Traveller-digest      Tuesday, August 10 1999      Volume 1999 : Number 937



(R)1996. Traveller is a registered trademark of FarFuture Enterprises.
All rights reserved.

The following topics are covered in this digest:

Re: Traveller in Va
Re: P*****s
Re: A New Traveller
Re: A New Traveller
Re: New Art
Re: Vilani  Stature
Re: A New Traveller
Re: First In
Re: People's Republic of Berzerkley
Re Radios and Line of Sight.
Re: A New Traveller
Re: People's Republic of Berzerkley
Re: A New Traveller
Re: A New Traveller
Re: A New Traveller
Re: A New Traveller
RE: A New Traveller
Re: A New Traveller
Re: First In
Ethically-challenged merchants (was re: A New Traveller)
Re: A New Traveller
Re: test, and hello everyone
Re: First In
Re: A New Traveller 
Re: Ethically-challenged merchants (was re: A New Traveller)

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

Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 18:42:55 -0400
From: "Jory Earl" <j-man@iname.com>
Subject: Re: Traveller in Va

Well Paul, I'm in the Newhampshire area, Manchester..
___________________________________________________________
 J-Man
 ICQ# 2843475
 New Hampshire - U.S.A.
 Email : j-man@iname.com
 Home Page : http://www.geocities.com/~jman037/
___________________________________________________________

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

Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 18:45:08 -0400
From: "Jory Earl" <j-man@iname.com>
Subject: Re: P*****s

Ian ordered :
- -----------------
Cardinal biggles, fetch the comfy chair...
- ----------------------------------------------------

Ah, sir, wouldn't you like to use the RACK on him first?  Can't I just
interrogate the prisoners a little?
___________________________________________________________
 J-Man
 ICQ# 2843475
 New Hampshire - U.S.A.
 Email : j-man@iname.com
 Home Page : http://www.geocities.com/~jman037/
___________________________________________________________

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

Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 18:47:33 -0400
From: "Jory Earl" <j-man@iname.com>
Subject: Re: A New Traveller

Black Ice issued this warning :
- ----------
Meanwhile, Evil Stevie said that he plans to adapt the Lego Pirate Game
to space....
- -----------------

I am Legotis of Lego..prepare to be assimulated...

<picture on view screen, shiny round lego-face with idiot smile painted on
it, one claw arm raised>
___________________________________________________________
 J-Man
 ICQ# 2843475
 New Hampshire - U.S.A.
 Email : j-man@iname.com
 Home Page : http://www.geocities.com/~jman037/
___________________________________________________________

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

Date: Tue, 10 Aug 99 17:40:41 -0500
From: "Eris Reddoch" <eris@pcola.gulf.net>
Subject: Re: A New Traveller

On 08/10/99 at 02:45 PM,  Anthony Salter <badman@austin.rr.com> said:

>>...and out in the OORT cloud a small bright light appears, as the
>>thrusters lashed to a small rock are turned on for their months long
>>journey aimed a BD (with comfortable shoes!) wearing Aslan talking to
>>the pirate about their tame Virus infected computer...

>You left out the Dean drive :)

Ooo!  That's one we haven't done in a while!  Let's "do the Dean drive!"

"Thrusters!"

    "HEPlaR!"

"THRUSTERS!"

        "....stutterwarp?"


Eris
- -- 
- -----------------------------------------------------------
"Eris Reddoch" <eris@pcola.gulf.net>    using MR/2 ICE #245
- -----------------------------------------------------------

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

Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 18:37:44 -0400
From: Michael Peters <travelleri@home.com>
Subject: Re: New Art

Probably because that's the font I used. It's the best looking of the
few alien ones I have (mostly trek) and I didn't whant to make my own.

