Behind the Claw Questions

[daryen]

I recently managed to find and purchase a copy of GT:Behind the Claw. I got it because I thought it would help with my Daryen 1120 webpage. (I am trying to do a webpage for the Daryen subsector for the years 0, 1000, 1100, 1120 and 1200.)

While looking through BtC, it has generated a few questions for me. These questions are:
- Is 0530 Dorianna really in the Confederation? The World listing header says so, but the world description, the subsector description and all of the Darrian related text only talk about adding Nonym and Condaria to the Confederation; there is no mention of Dorianna. Is this a typo?
- The Darrians are listed as being "stronger than typical humans, though a little less dextrous." This is in complete contradiction with CT, MT and TNE, where they are less strong and just as dextrous. Is this a typo or an intentional change?
- Is there are writeup of the Barekdoldin class patrol cruiser anywhere?
- Are the Darrian Spinward Missions just a launching point, or is there a known SJG plot behind it? In other words, does SJG plan on exploiting the idea, or is it just there for the referee's amusement?

Finally, on a wider scale, since I am asking questions here, I have two last little questions:
- Is the Foreven sector still a "referee's preserve", or will it eventually be detailed? If it is still a preserve, that will make any resolution to the Darrian Spinward Missions problematic.
- Has the classic Type T Patrol Cruiser ever been detailed in GT?

Thanks in advance for any answers.

 

[tjoneslo]

Originally posted by daryen:
I recently managed to find and purchase a copy of GT:Behind the Claw. I got it because I thought it would help with my Daryen 1120 webpage. (I am trying to do a webpage for the Daryen subsector for the years 0, 1000, 1100, 1120 and 1200.)

While looking through BtC, it has generated a few questions for me.

Thanks in advance for any answers.

Have you read the errata for the book:
http://www.sjgames.com/errata/gurps/traveller-behind-the-claw.html

 

[daryen]

Yep, already been through the file. While it did answer a couple of different questions (a pair of missing Darrian bases), the questions I ask above are not dealt with.

And just for clarification:
MJD: These questions are not "attacks" on BtC. I like the book a lot, and it was pretty well done. I am just curious as to whether the changes to "canon" were intentional or accidental and if some things hinted at have ever been/will ever be expanded.

Again, thanks.

 

[daryen]

Speaking of the BtC errata, looking at the next subsector over, I have a new question. The errata says that Durendal should be in the Border Worlds, not the Sword Worlds. But the text for Durendal and the intro text for the Sword Worlds subsector only makes sense if Durendal is in the Sword Worlds (like BtC has it).

So, is the errata wrong, or is it an intentional change and they forgot to make notes about changing the two mentioned sections of text?

 

[MJD]

I wasn't party to the errata and I've never seen it, so I dunno about the Durendal quesiton etc.

The Daryen missions to Spinward was a plot I developed, but I never really got to carry it on; so far as I know it's "open", ie,, nobody has built on it in official publications.

 

[DonM]

Hmm... out of respect for MJD, lets just say there's a few places where some classic material disagrees with BtC, and I would have made different decisions than he and Neil did. On the other hand, there are numerous great things about BtC, so it all works out in the wash.

DonM.

 

[daryen]

MJD:

Thanks. I will continue to just assume Dorianna is a typo and that Durendal was someone's brainfart.

As for the Spinward Missions, what was your idea? I am really curious to know. I figure the battle damage mentioned was from either the Zhodani or the Avalar (or both), but I am curious what you intended for the Darrians to do, and how much success you envisioned for their efforts.

 

[MJD]

No time to answer this right now.

i'll let you know,

 

[daryen]

Originally posted by MJD:
No time to answer this right now.

i'll let you know,

While digging for a different thread, I saw this thread. So, I am bumping this.

MJD: Can you yet mention what you were intending for the Darrian Spinward Missions?

 

[MJD]

I had the Darrians building some colonies/outposts out there. A lot of the ship movements were to cover the fact that some ships were going a lot farther out than others, and they didn't want anyone to see what they were up to.

There was another Darrian plot where they were trying to "let slip" that they were conducting field tests of a mini-Star Trigger (casues flares, not Maghiz) - they WANTED people to covertly observe, so they'd know the Darrians had the weapon and also couln't protest too much because they'd obtained the info covertly...

 

[Whipsnade]

"There was another Darrian plot where they were trying to "let slip" that they were conducting field tests of a mini-Star Trigger (casues flares, not Maghiz) - they WANTED people to covertly observe, so they'd know the Darrians had the weapon and also couln't protest too much because they'd obtained the info covertly..."


Mr. Dougherty,

Now that is very interesting! There's a thread concerning Star Trigger testing over at JTAS right now. Would you care to drop any more hints?


Sincerely,
Larsen

 

[MJD]

I don't think anything I had planned is of any relevance now. Although I have a contract and a 60% draft done for GURPS TRAV IMPERIAL NAVY, and I've repeatedly said I'm quite happy to finish it as soon as the line editor gives me his comments and adapted outline, I've heard nothing for over a year. The poroject has been sitting dead in the water for about 2+ years.

