CT Only: OK, who wants to be the Pilot?

[Supplement Four]

How many times has this happened to you?

You've prepared a typical Traveller game where the players will crew a tramp freighter, explore a subsector, and get into all sorts of interesting situations.

You go through character generation with your players, following the rules as written, allowing your players to pick any of the six basic CT careers.

When you get done, you've got characters filled to the brim with combat skills--everybody mustered out of the Army or Marines. And, among the group, you there aren't enough basic skills needed to crew the ship. Nobody has Pilot. There is an Engineer, but he's the only person with Medic.

What do you do?





Classic Traveller is a game that is very loose with its rules. The Ref is almost encouraged to make up new rules to solve this situation. The Ref can look to the Experience rules, under the Alternatives section, and figure a way to give the player characters the basic skills they need.

Or, the Ref can limit the careers paths available to the players at the start of the game to encourage PCs with skills needed to crew a tramp freighter.

Or, the Ref can alter either a finished character by trading out a skill, adding a skill, or maybe change the available skills on a career path--so that the PC will end up with the needed skills.

But, what I want to focus on is: What can a Ref do and still play by the rules as written?





Barring making up something new under the Alternatives paragraph, the Experience rules do not help us with this problem. The section that describes Skill Improvement clearly states that the character must already have the skill at level one before that skill can be improved.

What are the primary skills needed to crew a ship?

Pilot
Navigator
Engineer
Steward
Medic
Gunner

A character taking a position on a starship must have at least level one in the role that he fills.


STEWARD

The above is true for all positions except for Steward. That position can be filled by a character with Steward-0. And that skill is one of the skills listed as appropriate as a default skill. This makes the position of Steward the only position in the basic Classic Traveller game that can be filled by ANY character.

So, if a player go through character generation with you, and he ends up with a character with absolutely no skills useful on a merchant vessel, he can always be the steward.

And, the steward is a fun roleplaying role on a ship. The steward is the main contact between the ship and the passengers. Typically, any roleplaying the Ref does with passengers aboard the ship is done with the player playing the ship's steward.

Let's continue this in the next post.

 

[pendragonman]

Too easy a question.

No one has pilot, the engineer is the only one with medic.

Correct answer, while using RAW:

The CAPTAIN is one of the PCs. They HIRE a pilot and medic. If the ship is armed they would need gunner(s) as well. Also, without someone with Navigation they are stuck with jump tapes.

The hired pilot and medic become ready made replacements when the overly personal combat loaded PCs get into the inevitable (inevitable because they loaded up on gun combat, so are likely to be quick to shoot players) gunfight that kills at least one of them.

 

[Supplement Four]

Where can a character gain the primary ship skills?


Where do CT Pilots come from?

There are only three careers where a character can become a pilot, and in each of those the character must be highly educated with EDU 8+. Even then, there's only a 1-in-6 chance per term (provided the table is selected by the player) that the character will obtain the Pilot skill.

Those three careers are: Navy, Scout, and Merchant.

So, Pilots are pretty rare.





Where do CT Navigators come from?

Those same 3 careers that produce pilots also produce navigators, yet becoming a navigator is slightly easier than becoming a pilot.

In the Navy, the chance to become a navigator is 1/6 per term if the character is highly educated with EDU 8+.

In the Scouts and Merchants, the chance is 1/6 per term for any character (if the correct table is selected, of course) regardless of EDU.

So, it is more common to see a Scout or Merchant navigator than it is one with a prior career in the Navy.





Where do engineers come from?

The same three careers produce engineers, but where the Scouts and Merchants produce more navigators, the Navy produces more engineers.

In the Navy, any character has a 1/6 chance per term to gain the Engineer skill.

In the Scouts and Merchants, these characters have a 1/6 chance per term only if the character is highly educated with EDU 8+.







Where do Stewards come from?

As I explained in the OP, any character from the basic six careers can become a steward because Steward-0 is a default skill, and the minimum requirement to become a steward is Steward-0, unlike level 1 required for the other positions.

