Traveller involves, obviously, travel. Since this is a Sci-Fi setting, and interstellar travel is assumed to be as normal as international travel is today. So where should we go? Try visiting these planets, and see what adventure possibilities come to mind. These planets are part of my fictional universe, but can easily be transported to the Official Traveller universe or anyone's home-made universe.
Format taken from: http://andyslack.wordpress.com/category/rules/traveller/
Talavera
Capital of the Talaveran Empire
Starport: A. Excellent installation, with refined fuel and facilities for starship construction, annual overhauls, etc. Naval base present.
Size: 9. Diameter 14,400 miles, surface gravity 137% standard.
Atmosphere: 6. normal NO2 mix; pressure is 0.98Atm.
Hydrographics: 9. Oceans cover 96% of the surface. Total land area: 26,057,626.1 km^2
Population: 9. 947,000,000 inhabitants. Includes human and dolph populations (see Aliens in my Traveller Universe)
Government: A. Charismatic Dictator – King Roger XII, ruler of the Talaveran Empire.
Law Level: 5. Military, laser, automatic and concealed weapons are prohibited.
Tech Level: 15. Current Imperial maximum.
Trade Classifications: Industrial Main imports: agroproducts Main exports: heavy industry, raw materials.
Gas Giant: Several
Alignment: Talaveran Empire
Talavera is a large blue-green sphere with only one small landmass fortunately situated along the equator. The ocean is remarkably shallow; most of the planet is under less than 40 meters of water, and very calm. Hurricanes and related storms are rare, and never powerful. Cities have been built offshore, supported by massive pillars secured to the ocean floor. Also, numerous artificial islands have been constructed, using rocks from the asteroid belt and the minor planets. These islands are typically square, at least 100 hectares in area, and positioned near to other each other so that they can be connected by bridges.
Originally the Empire was called the Kingdom of Talavera, a one-planet constitutional monarchy. A neighbor was conquered in a war over trade routes, and the kingdom was renamed the Talaveran Empire. The Empire expanded to its current size by conquest and by voluntary entry; Talavera formally declared its intention to cease expansion 200+ years ago. The current monarch is King Roger the Twelfth (by tradition, the monarch is King, not Emperor, out of respect for those planets which entered the empire voluntarily.) Local control is a blend of feudal authority and elected officials. Talavera now puts its energy to expanding its economic might. Talaveran merchants are almost as common as the trade-driven LTP (see Lycosky). The Empire opposes the Union's attempts to expand it's control, competes vigorously with Lycosky, and works to keep its smaller neighbors friendly and developing.
Farun
E-76769A-5
Starport: Type E, frontier installation with minimal facilities. No repair or building possible.
Size: 7. Diameter 7,320 miles, surface gravity 86% standard.
Atmosphere: 6. Standard NO2 mixture, 0.81 std Atm pressure.
Hydrographics: 7. Oceans, primarily liquid water, cover 77% of the surface.
Population: 6. Two million inhabitants, most inhabited areas along equatorial coastlines.
Government: 9. Impersonal bureaucracy (and how!). See below.
Law Level: A. Weapon possession is prohibited, personal liberty is severely curtailed.
Tech Level: 5. Basic industrial/mass-production technology. Radio, TV, electronics, propeller-driven aircraft common.
Trade Classifications: Agricultural, Non-Industrial, Rich. Minimal interstellar trade, except for smuggling/black market.
Gas Giant: Yes.
Alignment: Independent
The Farunese central government collects the taxes that go . . . somewhere. The bureaucracy is inefficient at and indifferent to anything other than basic services. The Prime Minister, while an elected official, is basically powerless to move the entrenched and self-serving bureaucracy. Government jobs are hard to get, impossible to lose, and pay very well regardless of competence. Power struggles exist between departments but these are administrative and bloodless. Corruption has become a component of the system rather than an aberration within it. The low tech level reflects the inherent stagnation of the society and the resistance to innovation. New things are usually seen as a threat to the status quo, at least from a government viewpoint. Localities are 'regulated' and 'litigated' to ensure they send in the tax receipts. There is a great deal of local unrest and competition for resources. Criminal organizations are in some cases more effective at maintaining order and providing for community needs. The high law level reflects the regulation-heavy bureaucracy and is the official stance regarding weapons, but there is a flourishing black market trade in them, especially off-world higher tech weapons.
