The next career is Diplomat which I had originally limited to Marines and Navy but on further thought it is an option for the Army as well. This has an impact on both the aims of the diplomatic corp and the view of the Imperial Government held by non-members. I am not implying that the diplomatic goals are all militarily oriented but that military posture is the most important thing to the Imperials. Conversely it means outside powers are probably wary at the very least and have a more militant posture than would necessarily be the case if approached differently.
It is not easy to join with a higher education level being helpful but having the right family and friends is much more helpful. Survival is virtually guaranteed with a not very needed bump from having a good education. A commission is not terribly hard to get those who can think quickly have an edge. A promotion on the other hand is very hard equal in difficulty to the Navy again the friends and family plan helps your chances. Your odds of keeping your job are better than all three of the base careers although retiring can't be counted on.
When you muster out you can get low passage; Int; Edu; Weapon; Soc; high passage and/or Traveller's Aid. So the Diplomatic corp competes in the more intellectual Separation Games but also fields teams in marksmanship and fencing. Also working with the right people can get you ahead in society, let you travel in style and possibly get on one of the high prize games. As for cash it is the most lucrative service as of yet. I have expanded my vision of mustering out to be a huge game show spectacle that all services have their members compete in during their final 6 months of duty. The various awards represent training or actual prizes won.
Onto skills with a preamble. Diplomats get Liaison as a default skill and can get Interrogation; Recruiting and Instruction from the skill tables and none of them are base skills. None of these seem valuable enough to me to add to the game. There are only interpersonal skills in the base skill list. Bribery covers getting someone to do something against their self interest. Leadership is inspiring confidence or at least obedience in underlings. Steward covers operating as or in a subordinate position. Finally Streetwise is functioning in a hostile social group. So I am replacing Liaison with Streetwise to represent being comfortable with strangers and strange customs. Interrogation is replaced with Bribery to represent offer a personal benefit to outweigh any loyalties. Recruiting becomes Leadership as it is being the kind of person that attracts followers. Instruction is replaced by Steward because it is the last one. Seriously though learning a new skill is covered without the need for Instruction and I think Diplomats should be or at least have the opportunity to learn how to deal with any social situation.
The Personal Development table has another add on skill I missed Carousing which I am replacing with Steward. So you get Str; Edu; Int; Blade; Gun and Steward. Strength is a little odd seeming to imply training in resisting abductions attempts perhaps. The mental traits are handy in social situations. The 2 combat options make sense as Diplomats will be outside Imperial borders so self reliance in holding the embassy is a good thing. Steward is good for making your boss think you are a good little drone. The Service Skill table covers those skills the service uses most frequently Int; Vacc Suit; Vehicle x2; Gambling and Computer. Okay, that doesn't make a lot of sense but we'll work with it. Intelligence is thinking quickly so that can be useful, Vacc Suit is plausible because Diplomats spend a great deal of time traveling in space (also it is the same as cloth without being seen as armor). Vehicle can mean the lower ranking diplomats operate as chauffeurs a lot. Gambling is endemic in Imperial service and Computer is valuable in any technical society. The first Advanced Education table is more along the lines of the service skill tables for the services I have done so far. It offers Forgery; Streetwise; Bribery; Leadership; Steward and Admin leaving me with the impression of a service without an abundance of scruples. Forgery and Bribery are both underhanded and illegal ways of achieving your objective, Streetwise isn't necessarily dealing with criminals just those suspicious or hostile to you, Leadership and Steward are more dealing with your own people and Administration is dealing with the multi-part overlords of all. The restricted Advanced Education table has Streetwise x2; Admin; Computer; Soc and JOT. So you are dealing with foreigners more frequently, an increased involvement with paperwork, feathering your own cap and dealing with whatever comes up using what you have at hand.
Meh, I don't hate what I came up with but it doesn't do much for me either. It would appear that the Imperial Diplomatic Corps is a somewhat shifty and paranoid group that emphasizes awareness that you are among strangers and you should look for weak links to exploit. Being one of the few services to offer leadership training they do value bold thinking while also jealously guarding the perks of rank like being driven around and being deferred to.
Saturday, September 3, 2016
Return to Starter Traveller
No longer being one financial setback away from homelessness I stumbled on my old series of blog posts going through Starter Traveller and Supplement 4 to extrapolate a version of the future using the rolls as presented. I had managed to get through the base 6 careers and did the first two in supplement 4 which I was using as secondary careers that opened up after an initial enlistment in one of the 6 basic careers. The next one up is the Sailors open to Army personal who have reenlisted and then succeed in an enlistment roll. My thinking is the Army is tasked with fighting on a worlds surface and the Sailors specialize in an environmental subset of a worlds surface. To summarize the Navy fights in space over interstellar distances and the Marines fight to control the approaches to a planet.
The Sailors are more selective in who they accept with a slightly higher roll and higher stats to get a bonus to the roll. They value endurance and Strength with the latter having a higher effect. The survival rate is the same however the Army gets a boost from a fairly mundane level of education and sailors get a bump from a better than average Endurance. The chances for commission and promotion are the same but a high endurance helps to get a commission in the Sailors as opposed to the Army's Education and both feature a bonus from Education for Promotion although the Sailor's need a higher stat to get the bonus. Finally if you get into the Sailors you have a better chance to keep your job needing a 6 as opposed to the Army's 7. Looking at mustering out we see Low Passage; +1 Edu; Weapon x2; High Passage x2 and if you are rank 5 or 6 +1 Soc. So they can win the base line passage in the Separation Games and the service is equally competitive in the blade and marksmanship contests. On the higher end of the scale Sailors seem more welcome in the better social circles with High Passages and the chance to move up in the world at least socially. Their mustering out pay is identical to the regular Army.
