CT Only: TRAVELLER: Out of the Box

[rnadams2]

All or your recent posts strengthen what I've posted before (and you are very eloquently conveying): Traveller does have an implied setting, but that setting: a) can be made into many many things, and b) need not be the Third Imperium.

As for your reluctance to post counter-3I material, I say: No, please, continue! This is, after all, the IMTU thread, and I believe more people need to read your interpretations, as they do, in my eyes at least, capture the spirit of the game's encouragement of the use of imagination and creativity.

 

[creativehum]

The Remote, Centralized Government Pt. I - "Where the Adventures Aren't"

"Initially, one or two sub-sectors should be quite enough for years of adventure..."
-- Traveller Book 3

Play will focus on the subsector map I'll be rolling up. This is the introduction to the setting material that is off the subsector map. It is the fictional information about the Remote, Centralized Government beyond the borders of the subsector.

This is the culture and society the Player Characters are from. They gained their skills while serving in this governments various military branches.

First, some basic premise rules:

1. Subsectors
As per the text in Books 1-3, a subsector is an arbitrary chunk of astronomical geography. The notion of subsector as a political unit of geography is developed as an aspect of Third Imperium. We won't be using that. (The 1977 edition of Book 3 does not even use the word sector. The 1981 edition uses Ksubsectora and introduces the concept of sector (16 subsectors) but there is no allusion to the use of it as a political construct at all.

In my own view, this keep the political geography of space fluid, which is a good thing.

2. The Focus is on the Subsector, Not What is Beyond the Subsector
You will notice that I introduce some proper nouns below (the name of The Royal Family, for example, or the names of several Noble Houses), but leave others as blanks. This is by design. I want the worlds "back there," beyond the edge of the subsector, to not be completely filled-in in the minds of the Players. I want their attention focused on the details of the setting at hand, and that setting at hand is the subsector i have mapped out.

The named organizations and people are the organizations and people involved, lightly or fiercely, with the subsector at hand. Other names don't matter at this time. All that matter is the sense of a government and society and culture "back there" doing whatever it does. The game is not there.

In the same way, the geography beyond the subsector will also be left vague, as will be the timeline in the history of the larger government. The thinking is the same as above: This is PC-focused setting, and the PCs are in this subsector. They're not thinking about what is behind them. They're focused on what is in front of them. I need just enough detail to support the setting of the subsector and to create a patina of reality... but after that, more detail begins making the game about details the game is not about.

3. Arrows pointing into the subsector, not pointing out.
While I was brainstorming elements of my remote, centralized government I came up with an interstellar rival government subsectors away from where our game was going to take place; I began dreaming up several conflicts between the Royal Family and some of the Noble Houses; I began dreaming up lots of stuff that was very cool--and had no bearing on the subsector we'll be playing in at all.

And once i realized what I was doing, I nipped it in the bud erimmediately.

Those things may or may not be happening. The Player Characters may or may not be aware of them. But here's the thing: They aren't where we are playing.

The Player Characters have come to the subsector at hand. They chose, for some reason, to come here. And the watch-word for every step of developing the subsector setting must be this: This is where the action is. I cannot risk brainstorming details that might tip the interest from the subsector at hand to places beyond the subsector. I can't risk it for myself, I can't risk it for the Players.

Because the rule is: This is where the action is. This is where the most interesting things are going down. That's why the PCs showed up here, have decided to try to build their fortune here. If I can start imagining things are more interesting off the subsector map, my job--immediately--is to find more more fascinating thing that makes this subsector even more compelling.

If anything interesting comes to mind outside of the subsector it is only of value if it points back into the subsector somehow. If something comes to mind that can only point the focus of myself or the Players outside of the subsector, it is of no value at all.

 

[rnadams2]

If anything interesting comes to mind outside of the subsector it is only of value if it points back into the subsector somehow. If something comes to mind that can only point the focus of myself or the Players outside of the subsector, it is of no value at all.

Good points. Plus, with communication at the speed of travel, it's likely that any news of conflicts happening "back home" will bring some of that conflict with it--and thus to the players.

