Traveller, Beta the Devil You Know, DTRPG Charity and Sales, White Star, TnT Deluxe and Inked Adventures goes sci-fi self-promotion slot

Savage September is still happening at DTRPG and RPGNow which means money off adventures, rules and supplements for the Savage World system.  Correction: "System" September - it seems to be for all sorts of different rules, inc. d20 titles. Or did Savage September become System September?  I'm not so sure now...  Also there's a charity drive for Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (US).  > $25usd for $200usd value in titles RPG Bundle Here < (Edit: I took too long to type this and the link is no longer valid, d'oh)

Right, Traveller something old-school something something classic something science-fiction RPG, it's new, it's classic, it's rebooted, it's revised etc ...

Mongoose Publishing has
returned Traveller to us (again)
but it's an unfinished beta
playtest rules,
which you have to pay for.
?

If you're into sci-fi RPG pen and paper games and cut-price PDFs, you will not have failed to have noticed a current bestseller is the Traveller Core Rules Beta.  I enjoy reading Traveller rules for the original setting background (i.e. the Imperium cannon borne out of GDW's game of the late 70s).  For me, Marc Millers T4 Traveller, and to some extent Mongoose's earlier adaptation edition of "classic" Traveller  contextualise that setting in clear and concise terms, more so than the LBBs did.  To be fair my collection of for the original system is eclectic: a Starter Set, a bunch of LBB supplements, bits from the past, extras from Ebay, Judge's Guild guides, purchased PDFs, website wikis and a hankering to buy the complete collection from FFE.  What I'm saying is that I enjoy acquiring Traveller rules and modules, old and new, just for the love of the game and perhaps to "mine" material from all sources for the ultimate campaign using which system takes my fancy, however ...
With some many existing systems why would I want to pay for an incomplete "Beta"?  After typing the above, I realise, with irony, that maybe I'm the ideal market for Mongoose.

"Traveller Has Returned!"

No, wait, you did this before and never let it go away.

"The Beta Playtest Core Rulebook, laid out and ready to go! After many, many moons of writing and internal playtesting, this book is now ready to be seen (and commented upon!) by dedicated Traveller players. All that is missing from this PDF is a few pieces of artwork!"

I know community playtesting is a real thing, (and Oh God the secretive DnD5 playtest seemed to go on forever), but I'm still having trouble not seeing pre-release launches and community chartered kickstarters as lazy and cynical tickbox marketing, i.e. it's just how they do things now.  There's also some flaws in these approach.

Imagine, you pay for this system, a mere $20usd/£13gbp*.  Let's say you like the rules, you run a campaign, you know that you will get a reduction on the final publication (committing you to the first official print of this new edition).  But wait, there's feedback from the community as a whole, they don't like the rules you like and they are dropped some favourite content of yours from the final piece, leaving your campaign incompatible with new supplements.  But, surely, I hear you say, the final publication will not be that different, maybe they will be just a tinkering with the odd rule here and there?   Well, if that's the case, what's so very wrong with an old fashioned "errata sheet"?  Also, you must ask if Mongoose are pledging that they will support this line for as long as they have the license and won't be releasing a newer edition?

In Mongoose's defence, at least they are still selling their previous publications (I appreciate this brave new world where publishers embrace the past with pride, looking at you, Wizards').  So, is this a relaunch? Why and how is this greatly different from other systems which you can own whole volumes of at modest price?

I'm guessing that for the almost-oldies like me that this will be a curiosity purchase and maybe for new players it's a chance to start from scratch. Maybe it's a competitive response to the prolonged GDW Traveller 5 hardback kickstarter.  By the way, us non-backers of us can buy the PDF for that gem now as well ( T5 Traveller5 Core Rules Book )

Maybe I expect betas to be free and faulty, not alphas claiming to be betas.  A programmer friend had to explain the terminology to me. I guess it's snappier than "work in progress, pre-publication preview".

*I'm so broke at the moment that I'd really have to justify this to myself so I haven't bought it, even out of curiosity, yet.

White Star is finally available in print. :)

If you didn't know, White Star -White Box Science Fiction Roleplaying is an old-style of D&D intersecting with Star Wars and other space operas. Simple, fast, familiar, with blasters.

I printed the rules as an A5 booklet but it didn't turn out too well, so I’m assuming the DTRPG POD versions will be superior.
Naturally, I'm broke this week/ month, but it looks so shiny.
I still have to pay off that freighter, not to mention those bounty hunters we ran into in Milton Keynes.


