The founders of Game Designers’ Workshop—including Marc Miller himself—were avid wargamers, and the player base of Traveller continues to include a large number of military veterans and wargamers. So it is probably no surprise that one of the first supplements out of the gate in 1978 was Book 4: Mercenaries, which dealt with ground forces in Traveller. Book 4 also introduced advanced character generation, which immediately proved to be a popular if controversial extension of the original game.
I don’t have any data to back this up, but I suspect that the mercenary campaign might be even more popular than the free trader campaign, which is often considered the default Traveller game. In any case, I was looking forward to reading Martin J Dougherty’s treatment of mercenaries in Mongoose Traveller. MJD is consistently good and always strong on military topics. Mongoose ran a successful Kickstarter a few years ago to fund a deluxe three-book boxed set treatment of mercenaries. Although I didn’t get in on the Kickstarter, I did pick up the Mercenary PDFs after the fact. Mongoose has also published several follow-up products, including the excellent Mercenaries of Charted Space, which I picked up a couple of weeks ago during the recent Bundle of Holding sale.
Mercenaries are extremely common inside the Aslan Hierate and within the Buffer that separates the Hierate from the Third Imperium. In fact, the Keith Brothers almost certainly developed Reaver’s Deep with mercenary campaigns in mind.
Given all this, Mongoose Traveller Mercenary is another book that would work very well with The Deep and the Dark. Below are the mercenary companies mentioned in The Deep and the Dark statted out using the MgT mercenary system.
Mercenaries of The Deep and the Dark
Caledon Highlanders
A human-owned mercenary regiment (pg. 47) active in Reaver’s Deep and into adjoining Imperial and Solomani territories.
| STR 8 | DEX 7 | END 9 | INT 7 | EDU 6 | SOC 5 |
| Athletics (endurance) 1, Drive 0, Gun Combat (slug) 2, Melee 0, Recon 0, Survival 0, Vac Suit 1 | |||||
| Weapons: Gauss Rifle with auxiliary grenade launcher (4D, AP 5, Auto 3, Scope), RAM grenade (5D, Blast 9) | |||||
| Armor: Chameleon Combat Armour (+13, +4 Stealth) | |||||
| Characteristic | Value | DM |
|---|---|---|
| Force Name | Caledon Highlanders | – |
| Unit Size | Brigade | – |
| Unit Type | Motorised Infantry | – |
| Unit TL | 13 | +2 |
| Mobility Type | Partial Grav | +4 |
| Combat | 6 | +0 |
| Bombardment | 6 | +0 |
| Aerospace | 5 | -1 |
| Support | 6 | +0 |
| CEI or DEI | 7 | +0 |
| Morale | 10 | +1 |
| Reputation | 9 | +1 |
Caledonian Highlanders (Colonel Sir William Fraser, KC)
- 1 x Regimental Headquarters
- 1 x Battery of Regimental Artillery
- 2 x Sections
- 5 x Multiple Rocket Launcher or drone missile vehicles
- 1 x Fire Direction Centre vehicle
- 1 x Regimental Logistics Unit
- 1 x Pioneer Battalion
- 1 x Battalion Headquarters
- 1 x HQ Staff
- 1 x Battalion Squad
- 1 x Battalion Aid Station
- 1 x Battalion Artillery Battery
- 1 x Grav Tank Company
- 13 x tanks
- 1 x Engineering Company
- 1 x Lift Recon Company (Elite)
- 3 x Infantry Battalions
- 1 x Battalion Headquarters
- 1 x HQ Staff
- 1 x Battalion Squad
- 1 x Battalion Aid Station
- 1 x Battalion Artillery Battery
- 1 x Grav Tank Company
- 13 x tanks
- 4 x Infantry Companies
- 1 x Command Staff
- 4 x Platoons
- 5 x Squads
E’al Htoukha
A large, private Aslan military company (pg. 49) controlled by the Hlaotiyoiho clan.
| Characteristic | Value | DM |
|---|---|---|
| Force Name | E’al Htoukha | – |
| Unit Size | Division | – |
| Unit Type | Lift Infantry | – |
| Unit TL | 14 | +2 |
| Mobility Type | Grav | +8 |
| Combat | 7 | +0 |
| Bombardment | 8 | +0 |
| Aerospace | 6 | +0 |
| Support | 7 | +0 |
| CEI or DEI | 6 | -1 |
| Morale | 8 | +0 |
| Reputation | 7 | +0 |
Kaha a’huye
The Brotherhood of the Rose-Tinged Waters (pg. 50) is a storied Aslan mercenary company sponsored by the Afaikhiyoi clan, operating out of Kusyu.
| Characteristic | Value | DM |
|---|---|---|
| Force Name | Kaha a’huye | – |
| Unit Size | Brigade | – |
| Unit Type | Expert/Specialist | – |
| Unit TL | 5 | -1 |
| Mobility Type | Infantry | -3 |
| Combat | 2 | -2 |
| Bombardment | 0 | – |
| Aerospace | 0 | – |
| Support | 5 | -1 |
| CEI or DEI | 11 | +2 |
| Morale | 15 | +3 |
| Reputation | 13 | +2 |
Ktiriy’eirl
One of the larger mercenary companies operating in the Hierate, Ktiriy’eirl (meaning, roughly, ‘relentless attack’) provides armoured grav units to client clans. The company is managed by females of the Hrasua clan (pg. 120) and known for the high quality of its armoured vehicles, most of which are manufactured by Hwyroar, the clan corporation. Mercenaries are usually Ground Forces veterans of the Hrasua clan or one of its many allies. The mainstay of Ktiriy’eirl units are Khtachwel assault grav tanks supported by infantry in combat armour. Ktiriy’eirl maintains several large troop transports allowing the company to rapidly deploy assets wherever a client desires.
