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Old 09-02-2019, 06:13 PM   #12
maximara
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Join Date: Aug 2004
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Default Re: GURPS Prime Directive

Quote:
Originally Posted by Jean_Sexton View Post
My thoughts were that this is designed to be a standalone book. If someone wants to bring in more GURPS information, that person most likely has the GURPS Basic Set books and already knows if he wants to reference them.

This book isn't meant to replace GURPS Basic Set so there is much more detail in those books that isn't in ours. I also don't include every chart and table that those books have -- just the ones that directly apply to Prime Directive.

EDIT: However, I missed that old 3e reference. I'll change it in the book.

Jean
Quote:
Originally Posted by adm View Post
The TL progression is from their 3E edition, it anchors the tech progression from ADB's version of Trek, keeping it vastly simplifies how they advance tech that cover 200+ years of history.

Being a specific setting, instead of a generic one, such a setup makes sense. After all, if you were building a home brew Trek setting, wouldn't you want a better way to differentiate between the thirteen* different on screen USS Enterprises than TL12^?

* Archers Enterprise, Pike's Enterprises, both from TOS, and Discovery, the TOS Enterprise, the Refitted movie Enterprise, A, B, C, D, E, and J, plus the Tri-engined D, and the JJ-Trek Enterprise.
My concern is they really highballed the 3e TL leaving little room for the civilizations more advanced then the Federation - the wiki entry for GURPS Prime Directive goes into a long outline regarding how to lowball Star Trek TL using what was in TOS as well as in the Worlds of the Federation book.

In 3e terms TL(6+3) to TL(7+3) with the transporter at TL14 is reasonable.

In 4e terms so much of Star Trek goes into the superrscience that one can easily put lowball it into the TL(6+3)^ to TL(7+2)^ range with the transtator being a piece of TL6^ tech (per "Piece of the Action" and Worlds of the Federation)

Also there can be a lot of improvement within a TL. One only need to look at the Newcomen engine and the improved version Watt made so see that as they are both TL5. Star Trek could have a safe-tech mindset. Sure they refine their technology but in terms of moving up the TL scale they basically set there.

GURPS tried the TL scale unique to the setting idea with GURPS Lensman. The result was to put it mildly a mess as book forgot the whole "Universal" part of GURPS and tried to (badly) use the TL penalty system on its own Tech Stage system which based on information in the book resulted in total nonsense the moment you tried to relate it back to the GURPS TL system.

Remember a GURPS book should, within reason, be able to "play nice" with other GURPS books. GURPS 3e Supers forgot that and we all know how much a botch up that was.
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Last edited by maximara; 09-02-2019 at 06:28 PM.
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