			    TRAVELLER Digest 432

Topics covered in this issue include:

  1) RICE Paper - Ruby by Michael Bailey <pd82495@wapol.gov.au>
  2) Re: TRAVELLER digest 431 by stedee@auto-trol.com (Steve Deemer)
  3) MDs&Rads by John Muir Macpherson <muirmac@uclink.berkeley.edu>
  4) Re: TRAVELLER digest 431 by toad@ugcs.caltech.edu (Benjamin Lane)
  5) Society for the Suppression of Grandfather and all that Guff by CyHiggin@aol.com
  6) Misjump thru Time... by CyHiggin@aol.com
  7) "Put it someplace Delicate but Important..." by CyHiggin@aol.com

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

Date: Fri, 29 Sep 1995 22:37:27 -1600
From: Michael Bailey <pd82495@wapol.gov.au>
To: traveller@MPGN.COM
Subject: RICE Paper - Ruby
Message-ID: <9509291435.AA19219@phq1002.wapol.gov.au>

Draft #2...thanks Hyphen, for the FFW atrocities question...I've now
addressed this.
Coming up:  Emerald/Jewell, Pequan/Jewell.

RICE Paper #SM-1005 Ruby/Jewell

Ruby (Jewell:  Spinward Marches/1005)
B400445-B S Ni Va    201 RE M1 V M3 D
G = 0.76, Day = 47d 12:27:17.50, Year = 47d 12:27:17.50
Atmo = 0.00, No weather control
Temp = +7.8 (dayside 7/lat +0 to +26.4 nightside 56/lat -0 to -224.8)(no
seasonal var.)
Daily temp range 0.0
Ores, Radioactives, Metals
Progressive, Advancing, Passive/Peaceable, Discordant/Friendly
Legal: 5-35625  Tech: BB-BA9BC-A6BB-B9-D

Ruby is part of the Jewell Cluster, a group of three worlds at the spinward
edge of the Regency.  Dominated by, and reliant on heavily populated Jewell
one parsec away, the citizens of Ruby have managed to preserve independence.
Like Jewell, Ruby's location so near to the Zhodani border makes it a
frequent stop for Regency military forces.  However, where centuries of
exposure to the Frontier Wars has given Jewellers an ingrained distrust of
the Zhodani and Vargr, the people of Ruby have an unprejudiced attitude to
all races.

Ruby was first settled in 339, primarily to obtain ores for the inhabitants
of Jewell and Emerald.  Never of great importance, the colony was abandoned
in 362, after large quantities of high-grade lanthanum ores were discovered
on Jewell.  The system remained essentially uninhabited until 634, although
small Zhodani contingents occupied Ruby from 592-603, and in 617.  Both of
these forces withdrew from the system as the balance of the First and Second
Frontier Wars tipped back towards the Imperium.

In 631, Papaieie Sawaiu led a group of leftist libertarians to petition the
Jewell government for permission and aid to settle Ruby.  Jewell's
government (which was still legally the owner of the system) granted the
petitions requests (probably more to be rid of a troublesome minority than
anything else), and set aside MCr4.0 to reopen the abandoned colony.  In
634, six hundred Sawaiuites settled a site about 80km southwest of the old
lanthanum mines.  The group began shipping small quantities of platinum to
Emerald in 640, and surprisingly, managed to pay it's way.  Sharp falls
precious metal prices in the region in the late 690's put an end to the
colony's modest prosperity, and Jewell was once again forced to subsidise
it's neighbour.

The subsidy was withdrawn in 711, and preparations were made to repatriate
the colonists to Jewell.  The colony, now numbering several thousand, was
saved by the Imperial Government's decision to establish scout facilities in
the system.  Tensions between the Imperium and the Zhodani had been
increasing since the end of the Second Frontier War, and the IISS had
decided to upgrade it's presence in the subsector as part of a overhaul of
intelligence operations against the Zhodani.  The base and accompanying
starport facilities were completed in 720, many of the existing colonists
were contracted to provide support services for IISS personnel in this
lonely frontier outpost.

The Scout base was hastily abandoned at the outbreak of the Third Frontier
War, it's personnel and ships pulled back help defend Jewell from major
Zhodani attacks.  Once again, Zhodani ground troops occupied the world,
taking over the scout base for use in supplying the forces beseiging Jewell.
They pulled out of the system at the end of the war, having largely ignored
the civilian population during their seven year occupation. At the outbreak
of the Fourth Frontier War, Zhodani forces ran into substantial Imperial
naval assets deployed from Jewell.  Their attack was beaten off, and the
Zhodani chose to bypass and isolate the world.  

