Let's Read: Traveller, 1977 Edition, Worlds & Adventures, page 32

More information on animals; we've had almost as much information on alien animals as we have on alien worlds so far. 12 pages on world/sector design, and 9 on animals. This page gives us a table on animal sizes and weaponry, as well as an additional one for the extreme critters. Let's take a look.

Basically, you roll 2D and consult the table to find out how big the animal is, how hard it hits, what its weapons are, and whether it has any natural armor or not. The second table just expands those categories for rare circumstances.

There are modifiers to this table from previous sections, like terrain and planetary size, as well as major modifiers for herbivores (-6) and carnivores (+6). Those mods only apply to the weaponry and armor, though.

Each category is rolled separately, so you could end up with a 100 kg animal that hits for 2D, has claws and teeth, and thick skin like jack armor. There is a lot of variety to be found with all those rolls.

The thing I like about this system is that it reminds me of the Hero System method, where powers and such are split into two parts: the mechanics, and the effect. It allows for a lot of creativity, while keeping the animals reasonable and logical, as befits a science fiction game. In fact, I think I'll come up with three different alien animals using these tables, all from the same ecosystem. Let's see what we get.

First, the world. I'm going to pick Tycho from my Hub subsector, since it's literally a hunting reserve. To refresh, its world profile is A569453F. Very high-tech, not too big, and lots and lots of water. Since its a hunting reserve, I'm going to say that it's generally a tropical world, with the equator being the hottest part but also being a straight water-band around the planet. The few land masses are closer to the poles, where they are still warm, but not boiling hot.

Good. Now, the main hunting preserve is going to be similar to sub-Saharan Africa, with lots of tropical forest and jungle to tromp around in hunting for trophies. That's going to limit the creature sizes, since jungles get a -3 to the size roll. That's okay, though; creatures don't have to be big to be dangerous.

So, let's roll up critter number one. I'm going to create one herbivore, one carnivore, and one omnivore. We'll start with the prey. A roll of 7 with a -4 DM for jungle gives us a 3, which is an intermittent herbivore. It has no special attributes (a roll of 3 on the 'other' table), so let's get to the size and weaponry table and see what we get. Again, there's a -3 to the size roll. A roll of '4' is modded to a 1, which means on a scale of chipmunk to elephant, we're looking at a chipmunk. It weighs about 1 kg. It can only take 1D of damage before going down, and it does -2D when it attacks. So it's probably not going to be doing that very often. It's a herbivore, so its weapons take a -6 DM. And I rolled a 4. Which takes us down to -2, except the table only goes down to 1, which means...a roll on the special table below. That's a 1D roll, giving me a 3, which equates to...blade. This helpless, tiny chipmunk has claws like a blade. Sure, it's not going to do much damage with its -2DM size modifier, but still. For armor, I rolled an 8, which reduces to a 2 (herbivore), which means no armor.

So, while I had 'chipmunk' in mind, the razor-sharp claws have me thinking of the Vorpal Bunny from Monty Python and the Holy Grail. But that would be silly. Let's see...

Okay, so this little creature is arboreal, which explains the claws. It actually eats the bark off the trees that it lives in, which means that the trunks will tend to be smoother. So, it developed these wicked talons to assist in climbing, which happen to help it fend off predators as well. Of course, it's still got the brains of a chipmunk, so it tends to run from trouble. Just don't corner it. It's called...a rastinet. It's got four legs and two 'arms' to help it with the climbing, and it collects fruit and nuts. It's got a thin, whip-like tail that helps with climbing and balancing, but is useless in a fight. It's got a thin layer of gray fur over its body, but the tail is bare. And it moves like a squirrel on a coffee bender.

Not too bad. Next up, the carnivore. It's a killer (roll of 8, modified by -4 for terrain). And it's a mini-pack animal, with 1D for number encountered. A '4' for special abilities gives it nothing. The size roll is a 10, modified to 7, which means a 100-kg critter that can take a few hits: 5D/2D. No wound modifier for its size, so we move on to natural weaponry and armor. This roll is a 4, which is bumped to 10 because it's a carnivore, and that means claws and teeth. Armor is a 3, modified to 9, which is no special armor.

This is basically a land-shark the size of a panther. It's a mindless eating machine that will attack anything that comes near it. And it's fast, moving at double the normal speed. Like the rastinet, it's going to be arboreal, although that will be more for moving quickly around the jungle. It can also move rapidly along the ground on its six legs, four of which it uses when attacking, leaving the back two for balance. It's a hairless beast, allowing it to stay cooler in the tropical heat. Rastinets are a light snack for this beast; it prefers bigger prey. No wonder the rastinets are so fast and small; they can scamper up to the high tree branches where this thing can't get to.

I should name this, shouldn't I? Let's call it... an agreeta. That sounds carnivorish, doesn't it? Sure. So, the agreeta is probably the big prize for the hunters. It's tough, it's fast, and it's always eager and ready to rip your intestines out and munch on them in front of you.

Finally, the omnivore. I'm going to move this one to the ocean instead of the jungle, since the planet is 90% water. There are no terrain modifiers for the ocean, so we get clean rolls. The first roll for type is a '4', which is an eater (2D). So, it's a small herd. For special abilities, we get an 11, which is a flyer, with a size mod of -6. It moves at ordinary speeds. A flying herd creature that doesn't go too fast, and eats anything in its path. For size, I rolled an 8, which modifies to a 2. It's not a lot bigger than a rastinet, and it can take 1D/1D of damage, doing -2D on its own. Its weapon roll is a 6, meaning 'teeth,' and flyers don't get armor rolls.

So...we've got some sort of bird. Let's call this a beriteen; it's got a beak, but it also filters its food when it dips into the ocean, straining out the plant and animal life. It's like a duck, in that it can land on the water and swim around, or it can float above it all gracefully while swooping down to grab a mouthful of seawater. It might have some natural enemies in the ocean, like Tycho's version of a shark. They don't fly in huge flocks, sticking to smaller family groups. Their plumage is mottled white and blue to camouflage them against the bright sky. They are named after the funny sound they make.

So, that's a good starting point for some native Tycho creatures. Let me know what you think in the comments.

If science fiction is your thing, take a look at my first science fiction publication, Bard Conley's Adventures Across the Solar System, which is a collection of ten linked short stories. It's available in paperback and e-book formats on Amazon right now!