traveller rpg x boat

• Express Boat

Express Boat (a.k.a. X-boat ) are rapid communication ships which are designed to make optimum use of jump technology in communicating information within the Imperium . Because the Imperium is so large, ordinary communication must depend on ships traveling along established Trade Routes , making Regina ( Spinward Marches 1710) nearly four years out from the Imperial Core .

• X-boats transport X-mail . Many ships are equipped with a Mail Vault for this purpose.
• Other kinds of Communication Vessels and can be found at the article of the same name.
• The main difference between an Express Boat and a Courier Vessel is that express boats either can not, or are not usually intended to, approach a planet or highport but instead waits at the 100 diameter line for a tender to deliver fuel and transfer physical cargo, while couriers either dock at highports or land on planets like most ships.
• The Supraclass designation is also known as Ship Mission , Ship Mission Code , Mission, or Ship Hull Designation .
• It is a starship supraclass .

• 1 Library Data Referral Tree
• 2.1 Image Repository
• 2.2 Strategy & Tactics (Doctrine)
• 2.3 Supraclass Roles
• 2.4 Supraclass Archtypes
• 3.1 Selected Variant Types & Classes
• 3.2 Ship Summary List
• 4 References

Library Data Referral Tree [ edit ]

Please refer to the following AAB Library Data for more information: Starship :

• Civilian Ship
• Military Ship
• Non-Commercial Vessel
• Paramilitary Ship
• Ship Mission Code / Supraclass
• Ship Type Code / Superclass
• Ship Class Code / Class
• Model ( TL )
• Adventure Class Ship
• Battle Class Ship
• Capital Ship
• Fleet Class Ship
• Size-Role Classification
• Subcapital Ship
• World Class Ship
• Non-starship
• System Craft
• Astronomical Unit ( AU )
• Light Speed ( c )
• Light-week ( lw )
• Light-year ( ly )
• NAFAL ( STL )
• Parsec ( pc )

Description ( Specifications ) [ edit ]

As an X-boat arrives in a system, it beams its recorded data to the express station , which then retransmits it to an X-boat standing by for a jump outsystem.

• Time between jumps is almost always less than four hours and has been recorded at under seven minutes, making the speed of communication nearly the speed of jump (...since X-boats carry Jump-4 drives, speeds near four parsecs per week).
• In practice, this speed is somewhat reduced by the fact that trade routes do not follow straight lines and that not all jumps are made at Jump-4. Nonetheless, the system achieves approximately Jump-2.6 per week.

Image Repository [ edit ]

Strategy & Tactics (Doctrine) [ edit ]

Xboats are Jump-4 ships with no maneuver drive , crewed by single pilots. As an xboat arrives in a new system , it beams its recorded data to the express boat station , which then re-transmits it to an xboat standing by to jump outsystem. The first ship is then refuelled, possibly the pilot is replaced, and it awaits the arrival of the next incoming boat.

Time between jumps is almost always under 4 hours, and the record is under 7 minutes, making the speed of the communication nearly the speed of jump; 4 parsecs per week. In practice, this speed is somewhat reduced because xboat routes do not follow straight lines, and that not all jumps are made at Jump-4. Nonetheless, the system achieves approximately Jump-2.6 per week.

Supraclass Roles [ edit ]

Express Boat s typically serve the following roles:

• Communication Vessel
• Express Solar Sailor
• Interplanetary Express Boat
• VIP Transport

Supraclass Archtypes [ edit ]

History & background ( dossier ) [ edit ].

The sheer size of the Imperium means that ordinary communications must depend on ships travelling along the main trade routes , making Regina (Regina / Spinward Marches 1910) nearly four years out from the Imperial Core Sector .

The express boat (abbreviated X-boat) system, established originally in 624 and expanded to cover the entire Imperium by 718 , cuts this communication time by nearly 75 percent. Selected locations along major trade routes are established as sites for express stations , which are orbital facilities which service and refuel the X-boats on their communications runs. Often an express boat tender serves as the station.

The Xboat System was established by Arbellatra in 624 , and expanded to cover the entire Imperium by 718 .

Selected Variant Types & Classes [ edit ]

Paramilitary Vessel - Express Boats :

• Type XM class Interplanetary Express Boat
• Type XSS class Express Solar Sailor
• Xavier class Express Boat

Paramilitary Vessel - Express Boat Tenders :

• Lirshala class Express Boat Tender
• Purcell class Express Boat Tender

Ship Summary List [ edit ]

Some of the most commonly used vessels in this role or these roles include:

References [ edit ]

• Marc Miller . The Kinunir ( Game Designers Workshop , 1979), 39.
• John Harshman ,  Marc Miller ,  Loren Wiseman . Library Data (A-M) ( Game Designers Workshop , 1981), 26-27.
• Marc Miller . The Spinward Marches ( Game Designers Workshop , 1979), 3.
• Marc Miller . Twilight's Peak ( Game Designers Workshop , 1980), TBD.
• Marc Miller . Imperial Encyclopedia ( Game Designers Workshop , 1987), TBD.
• Marc Miller . The Traveller Book ( Game Designers Workshop , 1982), TBD.
• Gregory P. Lee . Lee's Guide to Interstellar Adventure ( Gamelords , 1982), TBD.
• Martin Dougherty . Scout Ships ( Avenger Enterprises , 2007), TBD.
• Marc Miller . T5 Core Rules ( Far Future Enterprises , 2013), TBD.
• XBITS: Xboats in Tender System by Admiral Savage
• Articles at intermediate completion state
• Ship Organization
• Ship type definitions
• Communication

Navigation menu

The Gaming blog of General Tangent

I'm here to sling dice and chew gum; i'm all outta gum., the x-boat network in traveller.