A D&D Dragon Quest Game boxed set (TSR) thudded heavily onto my door mat last week.  This is a flashback to the missing years.  I didn't play D&D much in the early 1990s, I was playing mostly in the middle of the 80s. In the 90's AD&D went to 2nd edition and for the newbie players TSR brought out several introductory box sets.  Also Game Workshop (my Mecca, my dealer) by then had stopped importing RPGs.   Naturally, I've collected more games since, but one box missing from my collection was D&D Dragon Quest (not to be confused with DragonBall-Z or SPI's DragonQuest RPG). Any how, long story short, a chat in a facebook group led to me buying this shrink-wrapped gem for a song.  If you are fond of the B/X style game or want to introduce people to AD&D or AD&D2e this game is very accessible. Also it's a "complete" game system, much like boxed games such as Hero Quest, with some simplified and unlimited experience rules.  If you choose to keep playing with just this set using your own campaigns, you can.  I feel this is important to mention, since so many of the gateway boxes after BECMI (from TSR and Wizards') were deliberated hobbled to encourage purchase of the main products.  I think I had seen this set in the past and had ignored it, possibly confusing it with Dragon Strike which has that VHS tape and employs photos for PCs instead of art.  I will always will art over oily barbarian photos any day.  This is another reason to perhaps seek out D&D Dragon Quest, because it is an archive of TSR colour art, pulled together from cover and filler art from the different editions and iconic Dragonlance images.
Entry on BoardGameGeek  Review on Lost and the Damned nabble forum


The following item has but been long awaited but is now bookmarked on my shopping list:

Tunnels & Trolls Deluxe Edition is finally available as a PDF (outside of the Kickstarter) on DriveThruRPG. Currently it is $20 USD.  Like many I'm a fan of the 5th edition (plus WIZ/POW house rules), and slowly 7.5 has grown on me.  The nice thing about T&T at it's heart the same authors have kept to similar rules across the editions, but what they have done is expanded aspects and provided a wealth of background and campaign information. Curiously, it was the lack of "world" which made 5 appeal to me, which meant I could fully own the campaigns with my own creations, right down to the monsters, because of the easy to use monster rating system.  Being T&T, the bestiaries only ever resemble the Monster Manual in part and even the seasoned D&D player might not know what to expect from a T&T manticore with regards to how it's special attacks are implemented.  There's usually enough eccentricity in T&T to make a player think twice about where they actually are and what they are actually doing.  Being slightly reserved and rather serious about my tabletop fantasies I sometimes agree that some of the humour throughout the rules isn't necessary for the fun, and it's a mistake to dismiss T&T as silly and puerile, or just for solo games, in the same way that it is wrong to dismiss old D&D as TPK dungeon crawling.  In the right hands, compared with other systems, T&T has always been very powerful and fast moving imagination vehicle.  I am in no doubt that this will still be the case in T&T Deluxe.

T&T Deluxe, Flying Buffalo.

This is it! The new and improved, Deluxe Tunnels & Trolls. T&T is the second ever fantasy role playing game, and the easiest to use. This book contains everything you need to play the game solo (with the many solo adventures) or with a group of friends. Includes a lot of extra material and descriptions of the worlds played in by the designer and his friends back in the late 1970’s. 

The first 166 pages are the core rules, followed by the Elaborations section which has optional rules and systems you can pick and choose from to add to your T&T games. There is also a 16 page full color section which includes color maps of Trollworld, Khazan, Khosht and Knor along with other paintings and maps. There is a 50 page Trollworld section that includes descriptions of locations on every major continent and three cities, plus a detailed Trollworld timeline. The book also includes a solo adventure that gives you the chance to bring dead characters back to life and a GM adventure on the continent of Zorr, plus a detailed weapons glossary and much much more - over 380 pages of material. 

Note that this version of the rules does not yet have the internal links, BUT once we have that done, you will be able to download an updated copy of the PDF for no extra charge.

http://bit.ly/TnTdeluxe (DTRPG affiliate link)

Inked Adventures - recent publications...

Rugged Explorer ATV

Having tried to justify this blog by typing about a selection of games which I can barely afford by different publishers, what now follows is shameless self-promotion in order for me to raise funds for this terrible affliction that many of us suffer from, the need to game and failing that, the need to procure and collect games.

As some of you may well know I draw maps and plans for Inked Adventures.  Okay, I sort of am Inked Adventures, but I like the idea of Inked Adventures as a sort of faceless megacorporation hell-bent of world domination, ... one hand drawn product at a time!

Hinged Dungeon Doors

My business plans usually reflect this.

My accountant said that I can't have the second helicopter, not until I sell at least three more pre-print copies Compact & Worn Starship Deck Plan 6x6 Tiles.

He says that I shouldn't be giving away the ATV for free and that no-one wants easy-to-assemble Hinged Dungeon Doors on their gaming table. 