Land: good; temperatures warm but not dangerous, atmo breathable, regular rainfall means lot of arable land.
Labor: plenty, mostly under/unemployed
Capital: low and inaccessible due to bureaucratic interference
Economy: Contracting – odd for a world trade-classed as Rich, but the explanation is simply that the bureaucracy is too short-sighted and focused on internal power struggles to effectively exploit the resources the planet has.
Belloc
Belloc sits in a small cluster of independent worlds. The cluster is far enough away from the galactic mainstream that is gets little traffic.
D-292672-A
Starport: D. Poor installation, no refueling or repair facilities available.
Size: 2. Diameter 2,640 miles, surface gravity 25% standard. Solid core, metal-rich crust.
Atmosphere: 9. Dense, tainted; requires a filter mask.
Hydrographics: 2. Oceans cover 20% of the surface.
Population: 6. millions of inhabitants.
Government: 7. Balkanized. See below
Law Level: 2. portable energy weapons are prohibited.
Tech Level: A. Imperial average.
Trade Classifications: Non-industrial Main imports: foodstuffs, consumer goods Main exports: ores, processed metals
Gas Giant: yes
Alignment: Independent
The climate is hot and dry; atmosphere is dense (2.4 atm). Bodies of water are a soup of minerals. Filter masks and goggles are required. Full environment suits are common but not required. Gun range reduced, vehicle speed reduced, aircraft lift improved.
The Bellosian atmosphere is tainted with dangerously high levels of thallium, one of the transition metals. Even in its non-radioactive isotopes, thallium is toxic to Earth-like life forms. The Bellosian day is 4.7 Earth standard hours long; time is recorded in standard hours, with five phases included in one calendar “day”. Thus, every other ‘day’ starts with sundown.
Belloc is a balkanized world, with five separate governments:
1. A civil service bureaucracy – Free Republic of Sorokan
2. A representative democracy – Pragian Republic
3. An oligarchy – Kingdom of Montrose
4. A feudal technocracy – The Miner’s Union of Tellarch
5. A colony answerable to Natsume (another world in the local cluster) – Natsumite. They own the starport, ergo, they control 90% of off-planet trade.
The five states do not cooperate often, and are often in direct competition for mineral resources.
Lycosky Lycosky, named for the first settler and first president of the company Lycosky Trading, Ltd. The family has ruled the company and the planet, later cluster of planets for two hundred years. Current CEO is Janos Lycosky XXI.
A-617995-F
Starport: A. Excellent installation, with refined fuel and facilities for starship construction, annual overhauls, etc.
Size: 6. Diameter 6830 miles, surface gravity 67% standard. Solid core, rocky crust.
Atmosphere: 1. Trace, 0.08% std Atm. Any activity on the surface requires vacc suits. Temperatures are permanently below freezing.
Hydrographics: 7. Ice covers 73% of the surface.
Population: 9. Billions of inhabitants, all living underground/under ice or in sealed habitations
Government: 9. Impersonal Bureaucracy. Strictly speaking the Protectorate government is separate from Lycosky Trading, but the latter runs the former.
Law Level: 5. Weapon law is actually higher owing to the environmental danger of weapons in sealed habitations. Non-citizen (non-employee) law is much higher as well. Citizens are controlled more by regulation and wage reductions than imprisonment.
Tech Level: 15. Current maximum Imperial Technology.