Skill advancement is odd in that you do not get an automatic Watercraft - 1 unlike Flyer who all get Aircraft - 1. The Personal Development Table has +1 to the physical stats; Gambling; Brawling and Carousing. So the Service doesn't promote education as a way to advance in life. Like most branches of the Imperial government they promote gambling. They train their members in unarmed combat implying much of their work is more law enforcement rather than combat. Carousing isn't one of the Starter Traveller skills and I don't really see it offering much to the game beyond Steward or Streetwise the 2 closest matches. Harking back to the impression of a law enforcement component it gets replaced by Streetwise. Service skills are Gun; Commo; Fwd Obs; Vehicle x2 and Battle Dress. Keep in mind I am viewing these as the skills the service needs most to perform it's job. Gun Combat isn't surprising for any of the armed services. Communications is another skill not in Starter Traveller and also one I don't see a pressing need to add I am replacing it with Navigation which covers the operation of sensors as well as going from point A to B. Forward Observer is a sensible skill for a service operating vessels armed with stand off weaponry. Vehicle as opposed to the more specific Watercraft of the next table fits with my premise of this being a subordinate branch of the Army in that they could be trained to operate any vehicle and most vehicles operate on or near the worlds surface. This can also account for Aircraft Carriers and Amphibious Assault ships. Battle Dress exists are an item in Starter Traveller but not a separate skill and I can't see why the branch of the Army specialize for aquatic missions would be the only branch to get it. It is replaced with Vacc Suit to represent the most common version of diving suit. The first Advanced Education table has Watercraft; Electronics; Mechanical; Gravitics; Navigation and Demolitions. I am somewhat at a loss to rationalize why the service would provide a more restricted version of Vehicle as an Advanced skill. Keep in mind that Vehicle has Watercraft under it so you are twice as likely to achieve this using the Service Skill table. That being said it isn't unreasonable that the service would specifically train people in the operation of watercraft so I won't change it. Electrical and Mechanical are both necessary to operate any kind of vehicle. Gravitics is another added later skill I don't see as adding much value so it become Engineering which covers fusion power plants the most common source of power. Navigation is also a sensible skill even with its interstellar applications. Demolitions is another addition that seems way to narrow a skill when using the Starter Traveller set given the small amount of skills you are likely to get. I am replacing it with Gunnery so the earlier Forward Observer skill has some use as otherwise there is no way to get experience in firing heavy weapons in the Sailors. The final Advanced Education table provides Medical; Vehicle; Streetwise; Computer; Admin and JOT. Medical; Computer and Administration are reasonable for any service to value enough to provide training for. The generic Vehicle as opposed to Watercraft strikes me as odd although not enough to change it. Streetwise seems to reaffirm my view of the Sailors operating as a paramilitary police force with specific train in infiltrating underground groups. And JOT strikes me as a program to train people for unconventional problem solving.
And now the part I have enjoyed most doing this posts, what can we interpret the various rolls to mean? Looking at the skills you can earn it strikes me that the Sailors are them Imperial occupation force. The Navy gets you to the System then the Marines get you a way to land the Army on the world. After the Army eliminates organized resistance they plop down some subs and carriers to support a few divisions of Amphibious troops and leave. The prevalence of vehicle rather than Watercraft means (to me at least) the most common craft the average member of the service operate are not watercraft at all. I am aware submarines can exists undetected for extended periods of time but they cannot retake a world or even materially impact an occupation force on a global scale. This means the water is the best place to keep your occupying troops as it would be extremely difficult to mount even harassing attacks versus ships either underwater or 100+ klicks from the nearest shore. Again with vehicle being so prevalent most sailors are more frequently traveling by something other than watercraft. Brawling being as likely as Gun Combat implies it is as desirable not to kill a target as to just shoot them, you can't kill your way to being popular with the locals. Streetwise (even before my addition) implies that the service trains people to move about in situations where they will be mistrusted but still need to get information which seems like a good thing for an occupying force to know. It also explains train for JOT as no other of the Armed Services provide it.
The Sailors are more selective in who they accept with a slightly higher roll and higher stats to get a bonus to the roll. They value endurance and Strength with the latter having a higher effect. The survival rate is the same however the Army gets a boost from a fairly mundane level of education and sailors get a bump from a better than average Endurance. The chances for commission and promotion are the same but a high endurance helps to get a commission in the Sailors as opposed to the Army's Education and both feature a bonus from Education for Promotion although the Sailor's need a higher stat to get the bonus. Finally if you get into the Sailors you have a better chance to keep your job needing a 6 as opposed to the Army's 7. Looking at mustering out we see Low Passage; +1 Edu; Weapon x2; High Passage x2 and if you are rank 5 or 6 +1 Soc. So they can win the base line passage in the Separation Games and the service is equally competitive in the blade and marksmanship contests. On the higher end of the scale Sailors seem more welcome in the better social circles with High Passages and the chance to move up in the world at least socially. Their mustering out pay is identical to the regular Army.
Skill advancement is odd in that you do not get an automatic Watercraft - 1 unlike Flyer who all get Aircraft - 1. The Personal Development Table has +1 to the physical stats; Gambling; Brawling and Carousing. So the Service doesn't promote education as a way to advance in life. Like most branches of the Imperial government they promote gambling. They train their members in unarmed combat implying much of their work is more law enforcement rather than combat. Carousing isn't one of the Starter Traveller skills and I don't really see it offering much to the game beyond Steward or Streetwise the 2 closest matches. Harking back to the impression of a law enforcement component it gets replaced by Streetwise. Service skills are Gun; Commo; Fwd Obs; Vehicle x2 and Battle Dress. Keep in mind I am viewing these as the skills the service needs most to perform it's job. Gun Combat isn't surprising for any of the armed services. Communications is another skill not in Starter Traveller and also one I don't see a pressing need to add I am replacing it with Navigation which covers the operation of sensors as well as going from point A to B. Forward Observer is a sensible skill for a service operating vessels armed with stand off weaponry. Vehicle as opposed to the more specific Watercraft of the next table fits with my premise of this being a subordinate branch of the Army in that they could be trained to operate any vehicle and most vehicles operate on or near the worlds surface. This can also account for Aircraft Carriers and Amphibious Assault ships. Battle Dress exists are an item in Starter Traveller but not a separate skill and I can't see why the branch of the Army specialize for aquatic missions would be the only branch to get it. It is replaced with Vacc Suit to represent the most common version of diving suit. The first Advanced Education table has Watercraft; Electronics; Mechanical; Gravitics; Navigation and Demolitions. I am somewhat at a loss to rationalize why the service would provide a more restricted version of Vehicle as an Advanced skill. Keep in mind that Vehicle has Watercraft under it so you are twice as likely to achieve this using the Service Skill table. That being said it isn't unreasonable that the service would specifically train people in the operation of watercraft so I won't change it. Electrical and Mechanical are both necessary to operate any kind of vehicle. Gravitics is another added later skill I don't see as adding much value so it become Engineering which covers fusion power plants the most common source of power. Navigation is also a sensible skill even with its interstellar applications. Demolitions is another addition that seems way to narrow a skill when using the Starter Traveller set given the small amount of skills you are likely to get. I am replacing it with Gunnery so the earlier Forward Observer skill has some use as otherwise there is no way to get experience in firing heavy weapons in the Sailors. The final Advanced Education table provides Medical; Vehicle; Streetwise; Computer; Admin and JOT. Medical; Computer and Administration are reasonable for any service to value enough to provide training for. The generic Vehicle as opposed to Watercraft strikes me as odd although not enough to change it. Streetwise seems to reaffirm my view of the Sailors operating as a paramilitary police force with specific train in infiltrating underground groups. And JOT strikes me as a program to train people for unconventional problem solving.
