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Looking at all the different versions of Traveller

I’m writing this article to help players and Referees new to the game who are looking for a bit of clarity and wayfinding. When I came back to Traveller to play, the GURPS version was live and detail-heavy supplements were hitting the shelves every month. Even then it was difficult for me to parse through the different versions of what had come before. So. Many. Versions. And now there are a handful more. That’s a lot of material out there. 

There are nine distinct published versions of Traveller out there in the wild that have come to us over time. Each one reflects a different riff on some fundamental ideas, a different interpretation of the game and setting by the authors. Perhaps details the Third Imperium setting in a different region of\r point in time, or maps to a different system of mechanics. Each version has a core rulebook and supplements that go with it to detail its particular universe.

Throughout the versions and over time, some aspects remain the same – characters developed with career terms, the idea of jump drives and that Age of Sail feel, the relative lack of transhumanism, the presence of various “mini-games” such as character/world/ship creation within the rules that are playable by a single person are all aspects common to all versions.

Let’s survey the different versions:

Classic Traveller ( CT )

This was the first edition developed in 1977 by a small outfit in Normal, IL called Game Designers Workshop, and it was the first sci-fi roleplaying game and a contemporary of the first version of Dungeons & Dragons. Classic Traveller was published in the characteristic “Little Black Books” ( LBBs ) and first detailed a “sandbox” style rules system as a toolset for Referees to create their own settings and subsections. Not long after the initial offering the system was expanded in every way, and the default setting of the Third Imperium in the game-year of 1105 was developed. CT continued to be published, revised, and expanded for nine years. A profound amount of supplemental expansion material was published for CT. This version has many active fans to this day, a reflection of perhaps the well-designed rules or the idea of legacy; we tend to stick with the version of the game we were introduced to.

MegaTraveller ( MT )

Almost ten years after the initial offering, the first truly new version ( there had been several incremental upgrades to CT before this ) came along with a new task system, expanded setting materials, and an advancement on the default setting timeline. The game mechanics were now very much interwoven with the Third Imperium setting, where it was now 1116 and the Emperor had been assassinated. Principal play and supplements all detailed a collapsing Third Imperium rife with Rebellion. MegaTraveller was set in an expansive area; most of the Third Imperium as it collapsed, and ran as a published game for five years.

Traveller: A New Era ( TNE )

In 1992, just five years after it’s predecessor MT, Traveller: The New Era hit the shelves. This game featured an entirely new mechanics system and was also strongly interwoven with the default setting, which had been advanced more than a hundred game-years to 1200. These mechanics are for the most part incompatible with other editions of Traveller. In TNE the Third Imperium is gone, shattered, to be replaced by chaos and barely-forming order within Charted Space. TNE also introduces the existential threat of “The Virus,” a digital phage-like AI that threatens to wipe out an civilization it comes into contact with. The default region of play is the former Domain of Deneb. TNE published materials and expansions for three years.

Marc Miller’s Traveller ( T4 )

Four years after the introduction of TNE, the original publishing company had folded and the original creator Marc Miller published a new version of the game from Imperium Games. This version uses an updated version of the mechanics featured in MegaTraveller. As a default setting, the clock is dialed backwards now to the first years of the Third Imperium, where the Sylea Federation gave birth to the new empire. Players participate in the expansion of the new Third Imperium, re-connecting with various “pocket empires” after The Long Night after the collapse of the Second Imperium. The default sector of play was Core, and this version ran for two years.

GURPS Traveller ( GT )

Published by Steve Jackson Games in 1998 and based on the GURPS mechanics and ruleset, this version was imagined and driven by GDW alum Loren Wiseman. The setting was a re-imagined Third Imperium in the year 1116, but in this version Emperor Strephon was not assassinated and the Rebellion never happened; the “original” CT timeline was simply advanced and The Rebellion and The Virus never occurred. The GT default setting within the Third Imperium was the Spinward Marches sector, although additional materials also developed the Solomani Rim. GURPS Traveller published new material until its license expired after 6 years. SJG supported its version with a wealth of supplemental material and although the GURPS  system certainly has its advocates, in Traveller circles more people seem to be fan of the GURPS books as source material, supporting their game based on non-GURPS mechanics.