Trade Classifications: Main imports: Food, air, raw metals Main exports: Everything. Land: Low Labor: High Capital: High
Gas Giant: Yes
Alignment: Capital of the Lycosky Trade Protectorate, a group of five systems.
Lycosky is mostly covered with ice, and has only a trace atmosphere. Mean temp is -21°C. The populace of Lycosky lives beneath the ice and underground. Many of the planet's ice sheets are inert, moving at most 1 meter per millennium. The dire condition of habitation required the colonists who settled here to import practically everything they needed. This dependency was turned into business as a trade junction, and open market-place for speculators. Fast forward a few hundred years, and Lycosky Trading, Ltd. is the trading company in space. They produce top-of-the-line technology in just about every field.
Sairus
Charismatic Oligarchy of a 3-man executive branch. Citizens are mostly not involved in the processes of government. Government office is by appointment, and the best way to get one is to appear loyal to the Oligarchs. There is a strong nationalist sentiment among Sairians. Government operations are very hierarchical, all decisions coming from the top down. The government is not very intrusive into people's lives, at least not that they are aware of. As long as there is no challenge to the Oligarch's position, people are permitted to conduct their lives in peace.
Starport: D. Minimal facilities, no repair or construction possible. Only unrefined fuel.
Size: 3. Diameter 3270 miles, surface gravity 28% standard. Molten core, light in metals.
Atmosphere: 4. Thin, tainted; those venturing outside require a filter mask.
Hydrographics: 3. Seas cover 32% of the surface.
Population: 5. 1,360,000 inhabitants.
Government: C. Charismatic oligarchy.
Law Level: 4. Fully automatic weapons prohibited.
Tech Level: 7. Below average. Not space-capable.
Trade Classifications: Non-industrial, Poor Main imports: Agroproducts, processed goods and heavy equipment Main exports: Raw materials, chemicals.
Land: Average. Little tectonic activity and low hydro means lots of easily accessible terrain.
Labor: Average. Majority of population engaged in food production.
Capital: Below average. Low tech base and resource-poor land prevents much development.
Economy: Steady but weak.
Gas Giant: Yes
Alignment: Independent
The big secret, totally unknown to anyone off-planet, and known to only a tiny number on-planet, is that the Oligarchs are all psionics, gifted in telepathy and especially telempathy. They are incredibly persuasive, thanks to the additional influence of their psi talents. There are few other known psionics on Sairus, and when they are identified, they either are 'persuaded' to work for the Oligarchs or they are eliminated. So what are the Oligarchs planning?
Dravida
Dravida sits along one of the lesser trade mains, engaging in galactic trade to a modest extent.
B-4A26C4-C
Starport: B. Good quality installation, with refined fuel and facilities for starship repair.
Size: 4. Diameter 4,000 miles, surface gravity 50% standard, safe jump distance 400,000 miles (4 hours at 1G)
Atmosphere: A – Exotic. While the atmosphere is a normal NO2 mix, the planet's average temperature is 130F, and the humidity is 100%, as the seas have slowly boiled off. Being outside without protection from the heat will result in heat stroke within minutes. Also, breathing the air can result in drowning as water collects in the lungs.
Hydrographics: 2. Bodies of water exist only around the poles. Dried sea beds are full of mineral sediment.
Population: 6. Millions of inhabitants.
Government: C. Charismatic Oligarchy – restricted group enjoying the overwhelming confidence of the citizenry.
Law Level: 4. Light automatic weapons prohibited.
Tech Level: 12. Imperial average.
Trade Classifications: Non-industrial Main imports: machinery Main exports:minerals
Gas Giant: yes.
Alignment: Imperial, or Independent
Dravida has large expanses of dense jungle, broad shallow dry sea beds, and a polar region where the temperature gets down to 105F and the humidity down to 90%. Buried beneath the surface are many types of mineral and elemental deposits; unfortunately, there are multiple sodium metal deposits, which make mining a hazardous endeavor.
