Wil's Storyteller-Traveller Crossover

Preface

Overview

I've always wanted to run Traveller using the Storyteller engine, as presented in Vampire, the Masquerade, 1st edition. I've since realized that:
  1. The combat mechanics need some serious tweaking to cope with FGMP's.
  2. It's easier to rewrite the combat system than to adapt it.
  3. (completely unrelated) I have forgotten for almost 10 years now to credit my prime help in creating this in the first place: Peter Newman.

So: what this is is "Just enough WOD" to run Traveller, IMO. Combat works differently, and psionics are based upon the Sorcery mechanics. You will need an old-WOD rulebook for attribute capabilities, skill level general meanings, and specialization rules.

And, just for reference, All traveller characters are considered to have unawakened avatars. If you want to cross in the WOD Beasties, that should answer "Big Question #1". One exception: Grandfather becomes a mage if you cross over, and is a technomancer.

A note on Dice conventions

Storyteller uses dice pools vs a target number (As do at least several other game systems unrelated to WWG's). Each die which rolls that number or higher is called a success. In the early games, the target number was flexible. In newer ones, it's fixed, but a variable number of successes is required.

I have stuck with the variable target numbers for this conversion This is for a variety of reasons, including personal preferences and making things work in a Travelleresque manner.

Legalalia

The Traveller game in all forms is owned by Far Future Enterprises. Copyright 1977 - 2003 Far Future Enterprises. Traveller is a registered trademark of Far Future Enterprises. Far Future permits web sites and fanzines for this game, provided it contains this notice, that Far Future is notified, and subject to a withdrawal of permission on 90 days notice. The contents of this site are for personal, non-commercial use only. Any use of Far Future Enterprises' copyrighted material or trademarks anywhere on this web site and its files should not be viewed as a challenge to those copyrights or trademarks. In addition, any program/articles/file on this site cannot be republished or distributed without the consent of the author who contributed it.

Storyteller System, World of Darkness, Vampire the Masquerade, Werewolf the Apocalypse, Mage the Ascension, and Socerer are all trademarks of and copyright by White Wolf Game Studios, Inc. They are used without permission. Their use here should not be construed as challenge to those intellectual properties.

Old School Rolling Conventions

This ruleset was developed more than 10 years ago. It doesn't roll for successes like modern World of Darkness games.

Target Numbers: In new WoD, all dice roll against an 8+. In OLD WoD, the target number was set by difficulty. This conversion used that OLD convention.

Task Definition

A task has four parts:

1. A definition
2. A stat and a skill
3. A difficulty
4. A time increment or time

The definition is what the task is about.

The Stat and Skill: Some tasks have two skills, some two attributes, if you're converting from other Traveller systems. For this game, however, you should use Either: one attribute and one skill; or one Trait. Add their ratings together, and grab that many 10 sided dice. If you get more than 10 dice, however, we're going reduce your target number instead of using the excess dice.

The difficulty. Traveller uses several difficulty levels, defined by labels.

The Time Increment: MegaTraveller (and DGP's UTP for CT) use an increment of 1/10th the time, times 3d6 - skill. TNE lists a flat time. We'll use a flat time, and reduce by 10% per success after the first, to a minimum of 30%

Task Modifiers

Hasty: You increase the difficulty by 2, but each success over the first takes 20% off the time

Cautious: You decrease the difficulty by 2, and double the base time.

Hazardous: if you botch, it really hurts badly.

Fateful: If you fail (no successes), it counts as a botch.

Unskilled OK/Untrained: No TN Penalties for lacking the skill or knowledge listed for the task.

Absolute: Extra Successes don't reduce time taken.

Character Definition

Attributes

EtiquetteAbilities

Virtues

Willpower

willpower starts equal to the permanent willpower. Willpower has a maximum of 10, not 5 as per other abilities.

Temporary Willpower can not exceed permanent willpower, unlike WOD.

Backgrounds

Characters start with 10 dots in backgrounds. Note that many backgrounds go to sevens. Any over 5 require GM's permission.

Dots	Allies	Contacts	Retainers	Mentor
•	1 Moderately powerful	1 Major	1	Little Status, moderate skills
••	2 moderately powerful	2 major, 2 minor	2-3	Some Status, and several (2-4) abilities at 5 dots
•••	3, one quite influential	3 major, 4 minor	4-6	High ranking official, or many (8-12) abilities at 5 dots
••••	4, one very influential and moderately well connected	4 major, 8 minor	7-10, or fewer of notable skill or loyalty	High Ranking Noble, or high official of great power.
•••••	A half dozen, one extremely powerful or important	6 major, a dozen minor	11-20	Domain level official or higher, or sector duke or higher noble
••••• •	A dozen, one of whom is a domain level influential person	10 major, 20-30 minor	A Household Staff	Member of Imperial Household
••••• ••	Scores, including the Emperor himself	20 major, minors just about anywhere, and one in the imperial court or an archduke	A Major Household Staff	Member of the Imperial Family.
Restrictions			One dot less for numbers if exceptionally loyal or skilled, 2 steps lower if both.