Lord knows, he says, how many Map&Dice Playing Cards I need to fence, to pay for the marble lining in my office jacuzzi.  I swear that at this level of poverty the caviar will spoil!

From the Inked Adventures site, click for more photos and descriptions
Compact & Worn Starship Deck Plan 6×6 Tiles

Rugged Explorer ATV Inked Adventures Free

Hinged Dungeon Doors $3.50 $2.50

6×6 Starship Tile Sampler: Cargo Lifter Micro Freighter Free

Compact & Worn Starship Deck Plan 6×6 Tiles $10.00 $7.50

Inked Adventures Map and Dice Playing Cards $12.00

Inked Adventures main site: http://inkedadventures.com/main
Store of DriveThruRPG: http://bit.ly/IAstore

Thanks for reading. :)
- Billiam B. Terran Date 20150923.2140

Photos of MM Traveller RPG

My print copy of Marc Miller’s Traveller has arrived. :)
Reprint of the 1995 text print-on-demand soft-back from DriveThruRPG. http://bit.ly/T4MMTraveller
Haven’t read much yet - just skimming and loving the visuals.
I didn’t expect the interior Chris Foss illustrations to be in colour - which is a real bonus. There’s quite a few black and white pieces by D&D artist Elmore as well. This all seems just slightly closer to The Traveller RPG -Starter Set- I had back in the early 80s (basically a reformat of three -five?- original rule books by GDW), closer than the Mongoose edition, for example. The system of task resolution and combat still looks sublime in it’s simplicity. I’m fascinated by the human-Imperium centric Traveller canon -perhaps influenced by Asimov Foundation et al sci-fi, but it still seems so different from much of the sci-fi that I’ve read in books or seen in the cinema (I must add that I’m very under-read when it comes to classic sci-fi). And yet, varying “tech levels” on planets and interstellar trade makes me think of modern TV series like Firefly and Farscape, not to mention the Iain M Banks books with Culture operatives doing to exact opposite of the Prime Directive by manipulating politics and influencing battles on low tech worlds. Modern students of the genre will also appreciate that vast “sandbox” campaigns can be run using a subsector map and a handful of random tables.

Marc Miller's Traveller RPG

I’m a big fan of GDW Traveller - although for a long time I only owned the Starter Set - realizing later that part of the pleasure of Traveller is reading as many supplements as possible in order to get a sense of vast Imperium, it’s history and neighboring races.
So I’m very excited to say I’ve just ordered the print copy of Marc Miller’s Traveller -including the PDF which will just have to do until it arrives!  I promise to post pics. :)

http://bit.ly/T4MMTraveller (affiliate link to DriveThruRPG)


It’s made all the more fabulous by having a Chris Foss illustration on the cover! :)

See you in J-Space!

Inked Adventures Competition Freebies etc and Deadly Missions

I've been a bit too absorbed with my Inked Adventures projects to pay proper attention to the greater outside world of gaming or their markets.  Despite buying tickets in advance I even forewent visiting the UKGamesExpo - because real gamers and games-shoppers go to Cons.  But that's precisely why I didn't go - I can't afford to buy all of the systems and accessories I'd possibly see there.  Powerless to resist, I am, the love of the shiny boxes, figures, scenery and hardbacks. Maybe in another year, when the coffers are fatter.  However, it sounds like things went well without me. ;)

Currently browsing the PDF for Mongoose's Traveller's Core Rules - bought through a bestsellers promotion this week.  I'll be honest, compared to all of the little black books of old it's nice to read the basics about the Imperium and alien races all together in one place.

Anyhow - cross-posting time (mainly Inked Adventures)

I attempt to get the Inked Adventures sites blacklisted by anti-spam software I posted the following under the title "Win Buy Download Free ;)"

Frugal DM Competition - Win Inked Adventures Products

Frugal DM are running a cool competition where you can win Inked Adventures products (or DTRPG gift-card equivalent)  when you submit a winning photo of Inked Adventures tiles or sections being used in-game.

Full details here:
http://www.frugalgm.com/2013/05/frugal-gm-contest-for-inked-adventures.html

Grey Matter Games release Deadly Missions Fantasy Dungeon


Grey Matter Games have put together a smooth bundle which combines printable figures, special combat rules and our square tiles pack.  All of the items can also be bought separately.  The bundle is in fact a complete stand-alone dungeon crawling battle game. If you like to try out new systems with great looking accessories be sure to check this out. (Also ideal as a gift) http://bit.ly/GMGbundle



http://bit.ly/GMGbundle

Free Sample Tiles

Download six 10"sq tiles taken from the new large geomorph pack for free!

