I've certainly heard about Traveller, but apart from the whole "you can die during character creation" thing I know next to nothing about it, and I doubt that's a part of the current game. There's a pretty great Humble Bundle going right now with the 2022 update rules. What's the game like? Why should I buy this Bundle?
Most editions use 2d6 for attributes, prior history as a minigame to generate characters procedurally, and,
except CT, death in Char Gen is the optional rule; CT-81/TTB/ST short term & out is an optional rule to replace death. Many CT-77 purists take it as a personal attack to point out that no later editions mandate it.
OTU Editions:
CT-77, CT-81, TTB, ST: classic Traveller - 3 little black books (77 & 81) or one large black book (TTB
The Traveller Book) or 2 thin large black books and one coverless book (ST
Starter Traveller) for cores; over 40 more little black nooks not in the core (Bks 0 & 4-8, Sups 1-13, Adv 0-13, DA 1-6, 3 Special Suplements - pushing it to 41, tho SS1 is a prototype for part of Bk 7), 6 boardgames... The differences between 77 and 81 core rules are few, and can make for some heated arguments amongst the grogs. Oh, and there were also some larger books Official setting only vaguely hinted at in the '77 core, obliquely referenced in '81, explicitly discussed in TTB, and Obliquely referenced in ST.
Damage directly reduces attributes temporaritly. The most important 77/81 differences are in weapon damages (77 is
Nd+
M, while 81 is
Nd), the option for short term and out instead of dying (77 lacks this; 81 has it), and whether or not the power plant has to be matched to the higher of Jump Drive or Maneuver drive, or just Maneuver drive (77 is PP>= MD, 81 is PP >= higher of MD or PP). There are also minor differences in healing, world gen, scale, and certain skills specific details. Also note: CT Bk5 has two versions; '79 and '80. Char gen isn't different enought to be noteworthy, but the ship systems are rather different.
Note: The OTU was not intended to be when Marc wrote '77. But, by '79, fan demand was pressuring GDW, and GDW's OTU slowly forms via the adventuees and later some of the supplements.
MT: MegaTraveller - unified task system is 2d6 + AssetA + AssetB for N+ by difficulty (3/7/11/15/19); assets are attribute/5 (rd) or skill level, or computer model number. The OTU is deeply discussed across the line, even as the place is tearing itself apart during the second civil war.
Damage is a very low number of hit points, and weapon damages roughly equal CT numbers of damage dice. AFTER combat, or when KO'd, convert them to attribute damage, 1 hit doing 1d damage to atts.
Ships and Vehicles use a unified design system for everything but boats (not covered) and aircraft (in a supp); boats, ornithopters, and autogyros got added in magazine articles later.
T:TNE: A very bizarre computer virus (capable of impressing its unique circuitry into Imperial computers via a radio connection... I consider it psionic in nature, because my verisimilitude won't stretch that far any other way). Setting is basically the post-apocalypse corps of the OTU of CT/MT. Mechanics are a 1d20 <= DiffMod × (Att+SKill). You can't kill an NPC by the rules with a single shot of a .22 pistol unless they're bound and disabled so that you can justify the
Coup de gras rule; you'll need to double-tap...
PC's damage to specific locations. NPCs damage to single track.
Compatible with Twilight 2000 2e and 2.2e, Dark Conspiracy 1e and 2e, and Cadilacs and dinosaurs. Minor differences in character gen foer T2K and DC (they give flat rate skills per term, while TTNE reduces skills per term with increasing age); major from C&D, which uses point build.
While the att scale is, like CT/MT/T4/T5/MgT, 1-15, the generation of them is 1 point lower in TTNE/T2k/DC/C&D.
Unified technical architecture (FFS
Fire, Fusion, and Steel) used, similar to MT, but producing different ratings and undoing some of MT's changes.
Mark Miller's Traveller aka T4: set at the dawn of the OTU's 3rd Imperium, but for various reasons, it was not a great choice setting wise. Mechanics are Xd6 <= (Att+Skill). Damage to atts just like CT. The T4 FF&S is an expansion of MT's with different game ratings generated. Many more skill levels per unit time than prior.