Dots	ScoutShip	Merchant Ship, Yacht	Terms	Cash
•	Type S, beaten up	A, A2, etc, 40 Years owed	1 Term +5 freebies	Cr 1000
••	Type S, good shape	A, A2, 30 Y Owed R,Y,K 40 Yrs Owed	Two Terms +10 Freebies	Cr 5000
•••	Variant S (S-2, S-3) bad shape	A/A2 20 Yrs Owed R,Y,K 30 Yrs Owed Cbt: 40 Yrs Owed	3 Terms. +15 FP	Cr 10,000
••••	Variant, good shape	A/A2 10 Yrs Owed R,Y,K 20 Yrs Owed Cbt 30 Yrs Owed	4 Terms + 20 FP. Lose one physical dot.	Cr 50,000
•••••	Donosev, Bad Shape	A/A2 paid off R,Y,K 10 Yrs Owed Cbt: 20 Yrs Owed	5 Terms +25 FP Lose two physical dots	Cr 100,000
••••• •	Donosev, good shape	R,Y,K paid off Cbt: 10 Years Owed	6 terms +30 FP- 2 Phys Dots, -1 Mental dot	Cr 500,000
••••• ••		Combatant paid off	7 Terms +35 FP- 3 Phys Dots, -2 mental dots	Cr 1,000,000
Restrictions	Scouts, Belters		Cannot be bought with Freebie Points.	Cannot exceed terms + Resources

Dots	Resources	Retirement Pay	Fief
•	Cr 100/month after lifestyle	Cr2000/year	A Villa or Mansion
••	Cr 250/month after lifestyle	Cr4000/year	A large land parcel or income producer
•••	Cr 500/month after lifestyle	Cr6000/year	A Small city vast empty land
••••	Cr 1000/month after lifestyle	Cr8000/year	A Major city or sparse subcontinent
•••••	Cr 2500/month after lifestyle	Cr10,000/year	A continent
••••• •	Cr 5000/month after lifestyle	Cr12,000/year	A minor world
••••• ••	Cr 10000/month after lifestyle	Cr14,000/year	A major world
Restrictions		Cannot exceed terms; Anything less than 5 dots indicates disability pension, not retirement.	Cannot exceed Title + (Decorations or knighthoods/2) [use greater of number of knighthoods or dots in decorations] Serves as Resources at one dot less (income in addition to resources, do not add dots)

Merits and Flaws:

Freebie Points

Human player characters base of 20 freebies, Plus any from flaws. Additional may be attained by the Terms background, but that background may not be purchased, nor raised, using freebie points.

Item		cost per dot	Max	Base Given
Attributes		5	5 Each	9@1 7/5/3
Abilities:		3	5 Each	13/10/7
Virtues:		2	5 Each	3@1 +5
Backgrounds		2	5 Each	10
Willpower		3	10	Best Virtue +2
Psionic Talents	PSR	5	5	0
	Talents	3	PSR	0
	Tricks	1 each	Talent	0

Psionics

PSR

PSR limits the maximum level on psionics talents. PSR cannot exceed 5 for most humans. (Droyne may start no higher than 5, but may attain up to 8)

Talents

Each talent is a "Psionic Skill". The skills are learned individually. Each has several associated tricks (similar to path abilities for Sorcery), but unlike the WOD games, the tricks must be learned separate from the skills.

Tricks

The tricks shown are shown to tell you at what level of skill you may acquire the trick.

Definitions to be done later.

Difficulties are 4+ required dots OR Range Base plus Required dots to use a trick.

Using Psionics

Talents are rolled on Talent+Int.

You must have a trick to use a talent. If you don't have the trick, but do have the requisite skill, you may spend a temporary willpower point to attempt it unskilled.

Failing a talent roll costs a Willpower box. Spending a willpower on a Psionic task does NOT grant autosuccesses; it instead lowers difficulties. See Willpower and Psionics, below.

Range Difficulties: use the point of closest contact.

Time Difficulties: Use higher of distance in time or size of chunk affected. Distance is to "Near Edge" of time affected.

Group affects: Each additional target adds their range modifier to the difficulty, with a minimum of +1 each. This does not apply to telepathy.