 

[creativehum]

Good points. Plus, with communication at the speed of travel, it's likely that any news of conflicts happening "back home" will bring some of that conflict with it--and thus to the players.

Right.

The idea is to build the notion that the remote central government is... remote. One way to do this is simply not build up or talk about what is off the subsector map too much.

Remember, when you dump data on Players when setting up a game, they won't be discriminating which words are about of immediate importance and those that are somewhat trivial for now. They're looking for clues, assuming anything the Referee says is important right now. So anything that isn't important right now probably shouldn't be part of the early info dumps.

 

[Quint]

Play will focus on the subsector map I'll be rolling up. This is the introduction to the setting material that is off the subsector map. It is the fictional information about the Remote, Centralized Government beyond the borders of the subsector.

This is the culture and society the Player Characters are from. They gained their skills while serving in this governments various military branches.

First, some basic premise rules:

1. Subsectors
As per the text in Books 1-3, a subsector is an arbitrary chunk of astronomical geography. The notion of subsector as a political unit of geography is developed as an aspect of Third Imperium. We won't be using that. (The 1977 edition of Book 3 does not even use the word sector. The 1981 edition uses Ksubsectora and introduces the concept of sector (16 subsectors) but there is no allusion to the use of it as a political construct at all.

In my own view, this keep the political geography of space fluid, which is a good thing.

2. The Focus is on the Subsector, Not What is Beyond the Subsector
You will notice that I introduce some proper nouns below (the name of The Royal Family, for example, or the names of several Noble Houses), but leave others as blanks. This is by design. I want the worlds "back there," beyond the edge of the subsector, to not be completely filled-in in the minds of the Players. I want their attention focused on the details of the setting at hand, and that setting at hand is the subsector i have mapped out.

The named organizations and people are the organizations and people involved, lightly or fiercely, with the subsector at hand. Other names don't matter at this time. All that matter is the sense of a government and society and culture "back there" doing whatever it does. The game is not there.

In the same way, the geography beyond the subsector will also be left vague, as will be the timeline in the history of the larger government. The thinking is the same as above: This is PC-focused setting, and the PCs are in this subsector. They're not thinking about what is behind them. They're focused on what is in front of them. I need just enough detail to support the setting of the subsector and to create a patina of reality... but after that, more detail begins making the game about details the game is not about.

3. Arrows pointing into the subsector, not pointing out.
While I was brainstorming elements of my remote, centralized government I came up with an interstellar rival government subsectors away from where our game was going to take place; I began dreaming up several conflicts between the Royal Family and some of the Noble Houses; I began dreaming up lots of stuff that was very cool--and had no bearing on the subsector we'll be playing in at all.

And once i realized what I was doing, I nipped it in the bud erimmediately.

Those things may or may not be happening. The Player Characters may or may not be aware of them. But here's the thing: They aren't where we are playing.

The Player Characters have come to the subsector at hand. They chose, for some reason, to come here. And the watch-word for every step of developing the subsector setting must be this: This is where the action is. I cannot risk brainstorming details that might tip the interest from the subsector at hand to places beyond the subsector. I can't risk it for myself, I can't risk it for the Players.

Because the rule is: This is where the action is. This is where the most interesting things are going down. That's why the PCs showed up here, have decided to try to build their fortune here. If I can start imagining things are more interesting off the subsector map, my job--immediately--is to find more more fascinating thing that makes this subsector even more compelling.

If anything interesting comes to mind outside of the subsector it is only of value if it points back into the subsector somehow. If something comes to mind that can only point the focus of myself or the Players outside of the subsector, it is of no value at all.

I hate using this term, but it sounds kind of rail-roadish. Not that that is a bad thing exactly, but if there is anything I've learned from players it is that if there is an edge of the map, they'll want to see what's on the other side, if there's a clue that involves anything from "over there" they are sure-as-crap going to go "over there" to investigate no matter how much I try to discourage them - that any discouragement actually tends to dramatically increase the desire to investigate on their terms instead of mine.

Plus, there's an inherent problem with the idea that I'll know better what the players will find fascinating than the players will.

