he's enjoying rpgs on a level he never knew existed.




Another job the GM has is to pick and choose a good gaming group.

I'm going through that right now. I started my Traveller campaign a year and a half ago. We took off a couple months for the holidays. Time stretched further than I originally intended (as we are all in our 30's and 40's), and it's just now that I'm getting the game cranked back up again.

Two new players that started with me when I started the campaign really aren't adding anything to the game. They're a husband & wife. The husband is fine, but the wife just doesn't "fit" well with our gaming style.

There were a couple of game sessions that these two couldn't make the game last year. I have a rule that no one plays unless everyone plays their own character, but I was able to work around their "no-shows" so that their characters weren't involved.

Those two games sessions that they missed last year were the top two game sessions we had the entire year. They were remarkable games.

I can't quite put my finger on it. It's really not that either the husband or wife is a bad player. I'd say they're average.

But, there just seems to be a new dynamic when they play. A dynamic that's not good for the group.

In the past, when we were playing more often, I'd take the time to "grow" these players. I've been successful at that before (and I've had a few failures too).

But, playing once a month, I just don't have the time.

I've decided to "prune" these two players from the group. In their place, I'm adding 1 new player who's never role played before. But, he's excited about it, and I have a feeling he's going to take to it like duck to water.

Strange about these players I'm pruning. I've definitely let disruptive and bad players go in the past. I won't stand for a player who continually makes the game non-enjoyable for everyone else.

But, these players I'm not inviting back aren't like that at all. The best I can describe it is that they're like a wet blanket over the group, stifling dynamic play. I don't know why they have that effect. They're OK players, but it's a strange vibe they bring.

It seems like such a small thing, but I think it's big enough to threaten my game. Not in one game session...they bring the kind of vibe that slowly erodes a game until, nobody knows why, the game night is just not that fun anymore.

Maybe that's why we haven't played in a few months.

But, it's my job, as GM, to recognize this. And, I'm doing it. Those two won't be invited back. I'll do what I can not to hurt anyone's feelings--no sense in that--and I think we're just going to pick back up and not inform them.

But, they're out, none-the-less.

I'm a GM. And, part of my duties is to keep the game interesting and lively on all fronts.

Picking, pruning, encouraging players is definitley one of the responsibilites a GM has in running an enjoyable game.

And, I mean to keep my game damn interesting.

 

[Supplement Four]

On GMing...

Good GMs don't antagonize players. They don't consider themselves as "playing against" the players.

A good GM should be an impartial judge, and if he's on anybody's side, it should be that of the players.

It's not about the GM vs. the player. It never has been. The GM will always win anyway, since he decides the rules.

A good GM is akin to a good movie director, guiding the players (actors) to great academy-award-winning performances.

It's always been my experience that I have the best time during a game when the players are having a good time.

Drama is conflict. If a GM is to be a good story-teller, then he must hit the group with a hefty amount of conflict. But, it's only the bad GMs that consider themselves "winners" when/if they use whatever device it is to cause the conflict at the expense of the group's enjoyment.

Good GMs are writing "novels" with their best selling characters. How interesting would later Fleming books be if Bond had been killed off?

What it all boils down to is trust. A good GM will have his player's trust.

Players have to believe that the GM has the best intentions for the mutual story they are creating at heart, even when the GM is enforcing conflict.

If the the GM is trusted, though, players will follow him anywhere.




The Games Master is the coach of the team. One of the duties the title of GM holds is to help his players grow in their ability to role play.

The player you cite here obviously has some growing to do. He's playing the game as if the GM were his opponent.

The player cited is a slave to modern rules-bloated games. Once he finds enlightenment (hopefully at the hands of a good GM), it will be only then that he discovers he's enjoying rpgs on a level he never knew existed.




Another job the GM has is to pick and choose a good gaming group.

I'm going through that right now. I started my Traveller campaign a year and a half ago. We took off a couple months for the holidays. Time stretched further than I originally intended (as we are all in our 30's and 40's), and it's just now that I'm getting the game cranked back up again.

Two new players that started with me when I started the campaign really aren't adding anything to the game. They're a husband & wife. The husband is fine, but the wife just doesn't "fit" well with our gaming style.

There were a couple of game sessions that these two couldn't make the game last year. I have a rule that no one plays unless everyone plays their own character, but I was able to work around their "no-shows" so that their characters weren't involved.

Those two games sessions that they missed last year were the top two game sessions we had the entire year. They were remarkable games.

I can't quite put my finger on it. It's really not that either the husband or wife is a bad player. I'd say they're average.

But, there just seems to be a new dynamic when they play. A dynamic that's not good for the group.

In the past, when we were playing more often, I'd take the time to "grow" these players. I've been successful at that before (and I've had a few failures too).

But, playing once a month, I just don't have the time.

I've decided to "prune" these two players from the group. In their place, I'm adding 1 new player who's never role played before. But, he's excited about it, and I have a feeling he's going to take to it like duck to water.

Strange about these players I'm pruning. I've definitely let disruptive and bad players go in the past. I won't stand for a player who continually makes the game non-enjoyable for everyone else.

But, these players I'm not inviting back aren't like that at all. The best I can describe it is that they're like a wet blanket over the group, stifling dynamic play. I don't know why they have that effect. They're OK players, but it's a strange vibe they bring.

It seems like such a small thing, but I think it's big enough to threaten my game. Not in one game session...they bring the kind of vibe that slowly erodes a game until, nobody knows why, the game night is just not that fun anymore.

Maybe that's why we haven't played in a few months.

But, it's my job, as GM, to recognize this. And, I'm doing it. Those two won't be invited back. I'll do what I can not to hurt anyone's feelings--no sense in that--and I think we're just going to pick back up and not inform them.

But, they're out, none-the-less.

I'm a GM. And, part of my duties is to keep the game interesting and lively on all fronts.

Picking, pruning, encouraging players is definitley one of the responsibilites a GM has in running an enjoyable game.

And, I mean to keep my game damn interesting.

 

[Supplement Four]

Official TRAVELLER Combat Rules

The Traveller Book and Starter Traveller added a few combat rules that aren't described in LBB 1.

A rule for cover. A rule for concealment. There's a rule darkness. You can view these rules in THIS thread.