Mike

Kiri Aradia Morgan wrote:
> 
> I like your art, but why does the script on the starliner look like
> Klingonaase to me?
> 
> Kiri, confused
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Michael Peters <travelleri@home.com>
> To: traveller@lists.imagiconline.com <traveller@lists.imagiconline.com>
> Date: Sunday, August 08, 1999 3:04 PM
> Subject: Re: New Art
> 
> >Thanks Kiri, there was a broken link that my browser was ignoring since
> >it had the originals. I've tried it from the other internet connection
> >and it should be ok now though!
> >
> >again the address:
> >
> >http://members.home.net/travelleri/index.html
> >
> >and go to the artwork page (which SHOULD work now!)
> >
> >Mike
> >
> >Kiri Aradia Morgan wrote:
> >>
> >> I got an error message that the page wasn't up.
> >>
> >> Kiri
> >> -----Original Message-----
> >> From: Michael Peters <travelleri@home.com>
> >> To: TML <traveller@lists.imagiconline.com>
> >> Date: Sunday, August 08, 1999 1:55 PM
> >> Subject: New Art
> >>
> >> >Please check out the type M subsidized liner art on my web page and let
> >> >me know what you think. Thanks to Steve Hudson for several pictures. Any
> >> >error are strictly of my own making from my interpretation.
> >> >
> >> >They can be found at
> >> >
> >> >http://members.home.net/travelleri/index.html
> >> >
> >> >follow the Artwork link
> >> >--
> >> >Mike Peters
> >> >travelleri@home.com
> >> >
> >
> >--
> >Mike Peters
> >travelleri@home.com
> >

- -- 
Mike Peters
travelleri@home.com

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

Date: Tue, 10 Aug 99 17:49:04 -0500
From: "Eris Reddoch" <eris@pcola.gulf.net>
Subject: Re: Vilani  Stature

On 08/10/99 at 02:36 PM,  "Benyamene' ZeAbe' Akella" <xrp@sierratel.com> said:


>>  Mayday! Mayday! This is freetrader Beowolf, we are under attack,
>>  turret number one not responding...

>Speaking of not responding, Someone (Eris I believe), posted a query
>on Vilani stature as opposed to another race (I can't recall who). It
>came to my mailbox, and I deleted it thinking it probably got posted
>here, but I don't see it yet. Sorry, but someone might want to repost
>that. BZA

Nah! Twert, me.  However...

...the question was Vilani and Genoee are both supposed to have been
planted on dense atmosphere, 1.3g worlds, yet Vilani are only stocky
while Genoee are much more dwarf-like.

The answer is, "the Ancients dood it!"

IMO, if all the non-Solomani were transplanted 300+ kyears ago then
there should be some Erectus here, Neanderthal there, and who knows
what all all over, out there.  Especially, seeing as the Ancients
liked to tinker...ex, Vargr.

Eris
- -- 
- -----------------------------------------------------------
"Eris Reddoch" <eris@pcola.gulf.net>    using MR/2 ICE #245
- -----------------------------------------------------------

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

Date: Tue, 10 Aug 99 17:57:11 -0500
From: "Eris Reddoch" <eris@pcola.gulf.net>
Subject: Re: A New Traveller

On 08/10/99 at 06:20 PM,  Michael Peters <travelleri@home.com> said:

>OK, OK, OK,  he said it! He said it! That means it's OK to start,
>right? Well, I for one use Pirates in all of my games and think that
>it's very sensible!! If you don't like it then I'll roll out the
>CANON and.. and.. well you know!

Hee!  Hee!  It's perfectly okay with me.  In certain regions,
pirates are an unpleasant fact of life, IMTU.  In other regions, the
practice is *very* unhealthy, and so isn't common. 

The debates, and debators, can rage all they want, but MTU, is MTU,
so I basically ignore them when they start up.  The same goes for
Virus, lesbian Aslan, and near-c rocks.  ;->

Eris
- -- 
- -----------------------------------------------------------
"Eris Reddoch" <eris@pcola.gulf.net>    using MR/2 ICE #245
- -----------------------------------------------------------

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

Date: Wed, 11 Aug 1999 00:04:16 +0100
From: John Buston <John.Buston@tesco.net>
Subject: Re: First In

>>Don't forget that each star in a widely spaced multiple star system can have
>>its own set of planets - out to one third minimum star separation. 

>Especially if the systems both have Gas Giants.

Planetary systems without gas giants are pretty rare using First In rules. The
stars would have to be relatively close for it to be likely there are no gas
giants (i.e. less than three to four times the "snow line" distance).
 
>>If there are settlements and/or resources in the different planetary
>>systems of the different stars in a single system, then commerce between
>>them is interesting. 

>Could both systems share the same farport?

There should be a gravity neutral (Lagrange) point at the centre of mass of the
two stars. So you could pop a far port (or two) in there. With two competing
population centres and governments, would they want to share? Also it is likely
to be a very long haul back to either main world. I can see them both setting up
their own starports, perhaps with closer (trojan) far ports for intra system
trade.

>Wouldn't the planets of both stars being on the same plane increase the
>chance of erratic orbits? Is it possible the orbital planes could be
>perpendicular? 

