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What Was The Catastrophic Event That Caused The EW?

J

Jeff M. Hopper

SOC-14 1K
OK, AFAIK the EW is the psi warning that was created to get sophonts in danger to evacuate the area fast. So what calamity could be so devastating to cause the EW to be created?

I don't know what the Big Guys (Marc Miller, etc.) have in mind, but I'm thinking a supernova with a magnetar pulsar being formed in the aftermath would be destructive enough to cause this kind of EW warning to be created since such a catastrophe would endanger an entire domain of space at least.

We will not see this yet due to speed of light, but the EW is now FTL so we have an indication that something happened


Opinions? Reactions?
 
Utterly non-canon:

It's a side-effect of something similar in scope to the space-time alteration Grandfather did to make Jump Drive possible, but for a different form of FTL drive -- possibly psionics-based.

Whether the entity or civilization that caused it still exists is left to the referee. Maybe it destroyed them...
 
Easy: Dave Nilsen taking over the Traveller line. Compounded by the perceived success of the post-doomsday T2K, Marc's and DGP's disinvolvement and general disinterest in Traveller as it was.




... oh you meant in-universe? Also easy: Azathoth.
 
IMTU
Grandfather created the jump interface membrane that allows machines to enter the jump dimensions, something psionic teleporters could do. This "change to reality" may now be explained via the reality manipulation technology detailed in T5.

Tens of thousands of years ago an advanced culture (either close to the galactic core, the other side of the galactic core, or actual inhabitants of Sagittarius A) used their reality manipulation technology which caused the EW phenomenon. It is at this time unclear as to the exact nature of the alteration their wave will bring about, but its secondary effects have been well documented.
Some current theories include:
easier access to higher jump dimensions for psionic teleporters
establishment of a stargate network
creation of a new jump interface membrane that interferes with Grandfather's in unexpected ways.
 
Spinward Flow said:
Easy.
It doesn't make sense.
On ANY level.

It's a Deus ex Machina in which there was NO ATTEMPT at hiding the heavy hand of the author who was intent on a "factory reset" of the OTU.
Click to expand...
OK, I get it. You don't like the Empress Wave. So why are you here in this thread which is about trying to rationalize a part of canon that you hate? I'm trying to make it work for me because it exists, regardless of my feelings about it. You seem dead set on preventing that because that part of canon hurts your feelings. So why does someone trying to make the canon work cause you to feel so defensive?
 
I was being somewhat serious about Azathoth. An angry cthuloid god is a perfect fit for a mind-affecting wave tearing through time and space, giving people nightmares and driving them crazy. And Azathoth is out of copyright, as are other Lovecraft creations.
The "Empress" in the vision could work very well as a form of Nyarlathotep. And Cthulhu is quite similar in general form and appearance to the Droyne who were, after all, the Ancients.

So yeah, for people who feel they have to incorporate the EW, I would in fact recommend going for a Cthulhu crossover.
 
A few of things about the wave you learn from reading what Dave Nilsen had to say on the issue:
the wavefront moves at c
when the wavefront passes it affects the already actively psionic the most harmfully
to those without active psionics they stand a chance of becoming psionic
the meta game intention was to re-introduce psionics so that players could justify psionic characters
he couldn't remember or wouldn't say what was behind the wave
it was not another apocalypse

The rebellion era, hard Times then Virus was what flattened the setting, the two main plot threads that would be resolved long before the wave becomes a real issue were dealing with what lay behind the black curtain
and discovering what the Hivers have been up to
 
Jeff M. Hopper said:
So why does someone trying to make the canon work cause you to feel so defensive?
Click to expand...
I'M the one "feeling so defensive" ...?

You asked a question ... I gave you the Occam's Razor answer answer to your question.
"Like/Hate" has nothing to do with it.
I merely handed you the facts.
What you DO with those facts is your own affair.
(currently, all signs point towards discount/discard as being the response to those facts as presented)

Besides, if we can't call a spade a spade (or a bad writing decision a bad writing decision) ... what do you honestly expect?
 
That has always been the nature of the sci fi from which Traveller took its inspiration. It is a noticable trend over the past few decades away from psionics and towards magic AI or magic thranshumanism.
Most of the games I run do not have psionics in them.