Percarius (per-SAH-ree-us)
Percarius is modeled after the planet Poitesme in H Beam Piper's novel The Cosmic Computer (aka Junkyard Planet). For some reason, trade with Percarius has all but ceased, and the planetary population is sunk into recession and apathy. What will it take to get the planet revitalized?
Starport: E. The landing area is the remnants of a class-C port, but it is in great disrepair, and the associated infrastructure is decrepit and no longer manned.
Size: 4. Diameter 4,200 miles, surface gravity 46% standard, safe jump distance 400,000 miles (4 hours at 1G)
Atmosphere: 5. Thin, common NO2 mix; Pressure is 0.63 Atm. Air compressors may be required.
Hydrographics: 3. Scattered large seas cover 37% of the surface.
Population: 5. 280,000 inhabitants, primarily in two cities and associated small towns.
Government: 8. Civil Service Bureaucracy.
Law Level: 3. Concealed, Laser and military weapons are prohibited.
Tech Level: 7. Pre-spaceflight (late 20th century Earth)
Trade Classifications: Non-industrial, Poor Main imports: none Main exports: none Not/no longer on a trade route.
Land: High Labor: medium Capital: low
Gas Giant: No
Alignment: Independent (or Imperial)
A civil service bureaucracy. Everything is run by departments, and elections are for who gets to be head of each department. Not very efficient, and now really stuck because of the total lack of trade. While there used to be more cities on the planet, almost everyone has moved to the two towns connected by the (now inoperable) monorail line. The other cities lie deserted and stripped bare of anything worth having. Manufacturing is way down except at the 'cottage industry' level. The most important activities now are raising food and keeping existing equipment & machinery running.
The government consists of these departments: Department of Trade, Department of Transportation, Department of Agriculture, Department of Revenue, Department of Education,and the Department of Administration - This is a catch-all agency that seems to have a hand in everything. The Secretary of Administration could be considered the Head of State. The Department heads all sit on the Government Board which is the official organ of state government.
80% of the population live in two cities near the two oceans. The other 20% are on farms in the surrounding area, or sea-farms on the coast. There is an unreported population that lives outside of the official region. Over the history of the planet, and most significantly 80-100 years ago there have been back-to-nature movements. These groups advocate a no-tech or low-tech lifestyle with utopian/communal aspirations. All of them have broken down and either returned to 'civilization', died off or turned into marauders led by a power-hungry autocrat. The exact number of people in these enclaves is impossible to determine, it may be in the thousands.
Stavanger
Stavanger is a long-settled, well-established independent world that is a 'big fish' in the small pond of its own subsector.
Starport: B. Good installation, with refined fuel and facilities for starship repair, annual overhauls, etc.
Size: 3. Diameter 3,260 miles, surface gravity 43% standard. Many exploitable mineral & metal deposits. Settled area: 2,615,385 km^2
Atmosphere: 6. Standard NO2 mix, but 02 is only 14% of air composition. Noble gases in much higher proportions.
Hydrographics: 1. Very low, three long, narrow lakes cover 14% of the planet's surface. All of the settled area is in the vicinity of the lakes.
Population: 8. 170,000,000 inhabitants.
Government: 5. Feudal Technocracy. See below. House of Barons selects head of state from own membership.
Law Level: 1. Almost no weapons are prohibited, open carrying is common and accepted. Public order is everyone's business.
Tech Level: 12. Galactic average.
Trade Classifications: Rich, on Trade Routes. Main imports: processed goods, tourists Main exports: raw materials, refined minerals, radioactives Land: High Labor: High Capital: High
Gas Giant: Yes.
Alignment: Independent
The inhabited area is divided into districts, under Barons. Each district has its own college/university system which is accessible to all but the lowest classes. Rivalry between the colleges is intense, and not just in sports. High scoring graduates get the best jobs, and so on down. Dropouts and non-students do all the unskilled & menial labor, and are restricted in weapon ownership. Towns on the three lakes are the tourist districts. The wine growing regions are famous subsector-wide. There are occasional border skirmishes between Barons over land rights, and unrest among the lower classes. Low-class neighborhoods are the older, lower buildings, while upper class neighborhoods are new, taller buildings.
