3D mapping was discussed some time ago and somebody then pointed
out that the 2D Traveller maps just weren't showing all systems
but just the interesting ones.
If you take the 2D map in this light then you can treat JUMP
drive as a 2D mechanism. I tinkered with this idea back then
and came up with some basic assumptions.
The Traveller 2D maps are simply a 3D universe squashed flat and
only showing interesting systems.
A JUMP can only travel it's JUMP rating in 2D but in the 3D
universe the source and destination may also be vast distances
apart in a vertical direction. This vertical distance does NOT
affect the 2D distance that can be travelled.
If two or more interesting systems do end up in the same 2D map
location then you still would need to JUMP (for a week) to get
to each system from any other system in that hex.
What this tells me about the Traveller universe is that their are
either very few star systems and most are interesting or that
their may be many star systems that are not shown because they are
not interesting. A uninteresting star system in the Traveller
universe would have to be totally devoid of matter other than
the star(s) themselves and therefore not worth mapping or
visiting(?).
To map this type of Universe in 2D all you need is larger hexes.
If you take a sub-sector map and increase it's size so that each
hex contains 7 hexes (a centre and six around it - call it a super
hex) then you can map each of these vertical matching locations into
one of the hexes in the super hex.
If a super hex of 7 hexes is not enough then the next size up is 19
lesser hexes to a super hex. Scale your universe to suite the density
of stars you prefer.
What do you think?
Bruce... [email removed]
"If you swallow a live frog first thing in the morning ...
Nothing worse will happen to either of you for the rest of the day."
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* Bruce Pihlamae -- Database Administration *
* Commonwealth Department of Health, Housing & Community Services *
* Canberra, Australia (W) 06-289-7056 *
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* These are my own thoughts and opinions, few that I have. *
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