So, stewards come from all walks of life. And, it is the one guarantee that a player can count on if he wants his character to join a ship's crew.

But,there are better stewards and there are so-so stewards. Of all the careers, the Merchants (quite logically) turn out the best stewards.

A character following the Merchant career has a 1/6 chance per term of gaining the Steward-1 skill. None of the other five careers provide training as a steward.





Where do Medics come from?

It may surprise you to know that, of all the primary ship skills, Medical is the easiest to obtain (not counting Steward, which anybody can have automatically).

If the character is highly educated with EDU 8+, then all six basic careers provide medical training with a 1/6 chance per term.

And, with the Scouts and Merchants, there is no education requirement. Any Scout or Merchant has a 1/6 chance per term of gaining Medic-1.





Where do Gunners come from?

Surprisingly, Gunners are the lowest paid position on a ship's crew, on average, but gunners are fairly rare. Gunners are from the Navy, Scouts, or Merchants, and a character in one of those careers has a 1/6 chance of becoming a Gunner per term. The Navy, though, releases twice as many characters with Gunnery skill as any Scout or Merchant.









To recap...

PILOT

If you want to be a pilot, then you need to have EDU 8. If you don't have EDU 8+, then you cannot be a pilot.

To be a pilot, you must join the Navy, Scouts, or Merchants.





NAVIGATOR

If you want to become a ship's navigator, then you should join either the Scouts or the Merchants. If you have EDU 8+, you also have the option of joining the Navy.





ENGINEER

If you want to become an engineer, then the Navy is your best bet. If you are highly educated with EDU 8+, you also have the option of joining either the Scouts or Merchants.





STEWARD

As discussed above, any character can become a steward. The best stewards, though, usually come from the Merchant career.






MEDIC

If you want to be the Medical Officer on a ship, you're in luck as long as you are educated with EDU 8+. Any of the six basic careers will produce medics.

If you don't have a high EDU, then the Scouts or Merchants should be your career of choice.





GUNNER

If you are looking to be a gunner, then your career choice should be either in the Navy, Scouts, or Merchants.

 

[Supplement Four]

No one has pilot, the engineer is the only one with medic.

Correct answer, while using RAW:

The CAPTAIN is one of the PCs. They HIRE a pilot and medic. If the ship is armed they would need gunner(s) as well. Also, without someone with Navigation they are stuck with jump tapes.

The hired pilot and medic become ready made replacements when the overly personal combat loaded PCs get into the inevitable (inevitable because they loaded up on gun combat, so are likely to be quick to shoot players) gunfight that kills at least one of them.

Yes, very good advice.

But, I was focusing on using RAW to get the PCs to gain the skills needed. As I will explain once my posts show up.

 

[mike wightman]

Would you set up a game where the characters are going to be special forces types doing contract work for a megacorporation and then watch the players pick merchant and other as their chosen careers?

If I am going to run a game based on a merchant ship the players will operate then they have to either go through navy, marines, scout or merchant to get the required skills or - you did say to use the rules as written yes? - put them through technical college upon mustering out. The rules for this are in the experience section.

 

[Supplement Four]

Would you set up a game where the characters are going to be special forces types doing contract work for a megacorporation and then watch the players pick merchant and other as their chosen careers?

Probably not, but that's a very specialized scenario where as there are a lot of Travellers, mustering out of careers, looking for their next gig that end up on tramp freighters.

If I am going to run a game based on a merchant ship the players will operate then they have to either go through navy, marines, scout or merchant to get the required skills or - you did say to use the rules as written yes? - put them through technical college upon mustering out. The rules for this are in the experience section.

If you would read the OP completely, you'll see that I covered that option already. The point of the thread is to show CT gamers...another method that is also RAW.

I'll post it in a bit.

 

[Supplement Four]

ONE MORE CHANCE....


So, you've got a neat character that you love, mustered out Scout. The game the Ref is going to set up for you and your fellow players is a traditional, ship-based, free-trader scenario with the crew exploring a new sector of space. But, our Scout did not obtain any of the six primary ship-board skills!

