[on strange lack of orbital colonies in Traveller....]
Ray Pullar writes:
>Not that this is a problem for the New Era: the Virus got them.
Which may be part of the reason you don't see many; not just Virus,
but orbital colonies are *fragile*. If you put a few hundred
thousand or even millions of people in a hull in orbit, it makes a
nice tempting target for an invader or terrorist to hold hostage,
and such a target is much harder to defend than a planetary surface.
(Of course, planets have their problems too.) And most of the
material that's been published has been in the developing Domain
of Deneb area, which is not only more interested in planetary
resources, but has had this recurrent problem with the neighbors....
Massilia and Core probably had quite a number of orbital colonies,
but we never saw much of either sector pre-Virus.
Of course, when you have high-efficiency maneuver drives, the
economic cost of the delta-vee paid by siting your industry on a
planetary surface is low enough to make colonies look that much
less attractive as investments. Deep space jump refueling stations
would be useful, but supply of such a station would be an order
of magnitude more difficult. My explanation of the "Battle of
Two Suns" that was "midway between Yres and Menorb" in Regina
that ended the Fourth Frontier War was that INI discovered a secret
Zhodani fleet replenishment station being used to support attacks
on those two worlds sited in deep space and that when the Navy
sent a fleet to destroy the station, they stumbled in on a refueling
Zhodani fleet.
[on the Regency and the Official Secrets Act]
One of the Amber Zones in _Best of JTAS_ #1, "Salvage on Sharmun",
mentions an Imperial Official Secrets Act. The adventurers' patron,
a scout named Kinson, had to sign the OSA when the ship he was on
was shot down over an interdicted world. (It was in a fleet carrying
the sector military payroll!) Undoubtedly the fleet commander had
an Imperial Warrant so that they could go through the area. The
money was written off as a loss...the culture was too sensitive to
risk recovery. But that won't stop Kinson.... It was a great
adventure, especially since it was the first real Traveller adventure
I ever ran! It led into all sorts of complications for the party
I was refereeing (he he he).
About the current (1201) First Regent: it's probably Seldrian. We
know Avery Aledon has a ministerial/cabinet-level post. We know
the First Regent's position is hereditary in the same way noble
titles are hereditary. (I.e., heirs can be chosen by the title holder.)
Avery is most probably Seldrian's direct heir if she adopted him
after _Arrival Vengeance_. And the players' ages in 1201:
Strephon Alkhalikoi born 1049, in 1201 aged 152. (likely dead)
Norris Aledon born 1063, in 1201 aged 138. (probably dead)
Seldrian Aledon born 1097, in 1201 aged 104.
Avery Aledon born 1118, in 1201 aged 83.
Regency buffs may be interested to note that according to an old TNS
news brief I saw again the other day, "the Duke of Regina's seneschal",
i.e. the now-famed Branj Dilgaadin, announced the beginning of the
Fifth Frontier War to the Marches in 1107, not Norris himself!
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Steve Bonneville | "Beware the tablespoon my son,
| The teeth that bite, the Claus that catch,
[email removed] | Beware the Subjects bird, and shred
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