General Any advice for a new Traveller publisher?

[richard gorman]

I have created a highly detailed Science Fiction setting rooted primarily in the Classic Traveller/Mongoose 1st Edition rules. It's rather large: Volume 1 (Green Zone), 150+ pages - Core background 49 Subsectors and setting essentials; Volume 2 (Amber Zone), 40-50 pages additional background; Volume 3 (Red Zone), 90+ pages of secrets, mysteries and plot elements for the referee only - oh and a nice big colour hex map drawn out using Worldographer. I've added plenty of stock art and formatted it according to my player's express preferences. i.e. Simple legible font, no watermark, single column, no tiny text...perhaps fading eyesight is now a factor!). Now...

I'd like to to stick this up on Drive Thru at some point with each Volume available separately and the big map as a graphic download/poster - if I can work out an effective way to format it. I would like to bill it as compatible with Classic Traveller and Cepheus Engine (which it is) and I've downloaded the Open Games Licence from the Traveller Wiki and updated it to FFE as advised. The setting is not in any way related to the 3rd Imperium setting - it covers a few centuries of colonial expansion out from Earth.

1. Can I go ahead 'as is' and stick these on Drive Thru' or are there any more hoops, legal or system-technical, I need to jump through?

2. Any advice on pricing - it was a lot of work but I don't want to rip anyone off. Naming no names but some of the earlier official licenced Traveller stuff on Drive thru seems a tad expensive even after a mark down from an even more alarming price.

3. The campaign includes several new alien species which, as I wanted to preserve their uniqueness, I'm afraid I had to sketch out myself. The sketches are good enough to show the reader what they need to know but I'm no Moebius. Are there any serious Traveller art aficionados who'd be up for trying to improve on my efforts?

4. What's the best way to let fellow grognards know of its existence? I confess a personal aversion to social media in most of it forms.

I have authored, produced and sold RPGs before (Time for a gratuitous plug methinks - Horizon Games: Horizon Fantasy Role Playing Rules and the unique Sulhan Fantasy setting. The full version might give you an idea of the kind of scale of Traveller setting I'm envisaging here. There are related taster freebies you can just swag for nowt if you want.) but this is my first venture in good old d6 science fiction. As CoTI is clearly the font of all wisdom in such matters I'd greatly appreciate any help and advice.

Cheers all.

 

[Timerover51]

I would check with Mongoose Matt before posting anything.

 

[kilemall]

As I understand it, you can't be using the term Traveller including Classic Traveller, the Imperium, or any of that proprietary stuff that Mongoose has and I'm assuming Marc retains for his own version.


You gotta stay CE clean- that's the point of it, being able to use the system and general components and mostly backwards compatibility without the IP content.

 

[atpollard]

Do it for YOUR pleasure first and foremost, because from a financial perspective, if you are like most independent publishers, you would earn more money mowing the neighbor’s yard every week.

There are a few that earn some good money, but most earn below minimum wage dividing the hours invested by the money earned.

I just wanted you to have realistic expectations for a new product entering a competitive market.

 

[richard gorman]

Ta all.

Thanks for the advice all, I'll take it on board. I did pitch this on a one pager to Mongoose but they thought it was too close to their existing lines - although I thought there were huge differences myself. Anyway I'll probably stick to Cepheus Engine and keep it cheap. Don't worry I know there's no bucks in this I was really just wanting to 'get it out there' without losing out too much. Ta again I'll let you know when the formatting/copy checking microwave goes ping and its ready to serve. Happy Trails.

 

[aramis]

You cannot claim compatibility with Classic Traveller without either a license from Marc or a total price of $0. See the FFE web policy.

Most who care already know CE is CT-portable-on-the-fly. (IE, not truly compatible, but close enough that you can do it at use time without much prep.)

The MGT1 STL licence is expired. (The content is open, but the compatibility mark is no longer allowed.)

 

[richard gorman]

One last thing...(I hope)

Ta Aramis. I'll reference Cepheus only. The game was actually conceived in MGT 1 but includes tweaks to emphasise an 'age of sail' theme and allow things like pursuit jumps, convoy jumps and tacking manoeuvres in jump space so I'm happy enough not to claim compatibility.

Just to check I have included the FFE Open Game licence from the Traveller Wiki on the end. Is this still needed or even a liability given that there is no actual reference to it in the books?

Sorry to be a pain with questions you guys have probably been over before but I really don't want to tread on anyone's toes. Thanks again for steering me right.