And now the part I have enjoyed most doing this posts, what can we interpret the various rolls to mean? Looking at the skills you can earn it strikes me that the Sailors are them Imperial occupation force. The Navy gets you to the System then the Marines get you a way to land the Army on the world. After the Army eliminates organized resistance they plop down some subs and carriers to support a few divisions of Amphibious troops and leave. The prevalence of vehicle rather than Watercraft means (to me at least) the most common craft the average member of the service operate are not watercraft at all. I am aware submarines can exists undetected for extended periods of time but they cannot retake a world or even materially impact an occupation force on a global scale. This means the water is the best place to keep your occupying troops as it would be extremely difficult to mount even harassing attacks versus ships either underwater or 100+ klicks from the nearest shore. Again with vehicle being so prevalent most sailors are more frequently traveling by something other than watercraft. Brawling being as likely as Gun Combat implies it is as desirable not to kill a target as to just shoot them, you can't kill your way to being popular with the locals. Streetwise (even before my addition) implies that the service trains people to move about in situations where they will be mistrusted but still need to get information which seems like a good thing for an occupying force to know. It also explains train for JOT as no other of the Armed Services provide it.
Tuesday, August 23, 2016
So there is a web comic I like, "The Far Side of Utopia" , and I am odd so I was speculating on leitmotif's of the characters. Not wanting to make a wall of text in a comment I figured I would post something on my disused blog. Besides seeing as I can't really afford paetron right now maybe I can at least get the author a little traffic.
Peter Kepler is our protagonist sort of. I mean He is the hero but is kind of a dick to people. So what to use for an eccentric genius we like but is kind of annoying? The Chitty Chitty Bang Bang theme as it is such an Earworm.
Mium Efiate definitely one of the reasons to read the comic. As has been posited recently he is kind of a troll though. Sing a long trollery
Naomi Atarah just rocks oddly her theme is classical. Is flash mob still a thing?
"Miko" whose real identity is the subject of debate and speculation. I am torn between her and Rovak as to which is my favorite. She has epic rants. Her dislike of leaving home makes me think "Flowers on the wall" (Nancy Sinatra's version) but really can it be anything but this
Kalisto Summers Peter's Ex is also pretty bad ass. As a cop she is unamused by Peter's casual attitude toward the law. So I am going with Marty Robbins
Aaron Kepler is the top cop in the story and Peter's harried uncle. I imagine he sounds like Frank from Hill Street Blues
Tom hasn't appeared much yet so I might have to change this but right now he "looks like he has been sleeping in a boxcar" the temptation of a Boxcar Willy song is too strong.
Nathan has made a showing yet but is listed in the cast page so he must be (wait for it..) A secret agent man!
Emmi Esk has appeared some but not a lot also a cop. Only scene of her's that sticks with me is the school battle where she got pushed beyond past trust of Peter. Hmmm, this is tricky how about?
Tyler Weber I mistakenly was originally not super impressed with and was proved wrong. So a build to something outstanding is required Heavy Metal and Cellos who knew?
Amy Selah is Tyler's 2IC but I can't recall her doing anything right now so I will punt.
Mione was super happy to out glower Marc but is Naomi's friend so happy and scary? It is an accidental nuclear war after all.
Maia Ethi was a witness to the school battle and seemed distracted from evacuating people. Ah seeing as I don't know that much about her I guess I will wonder what does the MSB agent say?
Magnolia Dai also at the school battle keeps focused on the evacuation strikes me as mommy type
Marc Idunni is another of Tyler's peeps. Taunted by Mione as not being as scary as her. Ummm I might disagree if she couldn't here me. Seems unimpressed most of the time can make a super powerful shield for Safety though I am doubtful on the dancing.
Lisa has been in few scene's but other than being Naomi's friend nothing pops out. When in doubt let's go with Cyndi Lauper
Arkady showed up for dining with Ila and humored her while being a nice guy.
Chief Cao is Tyler's sorta boss not a comment of the MSB's effectiveness
Ikirium Avon owns the bad guy company but doesn't seem like a bad guy. Running a company I'll go with Corporation Theme
Ryn "Ryn Tomorrow" Koko seems to be Ikirium's friend and go to guy to handle things in a non-supervillian mad scientist manner. He just wants you to give him money
Dr. Mir is the villain. No really she is bad news. I was thinking Playground in my mind to see if I could get a red x but I think she deserves some credit so this
Gate is introduced as a Mir Minion but we later see a different side
Jayce Myer a contractor for Avon and though not presented as a nice man he doesn't commit gratuitous violence. Oh yeah wanted my IDS and MSB he did get away but in honor of Naomi and his encounter
Ila Eften Mium's little sister and one of my favorite characters appears to be a tween girl with ridiculous magic power and Miko-esque interpersonal skills. Dwight Twilley can you offer advice to deal with her?
Saria is Ryn's assistant who unfortunately has to deal with Teal Hacker Girl, Miko and Dr. Mir. She seriously needs a raise working 9 to 5 at Avon. Although Ryn seems a decent boss or at least not supervillain and/or Mad Scientist.
Nick Otte, ladies and gentlemen I present jerk. Not a villian I guess but still arrogant self important piece of work.