Traveller D20 ( T20 )

In 2002 a Traveller version with game system mechanics compatible with the extremely popular d20 system was published by QuikLink Interactive. The default setting detailed Gateway Domain near the Solomani Rim of the Third Imperium at the game-year 1000, a little more than 100 years before the events comprising the CT setting. T20 was the first version concurrently “live” with another Traveller system ( GT ) and was published for six years. T20 supplements were written to be compatible with CT material and settings, and an extensive amount of works were published.

Traveller Hero ( TH )

In 2006 ( and concurrent with T20 ) a version of Traveller utilizing the mechanics from Hero Games Star Hero was published by ComStar Games. A distinction is the use of a pool of points with which to build characters, roughly similar to GURPS. All of the various settings/times covered in prior versions of Traveller with the exception of the CT milieu were embraced by HT. This version was published for two years.

Mongoose Traveller ( MgT )

Live version – In 2008 Mongoose Publishing produced a “reboot” version largely informed by Classic Traveller. The default setting was the Third Imperium in 1105, though the mechanics were intentionally set apart and offered as a way to portray play in various non-Third Imperium scoff settings. MgT is published today ( in 2017 ) though now in its second edition after eight years, and features an expansive portfolio of supplements and supporting material.

Traveller5 ( T5 )

Live version – In 2013 Marc Miller ( through Far Future Enterprises ) published the “ultimate” version, comprised completely of a profoundly expanded mechanics/ruleset without a core default milieu but comparable with all prior published Traveller milieus. T5 is also a “live” version. At present there is a single seriously-dense 700+pp volume, and no supplements or expansions. Both fans and detractors cite the incredible complexity of the material as a reason for their fervor.

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Traveller Resources

Information on the traveller rpg and its official setting, the third imperium..

We’re not the only ship on the mains!  Since its introduction in 1977, the Traveller universe has been developed in RPGs, computer games, novels and board games.  There are a lot of great resources for learning more about the Third Imperium.  Here’s just a few:

Far Future Enterprises is run by Marc Miller, the original author and creator of Traveller.

The Citizens of the Imperium is the largest Traveller community on the internet, and a great place to learn more about the game and its official setting, The Third Imperium

An excellent resource compiled and maintained by Joshua Bell, the Traveller Map is the easiest way to navigate the Third Imperium. There's no better way to appreciate the scale of Traveller.

Mongoose Publishing produces a flexible and popular version of the Traveller rules set, and their "Third Imperium" product line further expands the official universe.

The Imperial Encyclopedia is a wiki-style compilation of Traveller information. Articles are submitted and maintained by individual users, and cover both the official canonical universe as well as alternate setting or unofficial materials.

The Freelance Traveller Magazine is a long running, bi-monthly fanzine. Each issue features excellent articles on a wide variety of subjects, alternate rules, new settings and product reviews.

Have a resource for the traveller community drop us a line.

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[Traveller] What's the best edition and why?

• Thread starter Valerie Vixen
• Start date Sep 20, 2012
• Tags traveller

Valerie Vixen

• Sep 20, 2012

What it asks in the thread title. Particularly for someone rather clueless and nooby about the whole thing?  

Mongoose Traveller hits all the right buttons for me. Its clunky at times, but is generally solid. The core book is very good and a nice way to get into the game. If you are already a GURPS fan, that version is really quite good as well. Some of that line's books surpass MongTrav's line in sheer quality of the fluff. I still default to MongTrav though -- its core and setting supplements are very good. The biggest failing of MongTrav compared to GURPSTrav is Mongoose's, at times, abysmal editing.  

