Subject: TRAVELLER digest 251
Date: 95-04-10 19:18:41 EDT
From: traveller@mpgn.com
Sender: traveller@mpgn.com
Reply-to: traveller@mpgn.com
To: traveller@mpgn.com (Multiple recipients of list)

			    TRAVELLER Digest 251

Topics covered in this issue include:

  1) Rules and reality	by Hans Rancke-Madsen <rancke@diku.dk>
  2) Re: TRAVELLER digest 250	by Michael Llaneza <mllaneza@mercury.sfsu.edu>
  3) Re: Viral magic and reactionless thrusters...	by bonn0015@flipper.itlabs.umn.edu (STEVEN M BONNEVILLE)
  4) Re: TRAVELLER digest 250	by aboulton@cix.compulink.co.uk (Andrew Boulton)
  5) Classical Studies	by bonn0015@flipper.itlabs.umn.edu (STEVEN M BONNEVILLE)

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Date: Mon, 10 Apr 1995 02:02:18 +0100 (METDST)
From: Hans Rancke-Madsen <rancke@diku.dk>
To: traveller@MPGN.COM
Subject: Rules and reality
Message-ID: <199504100002.CAA18626@embla.diku.dk>

Loren Wiseman writes:
>There _are_ "magic lamps" in _Hunt for Red October_. Its just such a good 
>read that most people don't notice, and those who notice don't care.

So what does that tell you about how good a read TNE is when those who 
notice DO care?  ;-)

>Traveller is a game. If it were as realistic as "real life" it would take 
>as long to play and require as many PCs.

I not only accept simplifications, I applaud them (if they are well done).
What gets me hot under the collar is when two of your rules contradict
each other or when your rules produce patently absurd results. Forget
realism. But could you try for a little more versimilitude?

>  John Kovalic
>  
>  > Geeez. You'd think Traveller was a *game* or something... :-)
>  
>Once when I brought this up, the reaction was like I denied the
>absolute inerrentcy of the Bible during Baptist sunday school.

Perhaps you miss the point. A game with fuzzy rules is no fun playing. I
know that it's the Referee's job to resolve conflicts, but it is YOUR
job to help him the best you can.

>Mark Clark
>>Well, I got my copy of H&I, and I thought I'd say a few words
>>about it.
>  
>Hmmm...a few more reviews like this and I might be put off
>writing Traveller stuff completely.

If the report is accurate (which I intend to check for myself) you're not
writing Traveller stuff any more except in a purely legal sense.

>Rob Prior
>>The multiple views of history are canonical. Even back
>>in Classic Traveller times we had multiple views of alien
>>races
>  
>This was one of Marc's earliest guidelines to inside and
>outside authors both.

Sure, that dosen't bother me. But if the bit about the aliens-are-just-
humans-in-rubber-suits is accurate then you lost at least one sure sale.
(You know, I just _can't_ make myself believe that it can be true.)

>Report from GDW -- April 7, 1995

A good idea. thanks.



      Hans Rancke
University of Copenhagen
     rancke@diku.dk
------------
        "A  subsector  official  pompously states that the
        subsector  armed  forces  have  four Kinunir class
        ships in service,  each with enough troop strength
        to put down any military operations that threathen
        the peace of the Imperium."

                        ---Adventure 1, The Kinunir

------------------------------

Date: Sun, 9 Apr 1995 17:50:28 -0700 (PDT)
From: Michael Llaneza <mllaneza@mercury.sfsu.edu>
To: traveller@MPGN.COM
Cc: Multiple recipients of list <traveller@MPGN.COM>
Subject: Re: TRAVELLER digest 250
Message-ID: <Pine.SOL.3.91.950409175012.8211A-100000@orion>

Thanks for the product update Loren !

Michael Carter Llaneza
Conceptual Design Services             The Worse it gets,
Pi Kappa Phi                           The more I get used to it.
"I am the NRA"			       Duty Now For The Future
Veteran of the Bermuda Triangle Expeditionary Force 1990-1951


------------------------------

Date: Mon, 10 Apr 1995 00:43:37 -0500
From: bonn0015@flipper.itlabs.umn.edu (STEVEN M BONNEVILLE)
To: traveller@MPGN.COM
Subject: Re: Viral magic and reactionless thrusters...
Message-ID: <199504100543.AAA26684@starfish.itlabs.umn.edu>


mtr@globalx.net (Michael T. Richter) wrote:

>GDW felt the need to remove reactionless movement from Traveller for
>the sake of "realism".  Why did they just handwave over the technical
>and social stupidities of Virus?

To give themselves more time to work out the bugs? :)

I used to be up there with the biggest anti-Virus crowd myself, but
I've been thinking about this a little.  The fast non-volatile memory
that shows up at tech-9 (which would probably replace both ROM and
RAM in most systems) and synaptic computers that, to at least some
extent, can program and restructure themselves (tech-11) present some
interesting possibilities.  Virus could then fairly easily lodge 
itself into tech-9+ computers and wake up in tech-11+ computers, which
would be the majority of Imperial computers.  And lower tech systems
would tend to be not just stupider and less flexible, but also more
like the initial system configuration, since there are less synaptics
in lower tech computers.  The technology was established in MT for
this.  Something like Virus might be workable, especially with the
decision that the resources of Imperial Intelligence's computer
gurus can get in on it.  I'll be interested to see if the "canonical"
explanation is plausible, assuming one is given.