These rules were added under the SPECIAL CONSIDERATIONS section of LBB 1 (seen on pg. 42-43).

Also included (in addition to what is printed in LBB 1) is a discussion on Reloading, Armor, and Zero Gravity.

Note that the Archaic Firearms discussion from LBB 1 has been removed from both The Traveller Book and Starter Traveller.

LBB 4, pg. 31-32, introduces and modifies several combat rules for Traveller personal combat. The rule for Full Automatic Fire is modified, as is the rule for Group Hits By Automatic Fire. New rules for Additional Damage From HE Rounds, Flechettes, High Energy Weapons, and Zero-G Firing are introduced.

The Morale Rule from LBB 1 has been completely revamped.

And, new rules for Panic Fire, Extreme Range Firing, and Hand Grenades are also listed.




A common House Rule for polearms is based on rules found in 1st edition TRAVELLER. This rule reflects the reality that long-distance hand weapons are typically very useful for the first attack but become cumbersome if the enemy survives the initial attack and is able to close distance with the pike weilder.

This House Rule is: The first attack made using a polearm is thrown using DMs as if the range were Short (whether the actual range is Close or Short). The second attack, and every attack made thereafter with the weapon, is performed using the penalty DMs shown as the Close range modifier (even if the actual range remains Short).




EDIT: Rules for Supressive Fire are described in THE TRAVELLER'S AIDE #1 - PERSONAL WEAPONS OF CHARTED SPACE.

 

[Supplement Four]

Official TRAVELLER Combat Rules

The Traveller Book and Starter Traveller added a few combat rules that aren't described in LBB 1.

A rule for cover. A rule for concealment. There's a rule darkness. You can view these rules in THIS thread.

These rules were added under the SPECIAL CONSIDERATIONS section of LBB 1 (seen on pg. 42-43).

Also included (in addition to what is printed in LBB 1) is a discussion on Reloading, Armor, and Zero Gravity.

Note that the Archaic Firearms discussion from LBB 1 has been removed from both The Traveller Book and Starter Traveller.

LBB 4, pg. 31-32, introduces and modifies several combat rules for Traveller personal combat. The rule for Full Automatic Fire is modified, as is the rule for Group Hits By Automatic Fire. New rules for Additional Damage From HE Rounds, Flechettes, High Energy Weapons, and Zero-G Firing are introduced.

The Morale Rule from LBB 1 has been completely revamped.

And, new rules for Panic Fire, Extreme Range Firing, and Hand Grenades are also listed.




A common House Rule for polearms is based on rules found in 1st edition TRAVELLER. This rule reflects the reality that long-distance hand weapons are typically very useful for the first attack but become cumbersome if the enemy survives the initial attack and is able to close distance with the pike weilder.

This House Rule is: The first attack made using a polearm is thrown using DMs as if the range were Short (whether the actual range is Close or Short). The second attack, and every attack made thereafter with the weapon, is performed using the penalty DMs shown as the Close range modifier (even if the actual range remains Short).




EDIT: Rules for Supressive Fire are described in THE TRAVELLER'S AIDE #1 - PERSONAL WEAPONS OF CHARTED SPACE.

 

[Supplement Four]

The IMPERIAL Navy

So, you've read Book 5, and you're yearning for more?

Adventure 5: Trillion Credit Squadron provides additional rules for the space combat system presented in High Guard.

Grand Fleet, available through QLI on this web site, is a spectacular in-depth look at the Imperial Navy (it's strickly background material, uses no rules set, and is completely compatible with CT).

Mayday provides an alternate system for space combat that can be used with High Guard. Turns are 100 minutes long, and this is a tactical-movement game, played on a hex board. Each hex equals a light second (300,000 km). Notes are provided on merging High Guard with Mayday combat.

By the way, Mayday defines the indeterminate ranges listed in Book 5. High Guard Short Range is 5 light seconds or less (1.5 million km or less). High Guard Long Range is listed as over 5 light seconds. Out-of-range, or High Guard escape range, is listed as beyond the 15 light second mark (4.5 million km).

Besides the system presented in Book 5, or the Traveller personal combat system from Book 1, boarding actions can also take place using the tactical-point movement rules presented in Azhanti High Lighting and Snapshot.

Notes for High Guard vessels on the ground are listed in Striker, and note that AHL is meant as an Striker-sister-system for interior combat. Two AHL turns equal one Striker turn.

 

[Supplement Four]

The IMPERIAL Navy

So, you've read Book 5, and you're yearning for more?

Adventure 5: Trillion Credit Squadron provides additional rules for the space combat system presented in High Guard.

Grand Fleet, available through QLI on this web site, is a spectacular in-depth look at the Imperial Navy (it's strickly background material, uses no rules set, and is completely compatible with CT).

Mayday provides an alternate system for space combat that can be used with High Guard. Turns are 100 minutes long, and this is a tactical-movement game, played on a hex board. Each hex equals a light second (300,000 km). Notes are provided on merging High Guard with Mayday combat.

By the way, Mayday defines the indeterminate ranges listed in Book 5. High Guard Short Range is 5 light seconds or less (1.5 million km or less). High Guard Long Range is listed as over 5 light seconds. Out-of-range, or High Guard escape range, is listed as beyond the 15 light second mark (4.5 million km).

Besides the system presented in Book 5, or the Traveller personal combat system from Book 1, boarding actions can also take place using the tactical-point movement rules presented in Azhanti High Lighting and Snapshot.

Notes for High Guard vessels on the ground are listed in Striker, and note that AHL is meant as an Striker-sister-system for interior combat. Two AHL turns equal one Striker turn.

 

[Supplement Four]

Starship Combat

Your starship combat rules in Classic Traveller are four-fold.

Book 2 provides a vector movement system that focusses on the player's ship.

Starter Traveller alters Book 2 space combat so that a protractor, ruler, and the entire floor space of your house is not needed to play out a space combat scenario. The Book 2 vector movement system is replaced with a Range Band system not unlike the personal combat range band system described in Book 1.

This type of gameplay tightens the focus on the player's ship (so much that, when I use it, I'll set-up the deck plans of the player's ship on the gaming table in front of everybody, describe only what they see on thier sensors, roleplay damage control repairs, and basically focus the entire encounter from the players' point of view).