Name a single psionic power that could not be duplicated with TL15/16 technologically?
Telepathy - there are machines in Traveller that can scan a brain, store memories and personality, and edit them.
Awareness - use bioengineering, drugs, cybernetics
Clairvoyance - sensors, drones, microbots, nanobots
Telekinesis - gravitics
Teleportation - matter transport, personal jump drives
 
Spinward Flow said:
I'M the one "feeling so defensive" ...?

You asked a question ... I gave you the Occam's Razor answer answer to your question.
"Like/Hate" has nothing to do with it.
I merely handed you the facts.
What you DO with those facts is your own affair.
(currently, all signs point towards discount/discard as being the response to those facts as presented)

Besides, if we can't call a spade a spade (or a bad writing decision a bad writing decision) ... what do you honestly expect?
Click to expand...
Your "Occam's Razor answer" reads a lot like disdain for what is there and not much else.

Truth be told, I'm not fond of the EW either. But if we are stuck with it as part of the metaplot, might as well try to make the best of it for in game use. You can hate on the EW concept all you want, call it names and whatever, but isn't a more mature approach trying to make it work?
 
Tobias said:
I was being somewhat serious about Azathoth. An angry cthuloid god is a perfect fit for a mind-affecting wave tearing through time and space, giving people nightmares and driving them crazy. And Azathoth is out of copyright, as are other Lovecraft creations.
The "Empress" in the vision could work very well as a form of Nyarlathotep. And Cthulhu is quite similar in general form and appearance to the Droyne who were, after all, the Ancients.

So yeah, for people who feel they have to incorporate the EW, I would in fact recommend going for a Cthulhu crossover.
Click to expand...
I actually gave your response some thought and like it, but would adjust it a bit. Sagittarius A*, the supermassive black hole at the center of our galaxy, would make a better Azathoth (with a big bad civilization living in its accretion disk). The supernova event was going to be natural, but could have been triggered or sped up (by Nyarlathotep?) to remove the civilization that broadcast the EW (who were causing problems for the big bad civilization living in its accretion disk).
 
mike wightman said:
A few of things about the wave you learn from reading what Dave Nilsen had to say on the issue:
the wavefront moves at c
when the wavefront passes it affects the already actively psionic the most harmfully
to those without active psionics they stand a chance of becoming psionic
the meta game intention was to re-introduce psionics so that players could justify psionic characters
he couldn't remember or wouldn't say what was behind the wave
it was not another apocalypse

The rebellion era, hard Times then Virus was what flattened the setting, the two main plot threads that would be resolved long before the wave becomes a real issue were dealing with what lay behind the black curtain
and discovering what the Hivers have been up to
Click to expand...
Where can I find this article about Dave Nilsen on TNE?
 
Jeff, Do you have the Year 1248 sourcebook Out of the Darkness? This details a reason for the EW, and is as good an explanation as any other. The cause is similar to your proposal in your first post.
I don't recall Marc's opinion on this sourcebook (by Avenger Enterprises, thus by Martin Dougherty), and whether he still considers it canon. But again, it's your game, and it's probably close enough to whatever canon Marc comes up with. (Personally, I don't like Marc's ret-con that the Wave is moving faster than light.)
 
MichaelSTee said:
Jeff, Do you have the Year 1248 sourcebook Out of the Darkness? This details a reason for the EW, and is as good an explanation as any other. The cause is similar to your proposal in your first post.
I don't recall Marc's opinion on this sourcebook (by Avenger Enterprises, thus by Martin Dougherty), and whether he still considers it canon. But again, it's your game, and it's probably close enough to whatever canon Marc comes up with. (Personally, I don't like Marc's ret-con that the Wave is moving faster than light.)
Click to expand...
Thank you.
 
Jeff M. Hopper said:
Where can I find this article about Dave Nilsen on TNE?
Click to expand...
The thread in question is here

(hypothetical) What would you ask Dave Nilsen?

I would have to imagine it would be details of Clipper ships. More modules, more clippers, more fuel tankers, and perhaps details about the mini battle riders that are in the Battle Rider game.
www.travellerrpg.com www.travellerrpg.com
start at page 2 - his user name is dreadnought
 
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