On DriveThruRPG: http://bit.ly/6FreeTiles

Full product  (124 printable tiles
with counters, doors and  jpgs)
http://bit.ly/25mmGeo

Free 10in hand drawn tiles on DriveThruRPG
http://bit.ly/6FreeTiles

Dungeon Map

To illustrate the versatility of just the 6 free tiles I've composited a low-res large dungeon map which you are free to download and use in your campaigns as a guide or player's handout. (Please note that only printable tiles in a PDF are included in the free sample pack - jpgs for every tile map editing are provided in the full product)


Right-click on the fully opened images to save to your computer, or "save target as..." from the thumbnails.

Edit:  Kev's Lounge - Council Chamber.

I forget to say... whilst on the subject of papercraft floorplans and scenery I've been meaning to draw your attention to A Luxious Lair: Council Chamber from Kev's Lounge:

http://kevslounge.blogspot.co.uk/2013/04/a-luxurious-lair-council-chamber.html

Also available to download
from their store on RPGNow.

Lulu.com 20% off in November 2012 and DWD Star Frontiers

Quick, quick, we've burnt Guy Fawkes - time to get on with the rest of November!

Here's a magic code for you to whisper to the robot cashier over at Lulu.com

NOVBOOKS12

Books & eBooks from Lulu.com 20% off- Enter code NOVBOOKS12 - Save up to $25

The code blerb says "US site only" - which is confusing because as a British customer I've just had no trouble getting a reduction in my shopping cart. Valid until 30th Nov.

Whilst checking this code out, I saw this in the top ten sellers in the Games section:

Star Frontiers Alpha Dawn published by DWD / Bill Logan $9.35

"Star Frontiers - a classic science fiction role-playing game from the 80's that should have persisted today. Here it is for your gaming pleasure!""

I've been aware of some harmless free downloads online at starfrontiersman.com for some time, but this seems like a very bold move.  I'm hoping that DWD have full rights to the game mechanics and art.  Naturally, I'm assuming here that the text is different (at least the downloads I've seen in the past were like that)  I recommend having a browse about the web before you buy this, also if you're really interested in procuring a piece of TSR RPG history, have a look on Ebay or other second-hand stores - the intact box set is lots of fun to delve through.

Some thoughts regarding the original Star Frontiers:

After discovering that the Space Opera RPG was way more like Traveller than I had first assumed. apart from 15mm figure games like Laserburn, Star Frontiers is still looking like one of the earliest games to embrace a more cinematic approach to sci-fi, i.e. Star Wars or BattleStar Galactica, where everyone is packing a sidearm with city maps, hover car chases, outdoor location maps, and kill-first-ask-questions-later creatures that wouldn't be far out of place in Gamma World.  It's interesting that the Star Frontiers writers only included starship combat in the following set, Knight Hawks.  Compare this to the Traveller starter rules (first 4 books) which cover the very basics of character generation, combat, space combat, skills, world gen, vehicles, interstellar trade, but did so with the broadest brush strokes (refined and expanded in later booklets).  If you wanted, Traveller could be very "sandbox" in play.  Star Frontiers was very much played specific to a dramatically set scene: -alien terrorists walk into the bar / you've crashed - survive / you're being chased by something big and vicious / out of control city monorail - now deal with it!  In fact the similarities between the original Star Frontiers set and Gang Busters are notable - there's press-out character and vehicle counters, city floor-plan, location driven adventures (you are here - place counter on map) - although Star Frontiers does have an exploratory hex-crawl in it's introductory module -which was not uncommon in some Traveller adventures as well.

[-- Random thoughts end --]

I seem to have a terrible cold - possibly caught off some late night geomorph designing ...

Happy Shopping!

And remember, if you can't afford it: do what I do, buy it for yourself then thrust it upon a loved one to give you for Christmas (demanding the full retail price, of course). ;)

Cowboys vs Xenomorphs (Mongoose Traveller)

Mongoose's Traveller:
Cowboys vs. Xenomorphs
$8.99 for PDF download
DriveThruRPG/RPGNow

This is a lovely little "mash-up" of the wild west genre and sci-fi thriller, which may appeal to fans of the Cowboys and Aliens, Alien films and perhaps steampunk fans too.

This is a bold move by Mongoose to use their Traveller system, deviating from traditional Traveller products as it adapts the mechanics and ramps up the equipment details to root players in a Wild West setting - as opposed to just applying generic backwater world  "Low Tech Level" brush.