I assume they would all form out of the same accretion disk on system/planetary
formation. So I would expect them to all be roughly in the same plane. 

First In already has the concept of "Forbidden zones" so that there are no
planets in gravitationally unstable positions. First In planets can only exist
at up to one third minimum star separation. So you would need two Suns at at
least 3 AU separation to have two potential Earths in the same system and
probably much further.

Stars orbitting each other tend to follow eccentric eliptical orbits. So the
minimum separation and the maximum separation are likely to be quite different.
First In maximum separation averages twice the minimum separation. Though the
variance is large. This sweeps out a huge portion of space where planets cannot
exist.

>Would the outer planets orbit both stars?

Unlikely. There is another "Forbidden zone" out to three times the maximum star
separation, which is likely to be very far indeed. (Someone, Bruce Mac?, posted
that current theories say four to ten times maximum separation). So stars would
need to be very close to share outer planets, and then the situation we started
with wont exist.

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

Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 16:14:47
From: "Douglas E. Berry" <dberry@hooked.net>
Subject: Re: People's Republic of Berzerkley

At 03:33 PM 8/10/99 -0700, you wrote:
>Douglas E. Berry writes:
>>
>> Just when we think they've calmed down.. of course, Berkeley is the home of
>> the Lawrence National Nuclear Labs, where most of our nuclear weapons were
>> designed!  Thus, the cosmic karma is maintained, dude.
>
>Um.. nuclear weapons are designed at Lawrence Livermore National
Laboritories, which are (surprise) located in Livermore.  Lawrence Berkeley
Lab doesn't do nuclear weapons research.

Answer 1: But it's so *hot* in Livermore!! It's much easier to block
Larry's Rad Lab in Berkeley!

Answer 2: That's what they *want* you to think.. fnord
- -- 

Doug Berry             dberry@hooked.net
http://www.hooked.net/~dberry/index.html

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

Date: Wed, 11 Aug 1999 00:14:30 +0100
From: "Derrick Jones" <dojones.whitestar@btinternet.com>
Subject: Re Radios and Line of Sight.

Matt, and co,

sorry, my misunderstanding, probably comes from
the terminology we used at 3 Div SR :-(

Trunk comms was my thing, with elevated static
antennae, and high gain reflectors, directional to
me meant line of sight (as in line of sight when
shooting a weapon).

Comms installations used 'up the hill shots' to
Radio Relay installations, which were in our terms
LOS signals. (we couldn't get too much of a good
signal from bouncing microwaves about, especially
not with the error rate we needed to send our traffic
effectively.

Then again, I was a tech, and not an operator (well
not full time, anyway!). Sorry for getting confused.


Derrick

(goes back to reading his manuals!!!)

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

Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 16:04:19 -0700
From: "Kiri Aradia Morgan" <tiamat@tsoft.com>
Subject: Re: A New Traveller

Vargr pirates!!!  Bwahahahahahahahahahah!!!

<G,D,R...>

>>Thank you.  I wasn't sure what the word was :)  I don't think I even want
to know why I should mention pirates.  Oops...just did...sorry, I won't
mention pirates again.
>
>Ah, it's not so bad. It's just a "been done to death" topic. Now if you'd
written V***s that would have been different. ;-J

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

Date: Wed, 11 Aug 1999 00:25:30 +0100
From: SD Mooney <dom@cybergoths.u-net.com>
Subject: Re: People's Republic of Berzerkley

Anthony Jackson <ajackson@molly.iii.com> writes:
>Douglas E. Berry writes:
>> Just when we think they've calmed down.. of course, Berkeley is the home of
>> the Lawrence National Nuclear Labs, where most of our nuclear weapons were
>> designed!  Thus, the cosmic karma is maintained, dude.
>Um.. nuclear weapons are designed at Lawrence Livermore National
>Laboritories, which are (surprise) located in Livermore.  Lawrence
>Berkeley Lab doesn't do nuclear weapons research.

THEY told you to say that didn't THEY?