The Starter Traveller Range Band system can easily be transposed to a hex board or a graph to plot out movement as is done in Mayday.

High Guard provides a Range Band-type system suitable to use with large, multiple, warships. It allows you to visualize the fight without the nightmare it would be to tactically play out an encounter on a hex board with several combatants.

Mayday provides an inter-mediate type of play between Starter Traveller on a game board and High Guard. This is a tactical movement system played on a hex board with hexes are one light second (300,000 km) in diameter.

In fact, guidelines are given to help play High Guard scenarios using the Mayday system. With a much larger hex size and turns equal to 100 min., Mayday is much more easily used than Book 2 combat when multiple ships are involved.

Mayday merges Book 2 style combat with hexes and a much bigger timescale so that its easier to play with large and/or multiple vessels. A section on building missiles is included, but it's not as detailed as what is offered in SS3.




Special Supplement 3: Missiles provides extended combat rules for using missiles with either the range band or tactical plotting methods listed above. Rules for constructing and customizing missiles are included as well.

 

[Supplement Four]

Starship Combat

Your starship combat rules in Classic Traveller are four-fold.

Book 2 provides a vector movement system that focusses on the player's ship.

Starter Traveller alters Book 2 space combat so that a protractor, ruler, and the entire floor space of your house is not needed to play out a space combat scenario. The Book 2 vector movement system is replaced with a Range Band system not unlike the personal combat range band system described in Book 1.

This type of gameplay tightens the focus on the player's ship (so much that, when I use it, I'll set-up the deck plans of the player's ship on the gaming table in front of everybody, describe only what they see on thier sensors, roleplay damage control repairs, and basically focus the entire encounter from the players' point of view).

The Starter Traveller Range Band system can easily be transposed to a hex board or a graph to plot out movement as is done in Mayday.

High Guard provides a Range Band-type system suitable to use with large, multiple, warships. It allows you to visualize the fight without the nightmare it would be to tactically play out an encounter on a hex board with several combatants.

Mayday provides an inter-mediate type of play between Starter Traveller on a game board and High Guard. This is a tactical movement system played on a hex board with hexes are one light second (300,000 km) in diameter.

In fact, guidelines are given to help play High Guard scenarios using the Mayday system. With a much larger hex size and turns equal to 100 min., Mayday is much more easily used than Book 2 combat when multiple ships are involved.

Mayday merges Book 2 style combat with hexes and a much bigger timescale so that its easier to play with large and/or multiple vessels. A section on building missiles is included, but it's not as detailed as what is offered in SS3.




Special Supplement 3: Missiles provides extended combat rules for using missiles with either the range band or tactical plotting methods listed above. Rules for constructing and customizing missiles are included as well.

 

[Supplement Four]

Azhanti High Lightning vs. Snapshot

Both are tactical-point combat systems meant for use with Traveller. Snapshot is simply a tactical-point version of the personal combat rules listed in Book 1.

Azhanti High Lighting is similar to Snapshot in many ways, but also differs form that game in just as many ways. AHL is meant as an interior version of Striker.

Striker is a medium-scale combat system that focusses on outdoor engagements and the command & control options faced by an officer leading his troops.

AHL uses a similar combat system (more abstract than either Snapshot or Book 1, but also able to be used on a bigger scale because of it) to Striker and is meant for interior engagements (including boarding actions in space).

One could play a Striker scenario as a platoon of troops hits a village. Once the combat switches to house-to-house combat, AHL can be used for those interior engagements. Two AHL turns equal one Striker turn.

 

[Supplement Four]

Azhanti High Lightning vs. Snapshot

Both are tactical-point combat systems meant for use with Traveller. Snapshot is simply a tactical-point version of the personal combat rules listed in Book 1.

Azhanti High Lighting is similar to Snapshot in many ways, but also differs form that game in just as many ways. AHL is meant as an interior version of Striker.

Striker is a medium-scale combat system that focusses on outdoor engagements and the command & control options faced by an officer leading his troops.

AHL uses a similar combat system (more abstract than either Snapshot or Book 1, but also able to be used on a bigger scale because of it) to Striker and is meant for interior engagements (including boarding actions in space).

One could play a Striker scenario as a platoon of troops hits a village. Once the combat switches to house-to-house combat, AHL can be used for those interior engagements. Two AHL turns equal one Striker turn.

 

[Icosahedron]

Have you tried Power Projection by GZG? it's a hex based ship combat system. I've got it but never really found time to play it.

 

[Icosahedron]

Have you tried Power Projection by GZG? it's a hex based ship combat system. I've got it but never really found time to play it.

 

[Supplement Four]

TRAVELLER - Power Projection - Fleet

This is a serious space combat wargame, completely compatible with Classic Traveller. You can view its home page HERE.

The game can be played Book 2-style, where distance is measured using rulers, or range can be applied to hexes (and scaled down to fit a regular sized gaming table) with the game played out in a manner similar to Mayday. PPF uses turns that are 50 minutes long (actually shorter than Mayday's 100 minute turn), with hex size equal to a quarter light second (75,000 km, compared to Mayday's 300,000 km hexes).

High Guard ship designs are used in this game. Players can conduct engagements with hundreds of starships, if wanted. And, the rules go beyond normal fleet engagement scenarios. Besides boarding actions, planetary assaults and psionics are addressed.

Power Projection Fleet is designed for engagements between large Traveller starships grouped in task forces and fleets. Another rules set is available, called Power Projection Escort, and it concerns itself with smaller Traveller vessels (those without spinal mounts).

 

[Supplement Four]

TRAVELLER - Power Projection - Fleet

This is a serious space combat wargame, completely compatible with Classic Traveller. You can view its home page HERE.

The game can be played Book 2-style, where distance is measured using rulers, or range can be applied to hexes (and scaled down to fit a regular sized gaming table) with the game played out in a manner similar to Mayday. PPF uses turns that are 50 minutes long (actually shorter than Mayday's 100 minute turn), with hex size equal to a quarter light second (75,000 km, compared to Mayday's 300,000 km hexes).

High Guard ship designs are used in this game. Players can conduct engagements with hundreds of starships, if wanted. And, the rules go beyond normal fleet engagement scenarios. Besides boarding actions, planetary assaults and psionics are addressed.

