GURPS Interstellar Wars

[Blue Ghost]

So I'm reading the GURPS Traveller Interstellar Wars, and came across the sidebar about Terran Marines. Interesting stuff.

Will future supplements flesh out the Solomani Rim (Terran Confederation) with more such detail?

 

[cdward]

Who knows, I'm currently using "Rim of Fire" along side Interstellar wars to get things like stellar classes when generating the star systems aournd Sol that my group are likely to visit. Some stuff turns up in the online JTAS now and then but I haven't see anthing on wish lists or "coming soon"

Chris

 

[Valarian]

There's interstellar wars era data for the Solomani Rim in the Galactic 2.4 application ( http://www.geocities.com/traveller_core_route/proj001/proj001.html ). Some of it differs from the GT:IW data, but it's not too difficult to fix.

I haven't heard anything about future GT:IW supplements. Pity, I like the setting.

 

[Britti_Lover]

One of the best Traveller books ever done.

e23 is looking for authors for new material. This includes additional Gurps Traveller books for 4e.

This looks like a pattern to me. Release the main book in hardbound and do the rest e23 and maybe a POD run for warehouse 23.

I think Gurps WW2 for 4e will be the same along with Steampunk.

Not a bad way to do it - I know retailers like the hardbound books and detest the paperbacks - especially the small ones.

:frankie:

 

[PFVA63]

GURPS: Traveller Interstellar Wars

Hi,

I just picked this book up this weekend and I agree, its a great source book. I spent most of Sunday trying to put together a spreadsheet to do the ship design calcs and its almost done, but my test run on a Crocket class is coming up a little off from the published specs (its 10 tons too light empty, but 20 tons too heavy full and I think I'm off by a stateroom somewhere). So I probably need to double check my calcs to make sure I haven't messed anything up.

Anyway, I was just wondering has anyone else here messed around with the ship design rules, and if so have you been able to replicate some of the ships defined in the book?

Regards

PF

 

[Britti_Lover]

I'm very happy with GURPS 4e books. Nice integrated set of rules for a TRUE Gurps experience.

The Interstellar Wars Traveller Gurps book is nice because all the Traveller material I really need is in one book. I can flesh out everything else using the other books like Martial Arts and Space and Ultra-Tech.

I'm currently using the optional rule with the 1st Imperium winning the Interstellar Wars. To bump the TL I have the Terrians putting a ruler on the Iridium throne via a bloodless coup.

It does play well and that is what counts.

GT for 3e Gurps is as good as an RPG gets - but overall I like 4th over 3rd.

:rofl:

 

[Enoff]

Interstellar Wars is Great!

I was able to extract the subsector map files into a game board designer.
Used the "Imperium" gamebox to add the counters from the game Imperium. I think it will be easy to adapt "Dark Nebula" rules for fleet combat.

Unfortunately the Sol Subsector map doesn't line up correctly, every other subsector fits fine.

http://www.lexweb.us/map1.jpg

 

[Sturn]

e23 is looking for authors for new material. This includes additional Gurps Traveller books for 4e.

I was under the assumption that Gurps could no longer make new Traveller books due to Mongoose's license. Glad to hear this. Gurps Traveller books are my favorite for fluff, I just don't use the rules.

 

[Enoff]

larger picture showing all the subsector maps

http://www.lexweb.us/map002.jpg

Close up showing the Sirius / Procyon gap for jump-2 only capable ships.

http://www.lexweb.us/map003.jpg

 

[Enoff]

I have decided I do not like the three column layout of the book.

 

[spinwardpirate]

I gave it the old college try about three or four years ago, and as much as I wanted to like it, it was missing something. If there had been an equipment list, maybe I would have felt differently?

That being said, I'm a huge GURPS fan, and it is my system of preference for just about everything else I want to play.

 

[Enoff]

Well I decided to type out the sequence of action for starship combat to get a better understanding. I kept it simple, old SPI rules style and used a two column layout.

Starship Combat Action Sequence in simple two column format:
www.lexweb.us/sequenceofaction.pdf

I have GURPS Ultratech for 4e seems to have everything needed as far as equipment goes.

 

[spinwardpirate]

I love GURPS Ultratech... I'm just too lazy to sit there and decide what I want to use for GURPS Traveller purposes. If I'm going to spend the time making decisions, I might as well make my own Space opera... which has been my line of thinking the last few days.

 

[Gadrin]

I love GURPS Ultratech... I'm just too lazy to sit there and decide what I want to use for GURPS Traveller purposes. If I'm going to spend the time making decisions, I might as well make my own Space opera... which has been my line of thinking the last few days.

I believe the Ultra Tech 4th ed has a free preview PDF with the Index in it.

You can dump/export/SaveAs to .txt file and then have at it.

I have a pretty fair idea of what I liked from 3e (both UT I &II) and would use in a Traveller game. Ultra-tech Drugs (most of them) my fave was Memory Beta and a few implants without going over the top.

Another space-RPG I like is Phase World by the Rifts people. Yes the books are simplistic and the rules average, but the setting can be nice if you plan accordingly.

That's a system where Ultra Tech comes in very handy to help flesh out the enormous gray-areas in the few books it has. I've always liked a space + magic type of setting.

GURPS Technomancer was another. I ran a PBP for a while, using TL8 and gizmos from UT. Enchanting allowed NPCs to possess magical equivalents of some high-level technology. Enchanted TL8 Microrobots that performed like TL12 ones and such.

Lot of fun. I'd love to do a TL9 version of Technomancer...maybe use Traveller as a base and change a few things.

>

 

[Enoff]

I love the GURPS books even if just used as resource material.