UglyJimStudly

Kind of need to define your terms a bit. "Best" as in easiest to pick up and get a game going, I'd go with Mongoose. It's nice having the books right there at your FLGS, and it draws good bits from the editions that have gone before into a reasonably simple system. "Best" as in best for some specific style of sf or even specific style of Traveller is a different thing. Traveller has been used as a generic sf game, as a game attached to a specific setting, as reasonably hard sf, as classic space opera, as Star Wars or Star Trek (or both), as military sf, etc. Different versions are better at some of these than others. My personal best is a hybrid of classic Traveller (the first edition of the rules) and MegaTraveller (the second), along with a fairly hefty number of house rules pulled in from lots of different places. The reason is that I've spent, on and off, over twenty years working with and on that ruleset, and so it reflects what I want out of a Traveller game very well. That's unlikely to make it the best edition for anybody else, of course.  

Active member

Mongoose Trav gets my vote as well. It is concise and handles almost everything you can imagine right out of the box. And the supplements (bad editing and all) give you even more flexibility.  

Michael Tree

Michael Tree said: Diaspora. Click to expand...

Mad Scientist

Praetorian said: If you are already a GURPS fan, that version is really quite good as well. Some of that line's books surpass MongTrav's line in sheer quality of the fluff. I still default to MongTrav though -- its core and setting supplements are very good. The biggest failing of MongTrav compared to GURPSTrav is Mongoose's, at times, abysmal editing. Click to expand...

UglyJimStudly said: Gonna be honest, I had really high hopes for Diaspora, but it didn't really wow me at all. I was really looking forward to seeing how "hard science-fiction role-playing with FATE" would work, but it felt like the "hard science fiction" part was almost entirely a narrative conceit rather than an especially important contributor to the game's mechanics. I did like the setting generation stuff, that had some cool ideas. Click to expand...

As long as it contains "This is the Free Trader Beowulf, calling anyone ... Mayday, Mayday ... we are under attack ... main drive is gone ... turret number one not responding ... Mayday ... losing cabin pressure fast ... calling anyone ... please help ... This is Free Trader Beowulf ... Mayday .. " ...it's a good edition.  

randlathor66

Validated user.

Setting-wise, I like Mega-Traveller, but rules-wise I like either GURPS, Marc Miller's Traveller (T4, I believe), or Classic/Mongoose Traveller.  

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Versions of Traveller

' Traveller' has been published in 11 official versions, each with their own set of underlying game rules and take on the Setting .

Traveller was originally designed as a generic science fiction RPG system and the original setting was just one the designers favored out of the various settings which were available. While referees were encouraged to use the parts they wanted and change what they did not like, the wealth of background material made the Charted Space setting ubiquitous.

• 1.1 Major Traveller Versions
• 1.2 Publisher support
• 2 References & Contributors (Sources)

Description ( Specifications )

Each of the versions of Traveller used a slightly different setting from the Traveller universe. Classic Traveller takes place during the Third Imperium , Megatraveller during the Rebellion . The New Era takes place after a computer Virus ended the rebellion period, during a time of exploration/reconstruction. GURPS Traveller takes place in an alternate timeline where many of the events from MegaTraveller and The New Era never occurred. Marc Miller's Traveller takes place in the early days of the Third Imperium .

Some of the various versions are related to one another in terms of rules. Classic Traveller, MegaTraveller, and Mongoose Traveller use similar rule systems, with MegaTraveller being the most "variant" of the group. TNE uses the second edition Twilight rules system, T20 is based on the D20 license game system, and the GURPS versions and Hero versions use GURPS and HERO System respectively.

While characters can usually move from related system to system with little or no effort, other creations such as ship designs may or may not, though deck plans (often loosely based on the underlying ship designs) are often used across versions.

Major Traveller Versions

Publisher support.

In addition to the core publisher, several of the editions had material produced by other publisher. In many cases these additional publishers were officially licensed by the original publisher.

References & Contributors ( Sources )

• Contributor: Lord (Marquis) and Master of Sophontology Maksim-Smelchak of the Ministry of Science
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• Traveller 5
• Pre-Release Discussion

Traveller Versions - T-what???