Ruby was occupied by Zhodani ground forces following a short battle with
Imperial screening forces at the opening of the Fifth Frontier War in 1107.
During the battle, the IMS 'Johore' was forced down onto Ruby's surface.
It's surviving crew and marines fled the crash site to begin a guerilla war
against the Zhodani.  In response to raids, the Zhodani commander took
hostages from among the civillian population.  Unfortunately, twelve of the
hostages were killed in an abortive rescue attempt by the guerrila forces.
When news leaked out, the Imperium made it's celebrated accusation of
Zhodani atrocities against Ruby's civilians.  Perhaps surprisingly, the
Zhodani occupation of Ruby was rather benign - the unfortunate Zhodani
ground forces commander was replaced, and reparations were paid to the
families of the deceased.  A ceasefire was negotiated between the Zhodani
and the guerillas shortly afterwards.  The Imperial Marines were guarenteed
safe passage aboard a neutral vessel to Imperial-held space, were they were
feted as heroes.  Their commander, Lt. Rivka Moishe, was later knighted by
Duke Norris of Regina for her actions.

Since then, Ruby has remained on the 'front lines'.  Imperial, and later
Regency fleets regularly deployed to the system for exercises.  The thaw in
Regency-Zhodani relations from 1117 onwards saw the scout presence scaled
back, and the scout base was transferred to the Regency Quarantine Service
in 1146.  The RQS operates a Customes Station on Ruby, primarily to inspect
the small number of Jump-1 ships travelling along the Jewell-Cipango Main
from the Consulate.  Naval units also routinely deploy here from Jewell and
Mongo for joint exercises with RQS and RSS units.

Regular RQS customs procedures are in effect on Ruby.  Incoming starships
will be escorted to the RQS station on Eloise Tay, the small outermost moon
of Boyden, the system's only gas giant.  The permanent presence of the RQS
'Carlton', a 4000 ton Quarantine Service Carrier, provides the muscle to
back up RQS directives.  Extensive examinations of the starship and it's
crew will take 1-3 days (for starships under 1000 tons).  During this time,
crews and passengers are 'invited' to stay at the 'Eloise Hilton' (the
somewhat spartan guest accomadations on the station).

Following inspection, the ship is free to move on to Ruby, or to refuel at
Boyden and jump outsystem.  Ruby itself has only one starport, the Class B
RQS facility on the world's surface.  This starport is open to civillian
traffic, although berthing fees are considerably higher than for comparable
private facilities.  The base's repair and maintenance facilities are not
available to civillians excepts in emergencies (although detatched duty
Scouts and RQS officials are welcome).

New visitors will be steered towards 'Ruby's Startown Bar', on the edge of
the starport complex.  'Ruby's' is famous throughout the region for it's
cheap booze (and other, less common stimulants), and for it's bouncers.
Unruly patrons are given a brief lecture on the anit-social aspects of their
violent behaviour by the doormen (a lecture given with absolute sincerity ).
Continued troublemaking will normally result in extremely violent ejection
and arrest.  All staff at 'Ruby's' are members of the Stivlprerqaf family,
descendents of a Zhodani prole who fled across the border in 992.  The
current manager is Jdishehtaev Stivlprerqaf (Jdishehtaev is probably better
known in the Regency as 'Jades Stive', acclaimed romance novelist).  

Sawaiu Town, the only substantial settlement of Ruby, adjoins the RQS base.
Almost all of Ruby's 19,900 permanent inhabitants live here.  The town
itself consists of four pressure domes atop an underground tunnel complex.
The domes are given over largely to parkland - each dome has a different
environment and 'theme'.  In order of size, these are:  Sawaiu Dome (Terran
/ Tropical Maritime), Isgiidu (Vilani / Highland), Summondamus (Terran /
Desert) and Taenu Diran (Sylean / Savannah).  Residential, commercial and
support areas are all underground.  Local although the world is small, local
gravity is a reasonable 0.78g, due to the planet's higher than normal
density.  Atmospheric pressure is maintained at 0.8 standard atmospheres,
making the environment tolerable for most visitors.

Visitors will find the locals friendly and agreeable, if somewhat strange.
Non-violence is an important part of the Rubyan lifestyle, although
potential criminals are warned that Ruby's law enforcement officials are
generally hired from offworld, and do not have the same passive ethic.
Offenders face deportation and confiscation of their assets if caught -
within a short time, they will find themselves on Jewell with little more
than the clothes on their back.  Given the world's reliance on offworld
powers for it's continued existence, foreigners are treated with respect.
Merchants on Ruby will buy and sell for fair prices - at any rate, they are
trading for the good of the colony more than their own gain.  A disgruntled
customer won't come back, a potential loss for the world.

