R. Dired · 14 June 1992
It was comforting to know that GDW doesn't want any substantive imput for its
new T2000 in Space...err, TNE. God knows that we wouldn't want a decent game
system for once. No, not when we can have characters that can take a .50cal
in the gut and keep going, autofire rules were being blind isn't any hindrance,
low-skill, low finesse characetr generation, inconsistant mechanics (damage
systems don't match, fire combat uses a different skill system than every other
skill, you can punch through more armor than a machinegun can go through, who
knows what happens if you shoot a car with a AA missile, the wonderful d% for
defaults, etc.), excessive stats (so I think GURPS has too many, sue me, since
its from playing experience) which don't make sense (why is pistol based on
Strength?), etc. Gone will be the style of the Traveller character generator,
gone will be quick, easy-to-describe PC details, here will be needless
redundancy of weapons (if all assault rifles are the same, why not just list
them once instead of all 10 or so?) to add detail to what looked like a
10-minute hack-job of revised rules.
Can we assume that everything that could be fixed (should have been in MT)
won't be? 2D universe? We'll keep that! Hereditary nobility? Gotta have it!
Hard Times/Virus that makes Star Trek look like hard science? Give me more!
Technology that looks like the Korean War in space? Keep it coming!
Everyone is aware that there are too many low-tech planets in the MT universe
without even consdiering Hard Times, except I guess everyone at GDW. When MT
came out, it would have been trivial to simply redefine the TL values (so
no data would have to be changed), but no! We have 1920s cultures next to
spaceports. Maybe with some innovative justifications this might have been a
part of an interesting, if quirky, universe. But no, this is supposed to be
_natural_! No `anti-technology movements', no `regressive religions'.
I still say that if DD (DJ?) is so great, make TNE a worldbook for it instead
of its own game. Otherwise, the Imperium is as dead as Strephon. No new
Traveller fans will be made from such lousy rules, and one by one, us addicts
will go cold turkey. Damn shame.
- -
Oh, one more thing. According to my Imperial Encyclopedia, the Terrans used
artifical intelligence during the 2nd Interstellar War. Lemme guess... they
forgot! No! Even better! They went down a TL due to lack of trading due to
the war, and _then_ they forgot!
-H