• Thread starter Tar-Palantir
• Start date Nov 8, 2002

Tar-Palantir

• Nov 8, 2002

HI all; I started out with the original LBB version of Traveller in 1978, IIRC. Since then I have found out (reading this board) that there are many more versions than I was aware of. I *do* know of T2300AD. I got some MegaTraveller supplements (Rebellion Sourcebook) for setting information. And I just purchased T20, which looks pretty nice indeed. Imperium games had a version of Traveller out as well, but IIRC all I knew it to be called was Marc Miller's Traveller. Is this T4? What other versions were there? What is T5? Is this GURPS Traveller? It'd be nice to have a complete picture of what there was and in what order.  

T1... CT, Books 1-8 and all the supplements T2... Megatraveller; The New Era T3... Gurp's Traveller T4... Marc Miller's Traveller T5... Traveller T20 I think that's the correct listing?  

FlightCommanderSolitude

• CT - Classic Traveller (Little Black Books)</font>
• MT - MegaTraveller</font>
• TNE - Traveller New Era</font>
• T23K - Traveller 2300</font>
• GT - GURPS Traveller</font>
• T4 - Marc Miller's Traveller</font>
• T20 - Traveller d20</font>
• T5 - An alleged new version of Traveller</font>

Originally posted by Ellros: T1... CT, Books 1-8 and all the supplements T2... Megatraveller; The New Era T3... Gurp's Traveller T4... Marc Miller's Traveller T5... Traveller T20 I think that's the correct listing? Click to expand...

EvilDrGanymede

T4=Marc Miller's Traveller (1996-1997) GT=GURPS:Traveller (1998-present)* T20=d20 Traveller (2002-present)* T5=Traveller^5 (not yet published) *GT and T20 are licensed usage of the Traveller name, setting, and 'style' in other game systems, not connected to the Traveller game engine, and thus are not properly counted in the numerical progression of Traveller editions. Click to expand...

The only reason it's important is that if T5 ever does come out, it won't be called T7, because GT and T20 don't count as being GDW-Marc Miller directed.  

Originally posted by DrSkull: The only reason it's important is that if T5 ever does come out, it won't be called T7, because GT and T20 don't count as being GDW-Marc Miller directed. Click to expand...

Originally posted by Evil Dr Ganymede: </font><blockquote>quote:</font><hr />Originally posted by DrSkull: The only reason it's important is that if T5 ever does come out, it won't be called T7, because GT and T20 don't count as being GDW-Marc Miller directed. Click to expand...

PapaGolfWhiskey

I think the point is that t's 1-4 were evolution/incarnations of what was intended to be the same game engine. as such t4 was the 4th version of the Traveller GAME. GT and T20 are the traveller milleau set in a DIFFERENT game engine and thus don't count for numbering of the evolutions of the actual Traveller engine. Does that make better sense of the distinction that delving into copyright and ownership issues? For me it's moot. I just use the terms that everyone else uses. and the aparantly for The Imperium Games 'Marc Miller's Traveller' that's 't4' -- it could be 'Banana' for all I care as long as you knew which game I meant.  

As Garf mentioned, the main distinction is that CT, MT, TNE and T4 were all game systems in their own right. Whereas GT and T20 are based on other, preexisting game systems. The other complicating factor here is that each of the six "editions" have their own time period that they focused on. The most common milieu name(s) is/are show in [brackets]. CT -> 1100 - 1112 [Classic] or [M1105] MT -> 1116 - 1128 [Rebellion] TNE -> 1200+ [TNE] or [M1200] T4 -> 0+ [M0] GT -> 1120+ (alternate) [GT] GT -> (soon) IW (I forget the years) [none yet] T20 -> 1000+ [M1000] T20 -> (soon) 1248+ [M1248] Then, to be even more confusing, you have people who prefer one rules set, but another setting. E.g. using the TNE rules, but adventuring in the 1100-1112 setting.  

• Nov 9, 2002

Originally posted by Garf: I think the point is that t's 1-4 were evolution/incarnations of what was intended to be the same game engine. as such t4 was the 4th version of the Traveller GAME. GT and T20 are the traveller milleau set in a DIFFERENT game engine and thus don't count for numbering of the evolutions of the actual Traveller engine. Does that make better sense of the distinction that delving into copyright and ownership issues? Click to expand...

