mike wightman
SOC-14 10K
In CT they are not skill checks they are situation saving throws, a subtle but very important difference.
I had no problem running SSR based games using CT.
OTU Only: Third Imperium Inspiration
- Thread starter Supplement Four
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I had no problem running SSR based games using CT.
mike wightman
SOC-14 10K
My characters in Fate fail more often than my D&D characters... SSR would be just as bad to play in Fate as it would be in Traveller... But games where the roll is to control the narrative rather than to succeed...
GypsyComet
SOC-14 1K
Absurd to the widely read among us, certainly. That is not to say I haven't encountered people who were sure Traveller was from a single source of inspiration. There also appears to be a generational shift from the older Traveller players being primarily literary to the younger players drawing dominantly from TV and movies.
Mercenary owes parts to Norton's Star Guard (1955) as well as the much later Falkenberg's Legion by Pournelle, and even High Guard shows more than just Star Wars; it basically enshrines the weapon tiers (turret, bay, spinal) and gratuitous fighter use of 1974's Space Cruiser Yamato, and pulls from The Mote in God's Eye and Smith's Lensman books for the Black Globe.
Tripping over yet another old literary SF source that is obviously close to what Traveller would become is too common to be accidental. Marc's various interviews have indicated that he was designing from a broad range of books and was reading voraciously.
khadaji2002
SOC-12
I find this is true for me personally. I am a voracious reader and a (at best) mediocre movie watcher. Thus my inspirations come from a number of different sources. I see the same in the various Traveller products I've read over the years. Some pieces seem to have their inspiration in obvious sources. Other pieces are clearly a blend of two or more inspirations. Many pieces, however, seem to be a blend of several sources and not easily separated out into discrete lines of inspiration.
That is encouraging to me. I find it easier to act the magpie, taking a bit of this and a little of that. Traveller's foundation appears to me to be exactly that kind of mix. I find myself more willing to experiment with blends knowing that the designers of this game did that to great effect.
Supplement Four
SOC-14 5K
Oh, good catch!
I didn't disagree that Traveller came from several inspirations and not just a single inspiration. It's obvious that there were several influences.
What I disagreed about was that a person couldn't "see Traveller" in a work. Because I read Foundation, today, and I see that one of the Emperors of the Imperium mentioned in Asimov's book was named Cleon. And, there was a Cleon II.
I can definitely see Traveller in that.
Maybe so. I just turned 52 last week, though, and I've read heavily my whole life. For some reason, I haven't read a lot of the old science fiction classics though.
I find myself drawn to that stuff, these days, though. On my reading list:
More of CJ Cherryh's Alliance-Union books.
Lois McMaster Bujold, the Vorkosigan saga, of course.
Elric and Corum by Moorecock
Finish Thieves' World
Re-read the Hammer's Slammers series
Man-Kzin Wars
Berserker
Foundation (read the first book now)
Pournelle's Co-Dominion novels focusing on Falkenberg's Legion
Hal Clemment's Heavy Planet
Alfred Bester's The Stars, My Destination
Lots and lots of Star Trek, focusing on the original crew
Star Wars novels, because I love the universe.
Sword of Shannara, for the third time, and the next two books for the first time.
Robert Adams' The Horseclans
David Drake's anthology The Fleet
Vernor Vinge's A Fire Upon The Deep and A Deepness In the Sky
More of David Weber's Honor Harrington
Re-read the Dune series and possibly try to get through the prequels and things written by his son and KJA, whom I don't like to mention because his work is so bad.
...And, I think there are several others that's I'm forgetting others.
Supplement Four
SOC-14 5K
Wow. That's interesting, because I'm hooked. I'm about to start chapter five (they are short chapters), and I'm in. I dig the book.
Psychohistory has been explained--using math to predict the future.
I remember, back in college, when I took an Astronomy class. My prof. used a simple probability equation to show us (the class) that the probability of there being other intelligent life out there (maybe not in this galaxy, but out there) is effectively 100%.
I always thought that was cool.
And now, I see that was kinda like the mathematics of psychohistory on the most basic level with the simplest equation.
The book is fascinating me.
GypsyComet
SOC-14 1K
I found the trio of Downbelow Station, Cyteen, and 40,000 in Gehenna quite good. Some of the later don't hold up for me.
Possibly an impossible task, as it looses its way more than once.
...Edge worked for me, ...and Earth didn't.
I've read very little Pournelle, as I find his style is best leavened by Niven, and unpleasant without. But I like most Niven, so there is that.
A Mission of Gravity, as well.
The TOS novelizations (Star Trek <number>) vary quite a bit in quality, and are getting hard to find. The Animated Series novelizations (Star Trek Log <number>) were better, IMO, but also hard to find.
The original gets clumsier every time I read it, and I couldn't finish the second.
Just about the only military fiction I can tolerate, because he was that good at depicting battle.
The Logistics guy was a favorite recurring character.
and then there's the military fiction I can't take very much of. OBS is a fun read, but I bogged down quickly after that.
The first review of a KJA book I ever read has stuck with me. The phrase "can't write his way out of a wet paper bag" was used in earnest. I've seen no indications that he's gotten better...
I think I've posted my reading list here more than once.
Supplement Four
SOC-14 5K
For some reason, I want to read that first Greyhawk book, too, Gary Gygax's Saga of Old City.