Dom ;-)

- ----------Dom Mooney---dom@cybergoths.u-net.com------------
                       MiB - Marines in Battledress
   "Protecting the Imperium from the Scum of the Galaxy"
Rob Prior's Mac software @ http://www.bits.org.uk/ 

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

Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 19:06:28 -0500
From: Black ICE <wombat@premier.net>
Subject: Re: A New Traveller

Eris Reddoch wrote:
> 
> On 08/10/99 at 01:18 PM,  Anthony Salter <badman@austin.rr.com> said:
> 
> >Thank you.  I wasn't sure what the word was :)  I don't think I even
> >want to know why I should mention pirates.  Oops...just did...sorry,
> >I won't mention pirates again.
> 
> Ah, it's not so bad. It's just a "been done to death" topic. Now if you'd written V***s that would have been different. ;-J
> 
> Eris,
>     the stirrer of trouble

Just _had_ to toss that Kallisti golden apple in, eh?  Fnord.  >;-)

- -- 
AuricTech Shipyards Journeyman Gearhead
"Gold-Plated [tm] solutions for copper-plated problems!" (r)
http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Shadowlands/9776

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

Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 19:21:27 -0500
From: Anthony Salter <badman@austin.rr.com>
Subject: Re: A New Traveller

I seem to remember an article in the old Autoduel Quarterly about how cycle
gangs in Car Wars couldn't possibly survive on the meager salvage they get,
especially with such a high fatality rate...I bet a similar case could be
made for pirates in Traveller.  They can make good plot hooks, though,
properly handled.

Badman

At 06:20 PM 8/10/99 -0400, you wrote:
>OK, OK, OK,  he said it! He said it! That means it's OK to start, right?
>Well, I for one use Pirates in all of my games and think that it's very
>sensible!! If you don't like it then I'll roll out the CANON and.. and..
>well you know!

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

Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 19:23:54 -0500
From: Anthony Salter <badman@austin.rr.com>
Subject: Re: A New Traveller

>Ooo!  That's one we haven't done in a while!  Let's "do the Dean drive!"
>
>"Thrusters!"
>
>    "HEPlaR!"
>
>"THRUSTERS!"
>
>        "....stutterwarp?"
>
>
>Eris

<takes deep breath, channels Eric Cartman>

Nobody gives a...

Badman (except that someone, obviously, does :)

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

Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 19:25:14 -0500
From: Anthony Salter <badman@austin.rr.com>
Subject: Re: A New Traveller

>The debates, and debators, can rage all they want, but MTU, is MTU,
>so I basically ignore them when they start up.  The same goes for
>Virus, lesbian Aslan, and near-c rocks.  ;->
>
>Eris

I am so damn glad I joined this list :)

Badman (lesbian Aslan?)

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

Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 19:27:27 -0500
From: Anthony Salter <badman@austin.rr.com>
Subject: RE: A New Traveller

At 05:33 PM 8/10/99 -0500, you wrote:
>On 08/10/99 at 01:18 PM,  Anthony Salter <badman@austin.rr.com> said:
>
>>Thank you.  I wasn't sure what the word was :)  I don't think I even
>>want to know why I should mention pirates.  Oops...just did...sorry,
>>I won't mention pirates again.
>
>Ah, it's not so bad. It's just a "been done to death" topic. Now if you'd
written V***s that would have been different. ;-J
>
>Eris,
>    the stirrer of trouble

And, again, I have no idea what the word is.

Badman (naive, inadvertant stirrer of trouble)

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

Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 17:33:24 -0700
From: "Kiri Aradia Morgan" <tiamat@tsoft.com>
Subject: Re: A New Traveller

And what was the lady's name again, praytell?

Mistress Tiamat, Sacred Chao of Discordia... aka Kiri

>Eris Reddoch wrote:
>>
>>>Thank you.  I wasn't sure what the word was :)  I don't think I even want
to know why I should mention pirates.  Oops...just did...sorry, I won't
mention pirates again.
>> Ah, it's not so bad. It's just a "been done to death" topic. Now if you'd
written V***s that would have been different. ;-J
>>
>> Eris,  the stirrer of trouble
>
>Just _had_ to toss that Kallisti golden apple in, eh?  Fnord.  >;-)


Next week on Done to a Turn:  "Do Lesbian Aslan Lick Pussy?"

::snicker::

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

Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 17:38:52 -0700
From: "Kiri Aradia Morgan" <tiamat@tsoft.com>
Subject: Re: First In

>Planetary systems without gas giants are pretty rare using First In rules.
The stars would have to be relatively close for it to be likely there are no
gas giants (i.e. less than three to four times the "snow line" distance).
>
Why is that anyway?

