The Re-boot of my universe.

[Cryton]

I have recently "re-booted" my long standing Traveller game. My players, initially were horrified, but have since gotten used to the idea, and as they like the new setting, I thought I'd share with you guys.

For the base on my setting, I'm using the Traveller 1248 setting books, as they leave whats going to happen in the future, entirely up to me. Also, as the books are primarily rules set unspecific, it leaves me the ability to choose what Traveller rules set I'm going to use.

I'm making the following changes to the base setting:

A)Virus: Unknown to most everyone, "Modern" virus and cym strains no longer have the ability to infect systems like they could upon the viruses initial release. In fact, as it was an experimental weopon, and an initially untested one, no one knew that the modifications that were made to the cyms were not permanent. The modifications have stopped being passed on after the third generation of virus. This means all 4th gen and beyond viral entitys now use the rules from the Signal GK module, combined with the personality types from the 1248 books. Virus is back to being Cym chips. The effects of this are that its harder for Virus to spread to other systems now, as they have to physicaly get their progeny chip to the new system for it to effect a takeover. Since first thru third generation viral entity are exceedingly rare in 1248 (ie, effectively extinct, unless I decide to use one), Virus can still be deadly, but this change lets me choose HOW deadly, and in what ways.

B)Hop Drives: I'm thinking of giving Averys 4th imperium a new technological breakthrough that will give them an incerdible edge for rebuilding. The Hop Drive. As the base TL (according to T5) for a hop drive is TL14, and I'm using the normal progression for drive advancement with them, they will only be able to produce Hop "1" drives, giving them the equivolent of jump 10 while only spending 24hrs in jumpspace. Yes, I know what a major advantage Hop drives are, I have not made the final decision on this yet, but it will really open up the play area, as well as give me tons of plot avenues.

Aside from those two changes, I haven't seen a need to change any of the other setting material.

If you can see any ways to improve on what I've done, or ideas that might add to my setting, I'd love to hear your ideas!

Thanks, Rich.

 

[Gray Lensman]

I have recently "re-booted" my long standing Traveller game. My players, initially were horrified, but have since gotten used to the idea, and as they like the new setting, I thought I'd share with you guys.

GOOD FOR YOU!!

B)Hop Drives: I'm thinking of giving Averys 4th imperium a new technological breakthrough that will give them an incerdible edge for rebuilding. The Hop Drive. As the base TL (according to T5) for a hop drive is TL14, and I'm using the normal progression for drive advancement with them, they will only be able to produce Hop "1" drives, giving them the equivolent of jump 10 while only spending 24hrs in jumpspace. Yes, I know what a major advantage Hop drives are, I have not made the final decision on this yet, but it will really open up the play area, as well as give me tons of plot avenues.

Using T5 before it is a finished product??? IF it ever IS a finished product.
Okay, Good for you, it is your game after all, which is one of the Caveats of RPGs.

I rebooted a BECMI game once, Had them walk thru a door, pass out and wake up on a starship (with AI) in the Spinward Marches. One player out of eight quit "I don't do Sci Fi". Everybody else had a grand time and we still play that campaign once a month (although we went back to D&D for the other three weeks).

 

[robject]

Careful with the Hop. Players may scurry off to parts unknown.

 

[Cryton]

Careful with the Hop. Players may scurry off to parts unknown.

That is why I'm unsure of if I will or will not introduce it. The 1248 sourcebooks do a good job of covering whats going on in charted space, and as I have access to the Travellermap.com and a host of sector maps from all editions of Traveller, I should be able to handle their "scurries" with a minimum of stress. Just not sure yet if I want to.

One fix I'm thinking about is designating a play area (the 4 sectors in the 1248 sourcebook 2), and making a statement of "Characters leaving the designated play areas have left the game". I will of course reserve the right to expand the play area at an undisclosed future point.

~Rich

 

[BytePro]

Couldn't you limit the scope of availability of 'hop' drives and also, since they are 'new tech' introduce limiting factors, like reliability - i.e. more likely to mis-'hop', say back into more regular haunts...

Unless this is a sandbox, you'd be providing nice places that take advantage of the 'hop', otherwise, why add the option?

 

[Cryton]

Couldn't you limit the scope of availability of 'hop' drives and also, since they are 'new tech' introduce limiting factors, like reliability - i.e. more likely to mis-'hop', say back into more regular haunts...

The Hop drive will be limited in its availability if I introduce it. Initially it will be used only by the 4th Imperial Navy and the Scout Service, and of course specifically designated 4th Imperial Agents (read trouble-shooters, like possibly the PCs) so that more can be done with less. Eventually, once the 4th Imperium has become more stable, the Hop drive will be made available to others, allowing for 4th Imperial expansion.

One major plot line I have under consideration is that the PCs will be responsible for keeping the Hop drive out of "The wrong hands", as well as troubleshooting for the Emperor. Pretty much it would be the "Gimmic" in a long term campain.

At least thats the general idea I have for a game

~Rich

 

[robject]

Ah. Yes, it is well suited as a Gimmick. Make sure the ships have a backup Jump drive.

 

[Dragoner]

I'm planning an adventure where there is a race, players etc., to get an experimental Zhodani ship with a hop drive, in the Fulani sector.

 

[Cryton]

I'm planning an adventure where there is a race, players etc., to get an experimental Zhodani ship with a hop drive, in the Fulani sector.

