What would you like posted next?

[robject]

http://traveller5.com/TOC.PDF (there's an updated version on the T5 Dividers, I think, though there doesn't appear to be an online version of that).

From the items in the table of contents for T5, which chapters are most in demand?

Here's some copy stolen from FFE's byzantine website.

Introduction. Foreword. The Foundations of Traveller. The Vast Span of History. The Milieux.

The Basics. The Nature of Role-Playing. What You Need To Play. Players’ Guide to Traveller. Referee's Guide to Traveller. Die Rolls and Dice. Units of Measure. The Typical Setup.

Characters. What Characters Do. The Archetypes. Careers. Life Pursuits. Character Creation. Humans and Non-Humans. The Major Races. The Minor Races. Aptitudes. Heritage. Homeworld. Genetic. Cultural.

Tasks and Skills. Understanding Tasks. Resolving Tasks. Creating Tasks. The Task Library. Skills. Experience.

Adventuring.

Interactions. Personal. Getting Acquainted. Friendships. Enmity. Getting Information. Bargaining. Persuading. Forcing Action. Fighting. Multi-Personal Interactions. Battles. Wars.

Situations. Goals. Missions. Events. Encounters. Patrons. People. Animals. Monsters. Situations. The Unusual. Generating Encounters.

Actions and Consequences. Events. Continuing NPCs. Patrons. Nemeses. Gimmicks.

Objects. Weapons. Equipment. Equipment Design. Vehicles (Land Sea Air). Vehicle Design. Beasts of Burden.

Starships and Spacecraft. Space Travel. Starship Operations. Starship Design. Starship Combat. Starship Problems.

The Galaxy. Regions. Sectors and Subsectors. Star Systems. Stars. Mapping Space.

Worlds. Worlds. World Generation. Terrain. Cities and Settlements. World Surface Travel. Mapping Worlds. Animal Encounters. Travel Times.

Flora And Fauna. Animals. Plants. Strange Beasts and Beings.

Technology. The Tech Level Scale. Alternative Technology.

Cultures. Populations. The Focus of Population Historical Antecedents. Rival Factions. The Influence of Economics.

Money and Accounting. Currency. Items of Value. Types of Accounting. Barter.

Information. Library Data. Museum Data. Information Analysis. Research and Development.

Activities. Entertainment. Exploration and Surveys. Corporations Manufacturing. Masquerade. Mercenary Operations. Military Operations. Naval. Noble Missions. Prospecting Psionics. Quests. Scams. Research. Strategic Manipulations. Trade. Transport. Troupe (and Bards).

Creating Adventures. Elements of the Adventure. Elements of the Campaign.

Appendices. The Traveller Card System. IMTU. Languages. Calendars. The Milieux. Faraway Sector. Deck Plan Symbols. Outdoor Mapping. The History of Traveller.

 

[Border Reiver]

Tasks and Skills. What was the final outcome on the task system?

 

[mike wightman]

Yep, I'd like to see the final version of skills and tasks too.

Then combat...

 

[robject]

Good, we can do that. The skill list is going through one more round of being-hit-repeatedly-with-baseball-bats, then I can post the Beta to the Moot.

I've bugged Marc recently about combat. I'll have to bug him again.

 

[robject]

I'm also lobbying for chargen. Doesn't it make sense to start with the basics?

 

[Pickles]

Originally posted by robject:
I'm also lobbying for chargen. Doesn't it make sense to start with the basics?

It certainly does. As we found out in the DBRP playtest, you really need to be able to roll up some characters in order to test the rest of the rules. After all, characters are the rules interface of any game.

 

[mike wightman]

Trouble is with Traveller that the skill system will decide how character generation will work (how many skill levels you get over all).
With DBRP the system was already pretty much evident (% roll under).
If T5 goes with a modified version of the T4 task system then skills will have to be handed out at a much greater rate than in a MT based game.

 

[robject]

Well, Marc does want parity between skill levels and age arrived at by the time the character hits somewhere around 30. Or 34. Or something.

I guess that presumes T4.1.

 

[aramis]

I guess that presumes T4.1.

Which means, for some of us, count us out of the purchaser pool.

I'll continue to play devil's advocate, but if it's T4 based, then I won't buy it, nor likely run it.

If Marc insists upon a T4 baseline, well, T4 died for good reasons, only one of which was crappy editing.

 

[mike wightman]

For the thirty year anniversary edition I would seriously consider a re-release of an updated and tweaked Traveller Book instead.

 

[G K Zhukov]

Classic Traveller, MT, GDW D20 House System, T4, GT, T20, Traveller Hero, Avenger Classic Traveller... And that not counting the dozens of unpublished homebrew adaptations going around all over the world (Runequest/BRP, Fuzion, CORPS/EABA, etc.).

T5? Do we really need yet another different ruleset for Traveller?

Wouldn't it be far better to have a canonical, systemless setting book (or series of books) for the general Traveller audience, and maybe a canonical, systemless FF&S-like technology book for gearheads?

 

[robject]

For the thirty year anniversary edition I would seriously consider a re-release of an updated and tweaked Traveller Book instead.

I think the French version of Traveller is doing that...

Do we really need yet another different ruleset for Traveller?

Only if a publisher (in this case, Far Future Enterprises) thinks it has new rules that improve on the old ones. Caveats and disaster stories have been discussed in depth here on COTI.