>>Could both systems share the same farport?
>
>There should be a gravity neutral (Lagrange) point at the centre of mass of
the two stars. So you could pop a far port (or two) in there.
>
This may not be the brightest question that I have ever asked, but what
exactly IS a Lagrange point?  I put one in orbit around Shiratori, a planet
in my novel, and now I'm wondering if I have to give Shiratori a moon of
about the same size as ours.  I needed it to put a station in.

BTW on the rare occasion when I did run Traveller, I actually set it in the
universe I write in, not the Imperium, for while I love the Imperium, I
wanted to hack some things out in my own universe...

> With two competing population centres and governments, would they want to
share?
>
Wouldn't that depend on the state of relations between those gov'ts?  And
the cultures involved?

>I assume they would all form out of the same accretion disk on
system/planetary formation. So I would expect them to all be roughly in the
same plane.
>
Is that why the planets all lie in the ecliptic?  (Well, except for Pluto
sometimes...)

>>Would the outer planets orbit both stars?
>
>Unlikely. There is another "Forbidden zone" out to three times the maximum
star separation, which is likely to be very far indeed. (Someone, Bruce
Mac?, posted that current theories say four to ten times maximum
separation). So stars would need to be very close to share outer planets,
and then the situation we started with wont exist.
>
Can a planet orbit two stars and still be in a habitable zone?

Kiri

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

Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 20:42:40 -0400
From: Walter Smith <SmithW@HARTWICK.EDU>
Subject: Ethically-challenged merchants (was re: A New Traveller)

Anthony Salter wrote:
>>>>>>>>>>>>
I seem to remember an article in the old Autoduel Quarterly about how cycle
gangs in Car Wars couldn't possibly survive on the meager salvage they get,
especially with such a high fatality rate...I bet a similar case could be
made for pirates in Traveller.  They can make good plot hooks, though,
properly handled.
>>>>>>>>>>>>
The gangs probably pull some action on the side - smuggling, 
protection rackets, hired muscle, that kind of thing.

Warning: P***** stuff ahead!!

I've done some basic economic analysis on ethically challenged 
merchants, and IMO they can both survive and make a profit *if* they
can find access to underpatrolled shipping lanes. This is even 
without stealing ships - a lifeboat, even sold at 20% of market value,
is still over MCr2, and then there are vacc suits, cargo, spare parts,
ship's safes, etc.

The problem is finding these underpatrolled shipping lanes. Pirate
prey almost needs to consent to be a target, by travelling into
outer systems, unaligned frontier worlds, and other places where
military presences are either absent or spread too thin. Systems
undergoing an economic boom might also be a target - there may
be traffic worth hunting there, but it hasn't been there long enough
for the system government to establish a solid defense net.

I think I figured that a pirate could survive on less than six subbie
merchants or shuttlecraft per year, even if none of these ships
provided unexpected big scores (like a shipment of gems or
illegal weapons). The pirate will have to change his hunting grounds
frequently, though - one destroyer escort flotilla can spoil the hunting
over a very large chunk of a star system if the pirate gets too annoying.

Of course, another problem the pirate has is if he's stealing six
shuttlecraft per year, he's worth the price of that many shuttlecraft
to catch. You can hire quite a few mercenaries/bounty hunters
for that kind of creds.

Nobody said being a pirate was easy...

Walt Smith

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

Date: Tue, 10 Aug 99 19:50:04 -0500
From: "Eris Reddoch" <eris@pcola.gulf.net>
Subject: Re: A New Traveller

On 08/10/99 at 07:06 PM,  Black ICE <wombat@premier.net> said:

>> Ah, it's not so bad. It's just a "been done to death" topic. Now if you'd written V***s that would have been different. ;-J
 
>> Eris,
>>     the stirrer of trouble

>Just _had_ to toss that Kallisti golden apple in, eh?  Fnord.  >;-)

It's my nature. ;-J 

Eris.
 My parents had *no* idea for whom they were naming me!

- -- 
- -----------------------------------------------------------
"Eris Reddoch" <eris@pcola.gulf.net>    using MR/2 ICE #245
- -----------------------------------------------------------

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

Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 21:04:43 -0600
From: "David J. Golden" <goldendj@pcisys.net>
Subject: Re: test, and hello everyone

At 02:47 PM 8/10/99 EDT, you wrote:
>In a message dated 8/10/99 11:04:14 AM Eastern Daylight Time, 
>intrepadv@geocities.com writes:
>
><< ello, hope this works, new to the list.  Wondering if there is
any
> resource with a list of players, and their relative locations
compiled?
> I am in Alexandria, Va and looking to play traveller, however am
new to
> the area, so..... >>
>
>    If you are in Northern Virginia and haven't been to the Game
Parlour in 
>Chantilly VA, go there at once.  They have excellent facilities and
products.