I suspect it's quietly been dropped, and certainly I'll not be doing any more GT work until this one starts moving or is formally canned. I have one or two other projects to work on right now anyway...

I AM quite tempted to do a brain-dump of the various plots we hinyted at in BtC though. I'll never get to develop them now...

 

[daryen]

Originally posted by MJD:
I AM quite tempted to do a brain-dump of the various plots we hinted at in BtC though. I'll never get to develop them now...

Oh my!

Please, please, please, please, please !!!!

BTW, thanks for the other info.

Looking at the presentation of the Darrians in BtC (which, by the way, could be COMPLETELY changed in GT:Humaniti), I see them as entering a period where they realize they will be completely overwhelmed by the Imperium (just like the Sword Worlds were) if they don't become an active interstellar state.

The real enemy of the Confederation, therefore, is not the emaciated Sword Worlds. While it might be bloody, with their massive technological advantage (TL11/13 vs TL10), they would be able to crush any Sword World incursion. The real threat is actually the Imperium. Not that the Imperium will come in with ships and take them over, but will instead economically overwhelm them. They need a way to keep that threat at bay.

Therefore, they are on the move to expand. The only direction they can expand in is spinward. There is plenty of open territory there, and only one other interstellar state, the Avalar (which have never been officially detailed, anywhere, to my knowledge). Their missions are to plant colonies where they can, coopt planets where they can and test the power of the Avalar.

I had never thought of the "Flare Trigger" idea, but if successful, it would be a tremendous tool. The Star Trigger is too massive; it is a crappy weapon that can only be used as a deterent. A Flare Trigger, on the other hand, would be a great offensive weapon, both to shut the Sword Worlds up (Narsil would be a great example to hit) and to "encourage" cooperation from worlds in Foreven.

 

[JFZeigler]

Originally posted by MJD:
Although I have a contract and a 60% draft done for GURPS TRAV IMPERIAL NAVY, and I've repeatedly said I'm quite happy to finish it as soon as the line editor gives me his comments and adapted outline, I've heard nothing for over a year. The project has been sitting dead in the water for about 2+ years.

I suspect it's quietly been dropped, and certainly I'll not be doing any more GT work until this one starts moving or is formally canned.

Understandable. Now that Humaniti and Starships are both finally unstuck and likely to see publication soon, Imperial Navy is the last unresolved (and much-delayed) project I "inherited" when I took on this job.

The project hasn't been dropped, but I've been consciously avoiding making any decisions about it until Starships is finished. That, of course, is moving along fairly quickly now. You have my word that as soon as Starships is ready to go out the door, I'll sit down with Loren, figure out just where we are with your book, and get the situation resolved one way or the other.

 

[daryen]

At the risk of pushing it, what about Trojan Reaches and Aldebaran? I would really like to see those, especially the latter one.

 

[MJD]

Okay then... I get nervous about silences like that one. I'm ready to pick up the project whenever... and it's already 60% done, so it's in my interest to finish it!

 

[MJD]

we postulated a Darrian Renaissance, and these are cold, logical guys who will do what is necessary - more scary than raging Swprd worlders any day...

 

[daryen]

Originally posted by MJD:
we postulated a Darrian Renaissance, and these are cold, logical guys who will do what is necessary - more scary than raging Swprd worlders any day...

Yup.

My supositions are an attempt to explain why they are suddenly active (after being fairly inactive for over a thousand years).

But not only are they scary because of their willingness to "do what is necessary", but they are able to do that with a restored TL13. (In GT they regain their lost technology a full 50+ years ahead of when they do in the TNE timeline.)

So now you have this group of formerly quiet "pacifists" (not really, but that's probably how they were viewed) has suddenly woken up into a dangerously determined expansionistic TL13 pocket empire!

The only real problem with all of that is that, except for eventually smacking down the Sword Worlds when they finally cross the line, all of the action takes place in a sector that no one is allowed to detail!

 

[daryen]

Besides the Darrians, though, there were a couple of other meta-plots you set up that I am curious about.

The potentially biggest, by far, plot was the Droyne. You set forth a new super-Sport (Moudray), and set up some secret activity in 1118. Where were you going with that?

Another mess was the sublight colonists. Now, if the colonists and the Imperium were reasonable, they wouldn't be a problem to deal with. At the very least, Mithril, Dawnworld and Tavonni, while far from ideal, are all completely empty. Any one of them could easily hold all of the colonists.

But then, when have any group of Solomani been reasonable?

How big of a mess did you plan on creating with them?

There were other plots, but these two immediately popped into mind.

 

[JFZeigler]

Originally posted by daryen:
At the risk of pushing it, what about Trojan Reaches and Aldebaran? I would really like to see those, especially the latter one.

The Trojan Reach book ran into serious trouble and isn't likely to come out anytime soon. The Aldebaran book will be on the track as soon as the author (me) finds the time amid getting other books out the door.