A guest post here from an old friend.

Getting the message across.

The x-boat network in traveller., what is it.

The X-Boat network is the main means of sending messages across the vast Imperium. It was established 624 (Imperial) and covered the entire Imperium in 718 (Imperial). The backbone of the system is a small craft capable of a maximum speed of Jump 4. Administration of the X-Boat system is the responsibility of the Communications Office division of the Imperial Interstellar Scout Service (IISS). Although the maximum speed of an X-Boat is jump 4, not all jumps are made at that speed. Because of the way the network is laid out, the average speed a message travels is Jump 2.6.

How it operates.

The best way to describe this process is to do it as an example. Say I was staying at Capital and I wanted to drop a message of to a close friend of mine on Regina. I would address it in the following fashion: *John_Smith@JS584866.TASNET.Regina.Regina

So breaking it down, starting with the far left. The * informs me that John is a registered voter on Regina then his name. The @ means located at. The next part is his Personal Information Reader’s serial number. This part is optional. TASNET is the computer system name. Regina is the subsector capitol, Regina is the system name.

Common computer system domains include:

• TASNET: Traveller’s Aid Society.
• EDUNET: Educational.
• GOVNET: Local government.
• IMPGOV: Imperial government.
• COMNET: Commercial businesses.
• PRIVNET: Non business.

These are the main ones. Major corporations’ names are added after the network name and before the user ID.

I record my message to John using my terminal in my room. I have the option of Video, Audio, or text. The only difference in them is the quality and cost. Video is 30 credits for each ten minutes per jump, audio 10 credits for ten minutes and text one credit for ten pages. Mixed text and pictures’ costs one credit per page. If I was not using a terminal in my room, there are public terminals located in most starports. Although video transmissions are only available on class A starports, audio class B and C or less is text only. Billing is in Imperial credits and worked out with the jump speed of 2.5. If he was not on the main route, the message would be passed to the Imperial Courier Service (ICS) for final delivery.

I have finished my message and instruct the terminal to send. The terminal then gives me the option to have my message encrypted, this doubles the cost of the message. From here, the data is compressed and passed to the local communications system for transmission to an X-Boat station or passed to the ICS for delivery onto an X-Boat route.

An X-Boat drops into realspace. The pilot then activates the recovery beacon and aligns the communications array to the X-Boat station. An X-Boat station is constructed close to entry points of Hyperspace and contains fuel, pilot stations and communications arrays. The station dispatches an X-Boat Tender with a fresh pilot and fuel. Once it has reached the boat, it recovers it, changes crew and refuels it. This process takes about four hours. The record for this routine is seven minutes. A single tender can deal with up to six X-Boats at a time. In busy systems, many tenders can be seen working at once to keep the network going. Once re-fuelled and a new pilot aboard, the X-boat is released and gets ready to jump. While all this activity is going on, the X-Boat is still getting data and messages.

Once all checks are finished aboard the pilot shuts down the communication array and departs the system. The pilot from the X-Boat is given another job, whether this be aboard the tender or at the X-Boat station. After a week in normal space he is reassigned to another X-Boat and his job starts again. What is the ICS?

The ICS maintains a fleet of type S scout/couriers. It is they who take the messages to systems off the main network. They are mostly modified with the passenger compartments removed and replaced with extra computer storage and extra fuel tankage. They depart at different speeds taking their messages to wherever they need to go.

How do I collect my mail?

Usually this is just case of connecting up to the planet’s data net and accessing it that way. If you are on the move, this can be tricky. Copies of mail are held at subsector and sector capitals and at TAS hostels. The last option only applies if you are a member of TAS. Mail is also archived at scout bases, this option requires an administration fee of about 100 credits and a week to accomplish. You also need to produce proof of identity. A standard Imperial bank card is usually all that is required.

What else does the X-Boat system handle?

You can make bank payments at an X-Boat office. The information is encoded and then sent to the bank of your choice. This has become a standard way of paying for starships.

Does the X-Boat carry military transmissions?

Yes, unless the transmissions are secure. If they are secure then the Imperial agency sending the transmissions uses an Imperial courier vessel. Imperial courier ships are rated at Jump 4 with a few being capable of Jump 6! Otherwise, the X-Boats data bank is fitted with an auto destruct system that fueses the internal electronics.

What about parcels or paper transmissions?