Ruby's inhabitants are fiercely egalitarian - the concept of 'privelige' is
repellant to them.  Without exception, all citizens are allocated the same
communal floorspace in Sawaiu Town's residential areas.  this concept of
'equality of opportunity' is one of the basic tenets of Ruby's society - the
lasting legacy of the settlement's commune origins.  The settlement's ruler,
the 'Premier', is directly elected by all permanent residents for a two year
term.  Traditionally, the office is one of the lowest paying jobs on the
planet.  Although the Premier is responsible for all aspects of
administration, much of the more judicial and administrative work is handled
by a council of elders.  Membership in the council is voluntary and unpaid,
but anyone over the age of 40 can join.

One interesting custom practised by the Rubyan is 'fostering'.  Ruby lacks
all but the most elementary educational facilities, children are instead
sent to Jewell to complete their education.  A child will spend from three
to twelve years on Jewell as a 'fosterling', before returning to Ruby as an
adult citizen.  

Most of Ruby's residents are employed either directly or indirectly by the
RQS, although some mining still takes place.  Mineral ores are shipped
mainly to the agricultural worlds of Emerald and Esalin in exchange for
food.  A small nunmber of independant miners eke out a precarious existence
from gold and platinum deposits.  All large scale mining is conducted by
RubyCorp, a statutory authority run by the government.  Miners typically
spend six weeks at a time in the camps, followed by six weeks layover in
Sawaiu Town.  Independent miners number less than two hundred, and typically
live permanently at their workings, coming to town only to sell their ores
and resupply.

Ruby maintains a small fleet of four Type R Subsidised Merchants, used to
service the mineral trade with Emerald and Esalin.  The 'Papaieie', 'Rhys',
'Topaz' and 'Guiding Hand' are all subsidised by the Ruby and Regency
governments.

System Information

Orbit           Name            UPP             Remarks

Primary         Talau           M1 V            Far Companion
0               Ruby            B400445-B       Ni Va Qb
        4       Lahr            YS00000-0
1               Boyden          Small GG
        7       Athelbard       YS10000-0
       35       Eloise Tay      H100166-B       Qb

Secondary       Papaiete        M7 D            

(Qb - Quarantine Base)
Michael Bailey (pd82495@wapol.gov.au)

"...the scum also rises..."
                          Hunter S. Thompson



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

Date: Fri, 29 Sep 95 09:14:57 MDT
From: stedee@auto-trol.com (Steve Deemer)
To: traveller@MPGN.COM
Subject: Re: TRAVELLER digest 431
Message-ID: <9509291514.AA05071@stedee.YP.attc>


>I don't have 2300, hmm, maybe I'll have to find a copy.  This reminded
>me that my girlfriend had a lecture from a russian MD when her med
>school class was doing radiation... the guy had empirical rules for
>prognosis.  They went kinda like this:
>
>Vomits within 1 hour of exposure---fatal within 3 hours.
>
>etc., and so forth.  The interesting bit is that he was asked where this
>data came from... he said "we have this data."  they said, "yes, we
>know, how did you do the study?"  Answer "we have this data."  :-)
>
>My guess is submarine reactor accidents.

Safety procedures weren't all that strict in the early days of the Atomic Age.
I worked with a man who had been involved in nuclear research in the late
1940s. He described sitting the cafeteria when someone would begin to vomit
blood all over the floor. Everyone's exposure was tracked with some care, 
so the medical team got lots of empirical data on what a lethal dose of 
radiation was whenever someone dropped dead.

Fun with science, I guess.

Steve Deemer
stedee@auto-trol.com

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

Date: Fri, 29 Sep 1995 12:30:17 -0700 (PDT)
From: John Muir Macpherson <muirmac@uclink.berkeley.edu>
To: traveller@MPGN.COM
Subject: MDs&Rads
Message-ID: <Pine.3.89.9509291138.C11984-0100000@uclink.berkeley.edu>


David C. Broussard said in TML Digest 431: 
> 2.  Mass Drivers.  This has rather ticked me off, and made me very close to
> dropping my interest in GDW products all together.  I was trying to generate
> a MBT that uses a mass driver as the main weapon, and discovered that my
> 3000m/s mass driver had a short range of somthing like 35m.
	<sad story about heroes at GDW turning out to be jerks deleted>