Many years back I remember playing a character in a GDW Traveller game which was based in the Aliens films, and suddenly the shotgun had extra significance because that was a "back-up" weapon in the film.   Usually in games like Traveller and Time Master weapon definitions seemed defined by their comparative limitations to the high-tech weaponry, create a concept of equipment or resource-"lack" when a new setting is applied to a what could be a universal system (does that makes sense?  Redactive semiotics?).  For many years I was suspicious of the GURPs core rules because I favoured games primarily based on genres/settings as opposed having universally applicable core mechanics.   Funnily enough I find myself revisiting these ideas "universal (customised) vs. pure setting" every time I look at Chaosium's BRP and multi-genred Savage Worlds game.  The answer, of course, is a good, is to publish well fleshed-out settings supplement (the irony here, is that Palladium and several other publishers in the 80s used the similar systems throughout their games but the games were sold on setting, not the system - well, sort mostly).  If you're a loyal fan of the imperial galactic "feel" of the Classic Traveller canon, this might not appeal as a Traveller product per se, but if you like the Mongoose Traveller system and have a relaxed approached the gaming you will possibly enjoy the extra gloss and grit of cinematically style cowboys and their feisty female companions.  Come to think of it, Firefly isn't that far of all of this, aesthetically speaking only, but we're really talking about Cowboys and Aliens, or a Western with a two-way Alien ("Xenomorph") hunt - not a backwater colony beyond Federation Space - this is firmly Wild West Earth Pulp.

As well as adventure details (the "Town of Bent River"), there's even the class / career of "Desperado" and a bunch of fully equipped pre-generated characters which actually makes this a "pick-up-and-play" supplement in my book.  Even your horse can have a personality quirk - which reminds us that horses in some ways are NPCs or hirelings with relationships to the characters in their own special way.  Not to mention the fact that horse-riding can be dangerous in itself - but this is optional stuff.

It's a great little supplement (50 pages), and if you don't own any games with Western/cowboy settings, there's a fair about which can be "mined" for other systems.

One of my problems with this product is that if you follow the introductory instructions to the letter, your game will be flawed due to it's the premise that the players (not characters) shouldn't know or suspect a sci-fi element:

"Referees should take pains at not telling the players the title
of this adventure, as the presence of aliens in the Wild West
should be sprung upon them. Instead, tell them it is called
something like The Last Ride of McCreedy, or The Rise of the
Sioux, or anything that does not have the words xenomorph or
alien in it! The adventure starts off like a normal Wild West tale,
but things can get weird very quickly!" p1

My point here is that your players will probably not be convinced that you've chosen Traveller over other systems to play a Wild West game ("You lost your copy of Boot Hill... and dont think Savage Worlds is a better choice?").  The good news is that being a role-playing game the players can enjoy playing naive or misguided character (Knowledge checks will reveal that Sioux hatchets don't make wounds like that, and what are these burns..? etc).  This is what is commonly referred to as the "player-knowledge verses character-knowledge" paradigm, and is in RPG Class 101.  It's important that players trust the Referee or the contract of imagination can be broken - especially important when you start messing around with genres!  Tread carefully when crossing the streams. ;)

My other almost-gripe is the price.  I was pretty curious about this product and was really happy to receive a review copy.  Although I'm not currently playing a Traveller campaign, my curiosity was prepared for be to spend maybe 5-6 dollars at the most for a PDF.  $9 makes sense if you think about it as a campaign sourcebook as opposed to just an adventure - it's sort of a springboard with benefits - much like an introductory scenario - I haven't check the price of the hardcopy, I guess $9 is a fair price.

If your enthused by Traveller and Cowboys and Aliens (or Alien but with a lot of dust) this is a must-buy.   If you think you can do something like with you're own choice of system, there just might be the odd little detail which will improve your game.

I'm very drawn to notion of the Giger's Alien styled "xenomorph" vs. the Magnificent Seven. ;)

Full marks for ambition and style!

2300AD (Mongoose) and older editions

2300AD for Traveller (Mongoose Publishing)

2300AD in PDF
Mongoose Publishing
Sourcebook for Traveller rules
http://bit.ly/MP_2300AD
http://bit.ly/2300ADandTRAVELLER
on DTRPG

This is not really intended as a thorough review, more of a "first impressions" and "that reminds me of" type of entry.

One of the nice things about being on a reviewer email list is that you get free products, to either critique, promote or both.  Often a lot of these free products are single pages of clip-art - which are hard to review because clip-art is something you have to be actually using (in a publication) to have an opinion on.  Also when whole RPG games are sent, you have to imagine what play must be like, because immediate playtesting with friends is not always an option.   Many products are part of a series, some are for systems with which you are not always familiar.  Sometimes the product is written in an unfamiliar language!  This are very minor downside.  I can see how reviewers can become very jaded, also their sense of what they'd pay might become distorted by all the free downloads codes.  I'm finding that my own tastes are usually so select that I'm still spending a customers share on the sites (mainly to buy facsimiles of aolder games I might add)  Despite this every once in a while, a freebie is sent out that is actually really exciting to receive (i.e. exciting like "It's Christmas morning!").  You might even already considered buying that product, but maybe not at the current price, perhaps, maybe if their was a sale ....  I feel this way about the Mongoose Publishing's 2300AD source book.  Even when bundled on the OneBookShelf sites with the Traveller main rules it still feels like just too much to pay for PDFs files.  Perhaps PDF prices like these are linked with the printed copy prices, but it all seems pretty arbitrary to me.

