Space Adventure RPGs

[Yora]

Yeah, that was way before my time. Seems it had already wrapped up when I was born.

Regarding XP: One source of XP I think would be quite cool is getting knocked out in combat but surviving.
Not sure how big an impact it makes, but in a game where dying in combat is not that rapid, it might slightly nudge some players to push their luck a little bit further than would be wise.

 

[payn]

Yeah, that was way before my time. Seems it had already wrapped up when I was born.

Regarding XP: One source of XP I think would be quite cool is getting knocked out in combat but surviving.
Not sure how big an impact it makes, but in a game where dying in combat is not that rapid, it might slightly nudge some players to push their luck a little bit further than would be wise.

Many games reward failure as a process of learning. Seems like a risky proposition though to turn fights into knockouts to earn XP.

 

[dragoner]

Yeah, that was way before my time. Seems it had already wrapped up when I was born.

Regarding XP: One source of XP I think would be quite cool is getting knocked out in combat but surviving.
Not sure how big an impact it makes, but in a game where dying in combat is not that rapid, it might slightly nudge some players to push their luck a little bit further than would be wise.

I do that in my Cepheus Engine (Traveller) games is to give weeks of learning time after a critical failure, because skills are increased by studying over weeks. It helps people feel not so bad about trying something they are not good at.

 

[aramis erak]

We have done the XP song and dance before, so I wont rehash how unnecessary I find it conceptually. In a general space campaigns, like most Traveller games, the players are free to explore the setting in any myriad of ways. Want to be explorers? Ok. Want to help oppressed and downtrodden people? Also, ok. Want to become ruthless pirates? Yeap, ok too. Want to move between all those things as they become convenient and/or interesting? Perfect! One of the best features of flat leveling and no XP is how freeing it is for the players to explore in a truly open game fashion.

The lack of "likely to occur in typical campaigns" advancement in CT was also one of its major downsides for many players, and kind of a black eye that stuck around even after Mega added a more reasonable one. Two edged sword.

I disagree that players generally find it freeing; many have complained that it means they're stuck with a bad character for anything but X, where X is defined by what few skills are on the sheet. There is no room to grow into a change in role in stock CT, as it takes years to learn a new skill. In Mega, it's slow, but doable (and faster than basic char gen, but not a huge lot). In TNE and T4, it's way too fast compared to Character Gen (about 6-7 sessions, often covering 10-20 weeks for the PCs, so 1/5 to 2/5 of a year, equaling the gains from a 4 year term).

In my experience, most new-to-trav players who aren't new to gaming don't really grok that skill 1 is employable in field, skill 2 is experienced in field, or highly trained, and level 3 is professional (as in post-baccalaureate degree holder) level skill in CT and MT. (And T:2300).

Now, I'll note as well: each later Traveller edition has decreased the breadth of most skills from the prior. Each also has added new skills.
Many new to Traveller Refs/GMs didn't internalize that, either

 

[payn]

The lack of "likely to occur in typical campaigns" advancement in CT was also one of its major downsides for many players, and kind of a black eye that stuck around even after Mega added a more reasonable one. Two edged sword.

I disagree that players generally find it freeing; many have complained that it means they're stuck with a bad character for anything but X, where X is defined by what few skills are on the sheet. There is no room to grow into a change in role in stock CT, as it takes years to learn a new skill. In Mega, it's slow, but doable (and faster than basic char gen, but not a huge lot). In TNE and T4, it's way too fast compared to Character Gen (about 6-7 sessions, often covering 10-20 weeks for the PCs, so 1/5 to 2/5 of a year, equaling the gains from a 4 year term).

In my experience, most new-to-trav players who aren't new to gaming don't really grok that skill 1 is employable in field, skill 2 is experienced in field, or highly trained, and level 3 is professional (as in post-baccalaureate degree holder) level skill in CT and MT. (And T:2300).

Now, I'll note as well: each later Traveller edition has decreased the breadth of most skills from the prior. Each also has added new skills.
Many new to Traveller Refs/GMs didn't internalize that, either

I'll admit I have only run for about 5-6 different groups in Traveller. Nobody missed the advancement play loop of D&D. They really liked the ability to just focus on adventuring for its own sake. There was an adjustment phase when they learned what a skill level means in game terms, but after that it was smooth sailing.

Maybe I got lucky, or maybe you just play folks who are heavy into the game part of the RPG?

 

[aramis erak]

I'll admit I have only run for about 5-6 different groups in Traveller. Nobody missed the advancement play loop of D&D. They really liked the ability to just focus on adventuring for its own sake. There was an adjustment phase when they learned what a skill level means in game terms, but after that it was smooth sailing.

Maybe I got lucky, or maybe you just play folks who are heavy into the game part of the RPG?

Both. I, myself, am always looking for the game part to matter. If I wanted to sit and tell stories in pure collab I could... but I don't enjoy doing so. Without the game elements, it's not got the elements of risk I crave as both player and GM. (pun intended.) The roll of the die being a player in the game is a strong draw for me.

The BBS scene had some access to usenet in the late 80's and early 90's, and I was on usenet in 87 or 88 via BBSs, and from 1988 on through the uni I attended. The lack of character growth in Classic Traveller and Traveller: 2300 was a common lament in both. It was an element of flamewars on the mid 1990's Traveller Mailing List and X-boat Mailing List. (both of which I was on through their closure.)

It's also worth noting that almost all GDW RPGs have some form of improvement in play... Technically including Classic Traveller. Only Traveller: 2300 doesn't... and the second edition, renamed to 2300 AD: Mankind's Journey to the Stars, has an experience system. Twilight 2000 does in all editions (1e, 2.0e, 2.2e T2013, 4e). Even their first RPG, En Garde! (1975) has improvement, albeit rather slow.

 

[dragoner]

Yeah, I've been playing it for 42 years, it has an experience section right by drugs, and there is also instruction skill from Mercenary, as well the personality overlay machine from Expedition to Zhodane. Just as examples, in experience it said to make up others too, so it sounds like it was expected to be there.

 

[Yora]

Does anyone want to pitch me on Coriolis?

I only heard the name before and only learned a few things about it today. Any fans of it who think it's the greatest thing ever and want everyone to know why?

 

[payn]

Does anyone want to pitch me on Coriolis?

I only heard the name before and only learned a few things about it today. Any fans of it who think it's the greatest thing ever and want everyone to know why?

The setting is described as Arabian Nights in Space. I have only read about it and it seems rife with RP and adventure opportunity.

I have played a few Free League games and enjoy the year zero system. In various games you build a dice pool for testing out an event. Typically, rolling is only done for important things. I find the system does a good job of sitting back and staying out of the way. If you desire something more tangible and crunch rules heavy like D&D or GURPS, you probably wont like this system.

 

[Geekrampage]

I've played Coriolis and I love it. The "Arabian Nights in Space" angle depends on the gamemaster and how much effort they're willing to put into the flavor of their description and NPCs and cultures. Our GM wasn't great at that so his campaign felt much more 80s gritty industrial science fiction - Aliens, Outland, Bladerunner, Event Horizon, etc.

Space Combat felt like the Expanse TV show. Railguns and missiles for long range, close range point defense. I also really appreciated the way the game handled crew positions in space combat and decisions made by the commander. It's my favorite ship combat system of all sci fi systems I've played.

We built our ship around ECM and computer hacking. We were optimized to either disable an opponent's drive for boarding or to allow us to escape. Our GM HATED that!