	I'm sorry to hear that you went to all this trouble without 
getting any help from GDW.  The answer is actually quite simple and was 
posted to this list sometime last year I believe.  The corrected formula 
for MD range is as follows:

Page 110

 (Correction): The formula for computing the direct fire range
 of a mass driver is wrong. Replace the second paragraph of the
 "1. Direct Fire Range" subsection with the following:

 "Short direct fire range in meters for a mass drive gun firing
 a kinetic penetrator round is equal to _five times the sum of its
 bore size in centimeters plus one-twentieth its muzzle velocity
 in meters per second plus 20. SR = 5 [B + (V\20) + 20]"_

	This was part of a much larger errata sheet. If you enjoy using 
FF&S you will probably want it.  You can get a paper copy from GDW, but 
given your recent experience with them, I would be glad to email you a 
copy.  Provided, of course, that you promise to post your designs to 
the list, or at least mail them to me.:-)
	A suggestion for designing MDs, particularly at lower tech 
levels, is to use an EPG for power rather than a larger powerplant.  This 
works nicely because it is little larger than the HPG you need for the MD 
anyway, and you can carry only as many PPCs as you have rounds, which 
comes out to be much smaller than a dedicated powerplant.  Again, this 
difference is particularly large at lower tech levels.  MDs are great for 
shooting hyper-velocity penetrators, but they're not so good for HE and 
HEAP rounds that you might want to use against personnel.  For an areea 
affect weapon, you can't beat a plasma gun, but they get real big in a 
hurry.  A good compromise weapon is the good, old-fshioned ETC CPR.  If 
you want, I bet you could use a little excess powerplant capacity to do 
away with the bulky batteries for this gun, too.
	Anyone know what the official rules are for determining the
concussion and blast effect of high-energy weapons?  I haven't been able
to find a rule for this anywhere.  The system I came up with for
concussion, which approximates published values pretty well, is Pulse
Energy(Mj) - .1*Pulse Energy.  I don't know about Burst though.  For that
I just eyeball it.
	
> Aaaarrrrrghhhh!  B-(  Sorry had to
> get this off my chest.
> 
> DCB
> David C. Broussard (broussa@connecti.com)

	Quite all right, anyone who's dealt with GDW errata (meaning 
everyone on this list) understands completely :-)

Re: Radiation T:2000 rules

Effects of Exposure:  Exposure to lower levels of radiation will produce 
temporary illness, while higher levels can ckill.  All exposure is 
cumulative.  When a character's accumulated rads reach or surpass 50, he 
must be checked for radiation illness.  Thereafter, each time the 
character accumulates one or more rads he must be checked for radation 
illness.  however, the character is checked for radiation illness only 
once per day on each day that he accumulates additional rads.
	The Radiation Illness Chart (below) gives the multipliers used to 
determine the chances of illness and death from exposure to radiation.  
Use the rad level on the chart that is closest to (without exceeding) his 
accumulated rad level.

Rads	Slight Illness	Serious Illness	Death
50		1.0		nil	nil
100		0.5		1.0	nil
300		0.2		0.5	1.0
400		Auto		0.2	0.5
600		Auto		Auto	0.2
800		Auto		Auto	Auto

	Multiply the character's Constitution by the multiplier to 
determine his target number (round fractions up).  Roll 1D10.  If the 
number rolled is equal to or less than the chance, the character avoids 
the effect.

Slight Illness:  Nausea, vomiting, and headaches.  Onset is 1D6 hours 
after exposure.  The character has strength, agility, and intelligence 
halved for the duration of the illness.  Symptoms last one day at lower 
levels, two days if exposure is greater than 600 rads.

Serious Illness:  First suffers slight illness, as above,.  Then suffers 
serious illness and is incapacitated with severe vomiting and diarrhea, 
spotting on the body caused by bleeding under teh skin, and blood int he 
stool and vomit.  Onset of serious illness is 2D6 days after exposere at 
levels less than 300 rads, 1D6 at levels above that.  Incapacitation 
lasts 1D6 days, plus one day for every two days spent without bed rest 
and medical care.  The amount of medical care required is the same as for 
a character with a serious wound to two body parts -- or two additional 
body parts if the character is already wounded.  General illness, 
approximating the effects of slight illness listed above, will persist 
for 1D6 weeks.

Death:  The character first suffers from slight radiation illness and 
then from serious radiation illness.  During the incapacitation period 
(and usually within 30 days of exposure) the character dies.