In saying all this, I am really grateful for seeing the 2300AD source book, as it reminds me of a campaign setting which I used to think was excellent, whilst being visualised through the prism of the today's Traveller rules.

Just as a little back-story, let me explain that I was never assured by the new dice mechanics of Mongoose's Traveller, although it was invigorating to see that they very loyal to original Traveller universe ("OTU").  Last year I went on a bit of an Ebay-spree and bought up old adventures and supplements for GDW's first version of Traveller, since I had only owned the Starter Set plus a couple of adventures in my early years of gaming, and by being terrifically under-read when it came to classic sci-fi, some of the conventions and assumptions in Traveller were lost on me.  Let's face it, to my young mind "Imperial" equalled "Darth Vader and stormtroopers".  More recently, the OTU setting made more sense to me and the vast potential of GDW's Traveller has become clear.  In fact, a similar "Imperial sci-fi" styled setting is depicted very well in Grognardia Games's A Thousand Suns (which I adore because it's fairly complete as an all-in-one purchase - It concerned me that Mongoose, after GDW, was continuing down the lines of needing extra supplements like "High Guard" and so forth).

T2300 on DriveThruRPG

"Mankind discovers
the stars"

Traveller: 2300 products
at Noble Knight Games

When Traveller:2300 came out in '86, stores and magazines made considerable effort to clarify that it was not linked to the GDW Traveller and that the Twilight:2000 game was part of the history of T2300.  Rebranding it simply "2300AD" was an astute move, although replacing "Mankind discovers the stars" with "Mankind's battle for the stars" still divides players on the forums today.  Traveller:2300 was very specific in its setting with nationalities of Earth making slow progress in establishing new colonies, infringing, enclaving and warring with recently met aliens.  It was the cover art of T2300 which sold it to me, because at the time it's military hard plastics and battered gun metal screamed "Colonial Marines!" from the Aliens film.  This seemed a world apart from the hi-sci-fi of Traveller with it's generic laser rifles, patrons and trading merchants.   For Mongoose to fuse original (old-school) far-future Traveller with it's broad Foundation style brush strokes with this, Earth's hands-on tentative steps into space, employing chunky, clunky gadgets and tank armour, seems, at first glance, almost heretical!  Hats off to Mongoose for bravery.

2300AD (GDW)
on DriveThruRPG

"Mankind's Battle
for the Stars"

2300AD products
at Noble Knight Games

There are few generalisations flying about the web regarding the older games, so I feel the need here to bust some myths (IMHOpionated and all that).  In the first edition, the emphasis was on a selection of aliens (one reviewer claimed that the focus was all on the Kaefers - which the Americans start to fight in what may become a type of Vietnam in space).  There isn't much about cyber enhancements in Traveller:2300.  T2300 isn't very "urban" either  - a Cyberpunk style source book changed that later.  At the time I remember feeling that this was a competing product with the re-released Cyberpunk RPG (2.0).

The universe of 2300 is described as gritty and sourced from contemporary cinema. Apart from the vehicle, spaceship and weapon hardware, the original editions were incredibly vague with description and there was a real need of very specific scenic environment descriptions, or even just actual "locations".  War with the Kaefers?  Pentapod enclaves?  These were several-line  throw-away statements in the original game, and there were very few illustrations to speak of. This was frustrating, because you were forever aware of a hidden canon and naturally you'd seek out the supplements, sometimes only to be disappointed further.  My understanding of the Earth space-elevator or anything about the Earth actually came from the Beanstalk adventure set on Beta Canum.  The main mission was a bit of a who-dun-it with deadly surprises.   Another adventure I owned was "Bayern" which was clearly very influenced by films like 2001, 2010 and books like Solaris, but the campaign leading to the big reveal was an extremely open explore-map-and-catalogue planets mission.  Again there was something, if not, a lot, missing in the details.  Nonetheless, the pictures of shotguns with LEDs, pulse and gauss guns were welcome, as were the "interface" spaceplanes, blocky hovertanks, even if the rules system was a little stranger than other games.  There was a real near-star-list with colony names, but all very broad.  Games like this need plenty of smaple building maps,  pictures of flora and fauna, cultural commentary and world terrain maps...  So it was a "mixed bag" to say the least. 

