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<blockquote data-quote="Shades of Green" data-source="post: 2983883" data-attributes="member: 3297"><p>Marc Miller's greatest creation, Classic Traveller (CT), also takes weird and arbitrary approximations for playability (such as abstract range-bands for combat rather than a tactical organization of forces on grid/hex paper). The three key differences between OD&D and Traveller are these of genere (fantasy vs. sci-fi), of a class/level-based system as opposed to a skill-based system, and the fact that Traveller has a mechanism for beginning play with experienced characters. Most of the three basic books of Classic Traveller are quite comparable in complexity and learning curve to OD&D, with the exeption of the older ship-combat system (vector-based), which was scrapped in the later "The Traveller Book" edition (a few years later) in favour for a simple range-band system. Yes, Marc Miller had suspension of disbelief (that is, a realistic "feel" as opposed to realistic accuracy) in mind, especially in matters of world-creation, but he too had little problems with weird and arbitrary "hanwavium" science, such as artificial gravity, FTL travel, inertialess (or inertia-dampend) drives and psionics, the first three exiting in order to allow simpler gameplay (and fitting the sci-fi of the time), and the last existing in order to put a little "magic" into Traveller's sci-fi setting.</p><p></p><p>Now, the "gearheady" (i.e. complex rules and complex formulae) versions of Traveller - MegaTraveller and Traveller: New Era - were written by other people, not Marc Miller.</p><p></p><p>In short, Marc Miller's "realism" was somewhat similar to H.P. Lovecraft's "realism" - it may be handwavium or quasi-fantasy, but it should *look and feel* scientific and realistic. That's why I love Traveller: it has a degree of inner logic and is quite believable, yet I, as a Referee (game master), can be very creative and very imaginative (up to the point of inserting an SRD monster - an Aboleth - as a Lovecraftian horror to a Traveller adventure), and so could my players.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Shades of Green, post: 2983883, member: 3297"] Marc Miller's greatest creation, Classic Traveller (CT), also takes weird and arbitrary approximations for playability (such as abstract range-bands for combat rather than a tactical organization of forces on grid/hex paper). The three key differences between OD&D and Traveller are these of genere (fantasy vs. sci-fi), of a class/level-based system as opposed to a skill-based system, and the fact that Traveller has a mechanism for beginning play with experienced characters. Most of the three basic books of Classic Traveller are quite comparable in complexity and learning curve to OD&D, with the exeption of the older ship-combat system (vector-based), which was scrapped in the later "The Traveller Book" edition (a few years later) in favour for a simple range-band system. Yes, Marc Miller had suspension of disbelief (that is, a realistic "feel" as opposed to realistic accuracy) in mind, especially in matters of world-creation, but he too had little problems with weird and arbitrary "hanwavium" science, such as artificial gravity, FTL travel, inertialess (or inertia-dampend) drives and psionics, the first three exiting in order to allow simpler gameplay (and fitting the sci-fi of the time), and the last existing in order to put a little "magic" into Traveller's sci-fi setting. Now, the "gearheady" (i.e. complex rules and complex formulae) versions of Traveller - MegaTraveller and Traveller: New Era - were written by other people, not Marc Miller. In short, Marc Miller's "realism" was somewhat similar to H.P. Lovecraft's "realism" - it may be handwavium or quasi-fantasy, but it should *look and feel* scientific and realistic. That's why I love Traveller: it has a degree of inner logic and is quite believable, yet I, as a Referee (game master), can be very creative and very imaginative (up to the point of inserting an SRD monster - an Aboleth - as a Lovecraftian horror to a Traveller adventure), and so could my players. [/QUOTE]
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