To some, a letter is the ultimate secure transmission. You cannot drop a letter into a computer and scan for a phrase. Someone has to read it all the way through. Letters are handled by the ICS except they are not X-Boat sent. Instead the message is accepted at the ICS office and then passed on with other letters and parcels to a cargo ship. Letter post costs one credit per 100grams of weight. Parcels on the other hand can make licensed carriers a tidy profit. For ease of packing aboard ships, parcels must be sent using a standard design. The boxes are available at starports everywhere at the cheap price of a tenth of its size in credits.. The smallest box is a 10cm plastic cube and this costs one credit. The postage for this item is 5 credits. A cubic metre costs ten credits and postage costs 500. The formula used to calculate this is: (size*size*size)/6*10. Size= size in cms. So the metre box is 100*100*100 =300/6=50*10=500. Postage is charged per 2 jumps or fraction thereof. The parcels are collected and dropped into a cargo container for a sector. So, I decide to send John a litre of water. The water fits into a metre cube and I take it to the ICS office. There I pay my 2500 credits for it to be carried 24 parsecs. The package is loaded into a cargo container along with nine other metre cubes for Regina. Each cargo container will hold ten cubic metres for each ton of displacement. Once loaded, a licensed trader is contacted for delivery.

Note: Since the ICS has limited ships available, they rely upon licensed carriers. Obtaining a licence is not easy. First an application form has to be filled out and a fee of 500,000 credits is paid. Then the applicant is given a thorough background check if anything looks suspect then their application is refused and the fee is kept. If all looks good, the applicant is granted a licence.

ICS regulations prevent more than five tons of a ships’ cargo space from being used for mail. This prevents unscrupulous captains from running off with mail and also means there is a steady flow of carriers. Each ton of space nets the carrier 5000 credits.

If a group of governments is pitching together for a Subsidised Merchant and the ICS thinks it will suit their needs then they will throw in one fifth of the cash for it. The merchant is usually given first pick of the cargo.

The cargo is then transported to its destination in its pod. It may along the way make stops to drop off mail pods and collect more.

MegaTraveller.

The X-Boat system operates at full capacity until about 1120. Once fleets start to diminish, many systems start to lose contact. The Aslan’s hold off attacking X-Boats because they present no threat. Many ships and pilots where lost in systems that had major battles as they became easy targets for stray missiles. Once the virus starts to rampage through Imperial space many X-Boats become infected. They become carriers of the Virus. Since they contain only enough fuel for a jump 4 they drift aimlessly. It is during the rebellion the ICS makes the bold decision not to spy on enemy systems. This leads to Lucan’s and Dulinor’s fleets to intentionally destroy X-Boats in enemy territory. Vagr pirates prey on them for spares and the long range jump drives.

There is not the personnel to maintain something as complex as a network of ships. A vague communications network exists but it lacks the range of the old X-Boats. Many have been found in systems, dead and lifeless. They are boarded and scavenged for spares. Since they have no manoeuvre drive the hulls are just left to decay. A few X-Boats became Vampire ships, however because they could not refuel and were not fitted with manoeuvre drives the ships simply lay in space becoming time bombs waiting to go off. The RCES when it finds one ALWAYS employs anti viral protocols. Those that were invaded by other viruses usually triggered the auto destruct if they lost control.

References:

I took and based my information on the following sources.

Book 6 Scouts. Imperial Encyclopaedia. Supplement 7 Traders and Gunboats.

Authors’ notes:

Well, I finally did it. I always thought it would be a bit longer than what I have here! I hope that this will provide inspiration for all players out there. I can be contacted here via the contact me form

The Traveller game in all forms is owned by Far Future Enterprises. Copyright 1977 – 1998 Far Future Enterprises. Traveller is a registered trademark of Far Future Enterprises. Far Future permits web sites and fanzines for this game, provided it contains this notice, that Far Future is notified, and subject to a withdrawal of permission on 90 days notice. The contents of this site are for personal, non-commercial use only. Any use of Far Future Enterprises’s copyrighted material or trademarks anywhere on this web site and its files should not be viewed as a challenge to those copyrights or trademarks. In addition, any program/ article/ file on this site cannot be republished or distributed without the consent of the author who contributed it.

This document is Copyright ©1996-2014 Steven Ward

Tags: Traveller , x-boat , xboat Copyright © 2014. All rights reserved.

About the Author

I've been gaming on and off since about 1989 and during that period have played with numerous game systems. I'm fluent in a few, have a basic understanding of quite a few more and can get by in others. Somewhere along the way I found time to be a playtester, contribute to an unpublished game supplement and be associated with another gaming magazine written by far more talented people than I. This lead to one infamous article being written in which I followed the letter of the adventure and torched the parties river barge. I'm also listed on http://rpggeek.com as a game designer.

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Sunday, October 2, 2016

X is for x-boat station.

3 comments:

Love it. Absolutely love it just as I have this "A-to-Z" journey and all your deckplans. I've often thought the classic x-boat tender with it's huge hangar bay and short-legged 1 parsec jump drive was "too much ship" for the job. This is a perfect replacement for that pricey tender.

I'm trying to understand how you calculate the size at only 200 tons? 170 tons of fuel and 72 tons for staterooms (18 of them) not counting the extra room used for meeting rooms or the bridge. This station should be 300 ton if not larger.

