Need help replicating CT starship combat

[Sci-Fi Neophyte]

As my moniker suggests, I’m new to CT and sci-fi TTRPGs in general. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve played various other RPG systems in other genres these past 40 years and am a fan of tabletop wargaming in general. Which brings me to the next CT topic I could use your (citizens’) help with: namely, how to set up best the miniature starship combats alluded to in the earliest editions of Traveller as I currently understand them (vector rules and all)?

I understand the earliest rules may not have covered every aspect of space combat well or even at all. That doesn’t deter me. I can look to the Traveller board games to plug these holes easily enough (which I own in PDF). I also think breaking away from role-play for some miniature roll-play during a gaming session is a good thing.

Where I’m stuck currently is coming up with or devising a good play mat and minis or tokens to represent starships. I don’t want to set up a 6-8 foot long table with butcher paper and use coins for minis representing starships. I’m leaning more towards locating a currently produced board game that I can repurpose for CT mini starship combat (and maybe enjoy the purchased board game in its own right, and play by the rules that game would come with).

With that said, can anyone recommend some “in-production, easy-to-find” space-based board games that come with a hex map and cardboard ship counters that can be easily repurposed for what I’m trying to do?

As always, thank you, citizens.

 

[McPerth]

Have you tried Mayday?

It's the board game adapting CT LBB2 combat...

AFAIK it's till available on the Classic Traveller CDROM (along with many things more) on the FFE page

 

[Sci-Fi Neophyte]

Thanks McPerth,

As stated in the OP, I do own all the CT board games in PDF format (I got them from Marc via FFE digital download). I’ll be leaning heavily on these to plug in the holes or fill in the gaps in the original Traveller rules to provide me/us more meaningful and fulfilling tabletop wargame play.

But I want physical playing pieces and hexgrid to use at the table. I want to find an in-production board game that will provide me/us with a space-themed hex battle mat/board and cardboard chits/tokens to represent starships in battle as we use our CT space combat rules to guide us through play.

I’m not aware of any means to print the Mayday pieces in a fashion that will satisfy my table…

 

[McPerth]

Well, in fact, any hexagon girded map will serve, as there are no features printed on it, and you can make your own counters easily

 

[Ekofisk]

Are you familiar with Triplanetary? Steve Jackson just re-released it.

 

[Sci-Fi Neophyte]

Thanks again, McPerth. Quick responses are greatly appreciated.

It may come to that, but printing the tokens provided by the various Traveller tabletop games may yield suboptimal results if done on regular paper or even cardstock. I’d like to see something more robust, like my chits and tokens from my WW2-themed war games, printed on thick cardboard, so everything can be used for years to come and hold up well over time.

 

[Sci-Fi Neophyte]

Many thanks, Ekofisk. This Triplanetary of which you speak may fit the bill nicely (even comes with a grease pencil).

Watching product videos directly!

 

[mike wightman]

Steve Jackson games Triplanetary.

Or just head to Amazon or the like and buy the biggest laminated hex grid with the smallest hexes you can find. I have a double sided fold out board that is particularly good.

You can also buy multicoloured plastic or wood pieces that you can mount ship counters to.

 

[Sci-Fi Neophyte]

Well, that’s a bummer. Very awesome to find Triplanetary was an original GDW game, a precursor to Mayday even. Would have fit the bill very nicely, but sourcing may be a problem.

Just did a quick search and saw the game is no longer available on Amazonia. It is out of stock, and they don’t know when or if the item will be available again…

 

[mike wightman]

You can get it direct from Steve Jackson Games

 

[Ekofisk]

Purchase Link Here

 

[Sci-Fi Neophyte]

Is Warehouse 23 the same as Steve Jackson Games? I've not heard of Warehouse 23 before...

 

[Sci-Fi Neophyte]

Looks like Warehouse 23 is the official online store of Steve Jackson Games, and it offers products from a wide variety of publishers. It's been around since 2004, and they have continued to expand since that time. Sounds legit to me. Thanks all!

 

[Ekofisk]

Is Warehouse 23 the same as Steve Jackson Games? I've not heard of Warehouse 23 before...

Yes. If you click the "Click here to order" link on the first page I sent you, it will take you to the same place.

 

[coliver988]

Is Warehouse 23 the same as Steve Jackson Games? I've not heard of Warehouse 23 before...

It is their official store, yes, Bought a lot of stuff over the years from them - got a lot of the GURPS Traveller books as I like "real" books. even though I don't play/run GURPS Traveller, their settings books are full of great things that are useful to any version of Traveller.

And I did back the KS Triplanetary years ago. Really need to actually *play* the game!

 

[McPerth]

Triplanetary is a very nice game, but it's quite different than CT LBB2 system...

Most things from LBB2 combat system are not there (computers, players' skills, etc)

 

[whartung]

Yea, Mayday is Book 2 with hexes. So it's a bit easier to play. The problem with book 2 isn't so much the lack of hexes, its simply the scale they use.

Knock the scale down appropriately, and you can play it on a table top just like Mayday.

But the hexes are easier.

What you'll find, though, is that, specifically with 2 ship encounters, the map doesn't really make much difference. You can work with any of the bit more abstract range band systems and get similar results.

As for rules, I don't think Mayday really departs too much from B2. The biggest addition, I would think, is the Missiles supplement, S4, right?

And that should work with either system.

 

[mike wightman]

Triplanetary is a very nice game, but it's quite different than CT LBB2 system...

Most things from LBB2 combat system are not there (computers, players' skills, etc)

Triplanetary is the game LBB:2 space combat and Mayday were based on, it was one of Marc;s first sci fi boardgame/wargames.

 

[mike wightman]

Yea, Mayday is Book 2 with hexes. So it's a bit easier to play. The problem with book 2 isn't so much the lack of hexes, its simply the scale they use.

Knock the scale down appropriately, and you can play it on a table top just like Mayday.

But the hexes are easier.

What you'll find, though, is that, specifically with 2 ship encounters, the map doesn't really make much difference. You can work with any of the bit more abstract range band systems and get similar results.

As for rules, I don't think Mayday really departs too much from B2. The biggest addition, I would think, is the Missiles supplement, S4, right?

And that should work with either system.

There are rules missing from LBB:2 that Mayday can be used to fill. As to scale you can change the scale of the hex distance and the turn time. The damage systems are very different (and it was SS:3 Missiles )

 

[McPerth]

Triplanetary is the game LBB:2 space combat and Mayday were based on, it was one of Marc;s first sci fi boardgame/wargames.

Sure, and it's a very good game, just not LBB2 combat system, being more for intra system travel and commerce (something, BTW, most traveller games lack), with some combat capacity, but quite simplified.