T5,
Traveller⁵,
Traveller₅ or
Traveller Fifth Edition: Marc's pet project for the last 15 years. Totally a toolkit mentality.
Task system is Xd6 <= Att + Skill + Knowledge + (Equip & SituationMods).
MgT, RTT, Mongoose
Traveller: Some major differences in the methods in character gen; death in CGen is an option which is rewarded if used... It's got a different 2d6+DiffMod +AttMod+SKill + SituationalMods unified task mechanic. Damage is to attributes in the manner of CT-77, complete with modifiers, but also adding amount by which you hit to the total damage, and making armor reduce damage rather than reduce hit chance. Mongoose was trying to kill the OTU. Marc disapproved... A line of not horrible 3I setting books followed
MgT2 rejiggers the skills and the ship building. It also adds advantage/disadvantage.
OTU but not 2d6 for attributes:
GT
GURPS Traveller: The Third Imperium as a GURPS 3E setting. Set in the same timeframe as the Rebellion, but the Rebellion and its Civil War not happening. Many things defined in it leaked into canon, but the line editor was making changes that he'd not been able to get Marc to approve of at GDW... like All Marines wear Battle Dress (Traveller's Term for Power Armor) as their field duty uniform... In many ways, this is the edition that most cramps the GM's ability to take or leave the OTU...
HT
Traveller For Hero Yes, this is an adaptation for 4th/5th edition Hero System. Usable easily with 6th. Covers much of the timeline's interesting bits really quite well.
T20 Traveller's Handbook A d20 system adaptation of the OTU and the corebook tropes from CT/MT. Yes, my name is in every copy... If you like d20 system, you might like it, or not. Damage is dual lifeblood and stamina. Lifeblood damage is reduced by armor, stamina isn't. If Lifeblood is <0, you're dying. If Stamina is <0, you're unconscious. It is possible to have a grizzled SgMaj in Ballistic cloth armor be a round or two from dead (Curr LB <= -1×MaxLB) due to automatic loss while unstable... but still be functional because his Stamina's still >0. Meanwhile, 19yo gang banger in a tee-shirt ties from a good hit from a large caliber pistol, as it drops both to -1 or so...
Ship creation expands HG-81...
Not OTU, but Related mechnically
2300:
Traveller: 2300 and
2300AD: This is a different setting, but it's officially linked to the Twilight 2000 setting - tho' not the same timeline. Mechanics are similar to CT, but it uses a 1-20 attribute scale, the same task mechanics as MegaTraveller, except swap a d10 for the 2d6. Combat and damage work differently, too. T2300 is the 1st ed; 2300AD is the 2nd ed.
2320AD is a T20 setting book for 2300 AD's setting using the T20 mechanics.
Mongoose;s
Traveller 2300 AD is a MgT setting book, done by the guy who did 2320AD.
Babylon 5 - There was a short lived B5 Traveller setting book for MgT1
Judge Dredd Traveller - Mongoose also ported Judge Dredd to MgT1. I hat to say it, but it's not even as good as their d20 Judge Dredd.
T2K
Twilight 2000: the amount of in-studio cross-fertilization makes for some interesting bedfellows. T2K 1e was percentiles, 2e was 1d10 <= Diffmod× skill, while 2.2 was 1d20 <= DiffMod ×(Att+Skill).. Third ed was a funky engine. 4th is Year Zero Engine, but with optional Traveller/T2k2 lifepath char gen.
Dark Conspiracy is the same game engine as T2K2.x. So also
Cadilacs and Dinosaurs.
Space 1889 is a reduction in complexity from CT/MT, similar in concept, but much faster and without the random for the life path. Characters have one or two "careers" and suitable skills. Has 3 different skill roll systems. Great setting - it's licensed to PEG for
Savage Worlds: Red Sands.
Cepheus Engine: This is the MgT1e SRD adjusted to be more like Classic Traveller. It has a dozen very well supported lines... and it can be used just fine with MgT materials.
Note: I am one of the admin staff of the official Traveller boards at TravellerRPG.com. I used to run the place as a fief. I could, go on for many more pages, but won't...
