Re: Gamba Subsector

A few of my own thoughts on Gamba subsector:

Adrian Hurt writes:

> Hans Rancke-Madsen [email removed] writes:

> > 0105  Fantasia      A99A522-8           NI         Y

> > Large waterworld with either large colony or small independent
> > population. Could be a co-op seaharverster outfit.

> This is another one of the classic Traveller worlds.  Will someone please
> explain to me how a TL 8 world can support a class A starport?  As I
> understand it, a class A starport can, by definition, build and repair
> starships, i.e. jump drives, i.e. must be at least TL 9.  Bases, captive
> worlds or other forms of outside influence might allow some outsider to
> own, run and supply the starport independantly of the planet, but none of
> these apply here.

How about having a major shipping line set up a refit base here? Overall
tech level is kept just high enough to assure some comfort to citizens/
employees (government 2 _is_ corporation, isn't it? or is my memory
going?), while starport facilities are top-of-the line, but not acces-
sible outside the workplace.


Hans Rancke-Madsen writes:

> Rob Dean writes:

> >> 0705  Jenkins       E87A000-5           --         Y
> >>
> >> I'd drop the TL to 0.
> >
> >Represents the TL of the automatic distress beacon...(-:  (5 is the minimum
> >to support broadcast radio, isn't it?)
>
> I define TL as "Maximum sustainable by local population".

How about this: the tech was recently upgraded when the surviving
members of the survey team decided to quit the Service and settle
on the planet. (Remember that a population code of 0 means less
than ten people, not no people.)They're cordial enough to trav-
elers, but they do their best to keep incoming ships to the land-
ing pad they've laid out near their homes, and they ask visitors
to get their business over with and leave. The Scouts are, in
fact, protecting the indigenous population (which doesn't show up
on the surveys because they doctored the records) from exploi-
tation -- anyone have any ideas what the natives could have that
would be significant enough to Imperial interests that they
would be in mortal danger if the rest of the galaxy found out?
Atmospheric taint would likely be large amounts of water in the
air.

> >> 0803  Weelkes       C112888-A  S        NA         Y
> >>
> >> Another of these punk worlds with huge populations.
> >
> >Yes, but luckily there's only one in this subsector to explain.  It doesn't
> >stretch credulity too far to think that there is one world headed toward
> >being industrial that started life as a mining colony, does it?
>
> No, but hundreds of millions? No mining colony needs that many people. IMO
> these people's ancestors _couldn't_ leave, for whatever reason.

It may not have _needed_ that many people, but imagine a rush simi-
lar to the California Gold Rush of the 19th century. Folks with very
little money bought low passage to Weelkes, visions of lanthanum (or
whatever) dancing in their heads. Clever and unscrupulous outfit-
ters, restauranteurs, etc. kept prices high while the poor prospect-
ors tried to strike it rich enough to retire. As the resources began
to play out, competition threatened to send the small businessmen
under, so they started cooperating. Eventually, a planet-wide corpo-
ration came into being, still stiffing the population for its own
gain. When the planet got a little small for the corporate execs,
they expanded operations offworld.

> >> 0805  Baldwyn       A625343-A  S        NI         Y
> >>
> >> Again a Class A starport without the population base to support it.
> >> I'd cut the starport class down to C and put an Ancient Base being
> >> investigated by the Scouts here.
> >
> >Well, I already put the Ancient site at Galliard.  Two might be too many to
> >put in this subsector. Any other ideas? As it stands now, the only important
> >thing that I know about this system is that it is on the X-Boat line.
>
> The X-boat line explains the Scout base perfectly. As for the Class A
> starport, I'm predudiced against starship yards supported by a few
> thousand people to dig the ore, refine the metal, build the machines to
> build the tools to build the engines etc.. Whenever I find a Class A
> starport on a world with less than half a million inhabitants, I tend
> to look for an outside source of buyers for the ships like the Navy. If
> I can't come up with a good explanation, I change the rating. (That's a
> basic attitude. When I come across some unusual combination of stats I
> spend 5 minutes trying to come up with an interesting explanation. Four
> times out of five I succeed. But I don't insist on explaining everything.
> Sometimes it is better to change a rating to something sensible.)

Why not have the base on Baldwyn be a full-fledged way station? Baldwyn
would be the center of Scout activity in the subsector -- X-Boat produc-
tion, ship repair, logistics, all would be handled from Baldwyn instead
of the capital.

> >Hmmm...I'll have to think about this.  I don't like the idea of having
> >quite so many regressed colonies, but it's not a bad explanation for the
> >current set-up.
>
> The Gamban Empire lasted only long enough to put people on a lot of the
> worlds. None of the colonies were self-supporting when the Empire fell
> (The civil war was mostly between nations on Susato). Hence the whole-
> sale regression.

I think Rob mentioned Daibei as a possible location for the Gamba sub-
sector. That's far to coreward if I remember correctly (all my TRAVEL-
LER stuff is in Los Alamos, so I can't look it up right now). Near
Vargr space. It would be an interesting twist if the Gamban Empire
were a largely Vargr nation.


- -- Tim Soholt ([email removed]), The Man With No .sig