	At higher tech levles, presumably an automed could treat slight
and serious illness at increasing levels of exposure, and a full medical
facility could prevent death, and "roll-back" a persons cumulative
exposure.  The description in FF&S of the consequences of getting too
close to a Fusion Drive suggest that bone marrow transplants etc, would be
necessary, so presumably the character is till going to be laid up for
some time. 

	*Apologies to those not interested in radiation, but enough people 
had expressed an interest that I thought it was worthwhile.  
	
	--Muir


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

Date: Fri, 29 Sep 1995 12:57:07 -0700 (PDT)
From: toad@ugcs.caltech.edu (Benjamin Lane)
To: traveller@MPGN.COM
Subject: Re: TRAVELLER digest 431
Message-ID: <199509291957.MAA15964@bradbert.ugcs.caltech.edu>

HI all,

You know, the galaxy is actually rather thin out here in the boonies.
The star-forming regions lie in a plane some 100 pc thick, while 
most stars lie within a disk 1000 ly (300pc) thick. So conceivably
the Imperium is no more than a sector or two thick. nevertheless, 
you probably have to assume that there are a lot more stars around than 
what you see on the map..


> Law 5: prohibited weapons: body pistols, bombs, grenades, poison gas,
>        portable energy weapons (yeah, right), autofire weapons, 
>        light assault weapons, concealable weapons

I find it annoying that what defines law-level is the kind of weapons 
you can carry around. this is too obviously a concession to the 
hack-and-slash gaming style typical of D&D. what about the civil liberties,
or legal rights of the citizen, or even the harshness/leniency of the
legal system?

> 
> I'm moving house this weekend, so it might be the end of next week before I 
> can get to it though.
> 
> Kind Regards
> 
> Dave Elrick

Would you be willing to post those, or send them to me too? I could use them.
Thanks,
/ben "toad@ugcs.caltech.edu"

re: Brendan's idea of time-travle - wonderful! I liked it. Just be 
careful with paradoxes. I suggest deciding beforehand how you will
resolve them... e.g. split universe, "happenstance" preventing certain 
actions, etc.


> 2) re: Lab Ship
>   a) First, please note that the lab ship in TNE has sufficient G-turns to
> jump more than once before refueling becomes necessary.
>   b) For my own campaign, I created a 360 (400) ton version with a 40-ton
> slow pinnace.  This way, the crew can still disembark onto a planet. 
> Also, the lab ship can perform wilderness refueling much faster (fewer
> trips to the gas giant).

Sounds good to me. That might be a ship that one could use.
> 
> 3) re: borders of Solomani exploration
>   a) When Traveller first came out, Mark Miller produced a map od
> known/charted space.  This map showed the rimward border of the Solomani
> Sphere right against the bottom edge of the map.  Further, as originally
> presented by Mr Miller, the Solomani were insular; i.e., they wanted the
> Imperium out of their space.  They weren't really interested in expanding
> their borders.  (Of course, this changed with the Rebellion.)
>
Why wouldn't they expand? How about private ventures? Or are they 
just as stagnant as the Zhodani? 
What I see here is a problem - for reasons of playability (read laziness)
rulemakers have elected to limit the expansion of various empires without
giving a satisfactory explaination. Space is virtually unlimited, and
relatively homogeneous (at least in this neck of the woods). there is no
reason why growth wouldn't be enormous, given the ease of space travel
in the Traveller Universe. 

   b) In DGP's "Aliens of the Rim: Solomani and Aslan", the map of
> known/charted space shows the Solomani Sphere plus another sector or two
> (I don't have the map right in front of me, so I'm going from memory) to
> rimward.  In this module, they alos make reference to the Perseus Project,
> a long-range (1,000+ parsecs) expedition.
> 
> -- Franklin W. Cain
> 
Again, why go 1000+ parsecs if you haven't settled the next sector over?
sure, long-range expaditions are great, but are not logical without follow
-on colonization.
> 

> >Ben Lane (toad@ugcs.caltech.edu) writes:
> >>finally, the Zho's DIDN'T invade. That's a 'fact'. why is for Regecy era
> >>academics to discuss...
> > 
> >You seemed to have missed the point that it makes sense for the Zho to have
> >invaded. In not doing so, GDW adds yet another chunk of inconsistency to
> >the TNE universe, which, IMHO, detracts form their product.

There are enough inconsistencies that are far worse than why the zhos 
didn't undertake a MASSIVE military operation with a definite high cost
against a foe they have only narrowly defeated in five wars over 1000 years,
with the sole intent of preventing a _possible_ threat sometime in the 
next 100 years.

Ask Congress if they want to invade Russia just because it has the
potential of being a threat again in 30 years... 