Power Projection Fleet is designed for engagements between large Traveller starships grouped in task forces and fleets. Another rules set is available, called Power Projection Escort, and it concerns itself with smaller Traveller vessels (those without spinal mounts).

 

[Supplement Four]

Traveller's Aide #1: PERSONAL WEAPONS OF CHARTED SPACE

This supplement, available through QLI on this web site, is an excellent addition to a Classic Traveller collection. What you get is a selection of weapons, both new and many you've seen before, with CT stats, all collected on one place. These are not military-grade weapons. No FGMPs here. No, what's contained in this book is brawling combat weapons, blade combat weapons, and gun combat weapons that most Traveller characters own during the ususal Traveller adventures. These are weapons that most opponents will have. For example, the Boarding Axe seen in H. Beam Piper's STAR VIKING makes its Traveller debut in these pages. And, finally, you get weapon stats on the laser pointer. Different types of ammunition for various weapons are discussed. Brass knuckles enters the fray, etc.

On top of the weapon descriptions and stats, the book discusses the Imperial Weapon Permit system and brings you rules for weapon concealment and weapon detectors in a game. Rules are provided for beating a search, and penalties are given for found weapon conraband.

Supressive Fire, using fully automatic weapons, is presented as a new CT rule in this book.

All-in-all, I'd call this a "must have" supplement for a CT game.

 

[Supplement Four]

Traveller's Aide #1: PERSONAL WEAPONS OF CHARTED SPACE

This supplement, available through QLI on this web site, is an excellent addition to a Classic Traveller collection. What you get is a selection of weapons, both new and many you've seen before, with CT stats, all collected on one place. These are not military-grade weapons. No FGMPs here. No, what's contained in this book is brawling combat weapons, blade combat weapons, and gun combat weapons that most Traveller characters own during the ususal Traveller adventures. These are weapons that most opponents will have. For example, the Boarding Axe seen in H. Beam Piper's STAR VIKING makes its Traveller debut in these pages. And, finally, you get weapon stats on the laser pointer. Different types of ammunition for various weapons are discussed. Brass knuckles enters the fray, etc.

On top of the weapon descriptions and stats, the book discusses the Imperial Weapon Permit system and brings you rules for weapon concealment and weapon detectors in a game. Rules are provided for beating a search, and penalties are given for found weapon conraband.

Supressive Fire, using fully automatic weapons, is presented as a new CT rule in this book.

All-in-all, I'd call this a "must have" supplement for a CT game.

 

[Supplement Four]

Gas Giant Skimming

A rule I've used in my games focuses on the ship's pilot and navigator. Have the Navigator throw 2D and add Nav skill. This represents the navigator's best attempt at giving the pilot a course through the least dangerous areas of the GG's upper atmosphere.

Then, as the ship acutally follows that course in order to skim, have the pilot throw 2D minus Pilot skill, trying to roll the Nav number or less.

If the pilot's roll is less than the Nav number, then the ship made it through the GG's atmo without incident. If the pilot's roll is greater than the Nav number, then roll damage on the ship as if it were hit in space combat (Book 2 damage table). The ship's engineer can effect repairs per normal space combat rules (one roll of 9+ allowed per 15 minutes).

It takes 3D minus pilot skill trips through the GG like this to completely refuel the ship. Each trip takes about an hour to perform. The average time, according to The Traveller Book, to refuel at a GG is 8 hours. The average roll on 3D is 10, and if you subtract the average competent pilot skill of Pilot-2, you get an average of 8 hours using this method.

The navigator can make course adjustments to his initial skimming flight plan each trip, so allow the navigator to re-roll the Nav roll at the completion of one trip. If the Nav roll is high, he'll stick with the original plan and not alter course.

Using this rule, your PCs Navigators and Pilots can take this opportunity to shine.

Engineers, and the rest of the crew, if not fixing turbulance damage, can be busy overseeing the refueling process. GMs may want to get creative with Hull or Cargo Bay damage results from damage, instead describing how the LHyd influx pipe is cracked with all the buffeting, and now liquid hydrogen is filling up engineering compartment C. Or, some such creative problem the players will have to deal with. Maybe an antenna was blown off the hull of the ship, and once the vessel is out of the upper atmosphere of the GG, someone will have to go EVA on the hull to fix it. Or, maybe an intake baffel was damaged, and the engineer has to shut it down. Now, refueling will take twice as long--exposing the ship to more damage.

The GM's imagination is the limit.

On the rolls above, GMs may wish to address character stats. Simply pick a number, in the normal CT way, and say, "If the Navigator has EDU 9+, then he'll add +1 to his Nav roll." Or, maybe "If the Pilot's DEX is 10+, allow a -2DM on the 3D roll that determines the number of trips required to skim a full tank."

Something like that.

BTW, if you're a UGM user, you can easily use the UGM tasks to include stats on these rolls.




The Universal Game Mechanic (UGM) is a task system designed specifically for use with Classic Traveller. It can be viewed HERE.









Let's look at an example.

Luukhan Pershiire is navigator for the Type A2 Far Trader ADROIT PURSUIT. He's got Navigation-2 and EDU 7. Using the suggested stat DMs above (that I made up on the fly...you may want to put some more thought into them for your game), Luukhan will plot the course the PURSUIT will take through the upper atmosphere of the gas giant filling its bridge port.

He rolls 2D and gets a 4. +2 for skill. The Nav roll becomes 6.

Now, the pilot must dive through the gas giant, using the navigator's plot.

The ship's pilot is Dexter Bryte, Pilot-1. He'll roll 2D -1, attempting to throw 6 or less. This represents about an hour of time in the game as the pilot dives through the gas giant's upper atmo with fuel cocks open.

Dexter throws 8 on the dice, minus 1, which equals 7. Not so good.

The GM then throws on the Book 2 damage table as if the ship had been hit in space combat. The result is hull damage. Being nice, the GM decides that the pressures in the atmo of the gas giant cracked the seal on the port cargo airlock. It's nothing to worry about now, as the inner lock hatch will keep the cargo deck's integrity. But, it will be expensive and.or time consuming to repair. Maybe it's just the seal that needs replacing, and maybe the door has buckled under the strain of ship's maneuvers and high G. The engineer won't know until he can get outside, either by Vacc Suit or while the ship is dirtside, to check it out.

