RE: Traveller + SG2/DS2/?

I have always seen GZG games in Traveller terms.  I've used Striker OB
for
Ds and SG games.  My current project is to work an FMA version of DS in
15mm.

Mike

-----Original Message-----
From: owner-gzg-l@lists.CSUA.Berkeley.EDU
[mailto:owner-gzg-l@lists.CSUA.Berkeley.EDU] On Behalf Of Thomas Barclay
Sent: Friday, March 25, 2005 5:34 PM
To: gzg-l@csua.berkeley.edu
Subject: Traveller + SG2/DS2/?

I see the mention of wooly K'Kree... the Lords of Thunder would not be
amused.

I have been, for some time, an intermittent participant in QLI's
Citizens of
the Imperium
bulletin board. It focuses on all varieties of the Traveller game. 

I note that some nice fellows over at BITS (British Islands Traveller
Something) have
developed Power Projection: Fleet and Power Projection: Escort.
Apparently
one or both of
these are based around a modified Full Thrust engine.

That got me to thinking. Allan Goodall and I have both written differing
conversions of
Traveller equipment into Stargrunt II terms. I have actually run
convention
events using
Denizen Ventaurian figs as Zhodani and GZG UNSC Hardsuits as Imperial
Marines for SG2. 

Striker II and FF&S are nice products, but they're not the fastest
playing.
Stargrunt II
and Dirtside II are both fast playing games. 

Hence, it has occured to me, I wonder what it would take to
cross-license a
version of
Stargrunt II or Dirtside II (or both) to do a Traveller ground combat
supplement/system in
the same vein as PP:E/PP:F/Full Thrust did? 

Obviously, it would involve talking to the licensing agencies on both
sides
(ie Jon
Tuffely and either BITS or QLI or FFE for the Traveller side). I'm not
sure
exactly what
terms the Power Projection guys arranged or how much they sank into the
project, but I'm
wondering if the idea is even worth considering?

I myself find SG2 would be a good vehicle for traveller larger scale
(relative to the RPG,
not the wargames) combat. DS2 could fill a slightly higher level role.
And
when it
eventually comes out, FMA could well be an alternative to BITS At Close
Quarters (which
clearly owes at least some inspiration to Azhanti High Lightning or
Snapshot). 

I have no ideas if the licensing authorities on either side would be
interested. It just
seemed to me to be an idea worth at least tossing out into the public
forum
for some
discussion. 

I am vaguely inpsired by some of the progress that Treadway & Co. have
made
in translating
Mr. Drake's Slammers universe into something gameable. It strikes me
that
Traveller has a
ground combat game, but to get much use out of it, you have to be a real
gearhead to build
vehicles using the Striker construction rules. GZG has ... shall we
say... a
relatively
simpler construction system (lets just ballpark it at two orders of
magnitude easier). 

So, I've run the idea up the flagpole to see if it salutes. I don't know
how
many of you
other GZG-ites (vaguely like Dead-ites from AoD...??? *grin*) are old
(or
new) closet
Traveller players, but I thought I'd take this straw poll. 

Thomas Barclay
The less sane half of http:\\www.stargrunt.ca :)