Dekalb
A high population but lower technology world in one of the areas outside the galactic mainstream. Despite the technology lag, Dekalb is a significant political power and an aggressive trade power in the region.
Starport: B. Good installation, with refined fuel and facilities for starship repair and overhauls, etc.
Size: 8. Diameter 8,320 miles, surface gravity 89% standard, safe jump distance 800,000 miles (8 hours at 1G)
Atmosphere: 8. Dense NO2 mix; pressure 1.79 ATM.
Hydrographics: 5. Oceans cover 52% of the surface.
Population: 8. 230,000,000 inhabitants.
Government: 8. Civil Service Bureaucracy. Executive authority is invested in a Prime Minister, of the Chamber of Minsters who oversee the bureaucracy. Ministers are elected, Civil Service department heads are mostly appointed
Law Level: 3. Concealed, military, energy, explosive, and chemical/biological weapons are prohibited.
Tech Level: 9. Below average but possesses basic jump technology.
Trade Classifications: Rich, On Trade Route Main imports: agroproducts, technology Main exports: processed goods, industrial goods
Gas Giant: yes
Alignment: Aspiring regional power
The law level of 3 means that the bureaucracy doesn't pass a lot of 'laws', instead they pass 'regulations' on specific activities and industries. Dekalbian businesses may not be hampered by too much conscience, and so employ a lot of corporate espionage as well as hire mercenaries or pirates to deal with off-planet competition. Dekalb is not perforce evil, just self-serving. The Sommersfield family is a particularly influential group I Dekalbian politics and business. Just about every legitimate or shady business might be something they have a hand in.
Faldor
Faldor
is a boiling cauldron of unrest. Multiple ethnic, religious and
political factions are all vying for control of the planet. The
current government is a military junta, strongly reinforced by a
number of mercenary companies. The junta controls the major cities
and the immediate surroundings, but little else.
Size: 5. Diameter 5,000 miles, surface gravity 59% standard, safe jump distance 600,000 miles (4 hours at 1G)
Atmosphere: 8. Dense, humid but tolerable NO2 mix.
Hydrographics: 3. Oceans cover 36% of the surface.
Population: 6. 3.2 million inhabitants.
Government: A. Charismatic Dictatorship.
Law Level: 7. Heavily restrictive of civil liberties. Possession of firearms prohibited.
Tech Level: 6. Industrial pre-stellar.
Trade Classifications: NI Main imports: Metals, processed goods Main exports: Agro products, wood, petrochemicals
Gas Giant: yes
Alignment: tied to Lanzhou, a local power.
Pergamuth
Starport: C, average.
Size: 3. Diameter 3,000 miles, surface gravity 38% standard.
Atmosphere: 3. Very Thin, those venturing outside require a respirator/filter mask combo.
Hydrographics: 4. Oceans cover 42% of the surface.
Population: 6. 1.5 million inhabitants.
Government: A. The Great Leader rules absolutely over feuding clans.
Law Level: A. Nearly all weapons are prohibited, except in the hands of government forces.
Tech Level: 7. Pre-stellar, could build space vessels, but doesn't.
Trade Classifications: Non-industrial Main imports: manufactured goods, fuel Main exports: minerals, ores, some agro-products.
Gas Giant: yes
Alignment: Pergamuth is independent
Pergamuth is run by dictator, The Great Leader. The planet was formerly divided amongst a number of clans, constantly at war with one another. The GL was a war leader for one clan who led successful campaigns that subdued the planet. Initially a competent organizer, the GL has over the last decade become more repressive and harsh, as various clan groups have challenged his rule. It is possible that off-world groups are behind the uprisings.
Format
taken from: http://andyslack.wordpress.com/category/rules/traveller/
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