Best Traveller Articles from the Space Gamer

[Garnfellow]

Between my Dragon Magazine CD-ROM, White Dwarf DVD, and JTAS DVD, I have a surprising number of Traveller articles only a click away.

I've only got a couple of issues of Space Gamer, though. Anything especially worth checking out from a Traveller perspective?

 

[spinwardpirate]

Wow. Good question. I was an avid Space Gamer reader back in the day, and recall quite a few good articles. There was one whole issue dedicated to Traveller, with write-ups for Jack Vance's Planet of Adventure series, that stands out in my mind. I seem to recall the first issue I received (#14?) had write-ups for laser pistols, and variable swords from Niven.

 

[chshrkt]

I look at my paltry collection of Space Gamer mags on the shelf and wish they would be released on CD/DVD someday.

 

[the angle]

Hey, I wrote that Jack Vance article, and I'd forgotten all about it. Shows what time and age can do to a once promising mind. If you're a fan of Vance's Tschai series, then that issue (#40) is worth any price.

A quick skim through my issue collection turns up --

#17: A couple of articles on Imperium
#18: Laser pistols and variable swords
#20: Psionics variant
#24: Review of Mercenary
#27: Review of Snapshot
#32: Special Traveller issue covering aliens and pseudo-human characters, Ithilien class scout ships, and a bunch of reviews, including Azhanti High Lightning
#35: More psionic abilities, and my winning entries in the "Characters I Wouldn't Let In My Universe" contest
#36: Traveller fiction and an ancients artifact, the fire web
#37: "The Alien" in Traveller terms
#38: Buying used ships
#39: Rumor reliability by yours truly
#40: Special Traveller issue, featuring an essay about Leviathan by Marc Miller, a space combat variant by me, and the fabled Tschai: Planet of Adventure supplement
#41: Triplanetary review
#43: more aliens plus a major expanded combat variant featuring lots of situational die modifiers
#44: An entire set of rules for AFV design and combat rules by William Barton, a regular Traveller contributor. IMO, these are far more playable than and generally superior to Striker.
#46: Special Traveller issue covering terrorists, lots of reviews including Fifth Frontier War, and an adventure by the Keith brothers, Flare Star.
#47: Physicians
#48: Storm, the adventure sequel to Flare Star, by the Keiths
#49: Equipment for terrorists and an interesting essay on science fact vs. science fantasy by Greg Costikyan
#50: Periastron, #3 in the Keiths' adventure series
#52: Spy cars
#53: Conclusion of the Keiths' adventure series and a featured review of Striker
#56: The splat gun, plus a campaign world for Space Opera (not Traveller but easily usable)
#59: review of The Traveller Book
#60: Featured review of Star Frontiers (again, not Traveller, but as the game's editor, I decided to tout it anyway)
#62: Chainsaw combat (really)
#67: Interdiction Station adventure
#72: reviews of Gamelords supplements
#85: 200-ton starship (Starjammer), Megatraveller adventure (Corsair Contention)

And there my collection peters out. That turned out to be more comprehensive than I intended, but looking through those old issues was great fun. In its heyday, TSG was the best gaming magazine out there, IMHO.

Steve

 

[Rhialto the Marvelous]

And once again I deeply regret not to have collected it.

Q: When will SJG put out a PDF?

Likely A: Never--because the same copyright muddle would ensue that sunk the Dragon CD. Which I also don't have. Sigh.

 

[Imperial Planetologist]

I use William Barton's expanded combat and AFV variants.

 

[Easterner9504]

Variants

WHITE DWARF CD. Lucky they had outstanding TRAV stuff like firarms modifiers. Sable Rose Affair Adventure


Space Gamer

Best two I remember from SG was TRAV cartoon

A freetrader has a massive chunk missing amidships, fore and aft held together by a gangway only. Fellow is smiling and nodding happier than you can imagine. The captain says. "Let me get this straight, you stopped the hijackers with a nuclear handgrenade?"

ST:TNG Parody

Crew gets perfect bodies and no moxie from anabolic estrogen. Whoopies only talent was wear ludicrous hat at 98%.

 

[saundby]

I'd love to see a Space Gamer collection, too. But I doubt SJG has the necessary rights to release it. (You don't want to run afoul of authors, as TSR learned.)