The "cheap" method of skimming fuel for free just became a little more costly than expected.

The GM, giving the PCs a relatively inconsequential problem (they've just got to fix the outer cargo hatch at this point, and that can be done later) has already decided that if another hull result pops up from a failed pilot roll, then the inner lock may go next, exposing the cargo deck to explosive decompression (and now we're talking damage to the cargo as well).

Depending on the player playing the ship's engineer, a GM may want to give the engineer an heads up on this. Maybe the GM will give the engineer a roll to assess the damage.

If he makes it, the engineer may say to the captain, "Cap'n, that's a pretty hard blow she took during that last maneuver. I dunno if the outer hatch will hold. We may want to think about abortin' the skim and headin' back dirtside to buy some fuel."

"That's two days travel and 500 credits a ton, chief. Are you sure?"

"Well, it's your call, Cap'n. But, if we press on, I'd at least want to decompress the hold."

"We've got live cattle down there, chief! We can't do that!"

"Damage 'll be more costly if the inner hatch buckles and we loose the cattle plus other cargo. I say we head dirtside."

"We just don't have the credits, chief. We blew it all on the spec cargo in the hold. We can't even afford 100 credits a ton for the unrefined stuff. The cattle is the least expensive cargo we're carrying. Let's re-tool our flight plan and give 'er another go."

"Your the boss, skip."

So, at this point, the GM determines how many trips it will take the PURSUIT to dive through the gas giant and skim enough fuel to fill the ship's tanks.

Secretly, the GM rolls 3D -2 behind his screen. The -2DM is for Pilot skill. The pilot's EDU is 5, so there's no extra DM bonus there.

The GM makes this roll in secret because, although the navigator can predict how long his flight plan will take to complete, there are several factors in fueling that are unpredictable--density of LHyd being one of them; amount scooped in a trip being another. Turbulance is another factor. So, I suggest making this roll in secret. The navigator's prediction of how long skimming will take is equal to the average of a 3D roll minus pilot skill. The average of 3D is 10. Subtract pilot (Dexter is Pilot-2) and get an average of 8 hours.

So, in secret, the GM makes this roll. He throws 3D and gets 7. Minus 2. It will take 5 trips, at about an hour each, to refuel the PURSUIT.

This is a fairly fortunate roll, but the players really have no idea of their good fortune at this point. It could be 16 hours for all they know.

On trip #2, the ship's navigator thinks he can do better, so he re-tools the nav plan and makes the nav roll again. But, this time he does even worse. He throws 2D and rolls snake eyes. +2 for skill, and the new Nav roll becomes 4.

Oh crap. This is a tough one. The GM describes the PURSUIT diving into the GG and then getting broadsided by a atmospheric storm. It's a vortex, or a tornado, swirling around at impossible speeds. If the pilot misses his roll, then the GM is determined to make whatever space combat damage that pops up much worse than the first time.

It's a tense situation. The entire ship is rattling. Had there been passengers aboard, the GM might have one of them throw up. At the minimum, a roll on the NPC reaction chart to reflect the passenger's demeanor against the crew would be in order. The PURSUIT's captain, though, was smart. He didn't bring civies with him while skimming. This was strickly a spec trade run.

So, the pilot needs to roll 4- on a throw of 2D -2. He throws, gets a 6 on the roll, and modifies it to a 4.

YEAHH!!!

The entire gaming table explodes. The player playing the pilot is beaming.

The GM describes how, deftly, the pilot rolled the ship, taking the main turblance from the vortex on the aft section of the vessel. Then, he increased the thrust and escaped the vortex, up through its center, before the ship hit the other side.

"Good thing," the GM says, remembering that he was about to let the players have it bad with damage, "that thing was the size of Canada. Your pilot here got you out of it. And now, you've got more fuel in your tanks, but not enough. Care to continue?"

Behind his screen, the GM makes note that 2 of the 5 hours for refueling are completed.

"How full are the tanks?" The player playing the engineer says.

But, the GM, not wanting to tip off the secret time roll, doesn't tell him they're 40% full. He downplays it a bit, to throw the players off."

"You look at the gauge," the GM says to the player, "it reads 18.547% full."

Boosted by the fantastic performance by the ship's pilot, the navigator attempts a third time to alter his course prediction. He makes the Nav roll again. 2D +2. This time, he rolls 8, plus 2, equals 10.

Not a bad roll this time. With the pilot's -2DM, it's as good as one can get. Even if the pilot rolls a 12, his DM will get him under 10.

So, from here on out, the Nav will stick with this plan. It's the best that can be done.

And, all piloting rolls will automatically succeed now, given the Nav's roll.

So, the GM decides to cover the remaining three trips quickly.

"When you dive back down into the gas giant, you see smooth clouds. It's the far side of the storm you hit, and it looks like smooth sailing. Three hours, three dives later, you're done. Full tanks, and one damaged port cargo hatch. It got a little tricky there for a moment, but you made it. You hear a 'moooo' from the cargo deck. Maybe it was one of the cows down there thanking you. Are we moving to jump point now? Or, do you want to go EVA and check out that cargo hatch before the ship jumps...?"








------------------------------------------
For other ideas on how to run gas giant refueling, check out pg. 42-43 of Supplement 5: Lightning Class Cruisers.








EDIT: GMs should customize this system to fit their game. Basically, the navigator throws the Nav roll to represent his flight plan for the skim operation. The GM secretly throws how much time the entire operation will take. And, the ship's pilot throws each hour to reflect the ship's actual journey through the gas giant's atmosphere.

A ship's maneuver drive can also be a strong factor in the time it takes to skim. A ship must achieve enough velocity to reach escape velocity from the gas giant's gravitational pull, skim through the gas giant's atmosphere, back into space, then flip the ship in order to slow velocity enough to reverse course, finaly swinging back through the gas giant's atmosphere for another pass. Just maneuvering the ship, speeding up, slowing down, and turning the vessel takes a lot of time.

In my opinion, this is why the LBBs state that gas giants can be skimmed in about 8 hours where as fuel from an ocean only takes about 4 hours to fill the tanks. My thought is that the other 4 hours in gas giant skimming is devoted to just maneuvering the vessel on its GG passes.