Is being the ship's steward your only option?

Nope.





The answer here is a skill called: JACK OF ALL TRADES.

By the CT definition: This skill is a general ability which may be applied to nearly any endeavor at the discretion of the referee. The jack of all trades can attempt activity which is not normally possible due to the absence of skills or expertise. Unskilled people have no idea how to even start many projects; jack of all trades can apply this skill to such a project as if he or she has the skill. -- pg. 26. The Traveller Book.

(In addition, jack of all trades allows characters to be considered as Skill-0 for every skill listed in the Basic CT skill list. This means that JOT allows characters to avoid any penalties for not having the skill.)



Therefore, under the skill's definition, the character can be considered to have the necessary skill in order to use the Experience Rules, straight out of character generation. See page 103 of the Traveller book.





How would it work?

The player rolls up, say, a Scout character to play in the Ref's tramp freighter adventure. The Scout does not have any of the six primary ship skills necessary on a vessel. And, let's say that the Steward position has already been filled by another player's character.

How can this Scout character be useful as a member of the ship's crew? How can he fill one of the six primary positions?

If the Scout character has the Jack of All Trades skill, he can use the Experience rules to improve a skill straight out of character generation.

Let's say this Scout would like to be the ship's pilot. Well, he follows the Experience rules. The JOT skill gives him the prerequisite he needs to attempt the improvement.

The player rolls the 8+ Dedication throw. If successful, the player picks two skills to improve. Each of these skills is improved by +1 level immediately and stay that way for 4 years, unless the character drops the study program.

The stipulation is that the character must have the improved skill at level 1 in order to improve it. Here, the character's JOT skill serves as that prerequisite for the Pilot skill.

Doing this, our Scout automatically gets Pilot-1 and can serve as the ship's pilot.









How does a character get the JOT skill?

The easiest way is through the Scout career. Though the character has a 1/6 chance each term to get the skill, the skill pops up on 3 separate tables.

It's also a 1/6 chance per term to get the skill in the Navy or Merchants. Each career has it on one table.

The Other career also offers the skill at 1/6 chance per term, but the character must be highly educated with EDU 8+.

 

[Supplement Four]

What about Marines and Army Characters?



Notice, from what I've written above, that the only option for a Marine or Army character to be useful on a tramp freighter is by using the Steward option, gained by using the default skill rules.

The point: If you know that your campaign is going to feature a typical Traveller tramp freighter scenario, the Marines and Army should not be your career choice.

Still, if you follow the game rules, you may have not choice. CT character generation rules allow you to attempt one of the six basic careers. But, if you fail enlistment, you are subject to the Draft. And, with the Draft, there is a 1/3 chance that you will be in either the Marines or the Army.

Of course, the primary option for these types of characters will be as the Steward. It pays decent, and it's a fun, roleplaying oriented role to play on the ship.





Other skills can be quite useful on a tramp freighter. Although these are not primary ship skills, these secondary skills still can be quite valuable to a crew. Most ship owners will try to crew their vessels with people who have the primary skills--and give advantage to those that have primary skills and a few secondary skills. A character that only has secondary skills is typically not hired on a vessel, but maybe this character can roleplay his way into working passage as a deckhand for a few jumps.



What Secondary Skills are Useful for a ship's crew?

Administration - to deal with the various red-tape involved with governmental agencies planet side.

Any Vehicle Skill - If the vessel has such a vehicle for use. Air/Raft, ATV, Ship's Boat, etc.

Bribery - it's the normal way of business on some worlds.

Computer - because the ship is full of them.

Electronics - no brainer.

Forgery - could be helpful...to the right tramp crew.

Mechanical - no brainer.

Streetwise - to catch that "special" cargo only heard through the lips of a plastered patron of the closest startown dive.

Vacc Suit - because its easier to move crates around the cargo deck in zero G.

