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Introducing Stellar Reaches, a new T20/CT fanzine...

F

Flynn

SOC-14 1K
Good Morning, All!

My apologies for interrupting your usual morning routine, but I'd like to announce the premiere issue of an online PDF fanzine for Traveller! The Winter 2005 issue of Stellar Reaches can be downloaded from its website, found at:
http://www.geocities.com/stellar_reaches/index.html

By the way, it's FREE!

Following in the footsteps of such fan-created Traveller magazines as "Security Leak" and "Third Imperium", Stellar Reaches is intended to provide fan-generated support for both Traveller T20 and Classic Traveller (although much of the material can be used by other Traveller systems with little translation.) The editor and organizer of this effort, being a fan of the Classic Traveller and MegaTraveller fanzines of old, has created a PDF fanzine similar in content to these original sources of fun and discovery.

And it's FREE!

In each issue, readers will find details for one quadrant of a featured sector (the first four issues focus on the Empty Quarter sector during the Gateway Era), as well as an adventure based in that region of space, to help introduce players to the region. Supporting articles, such as starship and vehicles designs, background information or new game mechanics, typically lend support to the adventure or setting depicted in the issue.

All this can be yours, for FREE!

It is our goal to release a new issue of Stellar Reaches quarterly, with 20 to 40 pages of content in each issue, depending on submissions. While Stellar Reaches primarily supports Traveller T20 and Classic Traveller, articles submitted for other Traveller systems will definitely be considered. While the primary focus of content is expected to be on the Gateway Era and Classic Traveller time frames at first (with the intention to support TNE 1248 as well, once that particular core book is released), other eras may also come into focus as other authors submit articles, and new products become available on the market.

And it's all yours, for FREE!

A Personal Note: Please realize that this is a non-profit operation, ran totally based on our love for the game. The only payment we receive is the recognition of Traveller fans for our work. We sincerely hope you enjoy our efforts, but if you do not, we ask that you bear in mind that it didn't cost you anything, either.

After all, it's FREE!

In Issue #1, Winter 2005, you'll find the following: an article detailing the Bwap minor race for Traveller T20, astrography and library data for the Gamma Quadrant of the Empty Quarter sector circa 993, an adventure set in the Gamma Quadrant of the Empty Quarter sector, statistics for the Guardian-class bwap runabout courier, a new alien lifeform from an Empty Quarter world and a patron encounter to round things out.

Did I mention it was FREE?

We hope you enjoy our efforts, and we're looking forward to presenting a wealth of new material in Issue #2, Spring 2005, which is intended for release this May!

Happy Travelling,
Jason "Flynn" Kemp

BTW, as this is hosted on a Geocities website, please be aware that occasionally, the file may not be available if there are heavy downloads within a short duration of time. If you get an error related to that, please wait a while and try to download it again. Thank you!
 
I have also submitted a copy of the first issue of Stellar Reaches to the member-driven File Library here on COTI, in the hopes that it would help alleviate some of the traffic congestion on the Geocities site. Once it is approved, there will be an alternate source for downloading it.

Enjoy,
Flynn
 
Good morning, All,

I have received a PM asking me what kind of material I'm looking for in submissions to Stellar Reaches. After responding, I figured it would help if I made that a bit more public, so here's a short list of the kind of things I personally would like to see:

* First answer to this question should always be artwork! [Wink]

Beyond that, each issue I'm writing the astrography and main adventure, at least for the first few issues, but I sure could use any of the following:

* Additional adventures (hopefully set in the Empty Quarter sector, but gladly accepted no matter where they are set);

* Starships (preferably with deckplans, but since I'm not an artist, I don't expect it from others);

* Patron encounters;

* Vehicles or robots;

* Animal/wildlife encounters;

* Background pieces on the OTU;

* Informational/How-to articles, even including how to run a Traveller game or build a Traveller setting;

* Game mechanics for unusual situations and/or new equipment, etc.;

* Reviews of Traveller products; and

* Just about anything else Traveller-related.

If you have an idea for something that would run a few pages every issue as a regular column, I'm open to that as well. Pitch me the idea privately, write up the first submission to demonstrate your writing skills and style, and we'll see what we can do.

The more submissions I get, of course, the more choices I have in putting stuff in, and the longer I'll be able to keep this effort going.

Please let me know your thoughts,
Flynn
 
Great stuff, Jason.

Got me thinking though. In days of yore, we had JTAS magazine and other such smallpress journals that people could just pick up and mine for info. SJG has JTAS online now, but that is IMO hobbled by it's subscription system - you can't just pick up a single issue of it (you have to pay for two years to get a single article), issues are not provided in a printable format, and it's just generally really rather awkward and inaccessible to the Traveller public.

