Traveller: Late to the Party
I have never played the Traveller RPG, in any of its multitude of flavors. Today, I remedied that fact and joined my friends campaign as "Lucky" Daryen Gravic. He's lived a life of struggle, failure, and crime. He's made enemies, taken horrible wounds, and made at least one big score. He is a character of which fate (i.e. the dice) has made a mockery. Let me tell you about him and my first experience with the Traveller science fiction role playing game. Mongoose Publishing's Traveller 2nd Edition 2022 Update, is the flavor we'll be talking about.
8 Strength (STR)8 Dexterity (DEX)7 Endurance (END)
4 Intellect (INT)4 Education (EDU)3 Social Standing (SOC)
Not having anything that really screams "exceptional" I gave this guy Drive and Streetwise as his background skills. Because, well, he's probably a car guy and spent more time on the streets than in school. Now 18 years old we enter the lifepath to determine what sort of life he's had before becoming a Traveller and having me take over his life decisions. Each of these blocks represents four years of time and mostly it's all random die rolls making these choices.
FIRST TERM: Military Academy (Army)
Straight out of school he entered into the Army Military Academy, where he hoped to dedicate his life to military service, gain some skills, and secure a future for himself. Well, he did manage to get entry into the academy and learned all the basic service skills one would need in the army (Vacc Suit, Athletics, Gun Combat, Recon, Melee, and Heavy Weapons), but he failed to graduate.
During his time at the academy a supposedly harmless prank went wrong and a student, Rise Breedia, got both physically and emotionally hurt. Failing the SOC roll, an Enemy was gained.
A misunderstanding of the rules resulted in him failing a roll to be accepted into the army and resulted in him becoming a Drifter (Wanderer) for the next term. Once I was home and could check the rules I realized that no role was needed and that acceptance into the army was a given coming from the academy, changes were made, but the rolls were saved.
SECOND TERM: Army (Infantry)
Not graduating from the academy was not going to stop his military career and he enlisted in the Army, joining the Infantry and became something of a proficient Gambler while enlisted, a skill that would come to benefit him in the future.
He was able to advance his position during his time in the army, earning the rank of Lance Corporal and gaining skills in Gun Combat and Recon. But even with those successes he failed to survive in that environment and mustered out after a single term of service.
This was due mainly to discovering that his commanding officer was engaged in some illegal activity, mostly weapon smuggling. Trying to do the right thing he cooperated with the military police, but the official whitewash got him discharged anyway. But, he did leave the army with Cr20000 in his pocket and an extra point of EDU.
THIRD TERM: Rogue (Pirate)
The army discharge, exposure to the world of crime, and a desire to put his military training to use resulted in him becoming something of a Rogue. More specifically, he become a Pirate, a space-going corsair and bane of the starry sea. He became competent in Astrogation and Pilot (Spacecraft) as well as the basics of Deception during his tenure. Skills that he employed deftly and which earned him advancement from Lackey to Henchman. But such success amongst the brethren can only lead to Betrayal and the gaining of another Enemy. This time it was his friend Hynes Royce who struck at his back, drove a wedge between himself and the other pirates, and forced him to leave piracy behind. But the rage and enmity have never found a quiet berth, for to them he is a Wanted Man.
Taking his cutlass, a +1 DEX improvement, and pocketing Cr100000 as his share of the booty, he moved on to become a respectable merchant.
FOURTH TERM: Drifter (Wanderer)
Still young and healthy, were keeping age at bay with good rolls. Failing to become a merchant (bad roll) he found himself adrift, wandering a sea of stars without real purpose, struggling to find meaning, and at something of a loss with what to do other than survive day to day. He became a space bum, living hand-to-mouth in slums and spaceports across the galaxy. He learned the basics of Stealth and became even more adept at Recon during this period of his life.
There was no advancement. Working odd jobs resulted in a him becoming Severly Injured in a mishap that left him scarred all along his left side, head to foot. The injury reduced his Endurance by 2 and while the company he was working for covered half his medical bills he still needed to dip into his pockets to pay for the surgeries that restored the damage to his Endurance but left the scars. Walking away from the life of a wanderer with nothing, he knew there had to be something else he could do. So he went back to crime.
FIFTH TERM: Rogue (Thief)
Aging effects be damned, this is how we roll. Being a pirate had been lucritive, if a bit dangerous, but he could not return to that career. And so this time the Rogue became a Thief. Stealing from the rich with no intention of giving to the poor. His Deception improved and he was good at stealing, he advanced as a thief and improved his Stealth. But again, he could not survive in this world without honor. Jealous of his skill and success, another thief Betrayed him. A woman he did not even know, never saw coming, will never trust again; Bregala Chalice became his Enemy and a more vicious bitch there has never been.
Unable to continue this life of crime he walked away, Bregala would say he ran, but he did so with a double handful of Ship Shares (9).
SIXTH TERM: Drifter (Wanderer)
Age has yet to catch up to our hero. Failing to become a merchant once again and unwilling to draft into the military at the age of 38, he once again finds himself living the life of a Drifter and a Wanderer. The life of a space bum has not much improved and being familiar with a thing does not necessarily equate to comfort. But past experience did, in this case, result in more success and an advancement in the skills needed to thrive in this 'career'. Living this 'on the edge' lifestyle hones ones abilities and resulted in improvements in Deception, Stealth, and Streetwise. And survival comes easier, but at some point you have to leave-off being a bum and now is as good a time as any to become a Traveller.
Somehow he comes out of this term with a EDU +1 bonus and a Weapon (body pistol).
Let's give this guy a name, summarize his sheet, and buy him some equipment.
Now 42 years old DARYEN GRAVIC is ready to become a player character and start getting shot at.
9 DEXTERITY
7 ENDURANCE
4 INTELLECT
6 EDUCATION
Skills: Astrogation +1, Deception +2, Gambler +1, Gun Combat (Energy) +1, Persuade +1, Pilot (Spacecraft) +1, Stealth +2, Streetwise +1
Skills: Athletics 0, Drive 0, Gun Combat 0, Heavy Weapons 0, Melee 0, Pilot 0, Survival 0, Vacc Suit 0
Enemies (x3), Wanted Man, Severly Injured (Scarred)
He's got a Vacc Suit, Body Pistol, Cr2000 in other equipment, 9 Ship Shares (MCr9 value), and Cr115000.
Based on his SOC score he must maintain something between a Very Poor and Poor standard of living, a lifestyle which will cost him Cr600 per month.
I'll finish the rest up outside the blog, but wanted you two know that character creation was done alongside one other character, Ritchie, and we need to weave our stories together a bit more. Ritchie is a scout and the operator of a ship named the Pain in the Neck.
The two of us hired on with the other player characters; William "Danger" Robinson, Jeff "Mega" Credit, and Christian "Angel" O'Neil. They almost immediately bequeathed Daryen Gravic with the moniker "Lucky." I like it. It fits.
We're off on the trail of a starship named Deepnight Revelation. Stay tuned for the continuing adventures of these brave Travellers.
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