 

[Maksim-Smelchak]

I have created a highly detailed Science Fiction setting rooted primarily in the Classic Traveller/Mongoose 1st Edition rules. It's rather large: Volume 1 (Green Zone), 150+ pages - Core background 49 Subsectors and setting essentials; Volume 2 (Amber Zone), 40-50 pages additional background; Volume 3 (Red Zone), 90+ pages of secrets, mysteries and plot elements for the referee only - oh and a nice big colour hex map drawn out using Worldographer. I've added plenty of stock art and formatted it according to my player's express preferences. i.e. Simple legible font, no watermark, single column, no tiny text...perhaps fading eyesight is now a factor!). Now...

I'd like to to stick this up on Drive Thru at some point with each Volume available separately and the big map as a graphic download/poster - if I can work out an effective way to format it. I would like to bill it as compatible with Classic Traveller and Cepheus Engine (which it is) and I've downloaded the Open Games Licence from the Traveller Wiki and updated it to FFE as advised. The setting is not in any way related to the 3rd Imperium setting - it covers a few centuries of colonial expansion out from Earth.

1. Can I go ahead 'as is' and stick these on Drive Thru' or are there any more hoops, legal or system-technical, I need to jump through?

2. Any advice on pricing - it was a lot of work but I don't want to rip anyone off. Naming no names but some of the earlier official licenced Traveller stuff on Drive thru seems a tad expensive even after a mark down from an even more alarming price.

3. The campaign includes several new alien species which, as I wanted to preserve their uniqueness, I'm afraid I had to sketch out myself. The sketches are good enough to show the reader what they need to know but I'm no Moebius. Are there any serious Traveller art aficionados who'd be up for trying to improve on my efforts?

4. What's the best way to let fellow grognards know of its existence? I confess a personal aversion to social media in most of it forms.

I have authored, produced and sold RPGs before (Time for a gratuitous plug methinks - Horizon Games: Horizon Fantasy Role Playing Rules and the unique Sulhan Fantasy setting. The full version might give you an idea of the kind of scale of Traveller setting I'm envisaging here. There are related taster freebies you can just swag for nowt if you want.) but this is my first venture in good old d6 science fiction. As CoTI is clearly the font of all wisdom in such matters I'd greatly appreciate any help and advice.

Cheers all.

I recommend asking this question on the Facebook group:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/travellerrpg/

Shalom,
M.

 

[aramis]

Ta Aramis. I'll reference Cepheus only. The game was actually conceived in MGT 1 but includes tweaks to emphasise an 'age of sail' theme and allow things like pursuit jumps, convoy jumps and tacking manoeuvres in jump space so I'm happy enough not to claim compatibility.

Just to check I have included the FFE Open Game licence from the Traveller Wiki on the end. Is this still needed or even a liability given that there is no actual reference to it in the books?

Sorry to be a pain with questions you guys have probably been over before but I really don't want to tread on anyone's toes. Thanks again for steering me right.

Using the material: Allowed. Uses OGL.
Claiming compatibility: disallowed; requires a valid STL; The Traveller STL has been terminated. CE has a different STL.

 

[richard gorman]

Dumb Question Time

What's an STL? (Guessing it's a Standard Trading Licence or similar and not connected to Schottky Transistor Logic in any way...) If it's a licence where do I grab the Cepheus STL? Is it something I can just download and slap on or do I have to ask someone (Mr Kemp?) nicely?

If it's a serious issue I might just put this lot up for next to nowt under 'd6 science fiction' although it might not reach many people and seems a bit of a waste.

Thanks Maksim-Smelchak, I'm afraid I don't do facebook but I do appreciate the help.

I feel I owe Aramis and others a shot of scotch from the Lone Star bar for the help.

 

[aramis]

What's an STL? (Guessing it's a Standard Trading Licence or similar and not connected to Schottky Transistor Logic in any way...) If it's a licence where do I grab the Cepheus STL? Is it something I can just download and slap on or do I have to ask someone (Mr Kemp?) nicely?

If it's a serious issue I might just put this lot up for next to nowt under 'd6 science fiction' although it might not reach many people and seems a bit of a waste.

Thanks Maksim-Smelchak, I'm afraid I don't do facebook but I do appreciate the help.

I feel I owe Aramis and others a shot of scotch from the Lone Star bar for the help.

STL = System Trademark License.

The Wizards model is that the open content is licensed by the OGL, and the compatibility mark by the STL. The OGL is non-terminable and unregistered, the STL is terminable and requires registration with the licensor. In other words, Wizards can sue you for using their d20 logo since it was discontinued. New attempts to register under the STL will be rejected.

