Classic Traveller Session Report #4 - Vanders Dub-Step

The last time I got a chance to run a session in my Original(Own) Classic Traveller Universe (OTU) was April 2018. It was the third session of the second group I was able to get together online and ended like any role-playing session with more to do then when we started. 

If you are a game referee you know the "space" I'm in. That of more than one play group gaming in the same campaign. Which is fucking cool. You want to game the world more because the actions of the PC's keep on expanding the field of play. And different groups in play generate even more event horizons which make future game prep immensely challenging and rewarding. I want to see what becomes of the beast! 

So I've pushed further sessions when I know I can run and nothing really lined up again until today. With another group of new players. No one, if my listening ears were on, had ever played Traveller before. And as a referee I've only run Traveller for seven-twelve? total sessions. If you are a fan of OSR play Classic Traveller will work for you. Actually let me say if you are a PC who loves OSR play and have no problem with using an instant character generator to produce a character a game can get off the ground quicker than D&D!

This came together with such little planning that I caught one of the players saying "Feels strange to be called my real name." We didn't have any avatars, just are naked selves. Which made it more difficult for me to recognize each player as what "type" of character they were, but this is kind of a bonus. Everyone had to roleplay. Like here is what I want to do cause I don't know what my PC is good at so I'm going to do this. Throws you back on what is important during live play; be involved, be interesting. Do stuff! and then let the dice decide. 

Here is the stuff the PC's did:

All were ex-army, out of work and looking for a way to pay for water and air under the dome.I threw out relative rumors tangential to previous adventures and hit the crew straight up with a patron; Sader Z. an old, emaciated and bitter loan shark. He hangs out at the Body Double coffee shop taking bets on the underground fight scene. Mon-Fay, an Omni-Sun cop owes 30,000 in gambling debts and Sader Z. can't find him. Bring the dead-beat Mon-Fay to him alive and he'll split the debt with you all. 15 for Sader 15 for the PC's. Sader Z knows Mon-Fay has a pumped cube over in the Starsky block. Unit 420 above the ultra-mart. He has a month on as part of security at the Oh-Rif facility outside the dome and then a month off at home here in the dome. Sader reminds the PC's he wants Mon-Fay brought to him alive. He can't make a corpse pay up.

The PC's case the block and start asking ultra-mart employees if Mon-Fay has been around lately. Their questions spook Scuffy the janitor in charge of the floor-wax robos to run out the back. The PC's try and catch the poor bastard but they lose him in the tight, busy thoroughfare outside. The PC's search the janitor's office and don some maintenance uniforms (Starsky Property Management) and force the door to the upper level apartments all the while taking careful note of the video surveillance in abundance for such a low-rent complex. The auto-lift is out, of course so the stairs it is. On the third floor landing three dudes in overcoats (Gang=Bung Monkeys) ask "what is up?" I guess they were not expecting an unscheduled maintenance call for the fourth floor cause the PC's rolled snake eyes on their reaction roll and the gang members immediately attack. One overcoat took to the stairs going up. Talker pulled a cattle-prod while Back-Up pulled a body pistol. Everyone and I mean everyone rolled for shit in the stairwell. Electricity and firearms were discharged willy-nilly. The PC with the cudgel actually cleared the room. The party was then able to force access into 420, catching the runaway overcoat dude gathering some data chips from Mon-Fay's wall comp. "Mon-Fay hasn't been around. You know he can be on duty for a month or more man. He said if anyone come around while he gone burn his deck. That's what I'm doing man. Here take the chips man just let me go." 

The PC's head back to the Body Double and show Sader Z what they got. He gladly takes the data chips from them and lets them know he is pretty displeased they show up with no money and no Mon-Fay. "Find him dam it!" They don't let the loan shark in on the sealed Huron seed package they found hidden in Mon-Fay's apartment. Huron and Omni-Sun run Oh-Rif, the ag research facility where Mon-Fay works. The PC's naturally suspect they are holding the acid-rain resistant seed promised colonists for the last three years. Probably money and the recent terrorist attack on self-same facility wasn't just for fun.