One thing that Mongoose 2300AD does do well, is that it provides planet maps.  Ace!  The colony planets feel like solid, real places.  The addition of DNA modifications as a norm seems a little unnecessary.  Colonists on one world may commonly have gills.  Now, I'd prefer to make it hostile to the point that everyone carries a battered aqua-helmet.  I'm not certain what the future 300 years hold, but big gene mods may not be the absolute that the writers feel they are, especially beyond the core worlds where perhaps life is about survival with manufactured technological, but limited, resources. The catch-all here is that DNA-mods are an inevitable result of trading with the bio-tech Pentapods race (although with guns that fire teeth - which is just a little too Cronenburg for my liking - kind of cool though ...).

I'm a little fixated on the visuals here but the vehicle pictures in these Mongoose rules are not good.  Some of them look very much like computerised net models - which will date a lot faster than the 1980s technical drawings of Dietrich and others in GDW T2300/2300AD.

Mongoose Publishing's edition needs
more pictures of guns- like these!
(from GDW's Traveller:2300) 

Where are the gun pictures?  Surely the look and feel of the equipment is really important to distinguish this source book from the main Traveller setting?  The descriptions are there, but show us some eye candy!

And what's all this rubbish in the promotional blerbs about "no anti-gravity" and use of "helicopters"?  Surely there's a better genre description for this type of science-fiction which isn't reductive?  Okay, it's not "near-future" and it's not "far future", but come on! 

I think the problem here might be because this campaign setting is being resold to Mongoose Traveller players as the low tech, small-reach option.  This feels wrong.  2300AD should be about wonder and survival.  It looks outward and upwards from the ashes of the Twilight War, but this source book somehow inverts this vision.  Psionics?  No, sorry, neuro-splice?  Limited jump drive capability?  Yup, the small craft do the stutterwarp limp.  Low TL? Certainly, slugthrowers and stun-batons, barely above the invention of fire!  Of course, I'm paraphrasing here. ;)

In saying this, the authors do a good job of actually acknowledging the roots of the setting.  The inspirational reading list at the back is one of the better ones I've seen to date.  Fans of futurology may enjoy the differences in mankind's assumed path in this edition and from that of 25 years ago.  The changes make me wince just a little.  The cause of the devasting Twilight War could have been left out, but instead, "terrorists" now trigger the conflict, as opposed to the conclusion of the Cold War (or "Faltering Leader System").  Thank god, they didn't write in an eco-apocalypse - that other contemporary media obsession.  My point is that if you want an alternative-history-proofed background leave some details out.  I know that the actions of Napoleon and Wellington effected the politics of today, but the where and when escape me now.   I think my point is that there were plenty of flaws in the original game, but somehow Mongoose is happy to add a few more...

However... as a sourcebook for today's gamer, the potential for the 2300AD setting is HUGE, the supposedly gritty feel on the broad backdrop of newly settled worlds will make for a great campaign - and many styles of game are possible from espionage to battlefield war.  I do suspect that if this product is successful that a 2nd edition will have to come out because it really needs a lot more illustrations to emulate the grit-and-bulk atmosphere implied in the text. Illustraions aside, the whopping 312 pages are packed with background information and game material.

In summary, 2300AD it's a bumper book with plenty of details about many of the colonies and enclaves in the 2300AD near-star sphere.  How it fits with Mongoose's Traveller will be up to individual players to interpret.  The good news is that if Mongoose Publishing don't produce more 2300AD products that there's the so many older T2300/2300AD products out which can be "mined".  What players may discover however, is that the Mongoose edition has already gleaned the best of the basics, presented them in a complete and succinct form which can't be found in the original product range.

Currently the PDF bundle of the Traveller Core Rules and 2300AD  is great value when compared just the 2300AD on it's own (DriveThruRPG links).  At the normal prices, I'd probably I'd probably invest in buying the hard-copy rulebooks. it's a shame that their isn't a deal to combine the books with the PDFs, since it's not uncommon for players to pick up rules in PDF form that they already own - if only for quick-searching at the gaming table.

As a general note: 2300AD is implicit in its need of the Traveller Core Rulebook.  The introduction also suggests that Supplement 5: Vehicles and 6: High Guard "would also be useful".

