so whats in T20 ?

[weasel fierce]

Being a bit of a collector, and T20 is the only version of Traveller I still dont own.

Im not a big D20 fan, but if there's anything neat or not before seen in T20, I'd be willing to pick it up.


So whats in there ? Whats new ?

How does it work out setting wise ? Is it third imperium or something else ?

 

[Psion]

Originally posted by weasel fierce:
Being a bit of a collector, and T20 is the only version of Traveller I still dont own.

Im not a big D20 fan, but if there's anything neat or not before seen in T20, I'd be willing to pick it up.


So whats in there ? Whats new ?

Not a whole lot is new. It's largely CT plugged into the D20 system. In fact, starship stats and UPPs are almost directly portable.

The mechanics are translated to D20, with appropriate tweaks (for example, the stamina/lifeblood system makes characters quite a bit more vulnerable than the D20 HP system). There is a lifepath system that gives you the "random generation" feel to unltimately d20-esque character build.

I think that the way the skills and feats adaptation work makes more sense than the CT/MT take on skills, but if you aren't a d20 fan, you might not agree.

The starship combat system ended up pretty slick, and the planet generation system allows scouts-like details with less tabulation, but the planet generation still carries forward both the problems of and compatability with the CT planet stats.

How does it work out setting wise ? Is it third imperium or something else ?

There isn't much setting in the corebook itself. There are things like the CT races and such, but much like the original LBBs, its much more system than setting.

The default setting for T20 -- as depicted in the Gateway to Destiny book -- is the Gateway Domain (ley sector, glimmerdrift, gateway, and crucis margin, using canon stats on the de-canonized Judges Guild material) during the time of the Solomani Rim War. So it's not on the war front, but there's plenty of room for espionage and black ops away from the war front.

 

[Cymew]

If you like the Trade rules from LBB2 you'll want T20 for more interesting trade tables.

 

[Cymew]

Another note:

The organisation is horrible, so to actually use the book hurts. Grab bits of it.

 

[Border Reiver]

I should let others big this up but it is actually pretty good, better than D20 future I'd say.

The ship/vehicle building is pretty good, simple but with enough crunch to satisfy some basic gearhead needs.

Combat is good and still remains reasonably deadly (though not as much a killer as CT/MT).

The setting is any time you want but defaults to the 990's Imperial around the War of Solomani Independence (Rim War).

 

[BetterThanLife]

The Traveller's Hand Book, is a rule book. First and foremost. Like Psion said, it is a D20 adaptation of the Traveller most of us know well. It has a definite CT feel to it, in fact it has more of a CT feel to it than MT did.

The starship combat rules work better than CT in that small ship combat is possible unlike LBB5 (two equal fighters can shoot at each other and expect to hit each other) and LBB5 weapons are available unlike LBB2. Though there are some issues at the Large ship end of things. Further there are rules for either a more cinematic or a more structured war game approach to vehicle and starship combat.

As long as you don't go to extremes and fight at the scale of the smallest combatant, then combat scales nicely between people, vehicles and starships. (And you can have all three in a fight.)

Character generation is less random and more structured than CT but well thought out. As long as you specialize instead of scattering all your skills all over the place, you will achieve the same basic effect as a CT generated character.

Personally I have not liked the D&D system, and its derivatives, much since AD&D, and even AD&D had serious limitations. However this system works and should not be confused with normal D20 rules.

I find the T20 system very playable and easy to GM. (Which is the point.) It also appeals to new players that have some D&D experience but have never been introduced to Traveller.

Try the T20 Lite rules and see what you think.

 

[Rover]

I am a very big fan of how the prior history system and multiclassing have been adapted for T20. Players are gived a very large pallet to work with, and with a little imagination can make almost any type of character imaginable. But listen to the good advice above. Beter to specialize than be a Jack of all trades.

R