Note that the d20 STL required leaving out a few small sections of the SRD.

The Traveller STL was registered with Mongoose. Most of the licensees received termination notices, and Mongoose didn't hide that they were closing it.

 

[Independence Games]

I'd like to to stick this up on Drive Thru at some point with each Volume available separately and the big map as a graphic download/poster - if I can work out an effective way to format it. I would like to bill it as compatible with Classic Traveller and Cepheus Engine (which it is) and I've downloaded the Open Games Licence from the Traveller Wiki and updated it to FFE as advised. The setting is not in any way related to the 3rd Imperium setting - it covers a few centuries of colonial expansion out from Earth.

1. Can I go ahead 'as is' and stick these on Drive Thru' or are there any more hoops, legal or system-technical, I need to jump through?

Get a copy of the Cepheus Engine SRD. It's free on DTRPG. Jason Kemp has placed easy to follow instructions as to what you need to include in your book to make it Cepheus Engine compatible.

As has been said here, you cannot call it "compatible with Classic Traveller" without a license from Marc.

Also note that there are several other Cepheus settings out there concentrating on "a few centuries of colonization from Earth". Highly recommend that you have a good hook to set you apart.

2. Any advice on pricing - it was a lot of work but I don't want to rip anyone off. Naming no names but some of the earlier official licenced Traveller stuff on Drive thru seems a tad expensive even after a mark down from an even more alarming price.

I base our pricing on how many books we expect to sell of it and how long will it take to sell at that price to recover the cost of making it. That can be a tricky thing but it's just part of the business. It's something you learn over time.

4. What's the best way to let fellow grognards know of its existence? I confess a personal aversion to social media in most of it forms.

In my experience, an aversion to social media will result in not selling your product. I've been doing this for eight years, it is my primary source of income, and I can tell you that I've experimented with all sorts of marketing. The most effective thing you can do (at present) is to post things on Facebook. Everything else is, at best, a far second in effectiveness.

 

[richard gorman]

Finishing Touches

Ta again for the advice,

First I have to say the positive vibes and assistance on this forum have made me want to get this thing out into the 'Classic d6' roleplaying community to use and abuse as you see fit.

I've already downloaded and been looking at the Cepheus Engine. Looks like excellent work from Mr.Kemp. Not sure I can fit a piece of cigarette paper between it and what I've done. I've added some setting specific rule tweaks but nothing major. By coincidence I was actually checking out Gypsy Knight when I noticed this post. Well done - looks like lots of serious effort. I may bag me a couple of supplements.

I wasn't expecting to make money on this; anyway music singer/songwriting is my main 'thing'. I'm also a primary teacher and single parent so free time is, to say the very least, scarce. The amount of it I've just devoted to what is now known as 'Cosmos: Age of Sail' now seems pretty stupid to tell you the truth but I tend to plough on manically when I get obsessed with an idea. I have got Twilight Sector and Discordia and am vain enough to think my material stands up well. I think the detail, depth of connections and (relative!) credibility of Age of Sail; and the amount of adventuring twists and ideas squeezed into all 3 volumes, make it worth a punt.

I absolutely 100% get what you're saying about social media and appreciate the advice. My Horizons/Sulhan started out well and then I didn't do Facebook/Forums/Twitter etc and push it. Actually all the money I used for stock art was transferred over from my Sulhan account. Not enough to do bespoke arpictures though so I'm afraid the unique alien sketches are below par. Which I guess proves that you're dead right but circumstances don't allow me to do much about it. I was recently told by a friend that I have failed to 'monetise' my music too, although it is sitting on bandcamp.

I may now just put Age of Sail out there for nowt - assuming that's allowed with the OGL attached and no mention of the T-game or Cepheus (Although I'd like to give the latter a plug. Looks like he's done a bang up job). If Aramis or Gypsy Knight fancy a copy just let me know. I'm happy to stick up my email and zap you the files. I haven't pdf'ed them yet so you could keep the orginal and make your own copies to mess around with. Seriously I'd value your input and be happy to know that at least a couple of 'grognards' have got a copy! I've still got dropbox somewhere if I can remember how to use it! You might just enjoy reading or playing it yourselves in which case my labours will not have been in vain. I'll see if I can get a pdf of the Worldographer map up on here somewhere too.

Ta again. Let us know if you fancy a butcher's at Age of Sail or watch out for it appearing.