> 
> The reason why the Zhodani didn't invade is the same reason why they haven't
> resumed expansion in 2000 years. Unfortunately, I've been unable to imagine
> just why they haven't done that (I suspect MASSIVE internal unrest due to
> failure to integrate systems (but for 2000 years...?) or some large
> belligerent on the other side of the Consulate (though why we've never
> heard of that...?)). 
> 
snip

The question remains. why haven't they settled the Core? or at least 
expanded...


> Seriously, try making references to the Ancients more general in nature. The
> average Ancient expert dosen't know half of what we Traveller Referees know.
> 
Amen. Grandfather crops up too often. The Universe if freaky enough on its
own. 
> 
Merrick wrote;

> Vomits within 1 hour of exposure---fatal within 3 hours.
> 
> etc., and so forth.  The interesting bit is that he was asked where this
> data came from... he said "we have this data."  they said, "yes, we
> know, how did you do the study?"  Answer "we have this data."  :-)
> 
> My guess is submarine reactor accidents.
> 
and Chernobyl. and a few others. The Russians have had their problems.

> I'll ask her for her notes.  If it has estimated exposures, it'll make
> for good quick and dirty rules.

Please do that. Sounds like a good basis...

> 
> In regards to a few points that are being discussed in the list.
> 
> 1.  The World Builders Handbook.  Yes it is true that one can tweak the
> numbers to get it to work, and it is also true that inhabitable worlds are
> probably few and far between, however...Traveller makes the Universe seem
> FULL of inhabitable planets.  Now technology can make a marginal planet
> habitable, but as Thanasis Kinias points out, creating a planet that has a
> mean temp that makes it inhabitable would make most of the Imperium empty of
> life.  Also if I am going to disregard most of the planetary generation to
> get an inhabiatable planet, then why not just make it up altogether?

That's your perogative. But if you want the exrta "feel" of authenticity,
I find that figuring out creative and acceptable ways around these problems
is a fun challenge for a ref.


final words;

Re: the quarantine. 
realize that it is IMPOSSIBLE to constantly monitor all of space - including
interstellar deep space- along a 100 pc frontier.
Calculate the resources needed and you'll see it's something Grandfather
would find difficult.
what you can do is put sensor drones around refueling points, and patrol
space very often over a 10-20 parsec deep patrol zone. to do this 
you need _lots_ of Virus-proof patrol vessels. Thus the Regency should 
be pretty good at Virusproofing. 
Now, the principal threat to the quarantine will _not_ be vampire 
tigresses, for many reasons. a) there werent many tigresses around by 
1130 - they tended to get blown up, right?  b) maintenance. to keep a 
patrol cutter running you need to coerce a crewman or two, to maintain a 
tigress you need to coerce a few hundred, as well as a naval base. 
Thus the threat during the 1140's was xboats, pirates, fleeing free traders
and refugees. to deal with them you need to localize them, intercept them
and either sterilize them or destry them. the best organization for 
this I would imagine as being a mulit-layered system consisting of 
long-range recon patrols combined with sensor drones. these rely on stealth
to give an accurate picture of what is out there, so as to better be able 
to intercept. that is the outermost layer.
inside that you establish checkpoints and clearing areas where all traffic 
is routed through sanitization/transfer. this is where you maintain the 
visible cordon - naval patrols, Quarantine Stations etc.
but the important part of the Quarantine is what you don't see - the LRRP's
and the Task Forces that they can call upon for support. As well as the 
not infrequent Search-and-Destroy mission. 
In order for the Quarantine to work it would have to be an ACTIVE defence.
thus you might find stealthy RQS patrol vessels in Vland sector.  
to just put the navy out on the frontier and wait for Virus to come to 
you is an invitation for disaster.

cheers,
/ben


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

Date: Fri, 29 Sep 1995 16:13:19 -0400
From: CyHiggin@aol.com
To: traveller@MPGN.COM
Subject: Society for the Suppression of Grandfather and all that Guff
Message-ID: <950929161317_112710801@mail06.mail.aol.com>

Hans sez: 
<<So much for the rational arguments. As a charter member of the _Society for
the Suppression of Grandfather and all that Guff_ I further appeal to all of
you to avoid references to him like the plague. He is one of the lamest plot
devices it has ever been my misfortune to meet, and he does not, repeat NOT,
exist in my personal Traveller Universe.
>>

Over here, he's a Cthulhoid.  The Grandfather story is just 
archeological mumbo-jumbo trying to explain him and his
servitor creatures... FNORD.