Telepathy • LifeDetection • Shield (3) • Telempathy • Flicking (4) • Invisibility (1,2) •• Send Thoughts •• Read Surface ThoughtClairvoyances ••• Send & Receive ••• TP Stun •••• Probe •••• Assault ••••• Mind Edit [RT]	Clairvoyance • Seek [R] •• Sense ••• Clairvoyance ••• Clairaudience ••• Object Read •••• Combined CV/CA •••• Remote Taste/Smell •••• Remote Touch ••••• Clairsentience*	Postcognition • Object Read •• Place Read ••• Postcognition ••• Person Read
		Precognition • Danger Sense • Combat Sense ••• View Future
Awareness • Accelerate Healing • Suspended Animation •• Enhance Physical Attribute •• Regeneration ••••• Enhance Social Attribute ••••• Enhance Mental Attribute ••••• ••• Immortality (1,2)	Teleportation • Self only (naked) •• Self and clothing Allowance •• Unconscious Safety* ••• Self and Max Carry ••• Passengers (naked) •••• Passengers (with Clothes) •••• Other (unwilling) with clothes •••• Blink Attack* ••••• Passengers with Max Carry ••••• Others (unwilling)	Machine Telepathy • Terminal •• Read Files •• Jinx Equipment ••• Hack Computer ••• Hack Files ••••• Merge with computer note: Roll on Computer + machine telepathy.
Healing •Diagnose •• Accelerate Another's healing •••• Regenerate another ••••• Suspend another ••••• •• Undo Aging	Telekinesis • Moving • Manipulating •• Move and Manip •••• TK Bullet •••••• HeartWrench
(1)Normally restricted to Droyne (2) no roll needed, always on (3) Psionic Shield is both passive and active. (4)normally restricted to Zhodani.

Telepathy and Clairvoyance: The difficulty is to bring it up; keeping it up requires a minimal level of concentration; a failed virtue or willpower roll will require bringing it up again.

Damage Tricks: TP Stun, Assault - Successes are damage levels; target rolls soak vs PSR+Telepathy. Soak is rolled on PSR; if target has shield, roll on PSR + Shield. TPS does non aggravated, or may instead be used to cost the target rounds of action. Non psionic targets may spend a willpower point to soak with any virtue.

Psionic shield: Is a character has psionic shield, Int+Telepathy may be rolled to resist any mind affecting tricks or Clairvoyant tricks. Artificial Psionic Shields count, normally, as 1d of soak.

Accelerate Healing: divide time to heal by (1+successes) for duration chosen. May be used prophylactically (IE, before being injured).

Regenerate: successes are wound levels restored as an action. It takes one round per wound level.

Invisibility: Invisibility is blocked by having a psionic shield active. Max range at which targets are affected is the range where the distance is equal to the Droyne's Telepathy.

Willpower

Willpower and Psionics

Any failed psionic task costs 1 box of willpower.
Spending a temporary willpower (1 box) gets you a roll of your PSR versus a difficulty of 6; each successreduces the difficulty of the immediately following psionic task by 1. Botching this roll costs 1 permanent willpower.

Willpower in General

• Willpower can be used for generating an automatic success (limit one per task) for one temporary point on any non-psionic task.
• Willpower can be used to overcome any result of a failed virtue roll.
• Willpower is spent by failing psionics tasks.
• Willpower can be spent to reduce the difficulty of psionic tasks.
• Willpower can be used to allow a willpower roll to soak psionic damage.
• Willpower can be spent to overcome the results of a FAILED virtue roll, but not a botched one.
• Willpower is gained at the rate of 1-3 points for fulfilling the conditions of one's nature archetype.
• Willpower is regained at the rate of 0-1 points for fulfilling the conditions of one's demeanor archetype.
• Willpower is regained at the rate of 0-1 points per life affirming condition. (GM's call based on the character's background and description.)
• Permanent willpower is never adjusted by any of the above.

If for any reason you are at 0 temp and must spend a point, you lose one dot, refill the boxes to the new level, and then spend the points. If this would take you to a permanent willpower of 0 dots, you remain at one and instead lose a dot in a virtue, starting with the highest.

Gaining new dots requires Either:

• being at a temporary of full, and fulfilling one's nature, then immediately spending the experience points. A demeanor will not do.
• tracking Temporary points lost due to the maximum on temporary willpower. When the total is equal to the square of the dots, you may spend experience to gain that extra dot.
• gaining more successes on a virtue roll than Willpower dots + the virtue while at full temporary willpower. This one costs no Experience Points..., but you start the new dot at 1 temporary willpower. This may not be contrary to nature nor demeanor.