Whereas something like this - a decently produced PDF file with several articles that you can access as individual issues - is MUCH more useful and accessible.

I think Traveller really needs more of that old 'small press' support that it had in the old days. If this is the way it has to go in the future, I certainly am not complaining.
 
Great work Jason, It's definitely in the spirit of those old CT fanzines, just a MUCH more presentable format! Keep up the good work, and if you need any help, let us know.
 
Thanks, Guys!


I'm always open to articles and submissions, though, especially artwork, if anyone wants to join in on the fun for Issue #2.


Looking forward to it,
Flynn
 
I am looking for cover pieces (the glass die with the Imperial sunburst was the best I could do on short notice with no true art skills and some google fu. ;) )

I'm also looking for pieces that depict story or background elements, such as bwaps, vargr and humans in appropriate sci-fi and alien world scenes. Sydites will also come into play in the next issue, as there's a Sydite world in the Delta Quadrant of Empty Quarter sector.

If a submitted piece of artwork evokes a story or concept, I'll find an article that will work well with it, or write something specifically to take advantage of its presence.

While I cannot offer payment, of course, I hope to offer exposure of your work, and lots of appreciation and recognition from myself and anyone else who reads Stellar Reaches.


I hope this helps,
Flynn
 
If this was Fark, I'd be putting the *SPIFFY* tag on this. Nice work, though I do admit to wondering, seeing some of the extensiveness of the data and its sources, if you are actually within bounds <shrug> (IANAL, and I've been made fearful of such matters of late... I wouldn't want a C&D from an Ancient.. *grin*). But nicely produced, decently attractive format and fonts.

Too bad you aren't supporting MT
 
I probably should seek out BITS's permission to use their generic task system for adventures, so that adventures can be more readily used in all of the Traveller systems, but not tonight... gonna sleep a little bit tonight.


I'll support MT if someone submits some good articles, though. *hint, hint* I just had to choose a focus right now, and T20 is what I play. QLI supports both T20 and CT, and most people like one or the other, or both, so I figured it'd be the safest bet.


As for Fair Use, I did my best to provide a copy of all the Fair Use/Online Policy statements that I could find on the title page of the PDF, and am trying to follow the guidelines set forth by all of these varied sources. Hard to satisfy so many masters, you know, but I'm doing what I can... ;)

But to my knowledge, I don't think I have violated any restrictions, and I definitely am not going to charge for this work, so I'm hopeful that the effort will be appreciated by the Powers That Be, so long as I remain mindful to the requirements presented by them to us fans for such works.


Indeed, if Hunter, Marc or Steve Jackson, etc, ever feel that I am in violation, I will quickly remove the offending material and issue my most sincere apologies. I am definitely not seeking to infringe on anyone's copyright or product identity, and am grateful for the chance to be able to undertake this kind of work.

In Service,
Flynn
 
Hi Flynn !

You did a great work here !
Guess we will find quite a few people providing some work for Your project.
For myself as a fanzine fan, I will do what I can (at least for MT stuff)

IMHO its productive to concentrate affords somehow, because otherwise most of the stuff produced is often lost on a dark corner of a harddisk (I am just too lazy to put anything together on a website.....).

Go on !

Best regards,

Mert
 
Hmmm... I think I'll submit an LBB-2 400 dton Assault Frigate (Armed, Streamlined carrying a Marine Platoon), with deckplans and maybe even System Shock 2 screenshots (though building it in the SS2 engine will take time I think I'll skip that for now; the deck plan might be ready within a week.

Other than that, I hope that Sig Oddra would submit his excellent armor/heavy turret/sensor rules to this fanzine
 
Employee 2-4601,

Your suggestion for an article sounds great, and well within keeping of the spirit of the Stellar Reaches content I am looking for. I don't believe I can use the System Shock 2 screenshots, however, as the artwork is most likely covered by their copyrights, and I don't have permission to use that work.

I think the article and deckplans will do fine, though.

Thanks for volunteering,

Flynn
 
Originally posted by Flynn:
Employee 2-4601,
I don't believe I can use the System Shock 2 screenshots, however, as the artwork is most likely covered by their copyrights, and I don't have permission to use that work.
Click to expand...
Hmmm... there are many screenshots of that game posted on the Net; and besides, it would be from a level that I'd create. Disallowing the use of such screenshots would be just another absurd example of corporate infringement on free speach.

But no matter, I'll submit the rest anyway to the E-Zine, and the screenshots (and later the mission itself) on a page of my own (which, IIRC, is 99%-100% legal).
 
Hey Flynn, d'ya want a list of all the LBB2 ships I've designed? And a "thumbnail" of my Falkenberg/Trojan Reaches writeup?
 
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