There is something charming about those earliest TNS entries, just tiny
adventure nuggets against a blank canvas, and you could follow them
wherever you wanted.
Here's where the grognard narrative would begin, that the original sin
that proved to be Traveller's undoing started here, with saying anything
concrete about anything, so JUST SAY NO.
Except people want to hear about, "what39;s their story, when did that
happen," and you're really a Grinch if you don't try to answer those
legitimate questions. Can you imagine EGG saying, "nope, I won't tell you
what female dwarves look like, not my job, not my business, go figure it
out yourself."
Adding background is a two-edged sword, but show me anything in life that
isn't. Just use the stuff you want and ignore the stuff you don't. And
please don't forget to feel superior, that's why we're in the hobby.
> Not as clever as I'd hoped, but...
>
> The Ine Givar were originally portrayed as generic terrorist
> idiot/enemies. That is a legitimate narrative role. Supposedly they were
> aligned with the Zhodani, the Sword Worlders and the Vargr. At least some
> of them engaged in really messed up stuff - nuclear terrorism and so on.
>
> OK, they're Orcs. Except..
>
> The Imperium isn't a bunch of saints. How do you dissent against them?
> Well, actually, the earliest publications suggest you get "disappeared"
> into various places (if you are lucky). In fact, Adventure 1 (Kinunir) was
> the basis for the later canonical arrest of Duke Norris, and him turning
> up with an Imperial Warrant to overthrow Admiral Santanocheev, etc.
>
> There was also the story in The Traveller Adventure about various Vargr
> groups - former Corsair gangs - moving into Imperial space.
>
> And, naturally, Psionics are suppressed.
>
> Oh, and since I'm writing this off the top of my head - Broadsword.
> There's nothing particularly obviously wrong about the rebels there.
> Apparently the IG tried to contact them but failed, and whatever.
>
> There's plenty of scope for an anti-Imperial movement, and they don't all
> have to be stooges for another power, idiot terrorists, or whatever.
>
> Also I have my own family background as Australian anti-conscriptionists
> during WW1 and so on. I don't have an issue with dissidents. Even ones
> with reasonably sane armed wings. Hey, the US engaged in an armed
> rebellion against Britain. Was George Washington a terrorist? And East
> Timor, etc.
>
> So basically, my Traveller universe has a sane faction of the Ine Givar.
> There are also groups that aren't so sane. Some of these are manipulated
> by the Sword Worlds (spot the morons), the Zhodani (pro-psionic oligarchy
> - "no thanks" say the anti-Imperial democrats) or the Vargr ("we support
> Vargr rights, but not piracy"). Others are just batsh*t crazy.
>
> Proxies for the Left, in short.
>
> Oh, right, that's what I was heading towards. Even in a universe of nobles
> and megacorporations, there are people who think people are people...
> Shame about the factions in the Rebellion.
adventure nuggets against a blank canvas, and you could follow them
wherever you wanted.
Here's where the grognard narrative would begin, that the original sin
that proved to be Traveller's undoing started here, with saying anything
concrete about anything, so JUST SAY NO.
Except people want to hear about, "what39;s their story, when did that
happen," and you're really a Grinch if you don't try to answer those
legitimate questions. Can you imagine EGG saying, "nope, I won't tell you
what female dwarves look like, not my job, not my business, go figure it
out yourself."
Adding background is a two-edged sword, but show me anything in life that
isn't. Just use the stuff you want and ignore the stuff you don't. And
please don't forget to feel superior, that's why we're in the hobby.
> Not as clever as I'd hoped, but...
>
> The Ine Givar were originally portrayed as generic terrorist
> idiot/enemies. That is a legitimate narrative role. Supposedly they were
> aligned with the Zhodani, the Sword Worlders and the Vargr. At least some
> of them engaged in really messed up stuff - nuclear terrorism and so on.
>
> OK, they're Orcs. Except..
>
> The Imperium isn't a bunch of saints. How do you dissent against them?
> Well, actually, the earliest publications suggest you get "disappeared"
> into various places (if you are lucky). In fact, Adventure 1 (Kinunir) was
> the basis for the later canonical arrest of Duke Norris, and him turning
> up with an Imperial Warrant to overthrow Admiral Santanocheev, etc.
>
> There was also the story in The Traveller Adventure about various Vargr
> groups - former Corsair gangs - moving into Imperial space.
>
> And, naturally, Psionics are suppressed.
>
> Oh, and since I'm writing this off the top of my head - Broadsword.
> There's nothing particularly obviously wrong about the rebels there.
> Apparently the IG tried to contact them but failed, and whatever.
>
> There's plenty of scope for an anti-Imperial movement, and they don't all
> have to be stooges for another power, idiot terrorists, or whatever.
>
> Also I have my own family background as Australian anti-conscriptionists
> during WW1 and so on. I don't have an issue with dissidents. Even ones
> with reasonably sane armed wings. Hey, the US engaged in an armed
> rebellion against Britain. Was George Washington a terrorist? And East
> Timor, etc.
>
> So basically, my Traveller universe has a sane faction of the Ine Givar.
> There are also groups that aren't so sane. Some of these are manipulated
> by the Sword Worlds (spot the morons), the Zhodani (pro-psionic oligarchy
> - "no thanks" say the anti-Imperial democrats) or the Vargr ("we support
> Vargr rights, but not piracy"). Others are just batsh*t crazy.
>
> Proxies for the Left, in short.
>
> Oh, right, that's what I was heading towards. Even in a universe of nobles
> and megacorporations, there are people who think people are people...
> Shame about the factions in the Rebellion.