The PC's decide to go check out Mon-Fay's place of work, the Oh-Rif facility on the eastern edge of the Skalvil Sea. They bribe their way on a supply boat from Halo Shipping but once out on the water the skipper says he can't take them all the way in. "Since the terrorist attack a few days ago security is really tight." He can drop the PC's off at Javon Musk's farm. It is just outside the facility and he rents ATV's for hunting parties looking for sport on Skalvil's tainted, acid-rain surface. So that is what they do. Musk is a farmer and animal trainer. He lives comfortably outside the dome cause he is a popular wilderness guide for the wealthy out of Kazawan City. The PC's use the cover of a hunting party to rent ATV's and observe the research facility through scopes. Lot of security. Lot going on. The PC's decide there is no way they are going to get in without getting caught so take their fustration out on nearby Skalvil Rabbits. Lanky, fast vermin the size of large house cats, it doesn't take long for their accurate shooting to bring down dinner as well as a VTOL from Oh-Rif.

The party is informed they are trespassing on restricted property and to wait for ground security forces approaching. They will be then identified and escorted off restricted property. The PC's were like fuck, we should have gone and tried to sell these seeds to the Vanders Labor Union back under the dome.... 

And now a message from our Sponsor... DMG 1e

PURSUIT AND EVASION OF PURSUIT (DMG 1e p.68)

There are two cases of pursuit and evasion of pursuit. The first is in underground situations, and the second is in outdoor settings. There are various special circumstances which pertain to each case so each will be dealt with separately.

Pursuit And Evasion In Underground Settings:

When player characters with attendant hirelings and/or henchmen, if any, elect to retreat or flee from an encounter with a monster ar monsters, a possible pursuit situation arises. Whether or not pursuit will actually take place is dependent upon the following:

1. If the matrix or key states that the monster(s) in question will pursue, or if the MONSTER MANUAL so states, then pursuit will certainly occur.

2. If the monster or monsters encountered are semi-intelligent or under, hungry, angry, aggressive, and/or trained to do so, then pursuit will be 80% likely to occur (d10, 1 through 8).

3. If the monster or monsters encountered are of low intelligence but otherwise suit the qualifications of 2. above, then pursuit will occur with the following probabilities:

A. If the party outnumbers the potential pursuers, then pursuit is 20% likely.

B. If the party is about as numerous as the potential pursuers, then pursuit is 40% likely.

C. If the party is outnumbered by the potential pursuers, then pursuit is 80% likely.

D. If condition C. exists, and furthermore, the potential pursuers conceive of themselves as greatly superior to the party, then pursuit is 100% certain.

Pursuit will have 3 separate cases:

1. The pursued are faster than the pursuers: Unless there are extenuating circumstances, such as a ranger NPC ar an invisible stalker or a slithering tracker pursuing, then pursuit will end as soon as any one of the following conditions is met:

A. The pursued are in sight but over 100' distant; or

B. The pursued are out of sight and were over 50' distant when they so left the perception of the pursuer(s); or

C. Pursuit has continued over 5 rounds, and the pursuer has not gained perceptibly upon the pursued.

2. The pursued are of equal speed to the pursuers: As in case 1. above, pursuit will end as soon as any 1 of the following conditions are met:

A. The pursued are in sight but over 150' distant; or

B. The pursued are out of sight and were over 80' distant when they left the perception of the pursuer(s); or

C. Pursuit has continued over 1 turn, and the pursuer has not gained perceptibly upon the pursued.

3. The pursuer is faster than the pursued: The pursuit will be broken off only if one of the following occurs:

A. The pursued are out of sight and were over 200' distant when they left the perception of the pursuer(s); or

B. The pursuer is unable to continue due to reasons of physical endurance.

Modifiers To Pursuit: There are several circumstances which will affect the pursuer. These are:

1. Barriers: Physical or magic barriers will slow or halt pursuit, i.e. or locked portal, a broken bridge, a wall of fire, etc.