Thats awesome! Let me know how it turns out!

~Rich

 

[BytePro]

So, where are Hop drives defined - is that a T5 only thing?

 

[Cryton]

So, where are Hop drives defined - is that a T5 only thing?

Its a T5 thing. I highly encourage you to get a copy.

~RIch

 

[aramis]

So, where are Hop drives defined - is that a T5 only thing?

They are one of several new drive types in T5... and readily backportable to other editions.

 

[Kilgs]

A stutterwarp drive would also work, especially if you removed the 7.7LY (2 parsec) limit. I also ginned up a system similar to Renegade Legion's tachyon drive which allows jumps to 16 or so, the speed depending on the Jsize of the ship's engine. Helps keep fuel and such as part of the game. Basically, any ship can do it's Jump in 3 or 5 days time but it can keep going in the tachyon field to go further. Use of the tachyon fields builds up energy on structures and organisms. The known limit is 20 days before things begin to break down (enter Reavers and exploding ships).

 

[Cryton]

Stutterwarp is a great drive system, I've liked since its introduction in Traveller 2300. However, it dosen't fit in with my setting, while introducing one of the new drive systems from T5 is a much better fit.

And yes, I had already considered using stutterwarp, but after many a long discussion with Will, I dropped the idea. Mainly because of the thought of a stutterwarp equiped vampire fleet. (shudder)

~Rich

 

[Dragoner]

Thats awesome! Let me know how it turns out!

It is just in planning phase, but I will post the results, or even the adventure after a play test.

 

[Cryton]

After reviewing the 1248 books I've stumbled on something else that I have decided that I am definately going to change:

C) Empress wave: The only thing that I'm going to change here is that the Empress Wave consists only of the Psionic and a visual light component. The hard radiation aspects of the wave died out a long time ago. This is because I'm an Astronomy major, and I cant wrap my head around a hard-energy wave thats strong enough to cross a gulf of 30 000+ Light-years thats generated by ANY sort of exploding star thats anything short of the destruction of a super massive black hole. And astronomical evidence only points to there being one of those in our galaxy, and its explosion would be the death knell of the Milkey Way. I can however wrap my head around a Psionicaly generated wave created by the telepathically linked minds of a worlds population as they die. Thats good fun sci-fi. Really dosn't change anything in the setting to drop the hard-rad wave either. In fact, that the Empress Wave carries a warning about hard radiation shows that the message was way stronger, and has gone much farther than those who sent it, ever though it would.

~Rich

 

[Cryton]

Ok. Heres the final bits for my re-boot.

I have decided to go with my ideas for introducing the Hop drives to MTU. Thank you guys for making me think it through, and making me expand on how I was going to use it.

Next, is the system I'm going to use.

D)MgT: Due to it being readily available (both myself and several of my players have copies), and being its the most current version in stores, I'm going to be using Mongoose Traveller (as one person puts it "Warts and all") for the base system. I've done a port-over on the Cym chips from CTs Signal GK so I can use my modified Virus version, and everything else in the 1248 books is system independant or has enough explination in the books to use it with no issues. I have also told my players that, if they want copies of the setting, they can get them on disc from FFE. So I think I'm set.

I have only two things to ask of those of you who are familiar with the setting.

1)Have I missed any major elements that might require tweaking for use with MgT?

2)and does anyone know anything about the Wanderers?

~Rich

 

[Dragoner]

So I have decided on a reboot as well, moving up the timeline to 1323 to get away from all the old stuff. Some things will be: Virus has evolved into friendly AI, the Imperium has reformed after what was called the "interregnum" (of the rebellion and virus years) and the empress wave was overstated in it's threat. So now the TL high stellar will be 16, which means going back through the books to see what changes that brings. Also, the Imperium is at war with the Hivers and K'kree, because of the K'kree invasions and the Hiver manipulation that caused everything to collapse in the first place. There is also a new menace in the Guild Droyne, who are high stellar TL 17, they come from off the map spinward of the Zhodani.

 

[Cryton]

Sounds sweet Dragoner.

I just started a plot thread in my new campaign, seems the Droyne in MTU have become a LOT more active as late, their ships seem to be quietly going all over the place. What the players have been able to determine so far is that the Droyne seem to be uplifting every chirper population they find, teaching them to caste, in effect, creating new Droyne populations all over charted space. Needless to say, no one knows why, and the Droyne aren't talking ....

By the way, I am using the Mongoose variant on the Secret of the Ancients, you know, Grandfather lied, and he's not the only ancient survivor ....

 

[Dragoner]

I haven't read the mongoose adventure. The Guild Droyne imtu are caste by guild, not coyns and hundreds of thousands of years ago, were genetically modified to be more human size and flightless, no wings or hollow bones. They are survivors of a group that fled the cataclysmic war and thus hate Humans, other Droyne, etc of charted space because to them grandfather is the devil. They are actually the reason for the downfall of the Zhodani, they look at everyone in charted space as servants of evil, maybe not Hivers though. Moving forward enough, I just skip over all the history that came before, where now I can have new paradigms and move into new territory, the travellermap gives blanks for fulani, theta borealis, etc, which I'm slowly fleshing out. Thus using CT (plus select T5), I can use all the old CT careers and races, with a new nemesis that is better than a computer virus.