Amazing how much stuff is in all these books!

I actually really like GURPS Lensman & Terradyne.

There are layout issues I don't like about Interstellar Wars, but I really like the campaign idea.

Hey I like the Mongoose books, very clean, combat seems playable. No problem using those rules and the source material from the GURPS books for me

 

[spinwardpirate]

Hey I like the Mongoose books... combat seems playable.

Agreed. I really can't wait to give it a try. But...

No problem using those rules and the source material from the GURPS books for me

My wife is running a GURPS Heroes campaign right now. For me, Traveller action right now is painting minis.

 

[SpaceBadger]

Recently bought both GT: Interstellar Wars and Mongoose 2300AD w some "game money" my wife gave me for Christmas. Started off reading the 2300AD stuff as I previously had the old Traveller 2300 when it came out 30 years ago, liked it a lot but never got to play it...

I've been sick at home this past week and getting really ramped up reading these PDFs on my laptop, planning the "Firefly-esque" campaign that I have promised to run for my sons. We've actually run a couple of adventures already with me just ad-libbing from rough outlines, which was relatively easy as we are using FUDGE for all action resolution, but eventually I want and need more setting detail to make it a good campaign, and more crunchy stuff on ships, vehicles, and gear to give them more choices and options than me just telling them what they have. (I need to make up a setting to use; I like both Firefly and Serenity, but the setting they are in is just silly IMHO. Also I prefer a bit more effort getting on and off of planet surfaces.)

I was getting pretty psyched to run it as "2700AD", taking the 2300AD setting and extrapolating into the future to expand the campaign area and add more races and stuff that I liked from Traveller, but still keep the 2300AD tech (no grav vehicles is the biggy, makes planetary interface much more important, which I like). The expanded area of known space would also let me bring in Vargr, Hivers, K'Kree, Bwaps, Virushi, etc.

Now I've started reading GT: IW and am tempted to see how hard it would be to just remove grav tech from that setting and let them play as Free Traders in Imperial space. I would probably make the Vilani not quite so intolerant of other ways, so that I could use more alien races, and also fiddle some w "historic" timelines to allow contact w K'Kree at least... hmm, maybe that is another factor helping the Terrans, if the Vilani are distracted by war or at least a "hot border" w the K'Kree... And maybe the Hivers are secretly manipulating things for their own reasons as well.

Oh, decision, decisions!

 

[warwizard]

I'm using it as material to support a pre interstellar war Terran expansion campaign. The Terran ships start only with the drives NASA has developed or have in the dream stage (NTR, Bussard, Fusion rocket, Ion, Enhanced Ion [which will eventually turn into the HEPLAR], Daedalus, and the olde chemical rocket) Initially there will be no gravetics, no inertial dampner,or g-comp, no grav floor plates, primitive!
Players get introduced to the concept of trying to make interstellar trips while having to be most careful in the use of their limited Delta V.

 

[SpaceBadger]

I'm using it as material to support a pre interstellar war Terran expansion campaign. The Terran ships start only with the drives NASA has developed or have in the dream stage (NTR, Bussard, Fusion rocket, Ion, Enhanced Ion [which will eventually turn into the HEPLAR], Daedalus, and the olde chemical rocket) Initially there will be no gravetics, no inertial dampner,or g-comp, no grav floor plates, primitive!
Players get introduced to the concept of trying to make interstellar trips while having to be most careful in the use of their limited Delta V.

What are you using to calculate fuel usage, travel time, etc for interplanetary travel w the drives you mention? None of those will support the Traveller-standard aim-accelerate-flip-decelerate travel. Hohmann orbits are easy but slo-o-o-ow. I asked about this same problem in another thread, but so far haven't got it figured out (although whartung gave me a link to a page in Winchell Chung's website that might be helpful; I haven't had time to read it yet).

 

[warwizard]

What are you using to calculate fuel usage, travel time, etc for interplanetary travel w the drives you mention? None of those will support the Traveller-standard aim-accelerate-flip-decelerate travel. Hohmann orbits are easy but slo-o-o-ow.

I use sub 1 G thrust and calculate the trips using fractional G's burning 1/2 the delta V in accel and half in decel, you are seriously underestimating the delta V available with a Fusion Rocket or a Daedalus drive.

The Fuel usage numbers given below are from T4 FF&S tables 163, 167, and 168.

Heplar .00125 m3/hr/KN Theroetical max accel 200 G's (666 KN/m3 fuel)
Thruster plate (PP fuel) Theroetical max accel 20 G's
Fusion Rkt .00035 m3/hr/KN Theroetical max accel 9 G's (2,857 KN/m3)
Ion .0002 m3/hr/KN Theroetical max accel .033G's (5,000 KN/m3)
Daedalus .00005 m3/hr/KN Theroetical max accel 1.5 G's (20,000 KN/m3)

*Theroetical max accel is engine only as it flings it's last dollop of fuel out the back, not counting any power sourses needed. (Thrust/engine mass)

Folks are used to seeing the Heplar drives used cause they're easy to make your ships reach 6 G's (takes about the same power as it does for J6), but the Fusion rocket uses 1/3 the fuel per KN/h and does not require seperate power input, and lastly the daedalus is a whopping 61 times less fuel per KN/h than the Heplar, and again no PP needed, and beats the Ion drive in fuel sipping.

A .15 g Daedalus installation takes about 10% of the ship's volume and mass, cost's an arm, leg, and three tentacles to install, but coupled to another 10% of the ship's volume in fuel can get you anywhere in the solar system within a few months at 20,000 KN per m3 of fuel.