I'm basically trying to figure out why people want a T5. There have been 4 GDW systems, a GURPS version, and a D20 version. There have also been 6 separate time periods covered, with two more on the way at least. Have none of those worked for the people who still keep wishing there was a T5?[/QB][/QUOTE] I think the answer to that is an unequivicable NO. Roleplaying games (like practically everything else) is evolutionary. People/gaming companies come up with rules that are different from current ones, or put together in different combinations. Every blue moon some of these rules "qork" better than a previous incarnation. Future games tend to be based on these rather than others. For Example, D&D/chainmail started with characters who had levels but no skills. Later (Was traveller or Rolemaster first?) someone pointed out that skills "felt" like a better way to play. Now-a-days the bulk of games incorporate a skill system of some form. I liked the Startrek RPG Skill + Stat as target numbers, it seems that it is currently commonly accepts. One nice thing about evolution is that it is a moving target! I can easily see a game coming out shortly where each PC chooses a class and gradually gets better and better at it - no skills, no multi-classing. I could even put an arguement for it (shear simplicity if nothing else) - if that game tends to dominate the mindset then the "direction" of the hobby will vear again. So yes, Traveller will probably have more versions - as long as the game playing public likes the mileu and rules, but wants something a little different. So the game has to be popular enough for people to buy the "next" version and unpopular enough that they want a "new" version that has "better" rules. <Steps of soap box, shakes head. I didn't realise that I had that bottled up inside - wonders where it came from. Has someone been putting things in my Coffee Juice?>  

Originally posted by The Mink: So yes, Traveller will probably have more versions - as long as the game playing public likes the mileu and rules, but wants something a little different. So the game has to be popular enough for people to buy the "next" version and unpopular enough that they want a "new" version that has "better" rules. Click to expand...

Originally posted by Evil Dr Ganymede: [...]The way I see it, there surely are enough versions of Traveller (three of which are readily available at the moment: CT, GT, and T20) that people can easily pick or tweak an existing system and use that (the backgrounds can be overlaid onto pretty much mechanics, really). Most games don't even have more than one version out at a time, and yet people are still hankering over an 'ideal' version of Traveller when they already have no less than *three* to choose from on the shelves at the moment?! Sounds a bit petulant to me, really.[/QB] Click to expand...

Originally posted by Evil Dr Ganymede: This distinction is somewhat strange to me. From what I understand, Marc keeps tabs on GT and will do so for T20 stuff, won't he - so why is it important that he has to 'direct' things in person? Does it necessarily make it any better? And what happens when the New Era:1248 stuff comes out for T20? Is that another version of Traveller? Click to expand...

Originally posted by Evil Dr Ganymede: Petulant? I guess you play GT, do you think GURPS development should stop? Did we reached a point of rpg development from which further evolution is impossible or non significant? Click to expand...

I don't think so. I did not liked the TNE engine, neither d20 or GURPS. However, the Traveller rules set, as developed in CT, MT, and T4 are more of my taste. Currently, I play a mix of T4, CT, and house rules. Frankly, I don't have much time to tweak systems and, because of that, I will be glad to pay for the next edition of the rules. Click to expand...

Originally posted by Andrewmv: Which of the following is "Playing Traveller"? 1) A game set in the 3rd Imperium universe using CT, MT, TNE, T4 or T5 2) A game set in the 3rd Imperium universe using T20 or GT 3) A game set in the 3rd Imperium universe using some other game mechanics 4) A game set in a umpire created universe using CT, MT, TNE, T4 or T5 5) A game set in a umpire created universe using T20 or GT 6) A game set in a umpire created universe using some other game mechanics Its an interesting question.[/QB] Click to expand...

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Welcome to the universe of the Far Future! Far Future Enterprises, as the successor to Game Designers’ Workshop, publishes reprints of the classic role-playing game systems originally produced by GDW: Traveller (as well as many of its licensed support materials), 2300 AD , Twilight: 2000 , and Dark Conspiracy . We work closely with other publishers ( Mongoose, Steve Jackson Games, RPGNow, and DriveThruRPG ) who publish their own versions of our products under license from FFE.