Still pondering this one....

  Steve Bonneville
  <bonn0015@gold.tc.umn.edu>

------------------------------

Date: Mon, 10 Apr 95 19:20 BST-1
From: aboulton@cix.compulink.co.uk (Andrew Boulton)
To: traveller@MPGN.COM
Cc: aboulton@cix.compulink.co.uk
Subject: Re: TRAVELLER digest 250
Message-ID: <memo.586962@cix.compulink.co.uk>

In-Reply-To: <199504092309.TAA15705@Ambassador.MPGN.COM>


  > From: gdw.support@genie.geis.com 
  >  
  > Report from GDW -- April 7, 1995 
  >  
  > Challenge 77 is in the art stage as well, same comments, 

Could you go and bang a few heads together down in the subscriptions dept?
They seem to have forgotten that they owe me another years worth.

  > The second of the Traveller novels, _To Dream of Chaos_ should 

According to the latest issue of _Valkyrie_, it's called _Flight of the
Golden Pharaoh_. That's an impressive typo!


------------------------------

Date: Mon, 10 Apr 1995 16:27:40 -0500
From: bonn0015@flipper.itlabs.umn.edu (STEVEN M BONNEVILLE)
To: traveller@MPGN.COM
Subject: Classical Studies
Message-ID: <199504102127.QAA27990@starfish.itlabs.umn.edu>

Loren <gdw.support@genie.geis.com> wrote:

> Alvin Plummer:
>
>> From: Derek Wildstar <wildstar@qrc.com
>>> Di! Ecce hora! Uxor mea me neccabit!
>>Wildstar (and Sister Hildegard, of _Vision_ fame) makes me
>> regret dropping university Latin
>
> I would translate this phrase as "Wow! Lookit the time!
> My wife'll kill me!" but my high school Latin teacher would
> undoubtedly criticize it as too idiomatic. 

---

SMART Library Data Network, 001-1120     

Imperial Classical Movement:  a philosophical, cultural, and educational 
  movement popular with the social elite of the high population worlds
  of the Imperium.  Reaching its' peak in popularity during the late
  ninth and early tenth centuries Imperial, "Imperial Classicism"
  still has an important influence on modern secondary education at all
  levels of Imperial society.

  Classicism is marked by its' focus on the crucial historical period
  which surrounded Solomani-Vilani contact, the era from about the
  twenty-sixth to the twenty-third centuries pre-Imperial.  As pointed
  out by the classicists, the events and cultural movements of this
  era had a seminal role in the shaping of the modern Imperium.

  For many years, classical training was considered vital preparation
  for attendance at an undergraduate university or the Naval Academy
  by the nobility.  An off-shoot of Solomani theories of liberal 
  education that date back six millenia, the traditional classical
  training is intended to produce a "free individual" that possesses 
  the best speech, conduct, and abilities.  

  In the best programs, the historical and cultural background of the
  era is used to provide a context to help discuss modern history,
  sociology, and the basis of the social conflicts in the Imperium.
  Students are expected to be skilled in one of the classic languages 
  of the era before matriculation.  Training in the theoretical and 
  social sciences, fine arts, and athletics are also considered vital 
  to the liberal education of a civilized being.  
 
  Study of the classics have declined in recent years, with a de-emphasis
  of classical history and increased teaching of modern languages having
  become more prevalent in Imperial secondary education.  However, it is
  still fairly common for new students at the Imperial Sylean University
  to have a strong preparatory background in classical studies.

----------------------------
Rules for use with TNE:

Two of the four "background skills" slots (TNE, p. 23) must be used
for the skills History-2 and Language-2.  For Language, the player
must take either 
  Language(Classical English)-2   
or
  Language(High Vilani)-1
  Language(Classical Written Vilani)-1.

The remaining two background skills may be taken as usual, with the
following additions to the allowed Background Skills List.  In fact,
add them anyway:
  Dance           [What, not teaching dance?  Why, that won't *do*!]
  Persuasion      [Rhetoric, don't you know.]
  Carousing       

For high nobles, you might want to consider a +1 EDU stat to reflect
their reciept of the best education, and not apply the bonus to the
usual +2 limit to the first six UPP stats (so their EDU could still
go up another two points).
----------------------------

The twenty-sixth century pre-Imperial runs from AD 1918 to AD 2017.

I once had a campaign with a player whose noble character was nuts 
for ancient history, particularly the "minus twenty-sixth century".
The other players played him for laughs.  He'd bring up some -26th
century reference, and they'd pretend they had no clue.  For that
matter, so did my NPCs.  :)  But his "joke" skills in ancient
languages and history actually came in handy for the adventurers
on a number of occasions.

According to the back story, he went to a school like this when he
was young.  For whatever it's worth, enjoy! 

  Steve Bonneville
  <bonn0015@gold.tc.umn.edu>


------------------------------

End of TRAVELLER Digest 251
***************************