However...

Steve, any chance the rights on your pieces have reverted?

 

[Whipsnade]

#43: more aliens plus a major expanded combat variant featuring lots of situational die modifiers

The Angle,

Good Sweet Strephon! I remember that issue!

For those of you who never saw the article, it was accompanied by an illo of a PC hanging upside down from a speeding air/raft firing a rifle in the rain. The article then had a die modifier for hanging upside down from a speeding air/raft firing a weapon in the rain.

I kid you not.

Imagine ~2 pages covered in column after column of combat die modifiers in a rather small font.

If you ever wondered why the task system was such a huge improvement, that article in issue #43 of The Space Gamer will forever answer the question.


Regards,
Bill

 

[BlackBat242]

The Angle,

Good Sweet Strephon! I remember that issue!

For those of you who never saw the article, it was accompanied by an illo of a PC hanging upside down from a speeding air/raft firing a rifle in the rain. The article then had a die modifier for hanging upside down from a speeding air/raft firing a weapon in the rain.

I kid you not.

Imagine ~2 pages covered in column after column of combat die modifiers in a rather small font.

If you ever wondered why the task system was such a huge improvement, that article in issue #43 of The Space Gamer will forever answer the question.


Regards,
Bill

Ummm...

What if my character is hanging upside down from a slowly-moving air/raft in a heavy wind on a 2G planet with an exotic atmosphere panic-firing a tripod-mounted weapon without the tripod at a 2-foot-tall opponent evading at medium range in a fast-moving ATV at night in a snowstorm after being wounded?

The picture showed he was hanging by one foot.


Why, no... I don't have that issue... really I don't. :smirk:

 

[spinwardpirate]

For those of you who never saw the article, it was accompanied by an illo of a PC hanging upside down from a speeding air/raft firing a rifle in the rain. The article then had a die modifier for hanging upside down from a speeding air/raft firing a weapon in the rain...

was it at night... in a snowstorm...?

 

[the angle]

Steve, any chance the rights on your pieces have reverted?

IIRC, there was no contract involved. I sent them material, they sent me a check. The magazine stated, "(C) Metagaming Concepts, Inc." So AFAIK, there's no reversion of rights; the published material belongs to Metagaming in perpetuity. Frankly, using the Jack Vance/Tschai material the way we did probably was a violation of Ace Books's copyright. I don't recall seeing a permission disclaimer anywhere on it. SJG redid Tschai for GURPS a few years ago, but I assume they went through proper legal channels for that.

Steve

 

[Darkhstarr]

Unfortunately, I sold all my Spacergamers & Dragons years ago. Can't remember any Traveller articles to hand for SG. I do remember the IBIS article in Dragon, which I made a photocopy before I sold it.

Would have liked the chainsaw writeup, I've a few players who like them.

Hey, I wrote that Jack Vance article, and I'd forgotten all about it. Shows what time and age can do to a once promising mind. If you're a fan of Vance's Tschai series, then that issue (#40) is worth any price.

A quick skim through my issue collection turns up --

#17: A couple of articles on Imperium
#18: Laser pistols and variable swords
#20: Psionics variant
#24: Review of Mercenary
#27: Review of Snapshot
#32: Special Traveller issue covering aliens and pseudo-human characters, Ithilien class scout ships, and a bunch of reviews, including Azhanti High Lightning
#35: More psionic abilities, and my winning entries in the "Characters I Wouldn't Let In My Universe" contest
#36: Traveller fiction and an ancients artifact, the fire web
#37: "The Alien" in Traveller terms
#38: Buying used ships
#39: Rumor reliability by yours truly
#40: Special Traveller issue, featuring an essay about Leviathan by Marc Miller, a space combat variant by me, and the fabled Tschai: Planet of Adventure supplement
#41: Triplanetary review
#43: more aliens plus a major expanded combat variant featuring lots of situational die modifiers
#44: An entire set of rules for AFV design and combat rules by William Barton, a regular Traveller contributor. IMO, these are far more playable than and generally superior to Striker.
#46: Special Traveller issue covering terrorists, lots of reviews including Fifth Frontier War, and an adventure by the Keith brothers, Flare Star.
#47: Physicians
#48: Storm, the adventure sequel to Flare Star, by the Keiths
#49: Equipment for terrorists and an interesting essay on science fact vs. science fantasy by Greg Costikyan
#50: Periastron, #3 in the Keiths' adventure series
#52: Spy cars
#53: Conclusion of the Keiths' adventure series and a featured review of Striker
#56: The splat gun, plus a campaign world for Space Opera (not Traveller but easily usable)
#59: review of The Traveller Book
#60: Featured review of Star Frontiers (again, not Traveller, but as the game's editor, I decided to tout it anyway)
#62: Chainsaw combat (really)
#67: Interdiction Station adventure
#72: reviews of Gamelords supplements
#85: 200-ton starship (Starjammer), Megatraveller adventure (Corsair Contention)