I want to read Lankhmar.
I've got some pastiche Conan that I haven't read (and some I want to re-read). I've read the Howard stuff several times and know it like the back of my hand.
There's some science fiction I want to read, but these titles are down the list from what I listed above: Gateway, Rama, Ringworld, Red Mars.
I want to read Space Viking. And, I bought some Flandry novels. Plus Triplanetary.
I'm finishing Blade Runner 2: The Edge of Human, by K. W. Jeter, and I've got two more books in that series to read.
And, that's just stuff that are science fiction/fantasy related. My interests go well beyond that. I read all sorts of stuff.
Some of the books I've read this year...
Running the Table, non-fiction about the last great pool hustler.
Star Wars - the original novelization by George Lucas (loved it).
The Empire Strikes Back - novelization (was as good as Star Wars, but it did expand a lot on the probe droid in the beginning).
Star Wars - The Thrawn Trilogy (I think this was my third or fourth read).
The 13th Valley, a fiction book that reads like non-fiction. It follows a few soldiers in Vietnam, late in 1970. Extremely long, but damn good in parts.
Casino Royale, Bond's first adventure by Ian Fleming. I've read all the Fleming Bond books before, but I revisited this one this year.
The Oral Biography of Robert Altman
Rogue One A Star Wars Story novelization (damn good novelization)
Star Wars Cataclyst (prequel to Rogue One--very slow).
Star Wars Tarkin (didn't like it)
Full Metal Jacket Diary by Matthew Modine. Modine kept a diary while filming.
The Firm by John Grisham
I know I'm forgetting something.
And, a butt load of comics.
I want to read Lankhmar.
I've got some pastiche Conan that I haven't read (and some I want to re-read). I've read the Howard stuff several times and know it like the back of my hand.
There's some science fiction I want to read, but these titles are down the list from what I listed above: Gateway, Rama, Ringworld, Red Mars.
I want to read Space Viking. And, I bought some Flandry novels. Plus Triplanetary.
I'm finishing Blade Runner 2: The Edge of Human, by K. W. Jeter, and I've got two more books in that series to read.
And, that's just stuff that are science fiction/fantasy related. My interests go well beyond that. I read all sorts of stuff.
Some of the books I've read this year...
Running the Table, non-fiction about the last great pool hustler.
Star Wars - the original novelization by George Lucas (loved it).
The Empire Strikes Back - novelization (was as good as Star Wars, but it did expand a lot on the probe droid in the beginning).
Star Wars - The Thrawn Trilogy (I think this was my third or fourth read).
The 13th Valley, a fiction book that reads like non-fiction. It follows a few soldiers in Vietnam, late in 1970. Extremely long, but damn good in parts.
Casino Royale, Bond's first adventure by Ian Fleming. I've read all the Fleming Bond books before, but I revisited this one this year.
The Oral Biography of Robert Altman
Rogue One A Star Wars Story novelization (damn good novelization)
Star Wars Cataclyst (prequel to Rogue One--very slow).
Star Wars Tarkin (didn't like it)
Full Metal Jacket Diary by Matthew Modine. Modine kept a diary while filming.
The Firm by John Grisham
I know I'm forgetting something.
And, a butt load of comics.
Azimov is a love or hate... very few find him mediocre. To me, the foundation novels I've tried reading were gorgeous vistas with carboard cutouts shuffling through stilted interactions less interesting than the first round of a chess tourney to a racing fanboy. (There's something happening, and people are excited, but you cannot figure out what nor why...)
The radioplay was at least somewhat interesting, worth suffering through the dozen+ hours of to become reasonably conversant with it. I never made it past page 50 of any Asimov novel. His short stories, however, are much better. Nightfall is absolutely brilliant. (pun intended). Still not a fun read, but an interesting slog.
Asimov, to me, is better as "Someone Else's inspiration"... but it's not the foundation of the OTU. (Yes, pun intentional there, too). It's maybe a strut. One of many.
From just these two series, extensive though they are, there's a rich weave of plots that make a lot of use out of differences between people of different cultures with just a few added problems that arise from the tech options available. Read these first is my vote.
Supplement Four
SOC-14 5K
I've read before that if you want massive, interesting ideas, then read Asimov. If you want interesting ideas on a personal level, then read Heinlein.
Pretty sure I've read everything he wrote. Definitely read all of the Dorsai stuff.
I recall being quite intimidated by The Final Encyclopedia. Itty bitty font in a very thick book.
But it took off enough to keep me engaged when I finally cracked it open.
I don't read much today. Used to read a lot.
Timerover51
SOC-14 5K
I forgot to add Christopher Anvil to my reading. A lot of his stuff is on Project Gutenberg for free download. I love his Pandora's Planet and also his Tales of the Interstellar Patrol. He has a lot of very good ideas to tap into.
Fairly accurate.
Condottiere
SOC-14 5K
More for the ideas they present, narration went from adolescent for Heinlein, to rather dry for Asimov.
Ditto.
GypsyComet
SOC-14 1K
Emerging? Not so much. Even the characters in that book recognize that they are on a wheel.
Double ditto. Fun quick read, and not just for its Traveller-ness. It's fun to recognize parts of it lifted by other authors/creaters. Even mentions a planet named... no spoilers from me
I picked it up this year for my Kindle in a Piper Mega Pack for just a buck
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