Traveller Is 45 Years Old Today!

Traveller was first created by Marc Miller in 1977, published as a box containing three black, digest-sized books by Game Designer's Workshop. The game was the first to use a lifepath system for character creation (one in which, famously, characters could die before play even began!) These days, the game is published by Mongoose Publishing.

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[dragoner]

It is a super simple system, with the main mechanic being 2d6+skill. Over on discord, some people have come over from lighter systems like Mothership, because they want a wee bit more crunch.

A quick pickup game for the Third Imperium, the official traveller universe, can be had using Cepheus Engine, the official hacked version, the wiki, and traveller map; just start at Regina.

I also have my own version, using real star maps and a more modern feeling setting: Solis People of the Sun - Wild Bee Publishing | DriveThruRPG.com

 

[GreyLord]

I've played RPGs for years, but somehow have never played a game of Traveller.

 

[TrippyHippy]

I feel ya. I’m hoping that if I pick up that “Update 2022” rulebook, that’s all I need to play.

It is all you need to play. Includes basic ship building rules and an index, which is a plus from the previous 2e.

 

[Mercador]

Wow I'm 3 days older than Traveller Gotta get that!

 

[aramis erak]

It is a super simple system, with the main mechanic being 2d6+skill. Over on discord, some people have come over from lighter systems like Mothership, because they want a wee bit more crunch.

That is, however, a Loren-ism, not Marc-ism. Marc has maintained since the mid 1990's that he always used Xd6 <= Att+Skill except for combat. Loren was editor, however....

 

[aramis erak]

Also, just throwing this out there - I read a novel set in the Traveller universe. But I don't think it was any of the ones listed here: Novel - Traveller

I want to say it was written by one of the brothers who was very instrumental in early GDW stuff (whose names I also forget - getting old sucks)

Any of Jefferson Swycaffer's are not OTU, but are based upon his homebrew Traveller universe. Dragon has Exonidas Spaceport - Jeff's publication of a setting from one of his novels.
The ones on the wiki are JUST those done with licenses.

 

[AbdulAlhazred]

Traveller was first created by Marc Miller in 1977, published as a box containing three black, digest-sized books by Game Designer's Workshop. The game was the first to use a lifepath system for character creation (one in which, famously, characters could die before play even began!) These days, the game is published by Mongoose Publishing.

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Yeah, I'm pretty sure we started playing it in, like, August of '77, at the latest, lol. There was Met. Alpha and a couple other fairly obscure and, frankly, rather poorly written, SF RPGs out there already, but this was the first in the genre that you could pop out of the box and pretty much just play. The rules were pretty straightforward, the game featured a lot of subsystems and material that allowed you to really just start playing without the GM doing more than a few minutes of prep (roll up a star system, basically). While the core game lacks a lot of thematic stuff (robots, AI, aliens, super advanced almost magical tech, etc.) it readily produces a fun kind of Nortonesque 'traveling between the stars' kind of action.

 

[Ralif Redhammer]

Traveller was either the first or second non-D&D game I ever played. I don't think any of us got the source inspiration (I wouldn't read Andre Norton or Harry Harrison until decades later), so we always came at it from the Star Trek/Star Wars paradigm. Not an uncommon approach, though, I'd imagine.

 

[CapnZapp]

Traveller contains many very intriguing ideas and concepts, intellectually speaking. I had a blast marveling at the technology building rules.

But as a role-playing game, it falls utterly flat for me.

It desperately needs character, warmth, heart, engagement. I have never seen a relatively established brand of rpg with so few adventures worth the paper they're written on.

To be brutally honest, most scenarios come across as little more than a thinly veiled excuse for a wankfest trying out some subsystem (planet generation rules, plasma cannon construction rules) with next to zero thought on writing a compelling story.

Which is extra chilling given our hobby's generous definition of "compelling" where "there is goblins in a cave, go to cave, kill goblins, return with loot and XP" is considered an above average story-line... ;-)

I had a look round when I hoped to start a Traveller campaign using the starter adventure in the otherwise maligned New Era rulebook. That scenario was quite interesting. However, I found zero older scenarios worth even using as a starting point. When I realized I had to create absolutely everything except technical details myself, I moved on to another game.

I would even go as far as hesitate characterizing Traveller a complete role-playing game. It is not comparable to D&D or WFRP or Vampire or most other mainstay games. It is much more accurate to call it a toolbox for scifi worlds, with a high degree of specificity (just like D&D is only good at playing D&D like fantasy, not all kinds of fantasy).

 

[payn]

Traveller contains many very intriguing ideas and concepts, intellectually speaking. I had a blast marveling at the technology building rules.

But as a role-playing game, it falls utterly flat for me.

It desperately needs character, warmth, heart, engagement. I have never seen a relatively established brand of rpg with so few adventures worth the paper they're written on.

To be brutally honest, most scenarios come across as little more than a thinly veiled excuse for a wankfest trying out some subsystem (planet generation rules, plasma cannon construction rules) with next to zero thought on writing a compelling story.

Which is extra chilling given our hobby's generous definition of "compelling" where "there is goblins in a cave, go to cave, kill goblins, return with loot and XP" is considered an above average story-line... ;-)

I had a look round when I hoped to start a Traveller campaign using the starter adventure in the otherwise maligned New Era rulebook. That scenario was quite interesting. However, I found zero older scenarios worth even using as a starting point. When I realized I had to create absolutely everything except technical details myself, I moved on to another game.

I would even go as far as hesitate characterizing Traveller a complete role-playing game. It is not comparable to D&D or WFRP or Vampire or most other mainstay games. It is much more accurate to call it a toolbox for scifi worlds, with a high degree of specificity (just like D&D is only good at playing D&D like fantasy, not all kinds of fantasy).

I'm not quite as sour puss on Traveller as all this, but I understand where you are coming from. I do think Mongoose has been ramping up their efforts to provide better support and adventures. ITs pretty tough though as the market isnt really great for anything not named Star Wars. However, I find the less reliance on charop and strange monsters and beast, allows for a more flexible adventure telling. I spend a lot more time on exploration and social aspects of the game than I would in otherwise heavy combat focused systems. YMMV