Well that's embarrassing. You're absolutely right. It is incorrectly called out as 200 tons when it should be 400 tons. I've corrected the image and text above and reprinted the PDF and updated the link. Thanks for keeping me honest. :)

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• Mongoose Roleplaying Games

X-Boat Routes

• Thread starter ravenpolar
• Start date Mar 2, 2009
• Mar 2, 2009

A question regarding x-boat routes on a subsector map. I understand what they are for, how they are used, etc, but how are the actual routes decided upon? i.e their placement within a sector For example, I just posted a sector map im working on at my blog, but it has no x-boat routes. Should i just place them... Where I think it looks cool? Where makes sense in regards to Starports (class A only, class A&B)? Or am I missing some rules somewhere on how to place them?  

Thanks BenGunn. One other question if i may. Is there anything to limit the length of an x-boat route? For example if a subsector had only two A class starports and the rest were D, E or X and the ports were at the top of the map (0101) and at the bottom (0808). My assumption would be that the route would travel out of the subsector rather then between the two, perhaps circling around neighbouring subsectors.  

Rikki Tikki Traveller

Cosmic mongoose.

Ben's last point in important; especially within an OTU style setting. The X-boat network should be as much about politics as it is about efficiency. One comment that I remember, but can't for the life of me remember where I heard it, was that the X-boat connected to a particular world because it was the homeworld of the Duke's current mistress. Don't make it as efficient as it could be. Leave some worlds out for political reasons. Add some unlikely worlds for the same reasons. Don't always follow the most efficient way between two important systems, etc. It is art, not science. Personally, I use the "Consulate" Base as an indicator of an important world. I make all Consulate worlds be part of the X-Boat network. Also, X-Boats will not normally cross political boundaries between empires, although there may be a connecting point (again based on politics, not efficiency).  

• Mar 3, 2009

There is a problem with the way XBoat routes are mapped. It the route runs directly in line with the hex grid (ie. north, south, north-east, north-west, south-east, south-west) it's impossible to tell if the route stops at intermediate worlds. In other words, say there's a chain of worlds A,B,C, J1 apart, in-line, and the Xboat route runs along them, it's impossible to see if the route runs directly from world A to world C or if it also goes to world B first. I think the route should be marked with arcs instead of straight lines to prevent this.  

Looking at the x-boat routes in published Traveller supplements over the years, I think it's going too far to say that every world that meets certain criteria will have an x-boat link. In the Sol subsector itself, for instance, there are 18 worlds but only 7 of them have x-boat routes... and the planets that lack them include one with a Class A starport (Agidda/Sol)and no fewer than seven with Class B starports. But there's a world with a Class E starport that is on the network! Remember, the primary purpose of the x-boat system is to help the Imperial government keep control. So I'd start by drawing in links to connect each subsector capital to each other, and a line going off-map in the direction of the Imperial capital. If the connecting links in the chain can be placed on high-population worlds with Class A starports and naval bases, then do so; but it's a secondary consideration. Having done that, then add in a few spurs and branches to other worlds of political importance: but don't feel under any obligation to connect every world. Remember, the x-boat system doesn't only include the J-4 express boats. Each world on the printed routes on the maps will probably have a squadron of J-2 scout/couriers who take important messages to other nearby worlds.  

BenGunn said: And the actual X-Boat network IIRC/IMHO is ONLY X-Boats. Scouts and Subbies only come into play outside the official routes. Click to expand...

Emperor Mongoose

ravenpolar said: Thanks BenGunn. One other question if i may. Is there anything to limit the length of an x-boat route? For example if a subsector had only two A class starports and the rest were D, E or X and the ports were at the top of the map (0101) and at the bottom (0808). My assumption would be that the route would travel out of the subsector rather then between the two, perhaps circling around neighbouring subsectors. Click to expand...

maybe x-boat routes/bases were determined hundred/thousands of years in the past...things have changed since then such that it makes little sense nowadays. maybe the some/many bases were built based on political wrangling and boondoggles where some/many were pork barrel projects. I'd say keep to best/shortest routes to high pop worlds because thats where most messages/data will originate at/ and/or be sent to. the other worlds get feeders based on population. I'm also under the assumption that the military would use their own couriers and the x-boat is mostly civilian and government generated mail and data  

BP said: I seem to remember (well a lot of things that probably never happened..) a Postscript or PDF sector mapper floating around the web that included what I thought were good automated x-boat routes - it didn't generate system data -just mapped it and added routes. Maybe someone here knows what I'm talking about (cause I sure don't ) Click to expand...

Gee4orce said: There is a problem with the way XBoat routes are mapped. It the route runs directly in line with the hex grid (ie. north, south, north-east, north-west, south-east, south-west) it's impossible to tell if the route stops at intermediate worlds. Click to expand...

AndrewW said: ... The old Trader program from Game Designers Workshop could generate X-boat routes. Click to expand...

BP said: AndrewW said: ... The old Trader program from Game Designers Workshop could generate X-boat routes. Click to expand...

Banded Mongoose

• Mar 4, 2009

There's been a number of threads on this topic over at Citizens of the Imperium and its been covered on the Traveller mailing list. You might want to check those sources. Sorry but I don't have more specifics. Mike  

• Mar 5, 2009

BenGunn said: Disagree here. SOL subsector due to it's history is a bad example without having data on the 1000-1105 development there. Click to expand...