<<
Seriously, try making references to the Ancients more general in nature. The
average Ancient expert dosen't know half of what we Traveller Referees know.
>>

Some of them are still arguing whether or not the Ancients were
Droyne.  And then do the 700 year collapse, stir in Imperial ruins,
and the ruins of every other pre-Imperial interstellar culture.  Cook
on High Radioactive.  Then sit back and watch the archaeologists
try and sort it out... heh, heh, heh.

-- Cynthia, crawling out of alt.gothic and alt.vampyres,
   blinking at the daylight, and saying "What? They DON'T
  all wear black out there? And where'd this .sig come from?"

+-------------------------------------------------------------+
Lurker@The.Threshold, Daemon-Daughter of Yog-Sothoth, Incarnate
Daughter of Chaos, Fatebreaker, Unmaker of Dooms, Unweaver of 
Destinies, Derailer of Linearly Choreographed Scenarios, and 
General PITA, aka CyHiggin@aol.com




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

Date: Fri, 29 Sep 1995 16:13:28 -0400
From: CyHiggin@aol.com
To: traveller@MPGN.COM
Subject: Misjump thru Time...
Message-ID: <950929161327_112710943@mail04.mail.aol.com>

Bill sez:

<<There is (sort of) a precedent for misjumps through time.  In one of 
the _White_Dwarf_ magazines from pre-86, there was a CT adventure 
called _Alien_Warewolf_in_London_ in which the players follow a Vargr 
to 19th (18th?) century London via a hand portable time machine that 
I think was based on jump technology.  If any body is interested, I 
can dig it out (or further details).
>>

I remember that adventure, it was great!  Trouble is, I don't have
a copy of it.  If you do, could you photocopy it and mail me a 
copy?

I used a misjump through time to drop one of Steve's Traveller 
PCs onto early 20th C. Earth, into a Call of Cthulhu adventure.
Said character eventually shipped out with the ESA slowboats
that founded the Island Cluster civilization. Allliance players,
THAT'S where Admiral Isaac Conner came from.
In that case, a Scout Ship whose jump drive was 
sabotaged to misjumped was forced to jump by an
induced power surge in the jump grid.  I decided that
the massive double-shaft misjump should be 
spectacular, weird, and provide a whole new insight
into why some misjumps cause complete disappearance
of the ship...

                    -- Cynthia
+-------------------------------------------------------------+
Lurker@The.Threshold, Daemon-Daughter of Yog-Sothoth, Incarnate
Daughter of Chaos, Fatebreaker, Unmaker of Dooms, Unweaver of 
Destinies, Derailer of Linearly Choreographed Scenarios, and 
General PITA, aka CyHiggin@aol.com





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

Date: Fri, 29 Sep 1995 16:13:39 -0400
From: CyHiggin@aol.com
To: traveller@MPGN.COM
Subject: "Put it someplace Delicate but Important..."
Message-ID: <950929161329_112710978@emout05.mail.aol.com>

[ Introduction: this is one of the more, er, extraordinary
incidents that came out of the first Traveller campaign
I ever played in.  It was Classic Trav, started before
Spinward Marches Campaign came out , thus
the references to non-Imperial empires.  It made
for a good story, and it could fit in a pocket TNE
empire just fine.  Hope this starts a thread.
The Original Incident was, well, incidental to playing 
the old "Traveller Adventure 1:Kinunir" module...]

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
"So you want to know the truth behind the accident that destroyed
the Confederation's capital city, eh?" Bianca Mordell takes a drag
from the Terran cigarette you gave her.  "Immunity from prosecution,
of course, and get me off this damn prison planet!"  You nod,
saying you'll do what you can.  You're pretty sure you can get 
her sentence commuted; she was convicted of illegal psionics use,
and the political climate has changed considerably since then.

"We were hired to get some information on some piece of military
 hardware mounted on the then-obsolete Kinuir class warship 
used by the Confederation.  In those days, we were citizens
of the Fourteen Worlds -- this was before the 3rd Imperium
moved in and "assimilated" us -- and the Nebular Planetary
Confederation were our closest neighbors and enemies.  Okay,
 I admit it, we were hired as freelance spies...

"We being myself, recently resigned from the 14 Worlds Navy,
my brother, former Army Sgt. Brian Mordell, and ex-Marine,
ex-Commando Sgt. Sherman Bolo Lee -- deadly in a fight,
a complete sociopath, and dumb as a post.  Not that my late
brother was all that smart, either.  And then there was that
fool whose name I forget who caused the whole mess.
Former Scout Service puke, if I remember correctly; I believe
it was his ship we used for our trip to Regina.  Lord knows,
when it came to brains, he made Sherman look brilliant.