Mongoose Publishing's 2300AD is out now 
- available on DriveThruRPG (and RPGNow) as a downloadable PDF:

http://bit.ly/MP_2300AD  ($29.99 reduced)

Bundled with the Traveller Core Rulebook

http://bit.ly/2300BUNDLE($34.99 reduced)

As printed book:

2300AD available direct from Mongoose Publishing
(see page for price)

Older Editions - Available To Buy (originally published by Games Designers' Workshop)



DrivethruRPG GDW Traveller:2300 (1st ed) PDF
Noble Knight Games 2nd-hand GDW Traveller: 2300 range

 

Noble Knight Games 2nd-hand GDW 2300AD range

DriveThruRPG GDW 2300AD (2nd ed) PDF

Select Supplements:

DriveThruRPG GDW 2300 Kafer Sourcebook PDF

DriveThruRPG GDW 2300 Equipment Guide PDF

Free DrivethruRPG Guide to GDW 2300AD products

Complete collection:

 Far Future Enterprises: PDFs of GDW 2300AD on CD-Rom 

Classic not camp! +d12s: Thousand Suns RPG (Grognardia Games)

Thousand Suns: Rulebook
from Grognardia Games
PDF and hardcopy on DriveThru
(and RPGNow)

My printed copy has arrived! It's C-format hardback - which is a really portable size - looks incredibly like a school book sci-fi text. Also got the PDF on the iPad. (Well worth the $30)

Thousand Suns in PDF and handy sized hardback format
[ Edit: 9Feb12 Photo added]

At the moment I'm mainly buying games to read -and what a great read! Well fleshed out background ideas based on the classic 50s-70s "Imperial" theme, whilst providing a vast open setting to develop and explore. Very informed, with literary quotes scattered throughout.

Strangely enough, I haven't read half enough books from that period, and my concept of "Space Opera" was more based on Star Wars, so it's refreshing that the game is presented as a "straight" setting, without the camp Flash Gordon associations, so prevalent in some retro-sci-fi games.

Given the choice between playing this and my GDW Traveller, I would choose this, partly because the fast play d12 mechanics provide a broader probability range with more opportunities for modification (see the previous review for a brief description of the d12* system) But also because I love the feel of rolling two d12s. ;)

Two shapely
do-decas
required :)

The presentation is incredibly slick and professional, with a high standard of illustrations, consistent with the classic sci-fi theme, whilst the starships have a plausible clean hi-tech look.

The section on Esperanto took me by surprise! :) This is an optional extra will entertain dedicated fans lovers of the genre.

James Maliszewski is a master of game and gaming culture observation (I'm a fan of his Grognardia blog). It's great to see those skills channelled into this game.

It's also a "complete" system. This rulebook is pretty much all you need.

If you're curious... just go for it.

(Previous post on Thousand Suns)

Thousand Suns RPG -Grognardia Games-

I'm really intrigued by this ...

Thousand Suns: Rulebook from Grognardia Games
available in PDF and hardcopy formats on DriveThru (and RPGNow)

"Thousand Suns is a roleplaying game that takes its inspiration from the classic literary "imperial" science fiction of the '50s, '60s, and '70s written by authors like Poul Anderson, Isaac Asimov, Alfred Bester, Gordon Dickson, Larry Niven, H. Beam Piper, Jerry Pournelle, and A.E. van Vogt, among others.
... This is a complete game, providing all the rules you need to play under one cover, from character generation to starship combat to the creation of alien lifeforms. Also included is the Thousand Suns "meta-setting," a flexible outline of a setting, in which certain details have been provided, along with lots of lots of "blank spaces," and whose final shape and content is entirely up to each Game Master to build upon as he wishes for his campaign."

I have mega-plus-good-oodles of to-inifity-and-beyond respect for the gaming insights and writing powers of Mr James Maliszewski of Grognardia fame.

If you like your sci-fi with a vast galaxy classic twist then this has to be a must-own - to read, play or borrow-source for your own game system.

"It is a time of wonder. .. It is a time of glory."

Games Designers' Workshop -Labor Day Weekend Sale

Clicking on any image will take you to the GDW page on DriveThru (does not link to individual products)

I received this email today.  I just had to share. ;)
Okay, I originally posted it on the Adventures and Shopping Facebook Page but it was feeling a bit lonely there, so I let it into the main blog. :)

The GDW / Drive Thru RPG Labor Day Sale! 
Now through Monday / Labor day, we have everything in the GDW DriveThruRPG Store on sale at 40% off. It doesn't matter if you want Traveller, 2300 AD, Twilight, Dark Conspiracy, or whatever from GDW, its ALL on sale at 40% off. We made it easy: no coupons or discount codes: everything is 40% off. But this sale ends Labor Day. [*]

(*That's Monday 5/9/11 for the non-US folks among us)

I may have a little browse for old Traveller PDFs.  Boarding a Scout ship with Jump-4 capacity now ...

Short-cut GDW Products Page on DriveThru:
http://bit.ly/GDWlaborday2011

Apologies if you're reading this well after the Labor Day weekend.
- Jump-Drive Failure -
Find a starport or don that Vac Suit for EVA emergency repairs.

Clicking on any image will take you to the GDW page on DriveThru (does not link to individual products)