So I'd worry less about grand plots that involve over there but just make sure that, as you say, all of the adventures involve right here, right now. If they become fascinated with the politics of the Imperial Court, then have Prince/cess Alex/a come on a Grand Tour (or as part of compulsory military service, or Imperial firefighter, or...) out to the subsector and let them have their bite - and then lead them by nose again right back to "important stuff right here, right now"

D.

 

[mike wightman]

Start them on the world as close to the middle of the subsector as you can - problem solved.

You can also avoid a lot of issues by making sure the PC group doesn't have their own ship.

One of my favourite 'Traveller' games had players moving from planet to planet during a long night like period. They worked passage, travelled by cold berth, they were conscripted to a slave army and transported from one system to another at one point, oh, and they took over a pirate ship and handed it in.

That particular group were never interested in a merchant ship based game, all they wanted was to get from world to world to make their fortune.

 

[aramis]

I've found that 1 SS isn't enough unless the setting is TL11 or lower (J2 or less). I've found that a side-by-side pair, however, is an ideal small setting.

 

[creativehum]

I've found that 1 SS isn't enough unless the setting is TL11 or lower (J2 or less). I've found that a side-by-side pair, however, is an ideal small setting.

Hi Aramis,

In fact, I'd already decided the Tech Level max for the heart of my Remote Centralized Government is 11. That's the max. Tech Levels of 9 and 10 are the norm among most of the ruling worlds. I'm also going to allow myself to choose which drives are available within the ranges offered by the Tech Level. So, Tech Leven 9 means a world might only have developed A Jump drives. In general, I'll be using the tech down across the subsector at hand.

I have thoughts for a companion subsector, but we'll see if we get to it. My own guess is that there will be enough going on in the subsector to keep the Players/PCs engaged for a while. But we'll see!

As a side note: I've just posted you some question down in the CT Forum, about the Book 2 ships thread I started a while back. I find myself confused about some things wrote, and at your leisure, if you could explain a few things to a guy not as deep into ship design as you are I would appreciate it.

 

[aramis]

Hi Aramis,

In fact, I'd already decided the Tech Level max for the heart of my Remote Centralized Government is 11. That's the max. Tech Levels of 9 and 10 are the norm among most of the ruling worlds. I'm also going to allow myself to choose which drives are available within the ranges offered by the Tech Level. So, Tech Leven 9 means a world might only have developed A Jump drives. In general, I'll be using the tech down across the subsector at hand.

I have thoughts for a companion subsector, but we'll see if we get to it. My own guess is that there will be enough going on in the subsector to keep the Players/PCs engaged for a while. But we'll see!

As a side note: I've just posted you some question down in the CT Forum, about the Book 2 ships thread I started a while back. I find myself confused about some things wrote, and at your leisure, if you could explain a few things to a guy not as deep into ship design as you are I would appreciate it.

A lot about how the setting looks will depend on if you're using CT-77 or CT-81... CT-77 you can make a legal-ish X-boat...

 

[creativehum]

I'm primarily using 1981. I dip into 1977 for a few items (the shipping lanes, for example.)

The Xboats, as noted in a post above, aren't really my thing.

 

[Nathan Brazil]

From your book selection, there are some campaign considerations due to starships:

A.are you following the Book 3 TL limits on drives?
In one version of LBB1-3 IIRC, drives of specific letters (not jump capability) only become available at higher TL. Are you using those?

B.Hull limit of 5000 tons.
1.Does this impact ground troops i.e. just how many troops can you jam into a 5000 ton tin can? How many starships does the government(s) need to perform military functions? Has an campaign authenticity impact.
2.if there are no spinal mounts or armor, woe be to any lesser ship facing a 5000 "dreadnought" with 50 triple turrets.

 

[creativehum]

Hi Nathan,

First, thanks for asking these questions. They've put my brain in gear in interesting ways.

A.are you following the Book 3 TL limits on drives?

Yes.

In one version of LBB1-3 IIRC, drives of specific letters (not jump capability) only become available at higher TL. Are you using those?