And there’s a universe of online support: the Traveller Wiki, TravellerMap (for great star charts) and its companion Traveller Worlds (for great world maps), the Citizens of the Imperium discussion boards, and more.

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The Iconic SF RPG Updated: Traveller Core Rulebook (Update 2022) Reviewed

Publisher: Mongoose Publishing

Authors and Designers: Marc Miller (Classic Traveller), Matthew Sprange (Mongoose Traveller Developer), and Gareth Hanrahan (Original Core Mechanics)

Artists: Katrina Hepburn and Sandrine Thirache (Layout), Xavier Bernard, Sergio Villa, Anderson Maia, Mark Graham, Nikita Vasylchuk, Douglas Deri, Ian Stead, Ankit Yadav, Cassie Gregory, Alessandro Rocco, and Colin Dunn

Genre: Classic science fiction roleplaying game

MSRP: $59.99 for the hardcover or $30.00 for the PDF at DriveThruRPG

In many ways, Traveller is to science fiction roleplaying what Dungeons & Dragons is to fantasy roleplaying. First published in 1977, Traveller has been through many editions and publishers in its long history, landing with UK publisher Mongoose Publishing in 2008. A second Mongoose edition came out in 2017, featuring greatly improved art and presentation as well as some revised rules mechanics. This “Update 2022” version keeps the 2nd Edition rules changes and adds some material that was notable absent from the previous corebook notably ship creation rules. I should note that, while I have run and played the 1st edition of Mongoose Traveller, I had not engaged with the 2nd Edition of the game until reviewing this book.

The second iconic element of Traveller is the tech-y, relatively realistic presentation of standard sci-fi elements like ships, travel mechanics, planetary systems, and the like. While the universe does include Faster-Than-Light travel and artificial gravity, the technology is otherwise fairly grounded. Ships have a utilitarian feel to them, and unlike the original 2nd edition core book can be built from scratch (a process that, unlike some previous editions of Traveller, does not require advanced high school math to complete). Moreover, we see several pages worth of Traveller’s iconic 2d deck plans for ships that would be commonly flown by PC groups. There is also a lengthy personal gear and non-starship vehicles. It’s worth noting that Traveller has always avoided wading deep into the “transhumanist” side of sci-fi, and so while there is some cybernetics, there is very limited AI and little in the way of body modification or brain swapping (as compared to something like Eclipse Phase).

Gameplay-wise, Traveller uses a 2d6 mechanic—roll 2d6, add modifiers for attributes and skills, try to beat a target number (8 by default). Added for the 2nd edition of the game is a “boon and bane” system that is similar to Advantage and Disadvantage in 5e D&D—when circumstances are favorable, roll 3d6 and count the highest two dice; when circumstances are unfavorable roll 3d6 and count the lowest two dice. As with many sci-fi systems, skills are at the core of the system, with a large but not overwhelming skill list. Combat is quick and fairly deadly, with damage coming off of physical attributes. The game engine is simple, plays fast, and should not present too much of a learning curve for new players and GMs coming off of other game systems.

Finally, while the 1st edition of Mongoose Traveller made the dubious choice to go for a retro-1970s look in terms of art and lay-out, Update 2022 has a clean, modern lay-out, with full color art. The art is not at the level of the very top of the industry (i.e. Free League Publishing), but it is solid and pleasant. The book is well-organized, and the PDF I reviewed has bookmarks (although they have very few second level bookmarks, which is disappointing). It’s worth noting that Mongoose’s products in general, and 2nd edition Traveller materials in particular, are a bit on the pricey side for the length of the books and what you get. Still, the Update 2022 Corebook is a beautiful book, and a solid value.

There are a host excellent sci-fi rpgs settings and systems out there, but Traveller has stood the test of time. The Third Imperium setting is one of my favorite sci-fi settings, and this Update 2022 book has got me back into Mongoose’s Traveller line. Traveller is a classic, but it is a classic for a reason, and if you are looking for a grounded sci-fi game with lots of space for the GM and players to explore, it’s hard to go wrong with this product.

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Nice review. For old-school Travellers, does the Mongoose edition have advantages or shortcomings relative to the original “little black books”?

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