2. Distractions: Actual or magic distractions will be from 10% to 100% likely to cause pursuit to falter or cease altogether. For example, a dancing lights spell moving away from a fleeing party which has extinguished its light sources might distract pursuers, just as a phantasmal force of a strong helper joining the pursued might cause the pursuers to cease pursuit. Similarly, if the pursued passed through or near some other creatures which would be hostile to the pursuing force, or at least not friendly to the pursuers, then it is quite possible that the creatures passed through and the pursuers would become embroiled. N.B.: The likelihood of any distraction being successful is a matter for individual adjudication by the DM, using ADBD principles and common sense as they apply to the particular circumstances prevailing. There are also 2 sub-cases here:

A. Food: Food, including rations and/or wine, will be from 10% to 100% likely to distract pursuers of low intelligence or below, providing the food/wine is what they find palatable. Roll a d10 to find the probability, unless you have a note as to how hungry or food oriented the creatures are. Add 10% to the result for every point of intelligence below 5, and give a 100% probability for non-intelligent creatures pursuing. If probability is under 100%, roll the d10 a second time, and if the result is equal to or less than the probability determined, then the pursuers break off pursuit for 1 round while the food/wine is consumed.

B. Treasure: Treasure, including precious metals, gems, jewelry, rare stuffs such as ivory or spices, valuable items, and/or magic will be 10% to 100% likely to cause pursuers of low or greater intelligence to be distracted. Pursuers of low intelligence will have an additional 10% per 10 items (regardless of actual value) dropped, i.e. 20 copper pieces have a 20% additional probability of causing a distraction. The value of items dropped, known or presumed or potential, will likewise cause pursuers of average or greater intelligence to be more likely to be distracted. For each 100 g.p. value or potential value, add 10% to base probability. Roll the d10 a second time to see if potential and actual interest are the same, just as is done when food is used as a possible distraction. (Note, however, that very small items of value - notably, gems and the like - would have a chance of going completely unnoticed in the heat of pursuit.) If success occurs, the pursuer will be distracted for 1 round, or the length of time necessary to gather up the treasure, whichever is the greater.

3. Multiple Choice: It will mast often come to pass that the pursued take a route which enables them to cause the pursuer(s) to have to make decisions as to which direction the pursued took in their flight. Thus, at a branching passage where there are 3 possible ways which could have been taken, there is a basic 2 in 3 chance that the pursuer(s) will take the wrong passage. Likewise, if there are a door and a passage, there is a 1 in 2 chance of wrong choice. This base chance assumes that the pursuer cannot see the pursued when choice is made, that sound does not reveal the direction of flight, that smell does not reveal direction of flight, nor do any other visual, audial, or olfactory clues point to the escape path. As DM, you will have to adjudicate such situations as they arise. The following guidelines might prove helpful:

Light: Straight line of sight is near infinite, any corner cuts distance to 60'.

Noise: Characters in metal armor can be heard for 90', hard boots can be heard at 60', relatively quiet movement can be heard at 30'.

Odors: Normal scent can be detected by creatures hunting or tracking by scent for several hours - even in a dungeon setting. Scent can be masked with various things - mustard powder, oil of citronella, crushed stinging nettle, etc.

Building Interiors: Treat these settings the same as one underground, as applicable.

Procedure For Determination Of Evasion Underground: If it is discovered that a pursuit situation exists, and the player-party elects to evade rather than confront pursuers, then record the relative speeds of pursued and pursuer. Move the pursued party as many l o ' s of feet as their slowest member is able to travel, and likewise move the pursuing party as many 10's of feet as its fastest member can travel, noting positions of slower members, if any, as well. This movement is accomplished on the map, of course. Three such movement phases are (for game purposes) equal to 1 round. At the end of any movement portion where any number of the pursued party is within 10' or less of any number of the pursuing party, confrontation must take place between the concerned members of the parties. (At this point the remainder, if any, of the pursued party may elect to stop flight or continue evasion attempts as they wish.) Also, at the end of each movement portion it is necessary to check the 3 SEPARATE PURSUIT CASES and any PURSUIT MODIFIERS to see if the pursued party has succeeded in evading the pursuers. Keep track not only of the route of flight, but also of the amount ofgame time so spent, as some pursuit will automatically cease after a set period without confrontation.