Rovak Stas quite possibly my favorite character. Unfortunately he is a sociopath. A charming and pleasant one but he blows people up. He does however sign in and as a security officer I appreciate that so
Kyle Kepler is Peter's Dad and Aaron's brother only had one scene so far. On the one hand I admire backing your son on the other hand your son in Peter. Let's go with Commander Cody
??? also know as Teal haired hacker girl finds someone annoying (my bet is on Peter though I am not ruling out Muim trolling her). Poor thing got a job at Avon with Miko bad choice
???:?? Actually called Query peter's first sidekick now owned by his dad. an AI with an annoying sense of humor according to Kalli. I plan is to always agree with Kalli.
Peter Kepler is our protagonist sort of. I mean He is the hero but is kind of a dick to people. So what to use for an eccentric genius we like but is kind of annoying? The Chitty Chitty Bang Bang theme as it is such an Earworm.
Mium Efiate definitely one of the reasons to read the comic. As has been posited recently he is kind of a troll though. Sing a long trollery
Naomi Atarah just rocks oddly her theme is classical. Is flash mob still a thing?
"Miko" whose real identity is the subject of debate and speculation. I am torn between her and Rovak as to which is my favorite. She has epic rants. Her dislike of leaving home makes me think "Flowers on the wall" (Nancy Sinatra's version) but really can it be anything but this
Kalisto Summers Peter's Ex is also pretty bad ass. As a cop she is unamused by Peter's casual attitude toward the law. So I am going with Marty Robbins
Aaron Kepler is the top cop in the story and Peter's harried uncle. I imagine he sounds like Frank from Hill Street Blues
Tom hasn't appeared much yet so I might have to change this but right now he "looks like he has been sleeping in a boxcar" the temptation of a Boxcar Willy song is too strong.
Nathan has made a showing yet but is listed in the cast page so he must be (wait for it..) A secret agent man!
Emmi Esk has appeared some but not a lot also a cop. Only scene of her's that sticks with me is the school battle where she got pushed beyond past trust of Peter. Hmmm, this is tricky how about?
Tyler Weber I mistakenly was originally not super impressed with and was proved wrong. So a build to something outstanding is required Heavy Metal and Cellos who knew?
Amy Selah is Tyler's 2IC but I can't recall her doing anything right now so I will punt.
Mione was super happy to out glower Marc but is Naomi's friend so happy and scary? It is an accidental nuclear war after all.
Maia Ethi was a witness to the school battle and seemed distracted from evacuating people. Ah seeing as I don't know that much about her I guess I will wonder what does the MSB agent say?
Magnolia Dai also at the school battle keeps focused on the evacuation strikes me as mommy type
Marc Idunni is another of Tyler's peeps. Taunted by Mione as not being as scary as her. Ummm I might disagree if she couldn't here me. Seems unimpressed most of the time can make a super powerful shield for Safety though I am doubtful on the dancing.
Lisa has been in few scene's but other than being Naomi's friend nothing pops out. When in doubt let's go with Cyndi Lauper
Arkady showed up for dining with Ila and humored her while being a nice guy.
Chief Cao is Tyler's sorta boss not a comment of the MSB's effectiveness
Ikirium Avon owns the bad guy company but doesn't seem like a bad guy. Running a company I'll go with Corporation Theme
Ryn "Ryn Tomorrow" Koko seems to be Ikirium's friend and go to guy to handle things in a non-supervillian mad scientist manner. He just wants you to give him money
Dr. Mir is the villain. No really she is bad news. I was thinking Playground in my mind to see if I could get a red x but I think she deserves some credit so this
Gate is introduced as a Mir Minion but we later see a different side
Jayce Myer a contractor for Avon and though not presented as a nice man he doesn't commit gratuitous violence. Oh yeah wanted my IDS and MSB he did get away but in honor of Naomi and his encounter
Ila Eften Mium's little sister and one of my favorite characters appears to be a tween girl with ridiculous magic power and Miko-esque interpersonal skills. Dwight Twilley can you offer advice to deal with her?
Saria is Ryn's assistant who unfortunately has to deal with Teal Hacker Girl, Miko and Dr. Mir. She seriously needs a raise working 9 to 5 at Avon. Although Ryn seems a decent boss or at least not supervillain and/or Mad Scientist.
Nick Otte, ladies and gentlemen I present jerk. Not a villian I guess but still arrogant self important piece of work.
Rovak Stas quite possibly my favorite character. Unfortunately he is a sociopath. A charming and pleasant one but he blows people up. He does however sign in and as a security officer I appreciate that so
Kyle Kepler is Peter's Dad and Aaron's brother only had one scene so far. On the one hand I admire backing your son on the other hand your son in Peter. Let's go with Commander Cody
??? also know as Teal haired hacker girl finds someone annoying (my bet is on Peter though I am not ruling out Muim trolling her). Poor thing got a job at Avon with Miko bad choice
???:?? Actually called Query peter's first sidekick now owned by his dad. an AI with an annoying sense of humor according to Kalli. I plan is to always agree with Kalli.
Sunday, February 14, 2016
Ambition vs reality
I really thought I would succeed in going through Starter Traveller and go on to actually playing it. And then real life happened and I had to re-think it. It was/is still interesting to go through the rules and interpolate what setting you can come up with from them and how it differs from GDW and I like the ideas I came up with. But, and you knew there would be a but, between my life and my abilities I am doubtful I can run (solo or for a group) Traveller no matter the setting. Essentialy the pay off in Traveller is figuring out what is going on in the Universe. This is the big difference from other RPG's and not a bad one.
Your characters are fiendishly difficult to change once generated and because you can buy all the cool stuff (the magic of the system) with money the reward becomes hearing a rumor that an ancient vacc suit helmet is in the native bizarre with the only legible letters being ".s.s. Bla__nt L_e" and realizing a clue to the missing Gyro Cadiz convoy is at hand. You really need a group playing to feel the buzz from figuring this out. And to realistically expect anyone to connect dots like this you need a stable, long playing group that plays fairly regularly. Even with Roll20/G+ most of us have full time jobs and real lives making that a dubious prospect. In my case I work in security which if you don't know means my schedule is essentially random. Fortunately it is always full time but the days and for the most parts shifts I work are different week to week. So if I were to run it is doubtful I could do so on a regular schedule which means me and my players would constantly have to re-read past logs to make the linking of mysteries possible. Does anyone really want a research project to have fun? One offs are possible but with Traveller's deadly combat system the easy and satisfying dramatic confrontation is difficult to do. And so another good intention is slain by adulting.
