On 11 January 2017 at 23:23, Bruce  Johnson
<xxxxxx@pharmacy.arizona.edu> wrote:
>
> On Jan 11, 2017, at 3:54 PM, Timothy Collinson
> <xxxxxx@port.ac.uk> wrote:
>
> Exciting news! (and not unrelated to the other thread about whether ships
> need humans)
>
> Mindjammer Traveller is now available in print and PDF.
> A 384-page hardback (including free PDF at Modiphius.net)
> PDF-only version www.drivethrurpg.com and again at Modiphius.net
>
> Well, I'm excited about it anyway... looks great. Not sure I'll be able to
> get my head round it all though!
>
>
> Could have sworn we had a transhuman ruleset for Trav already…wasn’t it
> called ‘Vampire Fleets’ :-P
>

Well, Mindjammer isn't *just* sentient ships.  But yes. :-)

Of course, the key difference for me is the brightness and
(literally?) uplifting nature of Mindjammer (not to mention the
gorgeous books) vs the depressing darkness of TNE.  (Though I liked
the TNE:1248 material for the glimpse of light at the end of the
tunnel).

It's not that I don't love the retro Traveller feel and will not be
jumping ship anytime soon, but I do like having my imagination
stretched and the feeling that here is something that might cover the
years of SF between 1977 and now!

Oh, and while I think about I read another short story in the Three
Moments of an Explosion collection by China Mieville last night.  If
you're a fan of 2300AD style space elevators or beanstalks, there's
'The Rope is the World' for some fun ideas.  I've found what looks to
be the story, here:
http://www.iconeye.com/404/item/4274-china-mieville-the-rope-is-the-world

all the best

tc