Mapping During Flight: No mapping is ever possible. Give no distance measures in moving the pursued. Give no compass directions either!

Deluxe USR Sword & Sorcery Cover Concept

Work continues on exploring what a game publisher and creator is like. This. is. a. lot. of. work. I'm approaching it like an art project. And my process is building things out and see what I find, throw out what doesn't work, and hope to Hades I stumble upon a legitimate aesthetic. Working with Jeremy Hart's commissioned illustration I've come to this basic "blocking" of the book's cover to date.  I've added an additional block of text on the back cover (left side of image) with the game's elevator pitch. 

Feel free to rip this to shreds:) No, any design advice you want to throw my way while I share the layout journey is glad and well accepted. This cover design is my attempt to get to "know" the tools I have at my disposal. For the cover it is a b/w illo large enough to wrap-around. What you see here is a close-up of the image, not the whole thing. The full drawing will get a suitable splash page inside the book. Title/text is the other tool and bands of color the final. Trying to draw limits. I'm shit with time management so if I give myself a limited palate I hopefully shorten the wandering around in the woods lost period which I looove and get some product eventually pushed out.

Stupid, Simple Way to Convert Hit Die to BRP Skill Level

The DIY-OSR scene has the best adventure content but I like to play with Chaosium's BRP brand of d100 mechanics for the systems approach to combat and skills. D&D and BRP have an identical approach to Character Attributes, Hit Points are close enough to not matter, but Armor Class and the Monster Attack Table don't port over to the BRP d100 resolution mechanic without some thought.

Here is what I do; the Monster Attack Table is the easiest to convert out of the two. Armor Class 9 (or 12 for ascending) is an unarmored opponent. WarHammer Fantasy Roleplaying has your basic scrub getting a 35% to hit, so for a 1 HD Monster chance to hit is 35%. I'm going to grab the Monster Attack Table from Mutant Future and just add 5% for each row of Hit Dice which improve the character's chance to hit. So a 1+ and 2 HD creature has base line combat (or any primary skill/ability) of 40%. 2+ to 3 HD creature is 45%, etc. Following this progression you top out at 75% chance to hit/primary ability at 9+ to 11. OSR Creatures/Characters at these higher HD will most likely also have some unique attack abilities which will compensate for the flattening out at 75%. But that is all I have been doing for establishing a relation between Hit Dice and a Primary Skill Ability. 

AC is not as easy. Armor Class in D&D represents how hard it is to not only hit your target but to hit decisively enough to actually deliver damage. BRP is less abstract. How difficult one is to hit is not tied to how much damage one would necessarily receive if hit. This is where the creature/monster/character description is important. Not that it shouldn't be anyways regardless of system. I bring it up because as a gamer I can't but help and look at NPC's as just a pile of stats so I can adjudicate action quickly. I find trying to stat creatures out for another system makes me look for what makes the Leech-Man different than the Kobold. 

So looking at the common Kobold. With AC 7 a 1st level character(scrub) needs a 12 or better to hit, or 40% or less. The description of your average Kobold (from B/X) leaves me to believe they don't wear any armor so their improved AC over unarmed will come from their small stature and quick movement. Based on their HD their base combat ability would be 35%. Makes sense to me. Their improved armor class will come from an improved Dodge skill. Say boost 35% up to 45% (5% per each AC better than 9). HP stay the same. So your average OSR B/X Kobold quickly translates into Attack/Parry skill of 35% with a Dodge of 45% and no armor protection to reduce damage if hit!