Barbarians and belters start their careers at age 14, right?

[Dolphin in a Robot Suit]

So, in Supplement 4: Citizens of the Imperium, it is stated on page 2:

Characters are generated at age 18; they begin their career process at that age. As an exception, belter and barbarian characters begin their careers earlier, at age 14.

Makes sense to me. Those careers are rough-and-tumble, probably more prone to parents who drag their kids into early "apprenticeships". Conan didn't start training with a sword at age 18, and I doubt your average grizzled prospector patiently waited til he was done with high school to pick up a pickaxe. I like the idea of these careers getting an extra term up-front to simulate that sort of lifestyle. This is how I've run character creation (on the rare occasion a player wants to roll up an ex- barbarian or belter) for better than 10 years.

I never really looked too close at the pregen characters in that book, however, since I rarely used pregens. I just so happened to be perusing them today, and I noticed that none of the listed barbarians or belters seemed to follow this rule. Those with one term are age 22, 2 terms are 26, etc, just like any other career. Was this an oversight? It's not listed in any errata. Am I taking crazy pills here?

[mike wightman]

It is yet another example of GDW not using their own rules as written...

take a look at the Others section of 1001 Characters and see what they did there

[Condottiere]

Seems another way to squeeze out an extra term before joining the military.

[mike wightman]

Nope, in CT you couldn't be in more than one career.

If you started as a belter at 14 you stay a belter, same with barbarian.

[infojunky]

Why does this topic give ideas?

Like starting every character at 14 with some expanded pre career options?

Consider the number of Cabin Boys and Midshipmen and the like in Classic literature.

[GypsyComet]

Originally Posted by mike wightman

Nope, in CT you couldn't be in more than one career.

Very much a product of the attitudes of the 60s and 70s, but even then it ignored the reality of things like brief military service.

My father, in Traveller terms, served a term in the Navy, THEN went to University, THEN spent a failed term in the Survey Department of the Scouts, only THEN settling into what CT would think of as a Scientist (Engineers didn't get their own career path until TNE), where he stayed.

The single career conceit of CT is just that, a conceit.

[Condottiere]

More Dungeons and Dragons in concept.

You had a class or a race, and you stuck to it.

[mike wightman]

Originally Posted by GypsyComet

Very much a product of the attitudes of the 60s and 70s, but even then it ignored the reality of things like brief military service.

That would be serving a term and then voluntarily or involuntary mustering out. The purpose of character generation is to show what you did prior to becoming a Traveller.

My father, in Traveller terms, served a term in the Navy, THEN went to University, THEN spent a failed term in the Survey Department of the Scouts, only THEN settling into what CT would think of as a Scientist (Engineers didn't get their own career path until TNE), where he stayed.

And at which point did he go adventuring in the wild frontier to make his fortune, which is what a Traveller does? It is also possible to do a term in university after leaving your career just as long as you can pay for it.

The single career conceit of CT is just that, a conceit.

I don't disagree, but it is intended to show the lifepath prior to Travelling, not the lifepath of someone who stays in the safety of constant employment.

Allowing for having multiple careers prior to your epiphany as a Traveller is a pretty common house rule, and is even part of some Traveller editions, but in CT/S:4 you can not have more than one career before the game starts.