TRAVELLER Is Back!

The brand new edition of the Traveller RPG from Mongoose Publishing has arrived. It's available as a PDF right now, and will be in stores in April. "A brand new edition of Traveller is now available - based on the original but tweaked, finessed and updated through a massive months-long beta playtest by you, the players! Every Traveller book is now printed in full colour and all core rulebooks and supplements are gorgeous hardbacks, fully updating this beloved game for the 21st Century. Traveller contains everything needed to play any science fiction campaign, from desperate battles across the stars against evil empires, through free traders operating on both sides of the law, to mercenary companies desperate to find their next ticket or face bankruptcy - Traveller gives you the tools to explore the universe in a way that suits you."

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There's range of supplements planned for the upcoming year, including:

• Traveller Referee Screen (Pdf available; print in April)
• High Guard (PDF in March; print in May)
• High and Dry (PDF in March; print in May)
• Central Supply Catalog (PDF in April; print in June)
• Vehicle Handbook (PDF in May; print in July)
• Marooned on Marduk (PDF in June; print in July)
• Traveller Starter Box Set (PDF in July; box in August)
• The Pirates of Drinax (PDF in August; print in September)

There's also one the item in September (PDF)/November (print) which Mongoose is not releasing the name of yet, plus a pair of Traveller 2300AD items.

Find the new core rulebook here.

SaveSave​

 

[darjr]

Anybody here from the play testing? How backward compatible is it? To mongoose and classic?

 

[camilaacolide]

Could anyone from the play testing post a mini review? What has changed? What is better/worse? Thanks!

 

[Koloth]

Is the PDR for the Traveller Starter Box set a new format or typo?

Wonder how this compares to the GURPS version?

Hopefully, they will publish print versions of the Maps.

 

[mach1.9pants]

Box set? Sold!

 

[Pseudonym]

Can you die in character creation?

 

[Bluenose]

I'd say it's very compatible with the first Mongoose edition, but a little less compatible with classic traveller than that first edition. Though that's based on the beta (the December version) rather than the final version; I'm waiting on the print+pdf option to be available. I certainly found it just as playable with old Classic and even Mega-Traveller adventures as the first Mongoose version, and I think it's a little quicker and neater in play - the explanations seem to me to be clearer than the first version, for instance. I'm less sure about being able to play "any Science fiction campaign", but I suspect that's more a matter of waiting for some of the expansions.

 

[TrippyHippy]

Very much backwards compatible. The revised rules were more about optimising systems and making them easier to use, rather than making the systems completely anew. It's not as compatible with Classic, although as Bluenose said, it's easy enough to run Classic scenarios and campaigns with it. In terms of being able to play any type of sci-fi campaign, I;ve found it easy enough to run both space opera and cyberpunk with it, and with the transhumanist Mindjammer setting due to be released also, I'd say it's a very flexible system. The default is still the Third Imperium however.

 

[Kurzon]

Can someone enlighten me as to why Traveller is such a big deal? I know it's considered a classic and I remember it from Mil Sims mail order catalogues back in the day, but I've never looked at a Traveller rulebook, so would like to know what the big deal is. Why is this such a classic, stand out, sci-fi game compared to all the others it's outlasted?

 

[TrippyHippy]

Can someone enlighten me as to why Traveller is such a big deal? I know it's considered a classic and I remember it from Mil Sims mail order catalogues back in the day, but I've never looked at a Traveller rulebook, so would like to know what the big deal is. Why is this such a classic, stand out, sci-fi game compared to all the others it's outlasted?

In terms of game design history, it's one of the most innovative games ever made. While it wasn't the very first science fiction rpg (that would be Metamorphosis Alpha), it was the first RPG system to be skills based, while it also introduced ideas such as Tech levels, lifepath character generation, quasi science-based world design, animal design and starship design. At the time of it's original release (1977) it largely captured the burgeoning Star Wars gamer fanbase and managed to maintain it with strong sales up until the late 80s when an official Star Wars (WEG) came out. It still tends to appeal to fans who prefer their sci-fi "hard" and gritty in tone at least, and generally runs in the same manner as Josh Whedon's Firefly TV show. The original game (and Mongoose's Traveller to a degree) is broadly generic, so in this manner it's sometimes seen as the science fiction equivalent to D&D. The LBB design (Little Black Book) was also seen as very futuristic in its day, and has become something of an iconic cover design.

Both the game itself and the main game designer, Marc Miller are Origins Hall of Fame recipients, and it has been cited by Mike Pondsmith of Cyberpunk fame as one of the 100 Best Hobby games ever (the Green Ronin publication). Arcane Magazine ranked it at number 3 in the Best RPGs ever, and it retains a hugely stable and loyal following regardless.

The game itself has gone through many editions, and several systems. The current Mongoose version is regarded by many as the most approachable and flexible version of the game, suited to casual and long term gamer alike. The recent campaign, Pirates of Drinax, by Gareth Hanrahan, has been winning a lot of plaudits recently too.