Yes. As stated, I'm using the LBBs 1-3. Both versions ('77 and '81) work as you describe above.

B.Hull limit of 5000 tons.
1.Does this impact ground troops i.e. just how many troops can you jam into a 5000 ton tin can? How many starships does the government(s) need to perform military functions? Has an campaign authenticity impact.

The setting will actually have a limit of 2,000 ton ships because I'm imposing a Tech Level cap of 11 for my most advance interstellar society. Tech 11 limits Power Plant, J-Drive and M-Drive to K. 2,000 tons is the biggest ship those drives can move around.

And even then, these large ships will be effectively limited to J-1 or J-2 if they are going to effectively carry large numbers of troops.

Let's walk down the implications of this, keeping in mind the following things:

• This is a "Small Ship" universe. That is the way I want it.
• I want the implied feel of the British Empire in the 18th and 19th century. Transportation was difficult, risky, and by today's standards, inefficient.
• This doesn't mean impractical. It means difficult and complicated. But the citizens of my setting go to space with the technology they have, not the technology they wished they had.
• This is all in stark contrast to the the logic and smooth logistics of the Third Imperium. Since I'm not trying to rebuild the Third Imperium, all is well.
• "Small Ship" means that the Kinunir is actually Battle Cruiser, as originally intended.
• A 2,000 ton troop transport would be somewhat larger than a Liberty Ship, according to some math timerover51 did in another thread. They transported 500 troops, and some tripled that for shorter trips.

Nonetheless, there is no possibly of simply moving armies across space. This is the implied logic of the original three LBBs, and it is what excited me. Let's take look:

• The centralized government actually can't just shoot armies across space take care of problems.
• This means local government and forces are on their own to solve problems.
• The local rulers are tied to their superiors and peers by blood and marriage in a system of interstellar feudalism. The ruler of the centralized government literally cannot know or fix problems happening parsecs or subsectors away. He is counting not only on the competence of a Duke, Countess, Baron, but that on that man or woman's loyalty as inspired through blood and marriage. (Sometimes this pays off, sometimes it doesn't!)
• In some locals, there simply will not be enough government troops to handle a situation. Mercenaries! Or, more specifically, Adventures and Action for the Player Characters.
• I will reiterate: That last bit is the point of this entire exercise. You know how in the Spinward Marches the Players are often at a loss as to what to do with their combat trained PCs since the government pretty much has everything under control and the "frontier" is actually pretty stable and lacking chaos. I'm trying to avoid that.
• Morever, if Mercenary troops are not available in the numbers need to create stability and restore order, what happens? More chaos! A government collapses, a rebellion wins. Men with money in their pockets need to get out of Dodge fast. A power vacuum opens--those who never had power before might be able to seize it. Those who lost power plot to get it back. Those who have it plot to make sure not to lose it. In other words: More adventure.
• I would offer that all of the above points were implied and expected in play in the original three LBBs.

What does this mean for my subsector, full of worlds currently being colonized and exploited:

• The Trading Companies, located far from government rule and control, will not depend on the government's armies for help.
• They will, instead, use and combine three paths: a) make deals with some or all of the locals to get help enforcing their economic interests; b) build private armies; c) hire mercenaries.
• The private armies will be drawn from raw recruits or veterans. Examples: those men and women who either never fit into the civilized worlds back home, drifted to the fringes, and ended up needing a job; those who, whether lacking options or for adventure, planned to join a private army, perhaps signing up at a Trading Co. office; those experienced men and women, trained by the government, who see an opportunity and take it, whether from boredom, desperation, or ambition
• This, you will immediately see, is one of the reasons travelers travel. The men and women just mentioned are the ones doing the working passage on Fat Traders, or scraping together their cash, world by world, for risky low berth travel, because their options have run out and they don't know which way to turn. Or the crew of a Free Trader, aware that in a subsector dominated by Trading Companies and rough landscapes they will have a disproportionate power and risky opportunities that they could never dream of in the civilized core.