  So, for example Jo with CUF 4 and Willpower 5, with 5 temp WP, rolls his CUF to engage in a barroom brawl difficulty 6. He rolls 10 10 10 7, generating 3 extra rolls, and those turn up 10 6 2, and this generates another roll of 2 dice: 10 9; this generates another die: a 9. Massive popcorn there... 5x10's, 2x9's, a 7, and a 6 to generate 9 successes. Since his nature is bully and demeanor is drunkard, he gets the free dot.

Gaining Derangements

Combat

Travellerisms

Types of Damage

Aggravated vs non-aggravated wounds: low impact blunt force trauma is non-aggravated (punches and kicks, short falls), all other kinetics are aggravated. Stun-Weapons are non-aggravated

Wounds

Healing:

The above times shown are days to get a roll of Endurance vs a 6; each success is one level healed.

Accelerated healing successes are a divisor to the above times, plus extra dice on the healing roll.

Regeneration successes are number of boxes healed.

Buying extra Boxes:

being tougher than normal is possible. The table lists the freebie point costs for a given extra box.

Non-Aggravated to Aggravated:

When all available boxes have been filled with non-aggravated damage (You can't go past incapacitated directly with non-aggravated damage), start over at the bruised level,converting damage from non-aggravated to aggravated.

Penalty

The penalty is in dice. If this would knock you to less than 1 die, the remainder is a TN increase, rather than eliminating the last die.

Weapons

weapons are given several statistics:

Accuracy: Accuracy is the number of range bands before difficulty raises a point. Each range band past is 1 more point unless noted with a plus or minus and a number. If a minus, the number is how many additional points per range band. If a plus, it's how many extra range bands before the second point.

Damage is damage dice rolled.

Penetration is given at close range. It is the target number for soak tests. Unarmed combat has a pen of 3.

Attenuation is how many range bands before pen drops by a point.

Max Range: the maximum traveller range band.

Basic To Hit Procedure

1. Declare target and weapon
2. determine range
3. determine target number to hit: base is 4, modified by, range, cover, size, etc.
4. roll dex+skill (missile) or str+skill (melee) vs TN from 3.
5. target may roll to reaction dodge. Difficulty is adjusted from a base 6 by the opposite of the mods on the to-hit. Each success cancels a To-Hit Success.
6. If any to hit successes remain, Attacker rolls Damage + Extra To Hit Successes Target's End, count successes.
7. Defender rolls Armor vs Pen to soak. Yes, 10's do pop. Each success removes one damage success.
8. Defender marks wounds equal to the remaining damage successes
9. Defender must make the needed Psychology roll to stay functional.

Scaling: Ships and Vehicles

Procedure

When a personal weapon fires at a vehicle, Soak dice are doubled, but dodge successes are 2 per to hit success removed. one extra damage die is rolled per 2 extra to hit successes.

when personal weapon fires at a ship, soak dice are trebled, but dodge successes are 3 per to hit success removed. one extra damage die is rolled per 3 extra to hit successes.

when a vehicular weapon fires at a person, damage dice are doubled, including those from extra successes. Pen is increased by 5.

When a vehicular weapon fires at a ship, Soak dice are doubled, but dodge successes are 2 per to hit success removed. one extra damage die is rolled per 2 extra to hit successes.

When a ship fires upon a person, damage dice are trebled, including those from extra successes, and Pen is increased by 10.

When a ship fires upon a person, damage dice are doubled, including those from extra successes. Pen is increased by 5.

Stats

Scale: ship or vehicle, as per T20.

Use T20 stats: Armor for vehicles is per the armor rating from T20 or HG. The Soak base is by tonnage:

tons	0-50	50-99	100-499	500-999	1000-5000	5000-9999	10,000-49,999	50K-99K	100K-499k	500K-999K	1M-4.999M
Soak=AV+	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
Damage Diff:	3	3	4	4	5	5	6	6	7	7	8

A ship's dodge pool is equal to G's + Pilot.

Hits Tracks are calculated.

Line	Penalty	tons for first box	tons for second box	tons for third box
Scratch	0	3+	10K+	3M
Minor	1	10+	5K+	1M
Moderate	2	30+	3K+	500K
Severe	3	5+	1K+	300K
Crippling	4	100+	500+	100K
Devastating	5	50+	300+	50K+
Incapacitating	X	1+	30K+	1M
Destroyed	X	1+	1K+	10K+

Weapon	Accuracy	Damage type	Pen	Atten	Sec Type	SecPen	SecAtted
Ship's Laser	Dist+0	Structure	5	dist+1	None
Plasma	Long-1	Structure	6	dist-1	None
Fusion	Long-1	Structure	7	Dist-1	Rad	5	Med-2
PAWS	Long	Structure	7	Long	Rad	3	Long
Missile	Med+2	Structure	5	na	none
Nuke Missile	Med+2	Structure	7	na	Rad	5	na

Sample Ships

Races