And the actual X-Boat network IIRC/IMHO is ONLY X-Boats. Scouts and Subbies only come into play outside the official routes. Click to expand...

As for "control", that is done by "gimping" the X-Boats to J4 and employing J6 naval and even imperial Family couriers to deliver news directly to the Dukes and Archdukes and/or the Depot worlds. Click to expand...

ravenpolar said: On the basis of the suggestions that have been give (thanks to you all), I have updated my subsector map with x-boat routes. Any comments (positive or negative) would be much appreciated. Click to expand...

BenGunn said: ... And the actual X-Boat network IIRC/IMHO is ONLY X-Boats. Scouts and Subbies only come into play outside the official routes. Click to expand...

Ravenpolar, suggest you post the sub-sector listing like you did on your blog. Nice blog btw!  

• Mar 6, 2009

GypsyComet said: I see you took me rather literally about bases. Click to expand...

GypsyComet said: <snip very useful stuff Click to expand...

BP said: Ravenpolar, suggest you post the sub-sector listing like you did on your blog. Nice blog btw! Click to expand...

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My Traveller Universe

a fan blog supporting the Traveller RPG

Traveller resources

Traveller blogs.

A few random Traveller blogs I enjoy. I might rotate these every now and then, but I try to list ones that feature interesting content and that are updated on a regular basis.

CyborgPrime Games

Traveller High Society

Yet Another Traveller blog

Traveller out of the box

Spinward Scout’s Way Station

Traveller – CT

Ancient Far Future

Alegis Downport

utility websites

The traveller map.

An amazing, canonical, interactive atlas of Charted Space . Views are adjustable and almost infinitely printable, although the learning curve to do anything but poke around on the map is significant. This datasource is constantly under review and hands-down the best overall reference on systems and worlds for the Third Imperium setting

The Traveller World Builder

Another awesome software resource, the TWB applies the T5 world design ruleset and generates maps for any world , from any of the canon worlds on the Traveller Map to a world you input the UWP for. The builder can also build out the entire system, providing a link to map each world and moon. Definitely a must-visit.

The Traveller Wiki

In its own words, the Traveller Wiki is “… the AAB Imperial Encyclopedia, a Traveller Starship Library and game resource database where you can contribute to the 40 years of Traveller history.” It’s is a living reference document that undergoes constant revision and update by Traveller scholars and fans. It is the definitive resource for researching items of interest about Traveller or the Third Imperium.

Far Future Enterprises

This is Marc Miller’s company , ( newer site here ) the producer of the currently-active Traveller5 and copy write holder of a staggering amount of historical Traveller material. The look is unapologetically old-school and the process to buy can feel a little clunky, but everything Traveller except the DGP content or Mongoose’s current works are on offer here. You can use PayPal to purchase CDs, but if you drop a note to FFE and ask nicely they’ll be happy to send you your purchases on a thumb drive… just on the off-chance you don’t happen to have access to a functional CD-ROM drive.

periodicals

Imperiallines.

Imperiallines is the current live online “‘zine” supporting Marc Miller’s Traveller5. In the last few years it has produced 2 issues( #6 and #& ) on an as-we-can schedule. The content is 100% canon, either coming directly from Marc or approved by him. It’s only available for a fee; I get mine at DriveThruRPG .

Freelance Traveller

This is an excellent bi-monthly-ish online periodical featuring non-canon fan content. Editing, layout, and copy are all well done and range over a wide variety of types including Patron and Amber Zone adventures, gear write ups, reviews of supplements or conventions, and much more. FT is free to the masses easy to submit to.

CT Journal of the Travellers Aid Society ( JTAS )

The very first periodical-based source of canon material supplementing the game, JTAS was published to add depth and increase the fanbase for Classic Traveller. Much content and thinking from the articles during the run have been incorporated into subsequent versions of the game. You can purchase a set from #1-34 from DriveThruRPG or from the FFE website on the “Journal of the Travellers’ Aid Society” CD.

Traveller Chronicle

This was the ongoing magazine produced by DGP in the late 80s/early 90s when MegaTraveller was active, and the content focuses exclusively on the Rebellion and Hard Times settings. You can get issues from DriveThruRPG or directly from Far Future Enterprises  as art of the offerings on the “Apocrypha 3” CD.

Dragon Magazine

Particularly in the earlier years of its run, Dragon Magazine hosted many articles about Traveller. An index to those articles, authors, and page numbers can be found here , while PDF issues of Dragon Magazine are ( as of this writing ) available for free online at Annarchive ( you’ll have to find/search for this yourself; I’m not certain about the legality of this repository. )

Currently hosted on the Traveller Wiki, the description from there – “…was a fanzine put together by Jae Campbell and J. Duncan Law-Green and published in the late 80’s and early 90’s. The primary objective was the mapping of the Dagudashaag and generation of the complete library data. Each author was allowed to cover different eras with their articles, with the hope that the reader could adapt to their own preferences.” Complete editions of issues 1-13 are available for free.