In short, I'm not worrying about jamming countless troops into countless ships to move them around, because I don't want countless troops in countless ships. The "government" -- as made clear in all the texts from Book 1 to Book 5, is remote and cannot be counted on. Local leaders will build their armies, hold them close, send them out when they have to or upon risky offensive moves.

I'm not sure if that answers your question. But I'm glad you asked it. Because my brainstorming on it only measures me I'm on track for the kind of setting I want.

B.Hull limit of 5000 tons
2.if there are no spinal mounts or armor, woe be to any lesser ship facing a 5000 "dreadnought" with 50 triple turrets.

A 2,000 Battleship would be still a terrifying ship for a Free or Fat Trader to go up against. Which is as it should be!

The issue in an RPG isn't always, "How do we balance the fights?" but sometimes, "What will the Players do to get around the fight, re-jigger the odds of the fights, make up plan to never have a confrontation at all."

A threat too big to win against is a good thing, because it encourages the Players to come up with interesting plans to get around that threat. And that entertains me.

 

[creativehum]

The Remote, Centralized Government Pt. II - Enough to Start, and No More

Remember that the original concept for Traveller was very GURPS-ish: a generic system that could emulate every possible part of SF. And in the first year, we did very little support beyond the basic rules. It was only after we started writing adventures that the Imperium started taking shape as a real background.
--Q&A with Marc Miller

This is a rough list of notes about Alandia [ah-land-yah], the interstellar kingdom that is the Remote, Centralized Government off the edges of the subsector map where play will take place.

The Characters grew up in Alandia and served in the forces of the Royal House. Alandia is the default culture of the rules and the setting. While character creation, skills, and more work as a default within Alandia, one cannot assume them as defaults for worlds or peoples beyond its borders.

A note on the names and titles: I'd like to pull a Tolkien here and say that all the name and titles you are about to read are translated from the actual names and titles of the actual setting into words and titles that correspond to words and titles we are used to.

Overall...
1. Mankind settled the stars, countless, countless stars, thousands upon thousands of years ago.

2. There have been many expansions and contractions over these thousands upon thousands of years.

3. History has been created, forgotten, re-written, lost, and reforged by countless, scattered, interstellar societies.

4. Earth has been forgotten and lost from memory, a myth to some, non-existant to others. But the key thing is this: Earth doesn't matter at all to this setting. Alandia has its own origin myths and pride in itself. It doesn't look to humanity's past for its value. It looks to itself.

ALANDIA
5. Hundreds of years ago several isolated worlds began parallel development of technology. For some of the systems it was rebuilding clues from technology lost in wars centuries ago, others built from scratch. These world (about four in number, scattered across four subsectors) had fallen into pre-Interstellar travel. Each had traveled different technological routes and histories to begin building the lost technology of Jump Drives.

6. As these four civilizations began sending out exploratory craft (some lost, some coming back with reports of other inhabited worlds, some coming back with reports of devoid of sentient life but full of ruins of lost civilizations), they eventually encountered each other.

7. This was a time of great excitement and cross-pollination of cultural, trade and technology. Each civilization began filling in information the other lacked, making the Jump Drive technology more reliable and more efficient.

8. In time, however, the worlds around them (full of people and resources that could be exploited) became prizes to valuable to resist or share. Claims were made, and those claims rejected. Ships that had once been used for trade and sharing of information were transformed into warships. Technology advanced as one war after another broke out along ever shifting borders.

9. To help keep worlds conquered but parsecs away, one of the civilizations instituted a tradition of feudalism to keep reign up on the distant holdings. Family members of the royal family were groomed and shipped off to loyally keep control of its growing empire. As battles were won and lost, alliance made and broken, boundaries shifted back and forth, the other civilizations followed suit in an effort to keep control of their holdings as well.

10. Each of the four civilizations developed the concept of "Right of Starship." That is, the right of controlling both the facilities to produce starships and the starships themselves. Right of Starships was the prerogative of nobility, and the ability to make starships was the mark of nobility. A and B class starports were the prerogative of the Noble Houses that had grown up in the intervening years of warfare and expansion. Starports were issued as charters (much as royalty once issues charters for medieval cities). Any world or commercial interest attempting to make an A or B class starport with out a charter would find itself the target of an assault by one or more of the Noble Houses. These Houses often fought amongst themselves, but on one point they all agreed, no one else could weaken their monopoly on the manufacture of starships. Industrial spying, subterfuge, industrial espionage, and open warfare, back and forth between the Noble Houses and those who wanted to claim their own royal right to starships was, and remains, part of periodic conflicts in Alandia.