And there my collection peters out. That turned out to be more comprehensive than I intended, but looking through those old issues was great fun. In its heyday, TSG was the best gaming magazine out there, IMHO.

Steve

 

[the angle]

After poring through the collection to make that list, of course I wound up rereading a bunch of the old material. The four-part adventure by the Keiths was pretty good; well worth hunting up. Each installment is about a session's worth of play. It deals with a trade group exploring for new markets along the fringe of known space, similar to the Nicholas van Rijn stories by Poul Anderson. The setting is a planet in an eccentric orbit that causes a long, cold winter followed by a short, intensely hot summer with violent storms. It's inhabited by a race of creatures with an odd life cycle suited to the planet. The four parts involve

1) discovering a derelict ship that contains clues to the race's whereabouts;
2) surviving the first encounter with the locals;
3) figuring out where the rest of the natives live and how to reach them; and
4) winning their confidence and kicking the competition's butts.

All while surviving the crazy, dangerous weather created by the planet's near approach to the sun. It's a nice combination of fighting, puzzle solving, and first contact, with decent SF elements (not just Indiana Jones in space). I never ran it before, but may have to now.

Steve

 

[GypsyComet]

The picture showed he was hanging by one foot.

Because the other leg had a cast on it, IIRC.

 

[Rhialto the Marvelous]

After poring through the collection to make that list, of course I wound up rereading a bunch of the old material. The four-part adventure by the Keiths was pretty good; well worth hunting up. Each installment is about a session's worth of play. It deals with a trade group exploring for new markets along the fringe of known space, similar to the Nicholas van Rijn stories by Poul Anderson. The setting is a planet in an eccentric orbit that causes a long, cold winter followed by a short, intensely hot summer with violent storms. It's inhabited by a race of creatures with an odd life cycle suited to the planet. The four parts involve

1) discovering a derelict ship that contains clues to the race's whereabouts;
2) surviving the first encounter with the locals;
3) figuring out where the rest of the natives live and how to reach them; and
4) winning their confidence and kicking the competition's butts.

All while surviving the crazy, dangerous weather created by the planet's near approach to the sun. It's a nice combination of fighting, puzzle solving, and first contact, with decent SF elements (not just Indiana Jones in space). I never ran it before, but may have to now.

Steve

As it happens, that adventure is actually available on e23, the SJGames online webstore, as a free PDF. It's quite a treat.

 

[BlackBat242]

Because the other leg had a cast on it, IIRC.

Not a cast... an external splint placed over the suit/boot [using two long narrow thin items (might be 1x4s)] and wrapped above and below the knee.

 

[the angle]

As it happens, that adventure is actually available on e23, the SJGames online webstore, as a free PDF. It's quite a treat.

So it is! That's awfully gentlemanly of the folk at SJG.

It's in Gurps form, I see. Here are the original CT stats.

Steve

Creature          Wt   Hits    Armor    Wnds, Wpns
Intermittents  50 kg   17/6    Cloth    3 horns     A9F952
Killers        .5 kg    2/2     None    4 teeth     A0F053
Hunters       100 kg   20/9     None    Varies      A0F052

 

[Swiftbrook]

As it happens, that adventure is actually available on e23, the SJGames online webstore, as a free PDF. It's quite a treat.

Sorry, can't find it. Any chance you can post a link?

-Swiftbrook

 

[Easterner9504]

Flare Star

http://e23.sjgames.com/item.html?id=SJG37-1150