In message 2035 [email removed] (Robert S. Dean) writes:
> I once uploaded a message that didn't take on the subject
> of inspirational reading for Traveller games. What has anybody else read
> that really makes them think about Traveller?
Greg Bear: EON
Especially the scene where the russian marines disembark from their orbital
transfer vehicles and assaults the asteroid. It might be alittle lowtech for
traveller (more like 2300 actually) but certainly possible with the additions
of the "One small step" articles.
There is also a lot of ideas for anyone that plans to do anything involving
the Ancients. The Pi-meter actually found it's way into my campaign as an
artifact when the pc-s were hunting for the elusive towers of Sharrip.
Stanislaw Lem (sp?): SOLARIS
If you look inside the outer shell, there is a hard-sf story inside that
might well take place in the Traveller universe.
I can imagine the IISS touching down on Solaris to survey it and try to
establish contact. The NAS would go nuts:)
> My favorites: Michael McCollum ANTARES DAWN and ANTARES PASSAGE
> Lois McMaster Bujold: Everything she has written
> Robert Heinlein: THE MOON IS A HARSH MISTRESS
> Poul Anderson: Most of his futur history series
> (Falkayn and Van Rijn, Flandry)
The stories involving merchants (Van Rijn?) is very travelleresque.
> Niven and Pournelle: THE MOTE IN GOD'S EYE
IMHO, Traveller is very influenced by Niven. The ships in the old boardgame
"Imperium" about the n Interstellar Wars travel using something that seems like
the Langston drive from Mote and Codominium.
(They jump along certain lines between stars)
There is also a article on jumpdrives in an old JTAS (Don't remember the
number, but I think the article was by Marc Miller himself) that states that
ships will exit from jump only at certain locations in a system. Which locations
was determined by the composition of the system. This might also be shades of
the Langston drive.
Then there is the Langston field...
The Aslan and Hiver also seems to have been initially inspired by Kzinti and
Puppeteers. Not that they are copies of them, no way, but there is some
similarities (as well as great differences). If they have gone through the
same process of change as the official view of the Zhodanis, I imagine that
the similarities might have been greater when they were first introduced.
(On the other hand, a old Traveller-player here on Chalmers is dead sure that
Zhodani, Aslan and Vargr are thinly disguised versions of Russians, Samurai-
era Japanese and Mexicans as they are viewed in American folklore. Don't ask
me, he's the resident expert on Japan too, and when he recounted the
similarities it sounded at least possible)
- - -bertil-
"Hell is the place with Zhodani police, Vilani engineers, Solomani population
and Vargr politicians."
"And K'Kree chefs!"
"Yes, and K'Kree chefs."