Your characters are fiendishly difficult to change once generated and because you can buy all the cool stuff (the magic of the system) with money the reward becomes hearing a rumor that an ancient vacc suit helmet is in the native bizarre with the only legible letters being ".s.s. Bla__nt L_e" and realizing a clue to the missing Gyro Cadiz convoy is at hand. You really need a group playing to feel the buzz from figuring this out. And to realistically expect anyone to connect dots like this you need a stable, long playing group that plays fairly regularly. Even with Roll20/G+ most of us have full time jobs and real lives making that a dubious prospect. In my case I work in security which if you don't know means my schedule is essentially random. Fortunately it is always full time but the days and for the most parts shifts I work are different week to week. So if I were to run it is doubtful I could do so on a regular schedule which means me and my players would constantly have to re-read past logs to make the linking of mysteries possible. Does anyone really want a research project to have fun? One offs are possible but with Traveller's deadly combat system the easy and satisfying dramatic confrontation is difficult to do. And so another good intention is slain by adulting.
Friday, December 4, 2015
Inkwell Ideas Free World Map and Hexographer Pro
Some questions came up about 2 of Inkwell Ideas products, the Worldmap.jar and Hexographer Pro. I am in no way affiliated with Inkwell Ideas but I do own both products and think very highly of them. I though I would do a short overview of the 2 of them if you have more questions and I will do what I can to answer them.
First is the free world map generator which you can get from here. It is a Java app so just about anyone should be able to use it. It looks like this.
Uggh to small here is a link. Across the top you can set the hex width, planet size, Land percentage, Mountain percentage, Vegetation percentage and Temperature. Hex Width I believe is in pixels, Size is rated from 9 to 35 so I don't know what that means and the rest are rated as Min; Low; Med; High and Max. When you start it it always generates a map then you fiddle with the drop downs and hit the recreate button and get a map.
I didn't think you could edit the map because I own Hexographer so that is where I did my editing but the strip of symbols under the map are the editing tools. Like hexographer it is easy to use, click the hex you want to add to the map than click the map hex you want to change. When you are satisfied you can export it to Hexographer, export as a PNG, Load one you have made before or save the map in the native format of the world map app.
With Hexographer pro you can open the world map you saved and it looks like this.
Again sorry for the size here is a link I have dual monitors which doesn't help with the image size. As you can see Hexographer Pro doesn't have the clipping issue the free version does. I should add this is a different world map than the one above. There are tons more stuff you can do editing wise in Hexographer than World map including changing the entire Icon set so you can do B&W
Notice that custom icon sets replace the standard hexes so if you don't have an alternate of a certain terrian it stay the base one, jungle in this case. Link here
For another example is Red Kobold's Calligraphy icon set link Here
There is a ton more hexographer does but I need to get ready for work so here is a quick list
GM only flag so you can make player maps from your map
Attach notes to each hex
Draw shapes (polygons)
make zoomed in maps from you main map
You don't have to start from world map it has a built in world map template
add text
add lines
Whine over on the forum and the designer will do his best to help you, really have seen it happen.
Any questions and I will try my best to answer with screen shots if I am at home.
First is the free world map generator which you can get from here. It is a Java app so just about anyone should be able to use it. It looks like this.
Uggh to small here is a link. Across the top you can set the hex width, planet size, Land percentage, Mountain percentage, Vegetation percentage and Temperature. Hex Width I believe is in pixels, Size is rated from 9 to 35 so I don't know what that means and the rest are rated as Min; Low; Med; High and Max. When you start it it always generates a map then you fiddle with the drop downs and hit the recreate button and get a map.
I didn't think you could edit the map because I own Hexographer so that is where I did my editing but the strip of symbols under the map are the editing tools. Like hexographer it is easy to use, click the hex you want to add to the map than click the map hex you want to change. When you are satisfied you can export it to Hexographer, export as a PNG, Load one you have made before or save the map in the native format of the world map app.
With Hexographer pro you can open the world map you saved and it looks like this.
For another example is Red Kobold's Calligraphy icon set link Here
GM only flag so you can make player maps from your map
Attach notes to each hex
Draw shapes (polygons)
make zoomed in maps from you main map
You don't have to start from world map it has a built in world map template
add text
add lines
Whine over on the forum and the designer will do his best to help you, really have seen it happen.
Any questions and I will try my best to answer with screen shots if I am at home.
Monday, November 16, 2015
Supplement 4 Belters
The next career is Belter which I am handling as a specialty of the Merchant career. This career has two oddities about it, it starts at age 14 and the survival DM is the number of terms served. The age will be ignored as no one starts as a Belter, as for the terms I am going to say prior terms in Merchants do count because realistically chances to make it through a single term is fairly low.
I had thought a lot about whether Belter should be under Scout or Merchant. My view of the Belter is a being that surveys and analyses planetary bodies to determine their content. That sounds like something the service tasked with mapping the universe should be doing. I chose Merchant instead because the end goal is profit not to see what is there. I also am going to use the existence of this career to flesh out how the Scouts work though. The Imperium picks an object in a system to place an Imperial Consulate (IC) and expends some effort on that one place. The rest of the system doesn't rate an additional effort by the Imperium leaving it to the government of the world with the IC to develop the system as it sees fit. This is why atlas's only list the one UPP for the main world and from my previous ideas almost any visitor to the system is going to start and stop at that main world to check in and out with the IC.
So to get a transfer to Belter from regular service is not easy a high DEX is somewhat helpful but a bigger bump comes from having a slightly below average or higher INT. Coordination and speed are helpful but it is more helpful to be able to analyse data and react to it.
Survival (or the lack there of) is not easy. This service makes the Scouts look like a stay in the penthouse of a 5 star hotel.There is no bonus to the roll for any stat just for how long you have been doing it. With my modified careers you start with a 7+ in the worse case (Merchant for 1 term then going into Belter for the second) which is not a good chance. It seems that GDW's view was loners don't stand as good a chance as members of a group which is pretty sensible.