Steve Jackson Games resurrected the idea of the Journal of the Travellers’ Aid Society as an ongoing source of all things GT while they had an active license. This content is currently no longer offered by GURPS in any form ( sniffsniff ), but you can grab it from FFE under “GURPS #2 CD-ROM”

Mongoose JTAS

The latest incarnation of the Journal of the TAS is produced by Mongoose Publishing to compliment and extend their 2nd edition Traveller game. There are currently 6 issues that were successfully kickstarted and sold as a set, but at present you can only buy them one at a time on the Mongoose website. Here’s a link to Issue #1

Robert Eaglestone successfully Kickstarted this fanzine “with most of the material suggested by fans who love Traveller. It’s about discussion, example, and bold ideas.” It is T5 centric, though the material could generally be used in any version. Though the publishing schedule is a bit long Mr. Eaglestone is clearly committed to delivering quality content. The  first two issues are available on DTRPG; here’s a link to the first one.

communities

Citizens of the imperium.

Official forum for the Traveller brand, Citizens of the Imperium supports conversation about all versions but shows a distinct favor towards older versions, CT most of all. Lively discussions, profoundly pedantic and out in the weeds about most any detail. Moderation is active and opinionated. Definitely not a safe space and possibly off-putting to a new gamer, definitely fertile ground for the opinionated grognard. The forum itself has a very old school look and feel which reportedly is not a bug, but rather a feature. CotI is the place to connect with the “inner circle” of Traveller. CotI features robust repositories of fan-created images, fiction, and game aids as well as play-Traveller-by-post support.

Mongoose Traveller

Mongoose Publishing hosts its own forum to discuss both of its editions ( 1st and 2nd ) of Traveller. Threads are not organized beyond most-recent-topic-as-highest, moderation is almost non-existent. Movers and shakers for the Mongoose versions frequent the board, and getting most questions answered by people in the know is easy.

GURPS Traveller

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[Actual Play] Traveller: Voyage of the Vulture

• Thread starter Random Goblin
• Start date Jan 16, 2005

Random Goblin

Active member.

• Jan 16, 2005

Stateroom Number Three So, the PCs muster out on Glisten/Glisten. They're an ex-Scout (with a ship, the Vulture), a Noble, n ex-Merchant Second Officer (also a rich noble), an ex-Navy Lieutenant. They get together to start a company, with the nobles as investors, and the scout and navy guy as paid employees (also with some shares, but not nearly as many). They write up a charter and everything. They realize that they only have 3 tons of cargo space, but they have big dreams. For the moment, the plan is to deal in speculative trade, focusing on only the most high-ticket cargoes (pharmaceuticals, radioactives, etcetera) so a profit can be made, even though there's not a lot of room. They find a lot of machine parts at a really good price, buy them, and prep to leave, headed to the agricultural, non-industrial Overnale system one parsec away (0307 B45467A 9). At the last minute, a shabby-looking man wanders into their berth, chats mysteriously, and then abruptly offers cr50,000 for a trip two jumps away, no questions asked (and it has to be 2 j2 jumps away, too). The PC's waver, and the guy offers 75,000. The PC's are really suspicious, but that's a lot of money, so they consent, if the guy is willing to be pretty much locked in his stateroom for the whole trip. Turns out the guy is willing. At the last minute, an SPA agent comes in with a couple of security guys, asking about mysterious packages or any last-minute passengers. Just a routine check, he says. The PCs sweat a little, but tell the SPA guy that they haven't been approached. The SPA agent lets them know that if they are, they should alers SPA as soon as possible. The players get out of there as fast as they can. Before they can get cleared to jump, they are stopped by a customs frigate who asks some probing questions and sends them some pictures about some suspected Ine Givar terrorists. One of them looks sort of like the guy the PCs are transporting. Because they promised the guy two j2 jumps, they have to wait to go to Overnale later. They jump to Horosho (0508 C3378A6 A), where they refuel without much trouble at the Scout base. They act natural and avoid questions as best as they can. From there they head to Romor (0510 B450456 8), but when they get there, they're faced with a surprise. The whole system is locked down by a Naval armada. Three gunboats approach the Vulture and let them know in no uncertain terms that Romor has been interdicted by the Imperial Navy. The PCs had best turn right bakc around and go where they came from. But the TAS hadn't issued any warnings, and Romor is on the X-boat route. Something strage is going on. Oh, and the Vulture needs to refuel, otherwise they ain't going anywhere. And don't let's forget there might be a wanted Ine Givar terrorist in stateroom number three...  

LeftWingPenguin

Dual-classed gm/rabbi.

This sounds very cool. I wish I could get my group interested in Classic Traveller--I tried selling them on it, but it was no-go.  