If you are of a like mind, then a ship's M-Drive performance will certainly be a factor in the time it takes for a ship to skim fuel. You may consider having the ship's M-Drive modify the pilot's roll.

If you add this DM to your pilot's throw, he will more often roll under the Nav roll (reflecting the ship's maneuverability and performance), resulting in more often avoiding damage to the ship.

Since CT rules rarely mention damage to a vessel when it skims (the Lightning Cruiser being the exception I can think of), I think using the ship's M-Drive as a negative mod on the pilot's roll is a logical thing to do. Doing this will make it more rare that a ship is damaged when it skims fuel (but still leaves a chance that it might be damaged).

Whether or not you add the ship's M-Drive rating to the pilot's throw, you should definitely consider altering the time roll I suggest above to what I have in this chart. I'll explain my reasoning below.

</font><blockquote>code:</font><hr /><pre style="font-size:x-small; font-family: monospace;">TIME TO SKIM IS 4D HOURS (Minimum 4 hrs./Maximum 24 hrs.)
------------------------
DMs
---
- Pilot skill
-1 Pilot DEX 9+
- Ship's M-Drive rating
- Navigator skill
-1 Navigator EDU 9+
</pre>[/QUOTE]First, the 4D roll will center the number more often at the 14 hour mark, making freak rolls that will take no time very rare. (And, when it happens, maybe the ship hit the motherload liquid layer in the GG, filling the scoops quicker.)

Second, the DMs will bring the number down to average around 8 hours, as the CT rule says.

Third, the people most responsible for getting the ship quickly and safely through the skim affect the time it takes to make the skim: The pilot's piloting ability and his natural gifts on the manual stick; the navigator's expertise at creating the flight plan and interpreting sensor data plus his learned knowlege on the matter; and the ship's performance in the form of it's M-Drive rating.

Fourth, the minimum time is 4 hours, no matter the DMs. This is half the suggested time in the LBBs and seems a good round number.

Fifth, the maximum time is a standard day, no matter the DMs. Again, a good, round number.

 

[Supplement Four]

Gas Giant Skimming

A rule I've used in my games focuses on the ship's pilot and navigator. Have the Navigator throw 2D and add Nav skill. This represents the navigator's best attempt at giving the pilot a course through the least dangerous areas of the GG's upper atmosphere.

Then, as the ship acutally follows that course in order to skim, have the pilot throw 2D minus Pilot skill, trying to roll the Nav number or less.

If the pilot's roll is less than the Nav number, then the ship made it through the GG's atmo without incident. If the pilot's roll is greater than the Nav number, then roll damage on the ship as if it were hit in space combat (Book 2 damage table). The ship's engineer can effect repairs per normal space combat rules (one roll of 9+ allowed per 15 minutes).

It takes 3D minus pilot skill trips through the GG like this to completely refuel the ship. Each trip takes about an hour to perform. The average time, according to The Traveller Book, to refuel at a GG is 8 hours. The average roll on 3D is 10, and if you subtract the average competent pilot skill of Pilot-2, you get an average of 8 hours using this method.

The navigator can make course adjustments to his initial skimming flight plan each trip, so allow the navigator to re-roll the Nav roll at the completion of one trip. If the Nav roll is high, he'll stick with the original plan and not alter course.

Using this rule, your PCs Navigators and Pilots can take this opportunity to shine.

Engineers, and the rest of the crew, if not fixing turbulance damage, can be busy overseeing the refueling process. GMs may want to get creative with Hull or Cargo Bay damage results from damage, instead describing how the LHyd influx pipe is cracked with all the buffeting, and now liquid hydrogen is filling up engineering compartment C. Or, some such creative problem the players will have to deal with. Maybe an antenna was blown off the hull of the ship, and once the vessel is out of the upper atmosphere of the GG, someone will have to go EVA on the hull to fix it. Or, maybe an intake baffel was damaged, and the engineer has to shut it down. Now, refueling will take twice as long--exposing the ship to more damage.

The GM's imagination is the limit.

On the rolls above, GMs may wish to address character stats. Simply pick a number, in the normal CT way, and say, "If the Navigator has EDU 9+, then he'll add +1 to his Nav roll." Or, maybe "If the Pilot's DEX is 10+, allow a -2DM on the 3D roll that determines the number of trips required to skim a full tank."

Something like that.

BTW, if you're a UGM user, you can easily use the UGM tasks to include stats on these rolls.




The Universal Game Mechanic (UGM) is a task system designed specifically for use with Classic Traveller. It can be viewed HERE.









Let's look at an example.

Luukhan Pershiire is navigator for the Type A2 Far Trader ADROIT PURSUIT. He's got Navigation-2 and EDU 7. Using the suggested stat DMs above (that I made up on the fly...you may want to put some more thought into them for your game), Luukhan will plot the course the PURSUIT will take through the upper atmosphere of the gas giant filling its bridge port.

He rolls 2D and gets a 4. +2 for skill. The Nav roll becomes 6.

Now, the pilot must dive through the gas giant, using the navigator's plot.

The ship's pilot is Dexter Bryte, Pilot-1. He'll roll 2D -1, attempting to throw 6 or less. This represents about an hour of time in the game as the pilot dives through the gas giant's upper atmo with fuel cocks open.

Dexter throws 8 on the dice, minus 1, which equals 7. Not so good.

The GM then throws on the Book 2 damage table as if the ship had been hit in space combat. The result is hull damage. Being nice, the GM decides that the pressures in the atmo of the gas giant cracked the seal on the port cargo airlock. It's nothing to worry about now, as the inner lock hatch will keep the cargo deck's integrity. But, it will be expensive and.or time consuming to repair. Maybe it's just the seal that needs replacing, and maybe the door has buckled under the strain of ship's maneuvers and high G. The engineer won't know until he can get outside, either by Vacc Suit or while the ship is dirtside, to check it out.

The "cheap" method of skimming fuel for free just became a little more costly than expected.

The GM, giving the PCs a relatively inconsequential problem (they've just got to fix the outer cargo hatch at this point, and that can be done later) has already decided that if another hull result pops up from a failed pilot roll, then the inner lock may go next, exposing the cargo deck to explosive decompression (and now we're talking damage to the cargo as well).