"It's a matter of public record now that Sherman is wanted
for assorted murders as well as illegal psionics, so I 
suppose I can admit that he was also a telepath.  Remember
in those days just being a psi was a capital offense in
some places, so those of us who were kept our own kind
of 'Masquerade', so to speak.  Why did I, a loyal officer of
the 14 Worlds Navy, get psi training?  I never was brain-
washed into blind prejudice, and I wanted an edge when
I went freelance."  She takes another drag from the cigarette.

"Before the Impy Navy moved in, Regina was the capital of 
our local opposition, the Confederation.  It had the usual facilities:
starport, shipyards, navy bases, etc.  In one of those shipyards
was the hull of a scrapped Kinunir.  Our plan was we would 
get pictures, etc from that hulk. We figured on bypassing the 
yard's security systems with the help of a "minor diversion".

"Sherman, former demolitions expert among other things , whipped 
a nasty little time-bomb and gave it to our moron Scout friend,
telling him, "We need a diversion; put it someplace delicate but 
important."  Off went the moron on his part of the mission, and 
off the rest of us went  on our part of the mission; Sherman
played bodyguard while I actually took the measurements and 
pictures of the military hardware -- okay, I'll admit it, the Black Globe
mount, which I know something about and had the experience to 
analyze -- and Brian played "high cover" from a nearby rooftop
overlooking the scrapyard.

"Infilitration of the scrapyard and the old starship hulk went just fine, 
until our diversion went into effect...

"Moron, with bomb, finds someplace he thinks is "delicate but 
important" ... the starport's super-refined hydrogen tank farm. 
 Moron plants bomb at base of hydrogen tank. Moron doesn't 
seem to know that liquid hydrogen is explosive. Moron has never
 heard of the concept of "sympathetic detonation". Time bomb 
explodes.  Tank explodes.  Tanks, plural, explode.  Starport 
disappears in not-quite-nuclear fireball.  Nasty firestorm.  
Blast levels buildings for blocks (many blocks) around.  
The mess is just starting.

"I did mention there was a Navy base and starport there, didn't I?  
There were several ships sitting around on launch pads, in 
various stages of launch readiness.  Several of them had pilots
who tried desperately to escape the expanding fireball...
One ship's soon-to-be dead Navy pilot in sheer desperation punches in
full fusion rockets IN ATMOSPHERE!  He almost made it, too.  
Unfortunately for everyone else, the fusion rockets obliterate what's
left of the starport and burns a nice trench through half the city as 
Navy ship crashes from explosion damage anyway.  A large 
warship, fully loaded with armament, tries to get off the pad on normal
takeoff jets, and doesn't even it make away from the starport; when
it explodes, radioactive debris from all of its nuclear missile warheads 
is sprayed across the city...  Another ship trying to take off loses
control and crashed into the continental rectenna grid for the solar power
sats, knocking out all power for the city and the continent.

"As for us, well, the multi-thousand-ton armored hull of the Kinunir lurched
about 
four feet to the left,  but protected our hides (that's Sherman and I). We
pick 
ourself up with a few bruises, and wonder what the hell happened.  Brian,
who was on top of the building does not fare so well as half the building 
falls out from under him, and the other half falls on top of him. Moron is
never 
seen again, presumed vaporized.

"I did say the two of us were telepaths, weren't we?  That was how we found
Brian in time.  He was literally on his next-to-last breath when we dug him
out and
got him some medical help.  He was eventually put back together, but he was
on
the critical list for a long time afterward."  She looks grim.  "And if he
had died 
there, Sherman would not have murdered him later, but that's a different
story."
  
"We brought the scoutship down from orbit and helped with relief
operations (it was the least we could do, after all).  Everyone in the city,
including us, was in such a state of shock, that no one noticed for days 
that we were flying around in an air/raft brightly painted with the 
"Fourteen Worlds Scout Service" logo! (Remember, we're in the
capital city of our main enemy nation, which has just blown up)
 We eventually noticed, went "ohmygod!" and carefully draped a
 couple of army blankets over the logo.  Somebody always remained
 with the air/raft to make sure the blankets didn't slip...

"And that, my friend, is the true story of how the capital of
the Nebular Planetary Confederation was blown up."
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------

A postscrypt: Dennis Matheson, our Traveller Referee, told us that
he recounted the story of this incident to Mark Miller at a con once.
I hear that Mark was suitably appalled....






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

End of TRAVELLER Digest 432
***************************