11. Over several hundred years several worlds did manage to make starports in secret facilities, hidden from the spies, sabotage, and naval assaults of the Noble Houses. In this way, new Noble Houses were born (if they could keep their hold in the interstellar community). By the same token, several Noble House were wiped out when their starports were destroyed, the ships falling into disrepair, plundered.

12. All of this took several hundred years of migration, the advancement of starship technology, the building of new colonies, negations, and conquest. Over this time the most powerful Houses would rise, then fall, some rising, again, some falling.

13. Of the original four Noble Houses, one is now wiped from the rolls of nobility completely. The others married and intermarried and new names came into play.

14. Thee hundred years ago House Brandwell, having just formed an alliance with House Somerond by marriage, began a campaign to take the Alandia Cluster from House Aldrake. Alandia and its surrounding worlds were both the breadbasket and the safe haven for two A class starports. The war, fought in several campaigns over a century, ended with Brandwell deposing the ruling family and taking control of Alandia and its surrounding worlds.

15. House Brandwell then spent one hundred years doing what no one had done for some time--making peace. Through diplomacy and threat and great deal of subterfuge to get several key worlds to go into rebellion against their Noble House masters, House Brandwell manage to weaken the other houses just enough to form new treaties and alliances. Not every House was happy about this. But they saw the writing on the wall and new that to blunt go to war right now, when a majority of the worlds and Houses were war-weary would make them a target. They would lose more than they could ever gain.

16. The period of peace lasted approximately 100 years, allowing a new period of exploration, trade, and colonial investment to take root. But several wars have broken out again, with several Houses working together in concert to bring House Brandwell down. The war ranges from cold-war efforts to open hostilities. But so far House Brandwell has held strong.

 

[creativehum]

The Remote, Centralized Government - Some Notes

Notes:

A. "Alandia" refers to: a) The World of Alandia; b) the Cluster of Worlds around Alanida; c) the political entity ruled by the King and/or Queen of Alandia (approximately 100 parsecs in diameter; or roughly, four sectors of space).

B. The subsector the game will begin in is at the edge of wobbly shaped circle 100 parsecs across. The heart of civilization about ten subsectors in size, with the surrounding subsectors a mix of colonization, exploration, and exploitation. The subsector I'll be rolling up is at the edge of those boundaries.

C. It should be noted that neither "subsector" nor "sector" is used as a political destination of any kind (as per the Third Imperium). The space of Alandia is well developed in some area, and barely explored or developed in others. The geography of Alandia is determined by the paths of war and the resources to fight it over many hundreds of years. Exploration continued during these centuries, but not much could be done to exploit many of the worlds and resources. Colonization was rough and haphazard, with many vulnerable efforts falling prey to invasion or destruction.

D. It should also be noted that while the titles of nobility in the Third Imperium correspond directly to the size of sector, subsector, or world responsibility, such is not the case in Alandia. The Royal Family of Alandia are the Kings and Queens of Alandia. (Currently Queen Æscwyn.) Rulers of Major Houses are often Kings and Queens as well, while, if loyal to House Brandwell, also a Duke of Kingdom, responsible for keeping the peace of the kingdom. Dukes, Counts, Barons and other titles are often distributed. Sometimes for the lifetime of a person, sometimes to be passed down through the family. These titles are often tied to places: Continents, worlds, clusters of worlds. The thing is this: One world might be worth as much as three worlds, and so being a Countess of one world or three worlds would amount to the same thing. Also: While one's Social Standing is tied to one's title, one's power can wane or wax. So I want setting where one can be a Duke in a hard time, and struggling to get his family's fortune back. Because he might hire some forces for help... and that means adventure. (In general, I don't want to static environment. I want the power dynamics and politics more volatile than in Third Imperium. Hereditary titles were a nightmare to keep track of in the Middle Ages. I don't see why it should be any different here.)