There is no commission or promotion and no 2 skills per term either so a Belter won't have as many skills as a veteran of another service. I am unhappy with this but am not sure if it is worth tinkering with the rules. I am thinking of adding a 5+ on 1D6 to get a roll on a table 1. Prospecting 2. JOT 3. Vacc Suit 4. Electronics 5. Mechanical 6. Grav Vehicle each term.
The reenlistment roll means the Imperium doesn't see the value in paying people to do this for long. It is only slightly better than a 50/50 chance you can continue. So they do want people poking around in the various systems but the payout for the Imperium isn't high enough to keep people on the payroll to do it.
The material benefits table has Low; INT; High; Weapon; Travellers and Seeker. The two passages come from the separation lottery, Weapon is participation in the service tournaments and INT from having spent time thinking for yourself. Travellers Aid membership seems a little out of place only because it doesn't show up in the basic careers except in the Navy and Marines, probably while poking around you found something more interesting than a mineral. The Seeker is the only ship you can get for free that I don't see as a distraction to play. It is to small to turn into an effective pirate or carry enough cargo to turn the game into an economics model though it can carry enough to pay for itself removing that burden from players minds. Also being a Type S the Scouts no longer wanted means it can break down whenever the GM wants it to without him being to much of a dick.
The cash table is not a thing to bring joy to the heart looking at it two chances for nothing, one pocket change, one average and two chances at big bucks. At least there is chance to gain Gambling so you can get a +1 because it isn't to likely you are going to retire from the Belters to get it the other way.
The Personal Development table has the 3 Physical stats; Gambling; Brawling and Vacc Suit. I am okay with the gold rush in space vibe of this.
Service Skills has Vacc x2; Prospecting x2; Forward Observer and Ship's Boat. I am okay with Vacc and Prospecting you are going to spend a lot of time in Zero G and Vacuum and your goal is to find stuff to mine. Forward Observer? I am dubious about the prevalence of situations you are calling orbital fire missions. Ship's Boat might make sense except the apparent craft of choice is a starship not a pinnace.
Advanced Education 1 has Ship's Boat; Prospecting x2; Electronics; Mechanical and Instruction. Electronics and Mechanical I can see to keep you Seeker functional but Instruction? Yes any service is going to need for it's more experienced members to teach new comers and the basic careers predate this skill so it could be that is why they don't have it but I am not convinced you would receive a teaching degree looking at rocks.
Advance Education 2 has Navigation; Medical; Pilot; Computer; Engineering and JOT. All of these make sense to me although I think JOT should be more prevalent throughout all four tables.
Also all Belters get Vacc Suit-1 which makes a lot of sense to me particularly as I am using Vacc Suit to represent familiarity with Zero G as well.
I had thought a lot about whether Belter should be under Scout or Merchant. My view of the Belter is a being that surveys and analyses planetary bodies to determine their content. That sounds like something the service tasked with mapping the universe should be doing. I chose Merchant instead because the end goal is profit not to see what is there. I also am going to use the existence of this career to flesh out how the Scouts work though. The Imperium picks an object in a system to place an Imperial Consulate (IC) and expends some effort on that one place. The rest of the system doesn't rate an additional effort by the Imperium leaving it to the government of the world with the IC to develop the system as it sees fit. This is why atlas's only list the one UPP for the main world and from my previous ideas almost any visitor to the system is going to start and stop at that main world to check in and out with the IC.
So to get a transfer to Belter from regular service is not easy a high DEX is somewhat helpful but a bigger bump comes from having a slightly below average or higher INT. Coordination and speed are helpful but it is more helpful to be able to analyse data and react to it.
Survival (or the lack there of) is not easy. This service makes the Scouts look like a stay in the penthouse of a 5 star hotel.There is no bonus to the roll for any stat just for how long you have been doing it. With my modified careers you start with a 7+ in the worse case (Merchant for 1 term then going into Belter for the second) which is not a good chance. It seems that GDW's view was loners don't stand as good a chance as members of a group which is pretty sensible.
There is no commission or promotion and no 2 skills per term either so a Belter won't have as many skills as a veteran of another service. I am unhappy with this but am not sure if it is worth tinkering with the rules. I am thinking of adding a 5+ on 1D6 to get a roll on a table 1. Prospecting 2. JOT 3. Vacc Suit 4. Electronics 5. Mechanical 6. Grav Vehicle each term.
The reenlistment roll means the Imperium doesn't see the value in paying people to do this for long. It is only slightly better than a 50/50 chance you can continue. So they do want people poking around in the various systems but the payout for the Imperium isn't high enough to keep people on the payroll to do it.
The material benefits table has Low; INT; High; Weapon; Travellers and Seeker. The two passages come from the separation lottery, Weapon is participation in the service tournaments and INT from having spent time thinking for yourself. Travellers Aid membership seems a little out of place only because it doesn't show up in the basic careers except in the Navy and Marines, probably while poking around you found something more interesting than a mineral. The Seeker is the only ship you can get for free that I don't see as a distraction to play. It is to small to turn into an effective pirate or carry enough cargo to turn the game into an economics model though it can carry enough to pay for itself removing that burden from players minds. Also being a Type S the Scouts no longer wanted means it can break down whenever the GM wants it to without him being to much of a dick.
The cash table is not a thing to bring joy to the heart looking at it two chances for nothing, one pocket change, one average and two chances at big bucks. At least there is chance to gain Gambling so you can get a +1 because it isn't to likely you are going to retire from the Belters to get it the other way.
The Personal Development table has the 3 Physical stats; Gambling; Brawling and Vacc Suit. I am okay with the gold rush in space vibe of this.
Service Skills has Vacc x2; Prospecting x2; Forward Observer and Ship's Boat. I am okay with Vacc and Prospecting you are going to spend a lot of time in Zero G and Vacuum and your goal is to find stuff to mine. Forward Observer? I am dubious about the prevalence of situations you are calling orbital fire missions. Ship's Boat might make sense except the apparent craft of choice is a starship not a pinnace.