Depending on the player playing the ship's engineer, a GM may want to give the engineer an heads up on this. Maybe the GM will give the engineer a roll to assess the damage.

If he makes it, the engineer may say to the captain, "Cap'n, that's a pretty hard blow she took during that last maneuver. I dunno if the outer hatch will hold. We may want to think about abortin' the skim and headin' back dirtside to buy some fuel."

"That's two days travel and 500 credits a ton, chief. Are you sure?"

"Well, it's your call, Cap'n. But, if we press on, I'd at least want to decompress the hold."

"We've got live cattle down there, chief! We can't do that!"

"Damage 'll be more costly if the inner hatch buckles and we loose the cattle plus other cargo. I say we head dirtside."

"We just don't have the credits, chief. We blew it all on the spec cargo in the hold. We can't even afford 100 credits a ton for the unrefined stuff. The cattle is the least expensive cargo we're carrying. Let's re-tool our flight plan and give 'er another go."

"Your the boss, skip."

So, at this point, the GM determines how many trips it will take the PURSUIT to dive through the gas giant and skim enough fuel to fill the ship's tanks.

Secretly, the GM rolls 3D -2 behind his screen. The -2DM is for Pilot skill. The pilot's EDU is 5, so there's no extra DM bonus there.

The GM makes this roll in secret because, although the navigator can predict how long his flight plan will take to complete, there are several factors in fueling that are unpredictable--density of LHyd being one of them; amount scooped in a trip being another. Turbulance is another factor. So, I suggest making this roll in secret. The navigator's prediction of how long skimming will take is equal to the average of a 3D roll minus pilot skill. The average of 3D is 10. Subtract pilot (Dexter is Pilot-2) and get an average of 8 hours.

So, in secret, the GM makes this roll. He throws 3D and gets 7. Minus 2. It will take 5 trips, at about an hour each, to refuel the PURSUIT.

This is a fairly fortunate roll, but the players really have no idea of their good fortune at this point. It could be 16 hours for all they know.

On trip #2, the ship's navigator thinks he can do better, so he re-tools the nav plan and makes the nav roll again. But, this time he does even worse. He throws 2D and rolls snake eyes. +2 for skill, and the new Nav roll becomes 4.

Oh crap. This is a tough one. The GM describes the PURSUIT diving into the GG and then getting broadsided by a atmospheric storm. It's a vortex, or a tornado, swirling around at impossible speeds. If the pilot misses his roll, then the GM is determined to make whatever space combat damage that pops up much worse than the first time.

It's a tense situation. The entire ship is rattling. Had there been passengers aboard, the GM might have one of them throw up. At the minimum, a roll on the NPC reaction chart to reflect the passenger's demeanor against the crew would be in order. The PURSUIT's captain, though, was smart. He didn't bring civies with him while skimming. This was strickly a spec trade run.

So, the pilot needs to roll 4- on a throw of 2D -2. He throws, gets a 6 on the roll, and modifies it to a 4.

YEAHH!!!

The entire gaming table explodes. The player playing the pilot is beaming.

The GM describes how, deftly, the pilot rolled the ship, taking the main turblance from the vortex on the aft section of the vessel. Then, he increased the thrust and escaped the vortex, up through its center, before the ship hit the other side.

"Good thing," the GM says, remembering that he was about to let the players have it bad with damage, "that thing was the size of Canada. Your pilot here got you out of it. And now, you've got more fuel in your tanks, but not enough. Care to continue?"

Behind his screen, the GM makes note that 2 of the 5 hours for refueling are completed.

"How full are the tanks?" The player playing the engineer says.

But, the GM, not wanting to tip off the secret time roll, doesn't tell him they're 40% full. He downplays it a bit, to throw the players off."

"You look at the gauge," the GM says to the player, "it reads 18.547% full."

Boosted by the fantastic performance by the ship's pilot, the navigator attempts a third time to alter his course prediction. He makes the Nav roll again. 2D +2. This time, he rolls 8, plus 2, equals 10.

Not a bad roll this time. With the pilot's -2DM, it's as good as one can get. Even if the pilot rolls a 12, his DM will get him under 10.

So, from here on out, the Nav will stick with this plan. It's the best that can be done.

And, all piloting rolls will automatically succeed now, given the Nav's roll.

So, the GM decides to cover the remaining three trips quickly.

"When you dive back down into the gas giant, you see smooth clouds. It's the far side of the storm you hit, and it looks like smooth sailing. Three hours, three dives later, you're done. Full tanks, and one damaged port cargo hatch. It got a little tricky there for a moment, but you made it. You hear a 'moooo' from the cargo deck. Maybe it was one of the cows down there thanking you. Are we moving to jump point now? Or, do you want to go EVA and check out that cargo hatch before the ship jumps...?"








------------------------------------------
For other ideas on how to run gas giant refueling, check out pg. 42-43 of Supplement 5: Lightning Class Cruisers.








EDIT: GMs should customize this system to fit their game. Basically, the navigator throws the Nav roll to represent his flight plan for the skim operation. The GM secretly throws how much time the entire operation will take. And, the ship's pilot throws each hour to reflect the ship's actual journey through the gas giant's atmosphere.

A ship's maneuver drive can also be a strong factor in the time it takes to skim. A ship must achieve enough velocity to reach escape velocity from the gas giant's gravitational pull, skim through the gas giant's atmosphere, back into space, then flip the ship in order to slow velocity enough to reverse course, finaly swinging back through the gas giant's atmosphere for another pass. Just maneuvering the ship, speeding up, slowing down, and turning the vessel takes a lot of time.

In my opinion, this is why the LBBs state that gas giants can be skimmed in about 8 hours where as fuel from an ocean only takes about 4 hours to fill the tanks. My thought is that the other 4 hours in gas giant skimming is devoted to just maneuvering the vessel on its GG passes.

If you are of a like mind, then a ship's M-Drive performance will certainly be a factor in the time it takes for a ship to skim fuel. You may consider having the ship's M-Drive modify the pilot's roll.

If you add this DM to your pilot's throw, he will more often roll under the Nav roll (reflecting the ship's maneuverability and performance), resulting in more often avoiding damage to the ship.