E. Alandia's Tech Level maxes out at 11. Common Noble House technology ranges from 9-11. This means the largest ships will have 2000 ton hulls, and the common J-Drives for ships will be 1 or 2 jumps. There are efforts to push the technology forward. (K Drives and Power Plants arrived only one hundred years ago during the Reign of Peace. Queen Æscwyn's starports (of House Brandwell) currently can install this new technology.

F. Noble Houses control the building of A and B class starports, as well as controlling the construction of ships. (The Noble Houses want to keep control of supplies to keep demand high. They also do not want too many ships built because those same ships can come around and bite that Noble House in the ass. That has happened several times in the 1,000 year history of Alandia. Patents are issued to individuals or Trading Companies along the lines of Merchant Subsidies. The rates of upfront payments are larger for corporations. Inspections for smuggling are regular. The Royal Families and Noble Houses have to make sure their are getting the full 50% of their cut.

G. Because J-Drive is limited for practical fittings considerations, control of choke points along main routes are especially valuable. In some cases, special Transport Tenders are in place between gaps in the astronomical geography where 400 and 600 ton ships gutted with almost nothing but J-Drive, Power Plant, and cargo space are used to ferry goods from the edges of the Alandian Empire to its center. These ships are preposterously vulnerable and guarded back and forth from jump point to star port by Naval ships controlled by the Noble houses themselves.

 

[salochin999]

I've found that 1 SS isn't enough unless the setting is TL11 or lower (J2 or less). I've found that a side-by-side pair, however, is an ideal small setting.

That's a good point actually. Setting the TL higher or lower can make a big difference to the feel - mainly due to the max or at least the standard jump.

Higher TL stuff can still exist if you want as alien artifacts.

 

[creativehum]

That's a good point actually. Setting the TL higher or lower can make a big difference to the feel - mainly due to the max or at least the standard jump.

Higher TL stuff can still exist if you want as alien artifacts.

As it stands, because of the TL 11 cap in Alandia:

1) 2000 tons are the largest ships available
2) Any ship over 1000 tons is limited to J1.
3) The latest improvement in technology allows 1000 ton ships a J2.
3) Most general purpose ships (trade, combat, private transport, and the sorts found in the Book 2 rules) will be limited to J1 and J2 to make sure M-drive, cargo space and other are all large enough to be practical and useful.
4) Some ships will be able to do J3 or J4, but will be very focused in purpose and design. An Xboat built with the Book 2 rules, for example, or a troop transport that needs an escort to travel safely.
5) Fun fact! The Merc Cruiser is not available, as it depend on TL 12 drives. I'll have to work up maybe a 600 ton ship with J3 to carry troops. But we'll see how the math works out for cargo space.

What I'm envisioning in this 'verse is that convoys are more the typical way of travelling for larger ships/military operations, as the ships aren't big enough for general purpose. (Like, for example, a mere cruiser.) You'll have ships that can hold lots of troops, ships for carrying cargo and vehicles, and ships with weapons to keep those ship, hopefully, safe.

 

[salochin999]

...

I want the implied feel of the British Empire in the 18th and 19th century.

...

Those kind of "small wars" campaigns were often very minimalist affairs making the most of what was available and so some of the historical detail that went with that might fit your campaign

1. shore bombardment - obvious enough - make up for small numbers with orbital bombardment

2. naval infantry - in the Victorian campaigns sailor contingents would often be disembarked to join the column to make up the numbers so in my ships used in this colonial role I have the crew be bigger than the minimum to provide for this e.g. if a naval ship need 20 crew make it it 30 crew instead and 10 marines so there are 30 for the shore party leaving 10 on the ship.

3. naval guns - historically the sailor contingent often manned the column's heavy weapons so if IYTU the gunnery skill is related to heavy weapons then that could apply also. They could either be weapons stored on the ship for this purpose or also after reading this i'm thinking of making it so colonial patrol ship's point defense lasers can be detached and mounted on chassis as ground weapons if needed.