Merchant of Chaos

The Characters: Angus Jarlson 4AB926 ex-Scout, 4 terms, age 34 Vacc Suit-1, Air/Raft 3, Mechanical-1, Pilot-1 Angus Jarlson was a scrappy street kid from Efate/Regina. He grew up in a world of poverty and unrest, and the Scout service was his way out. On his eighteenth birthday, he signed on and after training he was assigned to an X-boat tender in the Trojan Reach sector. The highlights of his career are scanty. He served on a scout cruiser on an extended mission into the Far Frontiers sector, but after that he was assigned to a classified Imperial project in the Reft Sector, where he worked for nearly ten years before being reassigned to an X-boat and then mustering out. Whatever he was doing for a decade in the Reft Sector, he certainly never talks about it. Garner Wolfgaard 589999 ex-Navy Lieutenant, 2 terms, age 26 Admin-1, Medical-1, Engineering-1, Electronic-1, Blade-1 Garner Wolfgaard was the son of a nobble rancher on Tarsus/District 268 in the Spinward Marches. He worked hard for his father, but he dreamed of the stars and of doing something better with his life. He enlisted in the Imperial Navy as a medical technician, but was soon tapped out for Officer Candidacy School. Garner excelled, and he had the chance to explore other fields, eventually being assigned to the engineering branch, specializing in maneuver drives. His first term was spent aboard the Ukushki Sar , a Kinunir -class battle cruiser operating out of Depot in Corridor. His second was spent on a system defense boat in the Glisten system. A personnel shortage forced him to uster out earlier than he would have liked, leaving him still young, skilled, and looking for adventure. Baron Kenneth hault-Muncheisen 63C98C ex-Merchant ist Officer, retired, 7 terms, age 46 Vacc Suit-1, Medical-1, Electronics-2, Sword-1, Gunnery-2, Bribery-2, Mechanical-1, Revolver-1 Baron Muncheisen is from a well-respected family, distantly related to the Emperor, with holdings in the Lishun and Old Expanses sectors. With the family's responisbilities well cared for by older relatives with lifespans extended by anagathics, Kenenth decided to enlist in the Merchant service. Partly this was at the recommendation of his uncle who had made many useful contacts during his own service, and partly just for something to do. He signed on at first with Sarushid, working through the ranks on a liner that made a route between Vland and the Marches. There was a greater deal of political infighting, and after being passed for promotion in favor of another officer, a noble from a rival family, the victor had Kenneth transferred to Oberlindes lines. There, Kenneth was able to be promoted faster and rose to the position of 1st Officer aboard the converted Lightning -class cruiser, the Emissary , operating in the Vargr extents for six years. He was reassigned to a safer route for his last term, and finally he had no choice but to muster out. Count Sirkan hault-Vaughn 697D8E Noble, 6 terms, age 42 Grav Vehicle-1, Pilot-1, Leader-1, Jack-o-T-1, Blade-1, Navigation-1, Engineering-2, Admin-1 Count Vaughn is something of a remittance man. No, actually, he's the definition of a remittance man. From a young age, he spent his life doing nothing worthwhile, and everything that caused trouble. Eventually his father could simply have no more of the scandal, so he gave Sirkan a yacht which he named the Medurman Houri and sent him to bother his relatives in the Marches. he would have money and his ship, and whatever else he needed, as long as he never came back to the other side of the Rift. Sirkan took what was offered and headed to Regina, where it was made plain to him by the Archduke that he could do what he wanted in the sector as long as he stayed away from Regina itself. Since that time, his life has been a series of blunders and misadventures. He's been arrested for drug-smuggling, he's nearly lost his jugular vein in a duel with an angry Aslan, and he's been caught in the middle of more than one civil war. His most recent misadventure led to his Yacht being impounded by the Imperial Navy at Glisten, with orders from Archduke Norris that it was under no circumstances to be released to him at any time during the next three years.  

