Muster out equipment, Scientific.

[Janitor_Prime]

Greetings,

GMs and Players what does the benefit "Scientific Equipment" mean to you? What is that equipment? What does it do? What are the modifiers to dice rolls? How much does the starting tech level of that equipment effect these outcomes? Traveller doesn't have the "Amazing Answer Box" associated with Star Trek.

 

[kilemall]

Are you talking MgT2?

 

[mike wightman]

A pocket large hadron collider, a pocket chemical synthesis factory, a pocket genetic sequencer...

pocket handwavium.

Sorry I can't be anymore helpful but the mustering out reward is meaningless without parameters, and that is for the author to decideand to tell us what they had in mind.

For the individual referee it could be some king of Star Trek tricorder, a magic box that does any king of scientific analysis you can handwave this session.

All that said page 121 of the MgT 2024 updated, revised 2ed core rule book - as that is the most current version. They are probably to be found in CSC and the earlier iterations of 2e 2016 and 2022

 

[Janitor_Prime]

A scientific piece of equipment given to players in the character creation process much as blade, pistol, armor, and cyber implants.

Players and Referees, what has this meant at your table? If it has a value the same as weapons this varies between 10k and 30k credits. What would that be in terms of game play for assisting the science focused PC?

I don't need the book and page number, thank you.

 

[Enoki]

Maybe...

 

[kilemall]

Generally speaking, a field sensor or lab test equipment specific to their branch of science along with whatever programs for operation/analysis.

If any of the later CSCs from T4 on, should be equipment listed. Probably do another roll on the money table to valuate how good it is.

 

[Diveguy]

I probably break from most on this these days in I'd lean more vague than defined (unless definition was necessary for some reason). Much as "survival kit" doesn't need a full list of every tidbit (which can then be endlessly argued as essential or superfluous); I would take "scientific equipment" as a generic "tools appropriate to your background, and relatively sophont-portable", and worst-case require a roll to see if it was up to the requested task.

 

[Commander Truestar]

In an early adventure, with my players in debt for a ship they had to make payments on to a local noble....and with a bum fuel purifier plant they had to raise MCr 1.5 to replace...

They ran into a situation where they had to identify a substance.
When I asked how they planned to do that, one of the players very arrogantly said, we should be able to run it through the mass spectrometer...

And I smiled and asked, "OK. Where ya gonna buy it?"
Suddenly uncertain of himself, he asked, "Wait! The ship didn't come with one?"

I answered, "The ship didn't come with bed linen. What makes you think there was a Mass Spec to start with? And, if there had been, who would empty the galley and take the bedding while leaving an expensive toy like that?"

If you want some basic ideas, watch a few seasons of NCIS and listen closely to the "forensic scientist chatter"

If you don't like that, use your imagination. Consider everything from basic lab gear (microscanners, Lab glassware, Electronic sensors, computer-integrated lab tools[rock substrate auto-slicer for microscopic study ]) to advanced specialized equipment like DNA analyzers, environmental scanners, Autonomous Expert-system Androids for remote investigation, Advanced Medical kits and even specialty devices integrated to suit tech. And, you can determine availability and cost from any of the game's editions.

Hell, my game is largely MT-based, but I use gear from both "every" variation of Traveller and other Role Playing Games.
I even look at D&D stuff and do my best to decide if it can be done as a piece of technology instead of magic.

 

[Enoki]

You're an archeologist or geologist? You get these "scientific tools."

All those gazillion credit fancy analyzers? Those are university property and you aren't hauling them out into the field...

 

[Grav_Moped]

You're an archeologist or geologist? You get these "scientific tools."

All those gazillion credit fancy analyzers? Those are university property and you aren't hauling them out into the field...

Not shown: whip and pistol.

 

[kilemall]

In an early adventure, with my players in debt for a ship they had to make payments on to a local noble....and with a bum fuel purifier plant they had to raise MCr 1.5 to replace...

They ran into a situation where they had to identify a substance.
When I asked how they planned to do that, one of the players very arrogantly said, we should be able to run it through the mass spectrometer...

And I smiled and asked, "OK. Where ya gonna buy it?"
Suddenly uncertain of himself, he asked, "Wait! The ship didn't come with one?"

I answered, "The ship didn't come with bed linen. What makes you think there was a Mass Spec to start with? And, if there had been, who would empty the galley and take the bedding while leaving an expensive toy like that?"

If you want some basic ideas, watch a few seasons of NCIS and listen closely to the "forensic scientist chatter"

If you don't like that, use your imagination. Consider everything from basic lab gear (microscanners, Lab glassware, Electronic sensors, computer-integrated lab tools[rock substrate auto-slicer for microscopic study ]) to advanced specialized equipment like DNA analyzers, environmental scanners, Autonomous Expert-system Androids for remote investigation, Advanced Medical kits and even specialty devices integrated to suit tech. And, you can determine availability and cost from any of the game's editions.

Hell, my game is largely MT-based, but I use gear from both "every" variation of Traveller and other Role Playing Games.
I even look at D&D stuff and do my best to decide if it can be done as a piece of technology instead of magic.

My take is a bit different. I figure a lot of that expensive bridge is exactly a full suite of short range sensors (10,000-100,000 km depending on computer model) there for mostly safety reasons, plus a few long range sensors for actual tactical and main navigation use.

They can actually be used for planetary survey if you had skilled people for them, and it’s how Seekers use their bridge to do prospecting.

A stripped set of sensors would not meet safety regs, no civilized planet would risk a deaf and blind ship within 10D.

That doesn’t mean everyone can survey without skill and there are a suite of expensive programs that the benefit doesn’t get automatically. I have also taken care to define all this so there are limits to the ACS, stealth is possible and things still require hands on testing and study.

Atmosphere testing is possible for instance with the particle sensors, but aren’t calibrated to catch everything including say biohazards or uncommon airborne metals.

Small craft bridges aren’t that big so they are only packing one short range sensor and a short range radio, anything else gets added on with the computer model.

 

[Enoki]

Not shown: whip and pistol.

Optional. Roll for a weapon.

 

[Commander Truestar]

My take is a bit different. I figure a lot of that expensive bridge is exactly a full suite of short range sensors (10,000-100,000 km depending on computer model) there for mostly safety reasons, plus a few long range sensors for actual tactical and main navigation use.

They can actually be used for planetary survey if you had skilled people for them, and it’s how Seekers use their bridge to do prospecting.

A stripped set of sensors would not meet safety regs, no civilized planet would risk a deaf and blind ship within 10D.

That doesn’t mean everyone can survey without skill and there are a suite of expensive programs that the benefit doesn’t get automatically. I have also taken care to define all this so there are limits to the ACS, stealth is possible and things still require hands on testing and study.

Atmosphere testing is possible for instance with the particle sensors, but aren’t calibrated to catch everything including say biohazards or uncommon airborne metals.

Small craft bridges aren’t that big so they are only packing one short range sensor and a short range radio, anything else gets added on with the computer model.

LOL,
In no way would I suggest "function mandated" gear be missing or non-functional unless the players were given a ship they had to repair before they could try to lift from the port. As I said in my post, they had to spend KCr 30 to provision basics, tools and crew-usable supplies.

But, even in my game, the only ship's system that was non-func was the fuel purifier plant, and that is an "optional" for ship operations.

 

[whartung]

Not shown: whip and pistol.

or the bag of marbles.

and with a bum fuel purifier plant they had to raise MCr 1.5 to replace...

So, how did they raise the 1.5MCr?

 

[Commander Truestar]

So, how did they raise the 1.5MCr?

no Spoilers...
read the after action reports here: http://www.usedstarships.com