 

[salochin999]

As it stands, because of the TL 11 cap in Alandia:

1) 2000 tons are the largest ships available
2) Any ship over 1000 tons is limited to J1.
3) The latest improvement in technology allows 1000 ton ships a J2.
3) Most general purpose ships (trade, combat, private transport, and the sorts found in the Book 2 rules) will be limited to J1 and J2 to make sure M-drive, cargo space and other are all large enough to be practical and useful.
4) Fun fact! The Merc Cruiser is not available, as it depend on TL 12 drives. I'll have to work up maybe a 600 ton ship with J3 to carry troops. But we'll see how the math works out for cargo space.

What I'm envisioning in this 'verse is that convoys are more the typical way of travelling, as the ships aren't big enough for general purpose. (Like, for example, a mere cruiser.) You'll have ships that can hold lots of troops, ships for carrying cargo and vehicles, and ships with weapons to keep those ship, hopefully, safe.

I'm trying to do something similar to what you're describing (but within the OTU) and J6 shrinks space too much especially if big ships have it. Having big ships more hobbled by distance allows more space for the little ships.

You could drop the engines on the Broadsword and have a J1 or J2 version if you wanted to keep it.

A little flotilla of different types of ship fits neatly with the historical theme. An expeditionary force of
- colonial cruiser
- couple of frigates
- some couriers
- troop ship or two
- supply ship
- repair ship
- medical ship
might fit the theme nicely.

 

[nathanbibb]

Thoughts on Starport distribution

I've been thinking through a lot of the material here, specifically around the distribution and purpose of Class "A" and "B" starports. I like the idea of making them less prominent in this type of campaign. I've been playing with the following odds:

Using 2D:
[TABLE][TR][TD]Class A:[/TD]  [TD]2 - 3[/TD]    [TD](8.33%)[/TD][/TR]
[TR][TD]Class B:[/TD]  [TD]4[/TD]         [TD](8.33%)[/TD][/TR]
[TR][TD]Class C:[/TD]  [TD]5 - 6 [/TD]   [TD](25%)[/TD][/TR]
[TR][TD]Class D:[/TD]  [TD]7 - 8[/TD]    [TD](30.56%)[/TD][/TR]
[TR][TD]Class E:[/TD]  [TD]9 - 10[/TD]   [TD](19.44%)[/TD][/TR]
[TR][TD]Class X:[/TD]  [TD]11 - 12[/TD] [TD](8.33%)[/TD][/TR][/TABLE]

Using these odds, there is an equal chance of Class A, Class B, or Class X (no starport) coming up.

I wrote a little python script to generate a subsector with these odds (I know it is not a Traveller subsector shape, but it will have to do), and the results were pretty interesting:

This made me think of two opposing forces, one from rimward with the 3 Class A starports, and one from coreward with the 3 spread out Class B starports. The rimward power has not made as much territorial advancement as the coreward power, but is better entrenched with a number of established bases in close proximity. Meanwhile the coreward power has made a more agressive entry to the subsector, but has left a number of worlds unexplored or at least without established bases.

Further, the Class B starports may be able to build ships for local defense, but only the rimward power is able to build new starships for expansion. Could these be local powers? I think you are ruling out any starports built by local powers, right?

Just some food for thought.

 

[creativehum]

Hey guys,

Thanks for the posts.

Salochin, those are some sweet ideas.

Nathanbibb, I played around with the starport table a bit, and ended up using a table that turned out to be the Backwater Table from Megatraveller.

2 A
3 A
4 B
5 B
6 C
7 C
8 C
9 D
10 E
11 E
12 X

It gave me a spread that seemed to work. I got a nice spread of Bs and Cs, which I liked, as the area is currently, if only recently, underdevelopment. (I did gut one A class port so there would only be two on the map).

As I move forward, the only other table I know I'll be changing is Population. I the Throw is a 2D6-2, with a ten producing tens of billions. But that's much more than I want. So, 8-9 will probably be hundreds of millions, and 10 will be billions. But I'm still mulling that.