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On Sat, 5/14/16, Kurt Feltenberger <xxxxxx@thepaw.org> wrote:

 Subject: Re: [TML] T5 Review
 To: xxxxxx@simplelists.com
 Date: Saturday, May 14, 2016, 7:36 PM

 On 5/14/2016 8:25 AM,
 Abdul Rahman Reijerink wrote:
 >
 > Without having read the book, I believe a
 lot of the criticism is
 > valid.
 Although I still plan to buy and raid it.
 >
 > Ideally a game should
 be easy to run out of the box with very little
 > intervention from mechanics during play. A
 single, double sided
 > reference sheet
 and no more. But I'd probably settle for a (small)
 > comprehensive and well laid out book of
 tables for use during play, so
 > long as
 it doesn't need updating with supplementary material.
 >
 > With the history
 behind a setting like the Traveller universe and the
 > development of its mechanics over decades,
 supplements that focus on
 > regions,
 aliens or professions, for example, shouldn't bring
 extra
 > rules needed during play that
 aren't handled in the core rules or the
 > heavy duty book of tables that comes with
 it. We already know what
 > rules
 expansions the supplements should contain. What should be

 > different and new in them is the kind
 of thing Dave did with Aliens of
 > the
 Rim.
 >
 > I'd still
 want optional complex mechanics (FF&S/World Builders
 > Handbook/Pocket Empires/alien language
 development) in the background
 > to muck
 around with at home between sessions as both player and
 > referee. So long as what they produce
 slots in seamlessly and adds
 > colour
 rather than mechanical complexity at the table. That
 dimension
 > of additional, *optional*
 complexity is one of the things I love most
 > about the game.
 >

 I've begun to think that
 the future of Traveller lies not in producing
 yet another rules edition but as a setting with
 setting specific rules
 limited to the
 technology.  Make the setting rules neutral so that
 people can focus on the creative aspect rather
 than the rules aspect
 when products are
 written, but also limit them within the framework that
 the technology allows.  In other words, no
 Death Stars, no warp drive, etc.

 And since I'm working on a wish list, ;-) ,
 I'd like to see a the Jump
 Drive and
 computers thoroughly overhauled and maybe not explained in a

 technical sense, but brought into the
 current age and then DARPA'd all
 to
 hell.

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Good idea.

Reminds me of when I first encountered the 'Skyraiders' trilogy.
It was the first time I'd played in a setting where the 3I didn't matter at all.
It was just too far away.
Almost seemed like a different game.

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