• Jan 17, 2005

The Trojan Point The PC's request permission to refuel at Romor's one gas giant, and are met with first commsilence, then an order to stand by. About 30 minutes later, a Naval Commander, CO of the lead gunboat, comes over the comm and offers the PCs a deal: they can refuel at the gas giant, but in return they need to take on two passengers- an Army Major and a Navy officer who have hit the end of their term of service but were going to have to stay on for quite some time had not this opportunity presented itself. Really, the PC's have no choice but to agree. They're nervous because of the possible terrorist fugitive they're harboring, but they can't do a lot about it now. They have to just cross their fingers and hope their next ship isn't a prison hulk. There's a long link-up with a 40-ton pinnace, and the Vulture takes on its newest two passengers, Jackeriah Johnson and Nakhida Jared. At this point, the staterooms are getting quite full. Jarlson, the scout pilot of the Vulture and recently elected CEO of the company, offers Johnson and Jared both the opportunity to buy into the company and to sign on as salaried employees. They both agree. They are also told, without giving too much detail, about the passenger in stateroom number three. At the same time, Johnson and Jared decline to give details on the operation on Romor. Escorted by one of the ship's boats, the Vulture refuels and leaves as fast as it can. Next stop, Craw (0309 C573654 3). There, the PCs hope to get rid of their passengers and, come to think of it, maybe sell the cargo hold full of machine parts at a premium price. Of course, a day before they drop out of jump space, the Vulture starts to get that peculiar Type S Scout/Courier funk. It shouldn't become intolerable for another two or three weeks, and the crew hopes they're able to replace the system, flush it clean, or at least change the filters long before then. When they get in-system, they are routed by the local SPA around the primary to a smaller gas giant for refueling. It's currently on the oposite side of the system as Craw itself, but one just doesn't argue with space traffic control. As they enter orbit, the sensor system picks up a faint energy signature coming from the trailing trojan point of the gas giant's second-largest moon. It's odd, but nothing to get concerned about. The PCs have been directed to the southern hemisphere of the giant, and just as they reach it, another ship comes around the horizon in the northern hemisphere. It's broadcasting identification signal that marks it as the Menacing Stockholder , a type A free trader making a jump-1 trade route though the subsector (Craw-Trane-Horosho-Sorel-Glisten-Overnale-New Rome with periodic side trips to Tsarina, Bendor, Callia, and Egypt). It'd be a perfect spot for a pirate ambush, and the Vulture 's crew is a little nervous at first, but after talking over the comm with the captain, they are put at ease. The Stockholder's crew hasn't heard anything about Romor, but they just updated their ship's library a week before at New Rome and they have it listed as Red Zone-Interdicted, and no one is sure what the X-boat situation is. After the Vulture refuels, the PCs' curiosity gets the better of them and they decide to investigate the energy signature at the trojan point. When they get close enough, they are able to interpret the signature as probably emanating from a Power Plant running on low, something between class A and class E. Discussing possible risks, the PCs conclude that there could be salvage profits to be made, and if it was a pirate it would have already powered up it's maneuver drives and attacked. So they carefully pick their way in among the asteroids and debris to take a look. It turns out to be a Type R Fat Trader, and markings on the side indicate that it is called the Meandering Starspawn . They're too far away to access a ship registry anywhere, but the ship looks battle-scarred (laser scorchmarks?), and the launch is missing from the dorsal dock. The ship doesn't respond to communications on any usable wavelength. With Wolfgaard piloting the air-raft (the contra-grav generator is useless in space, but the attitude jets and the thrusters make it fine for short distances, as long as the passengers are all sealed up nice and tight in their vacc suits), Jared, Muncheisen, and Johnson all ride out to board and investigate. After a few escapades in zero-g and a narrow brush with a suit puncture (the dorsal airlock is meant to be opened mechanically, not manually), they are able to call up power to a terminal long enough to read that the airlock is depressurized, and they are able to get the airlock open. Floating in the airlock is a dead body in a vacc suit. They turn it around and shine a light on it, and see that the face is putrid and half-rotten. Inside the ship, power is intermittent, gravity and lights are off, and the iris valve back to the engineering section shorts out and won't open at all. On their way to the bridge, the team finds three bodies floating in the hallways and inn the forward passenger lounge, all look like victims of violence. The bridge is comletely shut down, and the ship's computer isn't getting power at all. If the crew of the Vulture is going to coax any secrets from the Starspawn , they're going to need to get back to engineering somehow. Stay tuned.  

Dang. I just remembered that we're playing an Adventure! one-shot this week instead of continuing our Traveller game. So the voyage of the Vulture will have to wait until next Wednsday...  

kinnygraham

Gaunt avenger.

• Jan 18, 2005

Great stuff this - I'll be checking back for updates. Traveller was the first game I ever bought and GMed (obtained from Games Workshop in the UK back when it was essentially an rpg mail order operation.) and I've always had a strong affection for it - even though I haven't played for years.... I've always thought that the basic Traveller 'model' (of struggling businessmen trying to get by despite the distraction of varied types of 'shenanigans' - with the backdrop of the sheer vastness of the Imperium) - was one of the most interesting and appealing role playing concepts going.  

The Radioactivist

Sword Raven

how does the GURPS variant stand up to the classic version? I remember seeing a d20 version with lite pdf rules around... is traveller easy to pick up, or will the setting take forever to describe to potential players?  

committed hero

Nude lamia mech.

Sword Raven said: is traveller easy to pick up, or will the setting take forever to describe to potential players? Click to expand...

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Freelance Traveller

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Almost anyone that travels between worlds dreams of owning their own transportation. A lucky few (in comparison) can afford to do so. Shipyards are where those few make their dreams into reality.

The Freelance Traveller shipyard is where you can find descriptions and specifications (and eventually deck plans and interior pictures, we hope) for starships and spaceships for all sorts of missions. Ultimately, as we receive additional contributions (from you, our readers), all incarnations of Traveller will be supported.

Freelance Traveller is also proud to be able to offer, free for you to download, the BITS publication 101 Starships, Seventh Edition . This document, authored by Rob Prior, contains descriptions and design worksheets for a wide range of spaceships and starships suitable for use with GURPS Traveller . Freelance Traveller has, with permission, selected a number of designs from this collection to start off this section. Additional designs from 101 Starships may be added as time permits, but we encourage you to download the PDF document to enjoy the entire set immediately.

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Articles on ship-design-related topics:

• Deck Cargo: Using External Pods for Increasing Cargo Capacity (Ken Pick)
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• Ship Structure and Hull Size Limitations (Christopher Thrash)
• A Starship Design Tutorial (Peter Gray) Beginning Design Advanced Design
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• Imperial Naval Doctrine (Kevin Walsh)
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The Ship's Locker - an eclectic collection of ... stuff.

The Starship Technical Manual (Terry Carlino)

101 Starships is in Adobe Acrobat (PDF) format, and is 4305K to download. You will need Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Acrobat Reader to view. Acrobat Reader can be downloaded free from Adobe's web site, http://www.adobe.com .