 

[Timerover51]

In my experience, an aversion to social media will result in not selling your product. I've been doing this for eight years, it is my primary source of income, and I can tell you that I've experimented with all sorts of marketing. The most effective thing you can do (at present) is to post things on Facebook. Everything else is, at best, a far second in effectiveness.

I also have a very strong aversion to social media, for various reasons, so I will have to see how that goes once I have product to sell.

 

[Independence Games]

Ta again for the advice,

First I have to say the positive vibes and assistance on this forum have made me want to get this thing out into the 'Classic d6' roleplaying community to use and abuse as you see fit.

I've already downloaded and been looking at the Cepheus Engine. Looks like excellent work from Mr.Kemp. Not sure I can fit a piece of cigarette paper between it and what I've done. I've added some setting specific rule tweaks but nothing major.

Good luck to you! Honestly, despite any similarities or differences, I would advise going ahead and using the Cepheus Engine logo on the cover and using Jason's guidelines for what legal disclaimers to put where. They are really helpful.

Second, not to bring the mood down, but I feel that I must warn you that in my eight years of publishing, "positive vibes" are not always that common. Frankly, my experience has been that there will be people bent on dismantling, destroying, and nitpicking everything that you do as if they are earning points in the afterlife for doing it. Truly, if you're not prepared for that kind of scrutiny, I'd take a beat and consider it.

I wasn't ready for it and it has been the most stressful part of the job. One of the first experiences I faced was a man in another forum who deconstructed almost every page until the moderators made him stop. It's tough to take that and some folks enjoy doing it to you. I feel that I would be remiss if I didn't warn you about this aspect of the business.

By coincidence I was actually checking out Gypsy Knight when I noticed this post. Well done - looks like lots of serious effort. I may bag me a couple of supplements.

Thank you for that. It's the product of a space opera campaign that started in the mid-1980s. If you do want to pick up some stuff, highly recommend doing it during the sale this weekend to save a few bucks.

I wasn't expecting to make money on this; anyway music singer/songwriting is my main 'thing'. I'm also a primary teacher and single parent so free time is, to say the very least, scarce. The amount of it I've just devoted to what is now known as 'Cosmos: Age of Sail' now seems pretty stupid to tell you the truth but I tend to plough on manically when I get obsessed with an idea. I have got Twilight Sector and Discordia and am vain enough to think my material stands up well. I think the detail, depth of connections and (relative!) credibility of Age of Sail; and the amount of adventuring twists and ideas squeezed into all 3 volumes, make it worth a punt.

I'd highly recommend putting it out there for a decent price and see what happens. It might end up being very popular and, if you decide to only do that, you should get a little monetary return on your efforts. If you feel like it would stand up well, by all means, put it out there and see how the market likes it. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.

I absolutely 100% get what you're saying about social media and appreciate the advice. My Horizons/Sulhan started out well and then I didn't do Facebook/Forums/Twitter etc and push it. Actually all the money I used for stock art was transferred over from my Sulhan account. Not enough to do bespoke arpictures though so I'm afraid the unique alien sketches are below par. Which I guess proves that you're dead right but circumstances don't allow me to do much about it. I was recently told by a friend that I have failed to 'monetise' my music too, although it is sitting on bandcamp.

Well, that one is up to you. I completely understand why one would want to avoid social media. Truly, if it were not such an effective advertising juggernaut, I'd engage with it a lot less than I do. However, if you want the product out there and you want it to sell well, it's pretty much a requirement.

 

[Old School]

Second, not to bring the mood down, but I feel that I must warn you that in my eight years of publishing, "positive vibes" are not always that common. Frankly, my experience has been that there will be people bent on dismantling, destroying, and nitpicking everything that you do as if they are earning points in the afterlife for doing it. Truly, if you're not prepared for that kind of scrutiny, I'd take a beat and consider it.

I wasn't ready for it and it has been the most stressful part of the job. One of the first experiences I faced was a man in another forum who deconstructed almost every page until the moderators made him stop. It's tough to take that and some folks enjoy doing it to you. I feel that I would be remiss if I didn't warn you about this aspect of the business.

Unfortunately, this is very true. People like to criticize and complain. Your efforts to expand upon the settings and lore of this game will be taken as an affront by some.

There’s a decent amount of bad material out there, and I’ll leave someone a less than favorable review if I think its warranted, or give my opinion when asked, but I’ve never understood why some people make it a mission to tear down the work of others, especially when such work is a labor of love with very little compensation.

So go in with eyes wide open, and damn the critics! Good luck with publishing your setting!