Advanced Education 1 has Ship's Boat; Prospecting x2; Electronics; Mechanical and Instruction. Electronics and Mechanical I can see to keep you Seeker functional but Instruction? Yes any service is going to need for it's more experienced members to teach new comers and the basic careers predate this skill so it could be that is why they don't have it but I am not convinced you would receive a teaching degree looking at rocks.
Advance Education 2 has Navigation; Medical; Pilot; Computer; Engineering and JOT. All of these make sense to me although I think JOT should be more prevalent throughout all four tables.
Also all Belters get Vacc Suit-1 which makes a lot of sense to me particularly as I am using Vacc Suit to represent familiarity with Zero G as well.
Sunday, November 15, 2015
Supplement 4 overview and Pirates
Sorry for the Long Blog night I have been working 1st, 2nd and 3rd shifts as required and frequently all in the same week and it has killed off my ability and desire to think for recreation and coherently. As a summation this is a post in a series I am doing going through Starter Traveller and defining MTU by what I am encountering. I decided that the 12 careers in Supplement 4 are open to characters after they first serve one term in one of the 6 careers in ST.
Before dissecting the generation rules I read the rules section to see what (if anything) GDW changed with the addition of Books 4 and 5 and their expanded character generation. They didn't change the basics at all as far as I saw. Interestingly it must have been written before the revision of the LBB's because my version says most characters have a natural skill of 1/2 with weapons as opposed to the skill - 0 of the revised rules. They also decided there was not a draft if you tried one of the 12 careers covered. If you failed to enlist you tried somewhere else. 3 Careers meant you had no experience with guns but oddly everyone is assumed to be able to use blade weapons passably well. In the notes under the cash table it says anyone who has retired can add one to their rolls but this isn't mentioned in the rules section. <shrug> I see no reason to not allow it. Otherwise nothing changes from ST.
On to the Pirate career. MTU sees character generation as time spent in service to the Imperium so it is a stretch to come up with government pirates. A case has been made for privateers raiding non-imperial shipping but that would be the Navy not Pirates in my view. I had stated that characters who enlisted in the Navy or Merchants could try to get in to the Pirates in their second or higher terms and thinking on this some more I am going to add Scouts as well. This is because it is another service that has starships and a crew could go bad and start shooting up the galaxy. My premise is that this career represents a vessel in imperial service that acts against imperial interests for personal gain. This could be a Type T using its authority as a naval vessel to board an civilian merchant ship and steal its cargo, or the whole ship. A Merchant Marine vessel that kills off passengers who have something the crew desires. Or even a scout who has been in his Type S all alone a little to long and blasts ships trying to skim from a gas giant he has decided to preserve.
Enlistment is a greater than half chance to succeed which I am okay with only because I can see this as more a corruption issue than wild eyed cutlass wielding bezerkers. I find it odd being from middle class or lower will make it more likely you can succeed again feeding into my view of citizens not being all that loyal to the imperium as an institution. A high endurance gives you a bigger edge which I admit I am at a loss for explaining.
Comparing survival to the 3 base services the Navy and Merchants share the same roll and DM and as a Pirate you will be a little less safe and you need to be smarter to get the DM. Compared to the Scouts it is safer and an Intelligence of 8+ replaces an Endurance of 9+. Maybe the saner Scouts become Pirates rather than the crazier ones.
I was thinking of keeping the commission and promotion rolls of the original services because it isn't like anyone is admitting what they are doing but I decided not to. Rank in the Pirate career is a "shadow" rank. If you serve in the Navy and get to Commander then become a Pirate you start at Pirate rank 4 but any further promotions don't affect your Naval rank similarly for the Merchant Pirate. Scouts don't have any complications as they don't have a formal rank. Pirate rank is a representation of trust in the underworld society that needs to exist to get rid of ill gotten gains not an acknowledgement of skill and service to the Emperor. The suspicions and rumors of your activities will stall out any legitimate chance for advancement.
It is much harder to stay in the service as a Pirate than the base services. Every 4 years you have around a 50-50 chance of your career ending. I like this actually. The survival roll represents getting caught and the high reenlistment represents rumors of your shady behavior catching up with you.
Mustering out benefit table provides Low; Weapon; +1 Int; nothing; -1 Soc; Middle and Corsair. Weapon seems to take the place of the more specific gun or blade of the basic careers and still holds up as participation in the separation tournaments. The two alterations make sense quick thinking to pull off your schemes and rumors to destroy your standing with society. Middle and Low passages are pay outs from the separation lottery. Finally the Corsair. I never could wrap my head around who was building these things in canon. Only Pirates get them and you need a class A starport to build them, heck there is an official class name for them. However looking at the performance specs they make a descent customs ship for the Navy, Priority transport for the Merchants and a more capable ship to enforce scout interdictions so I am okay with them.
The cash table is sub-anemic so you aren't going to get rich as a Pirate. Even with the +1 you still have a chance to get nothing and without it you get nothing 1/3 of the time.
Personal development in the Pirate career can increase your 3 physical stats; Gambling; Brawling and Blade. Anyone choosing this as a career likes to gamble with their life why not cards as well? Brawling and Blade could be because if your breaking the law discipline might be harder to enforce resulting in a hands on approach to settle disputes.
Service skills are Blade; Vacc; Gun; Gunnery; Zero-G Combat; and Gun. The only one I see the need to comment on is Zero-G Combat. Here is were trying to integrate later works and the LBBs cause trouble. How do Marines not have this skill? Or the Merchants and Scouts? It is a plausible skill but I don't think I am going to use it instead it will be subsumed into Vacc Suit. I think Vacc Suit training is much more likely to occur or represent familiarity with a lack of gravity as well as a non-breathable atmosphere.
Advanced Education 1 has Streetwise; Gunnery; Engineering; Ship Tactics; Tactics and Mechanical. Streetwise is necessary to get rid of whatever you pirated. Gunnery, Engineering and Mechanical you need to keep your ship flying. Ship Tactics is another later skill I am not going to use. Situations calling for it will use Pilot instead. Tactics I am okay with as it is a more combat intensive service.
