Rob Dean writes:
>Hooray! The TML is back up!
It is? I've been pinging it and not getting an answer back.
>Just a couple of notes on Mark Urbin's questions about the Sword Worlds
>in TML-Not! #6:
>In the Rebellion Era, the Sword Worlds are still divided into the the two
>groups that they were split up into at the end of the Fifth Frontier War.
>(Details on request).
Thanks for the info. Most of my data is Classic Traveller. I'm going
by `Supplement 3: The Spinward Marches'. It shows Sacnoth at TL C, five
other worlds at TL B (including Gram), 14 at TL A and one at TL 9. Could
you please send the Rebellion data.
>If you believe the numbers in the world descriptions, there are only three
>really important Sword Worlds--Sacnoth, which has the highest TL--12,
>Narsil, whose A population represents the majority of the total population
>of the polity, and Gram, in between the two in both tech level and
>population. So, the important question is whether or not Sacnoth would
>retain jump capability.
I depends on how far it slides. The key TL appears to be 9. That's where
you get Jump-1, anti-grav, superconductors and fusion power plants. It
depends on the TL drop. I just picked up the Hard Times book during lunch.
I see lots of tables for TL and other world data changes. I'll have to sit
down with this one.
If Sacnoth drops 4 TLs, the Sword Worlds are screwed. If the drop on that
planet is less than that...a mini empire can spring up. Only 9 planets are
not part of a jump-1 main that includes Sacnoth. There is another jump-1
main that contains Hrunting, Tizon, Colada, Joyeuse and Gram. If any of
those retain TL 9 or better, no problem either.
If the Sword World military vessels didn't use Imperial transponders, they
should have been free from the virus. GDW might claim that merchant vessals
that traded with the Imperium used the bloody things. I'll have to go back
and check that Challenge issue that talked about how the virus travelled
through out the Imperium and beyond. I recall a bit from it stating that
the Imperium required all ships operating in its borders to have the things.
>However, as I recall, the question cannot really be answered "authoritatively",
>since the Hard Times book doesn't show a category for subsectors in the
>Spinward MArches outside the Imperium. Ah well.
GDW is issuing an entire book to just the background for the New Era.
There is lot of material to be covered. The Spinward Marches (under Archduke
Norris) have been set up to be a pocket of civilization in the darkness of
the New Era. They are not going to be bothered by the Zhodani (I did find my
copy of the Rebellion Sourcebook) and the Vilani will probably be busy
reestablishing their empire to cause too much trouble for a fairly strong
Spinward Marches. They do use Imperial Transponders on their jumpships, so
the virus should strike there as well. The standard TL level there will
drop, but the Spinware Marches is being set up to recover quickly.
This assumption is based on material I read in the Rebellion Sourcebook.
Archdukes Norris' SMART project is my basis for the Spinward Marches climb
back toward `Old Era' Imperial Tech Levels.
>I don't think the general tone of historical data would support a Sword
>Worlds-Darrian alliance, since they've been at odds for centuries. (Think
>of the Serbs and Croats here--they've had centuries to make peace with
>each other, too, and it hasn't stuck, now, has it?)
Let me try this picture instead. Zhodani probably aren't going to bother
with the Darrians or the Sword Worlds. Small empires don't bother the Zhodani.
The Sword Worlds can raid in toward the old Imperium and trade their blunder
to the Darrians, who will probably maintain a slightly higher tech level.
The old Imperium there will have their hands full between: rebuilding; the
Aslan expansion; the Solmani Empire; Sword Worlders ; something else I'm sure.
New data from Hard Times show lots of `Wild' and `Outland' areas for Sworld
World Vikings to raid. Some of it may be what Piper called `Chicken Stealing',
but there are sections are are going to be unknown.
Skipping over to TW2K rules: In the `Special Operations' book, GDW changed
the rules for 3 round burst fire. A three round burst may be an aimed shot,
using the characters small arms (rifle) skill. One or two of the three rounds
may hit the target. All other 3 round bursts fired that action phase are
treated as standard full autofire fire. i.e. roll a d6 for each shot fired in
the burst and any 6 is a hit.
This helps a bit, but is still kind of icky from my point of view. I' m
still kind of bummed over a character with autoweapons-5 have no better chance
of hitting his target with an autorifle than a new recruit who has just
finished basic training using a standard semi-auto rifle.
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Mark Urbin Racal-Datacom Boxborough, MA [email removed]
These opinions are mine. No one else will admit to them.
It was a typical net.exercise -- a screaming mob pounding on a greasy spot
on the pavement, where used to lie the carcass of a dead horse.
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