Wouldn't it be far better to have a canonical, systemless setting book (or series of books) for the general Traveller audience...

Setting books abound, are proliferating, and are always welcome.

...and maybe a canonical, systemless FF&S-like technology book for gearheads?

You ask why yet another ruleset is being published, then suggest FFS as an alternative?

Actually, if a publisher wanted to do a technical archtecture document similar to FFS, then there's probably a way to do it. But I don't know if there are companies scrambling to get one out to the market.

But the short answer is probably: because Marc Miller is not a gearhead.

Having said that, I will proceed to take my feet out of my mouth, eat my hat, and state that there's a lively discussion beginning in the T5 Moot over how to overhaul FFS2.

 

[G K Zhukov]

You ask why yet another ruleset is being published, then suggest FFS as an alternative?

Yes; a "technical architecture" book (like FF&S) does not have to be tied to any specific rules system. It may use real world units, easily translatable to the rpg of your choice.

You see, every incarnation of Traveller has had a different technical design system, often operating under different assumptions, with the result that equipment and vehicles designed under one system are rarely compatible with other rules!

Maybe it's time to create a homogeneous, universal reference system for technology in the Traveller universe. And the person who defines it should perhaps be no one but MWM himself.

 

[mike wightman]

Originally posted by robject:
I think the French version of Traveller is doing that...

Yep, and I'll be buying it despite not speaking French

An English translation would sell pretty well I think, even if just as a PDF.

 

[mike wightman]

On the subject of a setting book, why not combine the CT Library Data, Supplement 7, add the Iron mongery section from Mercenary, vehicles, equipment, lots of new art...

And while on the subject of setting, I wonder if sales of T5 will be influenced by the era book it is bundled with?

Milieu 0

Milieu 200 (could be ineresting)

Golden era (the cash cow IMHO)

re-set by going with a proto-Traveller based golden era...

 

[robject]

Originally posted by G K Zhukov:
</font><blockquote>quote:</font><hr />You ask why yet another ruleset is being published, then suggest FFS as an alternative?

Yes; a "technical architecture" book (like FF&S) does not have to be tied to any specific rules system. It may use real world units, easily translatable to the rpg of your choice.

You see, every incarnation of Traveller has had a different technical design system, often operating under different assumptions, with the result that equipment and vehicles designed under one system are rarely compatible with other rules!

Maybe it's time to create a homogeneous, universal reference system for technology in the Traveller universe. And the person who defines it should perhaps be no one but MWM himself. </font>[/QUOTE]Good points; Traveller has evolved its technical design with every iteration. But in actuality, there already is a universal design system for Traveller: Fire, Fusion, and Steel. Really, there are two. The fact that everyone doesn't use it means that universality and comprehensiveness aren't the most important things.

At any rate, on these boards every design system has its adherents; they may all have equal popularity, in fact. SO if they all do equally well, Occam's razor would suggest to simply adapt one of the simpler systems.

 

[robject]

Originally posted by Sigg Oddra:
</font><blockquote>quote:</font><hr />Originally posted by robject:
I think the French version of Traveller is doing that...

Yep, and I'll be buying it despite not speaking French

An English translation would sell pretty well I think, even if just as a PDF. </font>[/QUOTE]I agree -- quite possibly do better than ACT.

 

[robject]

Originally posted by Sigg Oddra:
On the subject of a setting book, why not combine the CT Library Data, Supplement 7, add the Iron mongery section from Mercenary, vehicles, equipment, lots of new art...

And while on the subject of setting, I wonder if sales of T5 will be influenced by the era book it is bundled with?

Milieu 0

Milieu 200 (could be ineresting)

Golden era (the cash cow IMHO)

re-set by going with a proto-Traveller based golden era...

Ooooo, I'd like that sourcebook.

 

[mike wightman]

More thinking out loud.

Setting books that are rules neutral have the advantage that they can be sold to a wider audience.

Add web enhancements that provide minimal conversion rules - e.g. a D20future version, a Mongoose RuneQuest version etc.

A free rules lite version of CT/T5, possibly bundled with free introductory adventures - I've got my CT-lite rules down to four sides of A4 for characters, skills, and combat.
Ship combat and vehicle combat I could add at a couple of pages each.

 

[Scott Martin]

Originally posted by robject:
<SNIP...> But in actuality, there already is a universal design system for Traveller: Fire, Fusion, and Steel. Really, there are two. The fact that everyone doesn't use it means that universality and comprehensiveness aren't the most important things.

Ummm... FF&S is not backwards compatible with CT or MT, so I'd have to say that this is not a valid statement.

Originally posted by robject:
So if they all do equally well, Occam's razor would suggest to simply adapt one of the simpler systems.

More to the point, if you look at the system used for designs posted to "the fleet" you will notice that the majority (all?) designs posted in the last calendar year were HG / LBB-2 designs. This isn't because HG is inherently "better" than any other system, or has wider "adoption" it's because you can use HG to build a ship in 10 minutes, and the software available out there (HGS) makes it trivial to cut and paste it into a discussion thread. Even with a lot of spreadsheet automation I'm hard pressed to design a FF&S level ship in less than hours, and these days I don't have uninterrupted hours.

If T5 goes forward, the only real reason to do this work would be to either put forwards a new "killer" rule set (which would have to have really simple design rules) or to consolidate Traveller "Canon". If it's the latter, then why bother with a new game instead of a supplement?

Just my two bits.

Scott Martin