Advanced Education table 2 in this case further encourages me to change how you get access to the final table. Your BA in Art History qualifies your to learn advance skills as a Pirate? Using a system that doesn't have a way to go to college? However that will be a post for after I finish the careers. Navigation; Pilot; Forgery; Computer; Leader; and Electronics are what is on this table. Forgery and Leader are worth noting. Forgery assists in both getting stuff and getting rid of it after you have it and Leader is not available to the base three services. I mentioned under Navy that I believe this is a conscious decision as all the major upheavals in Imperial history have pretty much been caused by naval admirals so the Imperium doesn't provide leadership classes as a general rule. I do think they train leaders just not as a general skill available to all service members. Interestingly I think this is the first service to escape the papery fist of Admin.
Before dissecting the generation rules I read the rules section to see what (if anything) GDW changed with the addition of Books 4 and 5 and their expanded character generation. They didn't change the basics at all as far as I saw. Interestingly it must have been written before the revision of the LBB's because my version says most characters have a natural skill of 1/2 with weapons as opposed to the skill - 0 of the revised rules. They also decided there was not a draft if you tried one of the 12 careers covered. If you failed to enlist you tried somewhere else. 3 Careers meant you had no experience with guns but oddly everyone is assumed to be able to use blade weapons passably well. In the notes under the cash table it says anyone who has retired can add one to their rolls but this isn't mentioned in the rules section. <shrug> I see no reason to not allow it. Otherwise nothing changes from ST.
On to the Pirate career. MTU sees character generation as time spent in service to the Imperium so it is a stretch to come up with government pirates. A case has been made for privateers raiding non-imperial shipping but that would be the Navy not Pirates in my view. I had stated that characters who enlisted in the Navy or Merchants could try to get in to the Pirates in their second or higher terms and thinking on this some more I am going to add Scouts as well. This is because it is another service that has starships and a crew could go bad and start shooting up the galaxy. My premise is that this career represents a vessel in imperial service that acts against imperial interests for personal gain. This could be a Type T using its authority as a naval vessel to board an civilian merchant ship and steal its cargo, or the whole ship. A Merchant Marine vessel that kills off passengers who have something the crew desires. Or even a scout who has been in his Type S all alone a little to long and blasts ships trying to skim from a gas giant he has decided to preserve.
Enlistment is a greater than half chance to succeed which I am okay with only because I can see this as more a corruption issue than wild eyed cutlass wielding bezerkers. I find it odd being from middle class or lower will make it more likely you can succeed again feeding into my view of citizens not being all that loyal to the imperium as an institution. A high endurance gives you a bigger edge which I admit I am at a loss for explaining.
Comparing survival to the 3 base services the Navy and Merchants share the same roll and DM and as a Pirate you will be a little less safe and you need to be smarter to get the DM. Compared to the Scouts it is safer and an Intelligence of 8+ replaces an Endurance of 9+. Maybe the saner Scouts become Pirates rather than the crazier ones.
I was thinking of keeping the commission and promotion rolls of the original services because it isn't like anyone is admitting what they are doing but I decided not to. Rank in the Pirate career is a "shadow" rank. If you serve in the Navy and get to Commander then become a Pirate you start at Pirate rank 4 but any further promotions don't affect your Naval rank similarly for the Merchant Pirate. Scouts don't have any complications as they don't have a formal rank. Pirate rank is a representation of trust in the underworld society that needs to exist to get rid of ill gotten gains not an acknowledgement of skill and service to the Emperor. The suspicions and rumors of your activities will stall out any legitimate chance for advancement.
It is much harder to stay in the service as a Pirate than the base services. Every 4 years you have around a 50-50 chance of your career ending. I like this actually. The survival roll represents getting caught and the high reenlistment represents rumors of your shady behavior catching up with you.
Mustering out benefit table provides Low; Weapon; +1 Int; nothing; -1 Soc; Middle and Corsair. Weapon seems to take the place of the more specific gun or blade of the basic careers and still holds up as participation in the separation tournaments. The two alterations make sense quick thinking to pull off your schemes and rumors to destroy your standing with society. Middle and Low passages are pay outs from the separation lottery. Finally the Corsair. I never could wrap my head around who was building these things in canon. Only Pirates get them and you need a class A starport to build them, heck there is an official class name for them. However looking at the performance specs they make a descent customs ship for the Navy, Priority transport for the Merchants and a more capable ship to enforce scout interdictions so I am okay with them.
The cash table is sub-anemic so you aren't going to get rich as a Pirate. Even with the +1 you still have a chance to get nothing and without it you get nothing 1/3 of the time.
Personal development in the Pirate career can increase your 3 physical stats; Gambling; Brawling and Blade. Anyone choosing this as a career likes to gamble with their life why not cards as well? Brawling and Blade could be because if your breaking the law discipline might be harder to enforce resulting in a hands on approach to settle disputes.
Service skills are Blade; Vacc; Gun; Gunnery; Zero-G Combat; and Gun. The only one I see the need to comment on is Zero-G Combat. Here is were trying to integrate later works and the LBBs cause trouble. How do Marines not have this skill? Or the Merchants and Scouts? It is a plausible skill but I don't think I am going to use it instead it will be subsumed into Vacc Suit. I think Vacc Suit training is much more likely to occur or represent familiarity with a lack of gravity as well as a non-breathable atmosphere.
Advanced Education 1 has Streetwise; Gunnery; Engineering; Ship Tactics; Tactics and Mechanical. Streetwise is necessary to get rid of whatever you pirated. Gunnery, Engineering and Mechanical you need to keep your ship flying. Ship Tactics is another later skill I am not going to use. Situations calling for it will use Pilot instead. Tactics I am okay with as it is a more combat intensive service.
Advanced Education table 2 in this case further encourages me to change how you get access to the final table. Your BA in Art History qualifies your to learn advance skills as a Pirate? Using a system that doesn't have a way to go to college? However that will be a post for after I finish the careers. Navigation; Pilot; Forgery; Computer; Leader; and Electronics are what is on this table. Forgery and Leader are worth noting. Forgery assists in both getting stuff and getting rid of it after you have it and Leader is not available to the base three services. I mentioned under Navy that I believe this is a conscious decision as all the major upheavals in Imperial history have pretty much been caused by naval admirals so the Imperium doesn't provide leadership classes as a general rule. I do think they train leaders just not as a general skill available to all service members. Interestingly I think this is the first service to escape the papery fist of Admin.
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