	Got an address?
- -- ------------------------------------------------------------ --
   Dave Golden                  http://www.pcisys.net/~goldendj 

   Fight Spam! Join CAUCE! == http://www.cauce.org/

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

Date: Tue, 10 Aug 99 20:08:59 -0500
From: "Eris Reddoch" <eris@pcola.gulf.net>
Subject: Re: First In

On 08/10/99 at 05:38 PM,  "Kiri Aradia Morgan" <tiamat@tsoft.com> said:

>Can a planet orbit two stars and still be in a habitable zone?

Yes, if the two stars are *very* close...well under 1 AU.  In cases
like that, you combine the stats of each and put your planets in
orbit around the two star's center of mass.

Eris
- -- 
- -----------------------------------------------------------
"Eris Reddoch" <eris@pcola.gulf.net>    using MR/2 ICE #245
- -----------------------------------------------------------

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

Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 21:17:24 -0400
From: "Keven R. Pittsinger" <jamstar@accesstoledo.com>
Subject: Re: A New Traveller 

> >> Eris,
> >>     the stirrer of trouble
> 
> >Just _had_ to toss that Kallisti golden apple in, eh?  Fnord.  >;-)
> 
> It's my nature. ;-J 
> 
> Eris.
>  My parents had *no* idea for whom they were naming me!

You ever bother telling them?

Keven

- -- 
tc++ tm+ tn t4- to ru++ ge+ 3i c+ jt au st- ls pi+ ta+ he+ so- vi zh sy
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                     Science-Fiction Adventure
                                                     In Reavers' Deep

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

Date: Tue, 10 Aug 99 20:22:53 -0500
From: "Eris Reddoch" <eris@pcola.gulf.net>
Subject: Re: Ethically-challenged merchants (was re: A New Traveller)

On 08/10/99 at 08:42 PM,  Walter Smith <SmithW@HARTWICK.EDU> said:

>Warning: P***** stuff ahead!!

>I've done some basic economic analysis on ethically challenged 
>merchants, and IMO they can both survive and make a profit *if* they
>can find access to underpatrolled shipping lanes. This is even 
>without stealing ships - a lifeboat, even sold at 20% of market
>value, is still over MCr2, and then there are vacc suits, cargo,
>spare parts, ship's safes, etc.

I haven't really done any economic analysis, but that's my take on
it too.  

It's quite possible that a merchant finding himself in a situation
like this might drop a shuttle, or a couple containers of cargo,
while running for a jump point.  The *convention* might be for the
thief to take this tribute and let the ship go.  The conventions of
a TU could be very different from those of 20th century Earth.

>The problem is finding these underpatrolled shipping lanes. Pirate
>prey almost needs to consent to be a target, by travelling into outer
>systems, unaligned frontier worlds, and other places where military
>presences are either absent or spread too thin. Systems undergoing an
>economic boom might also be a target - there may be traffic worth
>hunting there, but it hasn't been there long enough for the system
>government to establish a solid defense net.

I think piracy would be more likely in poor and low tech systems
that are fueling wayponts along routes.  Poor systems wouldn't have
the resources to finance adaquate system patrols and low tech systems
wouldn't have the technology to do so.

Obviously, if these systems were in a strong Empire there could be
Naval patrols.  Patrols would be rare (or nonexistant) in
underdeveloped areas and outside established polities.

>I think I figured that a pirate could survive on less than six subbie
>merchants or shuttlecraft per year, even if none of these ships
>provided unexpected big scores (like a shipment of gems or illegal
>weapons). The pirate will have to change his hunting grounds
>frequently, though - one destroyer escort flotilla can spoil the
>hunting over a very large chunk of a star system if the pirate gets
>too annoying.

>Of course, another problem the pirate has is if he's stealing six
>shuttlecraft per year, he's worth the price of that many shuttlecraft
>to catch. You can hire quite a few mercenaries/bounty hunters for
>that kind of creds.

>Nobody said being a pirate was easy...

Only Gilbert and Sullivan. ;-J

Eris
- -- 
- -----------------------------------------------------------
"Eris Reddoch" <eris@pcola.gulf.net>    using MR/2 ICE #245
- -----------------------------------------------------------

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

End of Traveller-digest V1999 #937
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