 

[atpollard]

Isn't Pilot the free skill for being a Scout?
(No Edu 8+ or lucky roll required ... except survival)

 

[Supplement Four]

Isn't Pilot the free skill for being a Scout?
(No Edu 8+ or lucky roll required ... except survival)

Good catch! I forgot about that!

Scout gets Pilot-1 on his first term.

Also, a Merchantman, when he makes First Officer, gets Pilot-1.

 

[BlackBat242]

Book 1 (1981 edition), page 15, Rank and Service Skills table (bottom right of page) lists the skills that are automatically accrued by virtue of rank and service - as Scouts have no rank, the entry "Scout....... Pilot-1" can only mean that ALL Scout characters receive Pilot-1 during their first term in the service!

The table also lists: Merchant First Officer.......Pilot-1", so any Merchant character that achieves Rank 4 (First Officer) is also automatically qualified as a starship Pilot.

 

[pendragonman]

S4, if your whole purpose is to sell people on JoT, then say so. Anyone who has read the skill definitions would immediately recognize this is a possible choice and is somewhat useful in extremis.

It never confers level one in a skill per RAW, thus for short term JoT will work and is a handy role playing tool (makes for excellent storytelling) but it is not a long term solution as few players will have their character dedicate the required time to maintain the course of study. In fact, unless the GM is willing to handwave away the study program you have created a new book keeping problem.

 

[mike wightman]

If you would read the OP completely, you'll see that I covered that option already. The point of the thread is to show CT gamers...another method that is also RAW.

I'll post it in a bit.

I did, you never mentioned the college option, which is rules as written.

 

[mike wightman]

Where can a character gain the primary ship skills?


Where do CT Pilots come from?

There are only three careers where a character can become a pilot, and in each of those the character must be highly educated with EDU 8+. Even then, there's only a 1-in-6 chance per term (provided the table is selected by the player) that the character will obtain the Pilot skill.

Those three careers are: Navy, Scout, and Merchant.

So, Pilots are pretty rare.

Nope, every single scout has pilot 1 as an automatic skill, regardless of their education.

To recap...

PILOT

If you want to be a pilot, then you need to have EDU 8. If you don't have EDU 8+, then you cannot be a pilot.

Yes you can, join the scouts...

 

[RandyB]

Would you set up a game where the characters are going to be special forces types doing contract work for a megacorporation and then watch the players pick merchant and other as their chosen careers?

If I am going to run a game based on a merchant ship the players will operate then they have to either go through navy, marines, scout or merchant to get the required skills or - you did say to use the rules as written yes? - put them through technical college upon mustering out. The rules for this are in the experience section.

Emphasis mine.

I endorse this. The players' choice of services must match the campaign concept. If the Referee wants "tramp freighter" and the players want "mercenaries", no "New Perspective on RAW" will reconcile the difference - it is an Out Of Game issue.

 

[Supplement Four]

I did, you never mentioned the college option, which is rules as written.

The post was about basic Traveller. Just the Traveller Book or Books 1-3. No college option available.

 

[Supplement Four]

Nope, every single scout has pilot 1 as an automatic skill, regardless of their education.

I mentioned that was a good catch after atpollard posted it. My post doesn't seem to have shown up.

 

[Supplement Four]

I mentioned that was a good catch after atpollard posted it. My post doesn't seem to have shown up.

It finally showed up. It's in it's place up thread.

 

[mike wightman]

The post was about basic Traveller. Just the Traveller Book or Books 1-3. No college option available.

Really, what's this then?

In addition, any character may, once during his or her life, take a sabbatical (for
4 years) for the purpose of specifically gaining a skill through education. Such activity
is the equivalent of a technical school or college education, and allows the
acquisition of one specific non-weapon skill with a level of 2. Cost of this education
is CR 70,000.

In the experience section - education.

 

[creativehum]

The thing about Classic Traveller is that there are these rules that interlock in interesting ways... that are scattered across the books in often non-intuitive ways.

I think that's part of the charm and strength of the game. But I can also see why folks spent the next twenty years in RPG design coming up with unified resolution mechanics and game systems.