Since CT rules rarely mention damage to a vessel when it skims (the Lightning Cruiser being the exception I can think of), I think using the ship's M-Drive as a negative mod on the pilot's roll is a logical thing to do. Doing this will make it more rare that a ship is damaged when it skims fuel (but still leaves a chance that it might be damaged).

Whether or not you add the ship's M-Drive rating to the pilot's throw, you should definitely consider altering the time roll I suggest above to what I have in this chart. I'll explain my reasoning below.

</font><blockquote>code:</font><hr /><pre style="font-size:x-small; font-family: monospace;">TIME TO SKIM IS 4D HOURS (Minimum 4 hrs./Maximum 24 hrs.)
------------------------
DMs
---
- Pilot skill
-1 Pilot DEX 9+
- Ship's M-Drive rating
- Navigator skill
-1 Navigator EDU 9+
</pre>[/QUOTE]First, the 4D roll will center the number more often at the 14 hour mark, making freak rolls that will take no time very rare. (And, when it happens, maybe the ship hit the motherload liquid layer in the GG, filling the scoops quicker.)

Second, the DMs will bring the number down to average around 8 hours, as the CT rule says.

Third, the people most responsible for getting the ship quickly and safely through the skim affect the time it takes to make the skim: The pilot's piloting ability and his natural gifts on the manual stick; the navigator's expertise at creating the flight plan and interpreting sensor data plus his learned knowlege on the matter; and the ship's performance in the form of it's M-Drive rating.

Fourth, the minimum time is 4 hours, no matter the DMs. This is half the suggested time in the LBBs and seems a good round number.

Fifth, the maximum time is a standard day, no matter the DMs. Again, a good, round number.

 

[Supplement Four]

Inertial Compensation - Optional Rule

And ... Official Escape Velocity Rule

Bob McWilliams (the author of GDW's Adventure 4: Leviathan) came up with what I think is a clever rule in response to an Andy Slack article in White Dwarf Magazine.

What Bob said was: A ship's maneuver drive number rates not only the ship's M-Drive but it's inertial compensation too. So, the deck plates on a ship can be set an any G rating up to equal the M-Drive rating. Whatever the G rating set for the interior G-field, the balance was left for thrust.

For example, a ship rated with a 5G M-Drive could accelerate the ship at 3Gs, using 2Gs for inertial compensation--leaving the crew comfy in a 1G field. If the drive were set to 4Gs, then only 1G would be left for inertial compensation, and the crew would be uncomfortable stuggling as if they were on a high gravity world under 3Gs.

A ship with a 1G M-Drive accelerates at 1G, leaving 0 Gs for compensation, but compensation is not required because the crew is subjected to only 1G of thrust.

In order to figure the G rating for the interior of the vessel, simply subtract the inertial compensation rating from the thrust rating.

1G thurst - 0G compensation = 1G.

3G thrust - 2G compensation = 1G.

4G thurst - 1G compensation = 3G.

Equipment such as pressure suits, acceleration couches, or even some pressure-resistant vacc suits can be used to offset high G penalties.

Andy Slack, in his White Dwarf article that Bob was responding to, suggested that crew members take 1D damage for every G over 1G that the crew endures. So, in the example above, where the 5G starship sets drives to 4Gs, leaving only 1G of compensation, the crew would take 2D damage for the time spent in the 3G field. But, as I mentioned above, crew in acceleration couches would take no damage (or reduced damage, at GMs option). Crew in pressure suits would take no or reduced damage as well.

GMs may want to take this a step further and impose a penalty for tasks that are performed while under high G. I suggest a -1DM penalty pr every G over 1G (just like Andy's damage above) exposure. So, for a 5G ship, accelerating at 4Gs with inertial compensation set to 1G, the crew suffers in a 3G field, taking 2D damage and penalized on task checks with a -2 DM. Of course, crew in acceleration couches may take no penalty. Pressure suits may reduce or elminate the penalty as well.

This is an interesting aspect to Traveller that I use in my game. Not only does it give the ship's pilot an interesting choice during play, but it also makes discovering another ship's M-Drive rating much harder than it was before.

In Traveller, because fuel is realitively inexpensive when in normal space, a ship will travel at its highest speed, at full M-Drive thrust, to the half way point of its journey. Then, it will flip and decelerate at full thrust the other leg of the way.

Observing ships can immediately tell the M-Drive ratings of ships because those targets are always moving at their highest velocity.

With this new optional rule, that observation becomes a bit more tricky. If a ship is accelerating towards your craft at 1G, it's hard to tell if that ship has a M-Drive rated at 1G or 2Gs. The ship could easily have twice the thrust power than is evident--which can play a major role in starship combat.

Also, this type of play allows for ship captain to have "emergency High-G thrust". If the klaxon goes off, alerting the crew that combat maneuvers are imminent, then all rush to their assigned stations and acceleration couches as the crew is about to be exposed to 2+ Gs.

If you would like to read an exciting exerpt froma good novel that deals with this sort of thing, click HERE to read the first few pages of Peter F. Hamilton's The Reality Dysfunction. It's a hell of a space fight that book kicks off with--perfect for Traveller.








An Often Ignored Official CT Rule...

ESCAPE VELOCITY

With this optional rule, I'll also note an Official Classic Traveller rule that many people do not know or observe (probably because the rule gets murky in other Traveller editions). And, that rule is that if a ship's M-Drive rating is less than the G field of a world, then that ship cannot land on the world (because it won't be able to make escape velocity to leave the world again).

This is only a problem with ships that have 1G M-Drives. Those ships cannot, in CT canon, land on worlds of size 8+. They need to dock at high ports and use shuttles or ship's vehicles to reach dirtside.

Again, this rule is basically forgotten about in later editions of Traveller, so you might want to ignore it too. But, I think it's a fun rule that adds a lot of detail to the Traveller universe. I use it in my game.

When vessels do land on worlds, they use some part of thier drives to remain afloat, with the rest of the drive directed towards thurst. This means a ship with a 1G drive doesn't make escape velocity as if it had 1G of thrust. Look at the table on pg. 37 of Book 2. Subtract the world's G field from your ship's G rating. That will give you how much thrust your ship can produce on any given size world.

For example, if a ship with a 1G drive lands on a Size 7 world, the ship will move as if it's drive were rated at 0.125 Gs. You should use that whenever using the Travel Formula when inside the world's gravitational field.