| Characteristic | Value | DM |
|---|---|---|
| Force Name | Ktiriy’eirl | – |
| Unit Size | Division | – |
| Unit Type | Grav Armour | – |
| Unit TL | 14 | +2 |
| Mobility Type | Grav | +8 |
| Combat | 7 | +0 |
| Bombardment | 8 | +0 |
| Aerospace | 7 | +0 |
| Support | 8 | +0 |
| CEI or DEI | 9 | +1 |
| Morale | 12 | +2 |
| Reputation | 7 | +0 |
Longshot Inc.
A mercenary artillery company (pg. 51) operating in Reaver’s Deep with headquarters located on Solomon in Eakoi subsector.
| Characteristic | Value | DM |
|---|---|---|
| Force Name | Longshot, Inc. | – |
| Unit Size | Brigade | – |
| Unit Type | Artillery | – |
| Unit TL | 14 | +2 |
| Mobility Type | Grav | +8 |
| Combat | 4 | -1 |
| Bombardment | 13 | +2 |
| Aerospace | 7 | +0 |
| Support | 7 | +0 |
| CEI or DEI | 6 | -1 |
| Morale | 9 | +1 |
| Reputation | 9 | +1 |
Sellswords of Gilead
An unusual human mercenary company (pg. 53) based on Sequel in Khtoiakta subsector of Dark Nebula.
| Characteristic | Value | DM |
|---|---|---|
| Force Name | Sellswords of Gilead | – |
| Unit Size | Battalion | – |
| Unit Type | Security | – |
| Unit TL | 2 | -2 |
| Mobility Type | Infantry | -3 |
| Combat | 1 | -2 |
| Bombardment | 0 | – |
| Aerospace | 0 | – |
| Support | 4 | -1 |
| CEI or DEI | 10 | +1 |
| Morale | 14 | +2 |
| Reputation | 11 | +1 |
Teahleikhoi
‘The Soldiers of the Falling Night’ are an Aslan mercenary company (pg. 55) associated with the Iyhlua clan. Organised and operated as a regiment, Teahleikhoi is based in the Uhtaa subsector of Reaver’s Deep.
| STR 10 | DEX 5 | END 9 | INT 7 | EDU 6 | SOC 5 |
| Athletics 0, Drive 0, Gun Combat (slug) 2, Melee (natural) 1, Recon 0, Survival 1,Tactics 0 | |||||
| Weapons: Gauss Rifle with auxiliary grenade launcher (4D, AP 5, Auto 3, Scope), RAM grenade (5D, Blast 9) | |||||
| Armor: Cloth (+8) | |||||
| Characteristic | Value | DM |
|---|---|---|
| Force Name | Teahleikhoi | – |
| Unit Size | Brigade | – |
| Unit Type | Armoured Infantry | – |
| Unit TL | 14 | +2 |
| Mobility Type | Grav | +8 |
| Combat | 7 | +0 |
| Bombardment | 8 | +0 |
| Aerospace | 7 | +0 |
| Support | 8 | +0 |
| CEI or DEI | 8 | 0 |
| Morale | 11 | +1 |
| Reputation | 9 | +1 |
Teahleikhoi (Siylakht Iyhli)
- Regimental Headquarters
- 1 x Command Ship
- 1 x Fighter Squadron
- 15 x Fighters
- 3 x Combat Platoons
- 1 x Commando Platoon
- 1 x Recon Platoon
- 1 x Engineering Platoon
- 2 x Artillery Batteries
- 3 x Battle Groups
- 1 x Tleiatre Battle Leader Starship
- 1 x Headquarters Platoon
- 3 x Companies
- 1 x Company Command
- 1 x Logistics Squad
- 1 x Repair Section
- 1 x Casualty Station
- 4 x Infantry Platoons
- 2 x Fire Support Vehicles
- 1 x Eiaikeiar Intruder Transport (pg. 70)
A Tleiatre Battle Leader is a TL14, 3,000-ton starship with J-3 and 4g capabilities used for command and control. The regimental command ship is a 5,000-ton vessel designed to coordinate large-scale operations. It also carries a small fighter squadron, and transports various other support units as required when the regiment as a whole is committed in combat.
Wolmarans Black Jackets
An infamous Solomani mercenary company currently based out of Damiel in Danvers subsector of Dark Nebula.
| Characteristic | Value | DM |
|---|---|---|
| Force Name | Wolmarans Black Jackets | – |
| Unit Size | Brigade | – |
| Unit Type | Armoured Infantry | – |
| Unit TL | 14 | +2 |
| Mobility Type | Motorised | +4 |
| Combat | 7 | +0 |
| Bombardment | 2 | -2 |
| Aerospace | 6 | +0 |
| Support | 6 | +0 |
| CEI or DEI | 9 | +1 |
| Morale | 14 | +2 |
| Reputation | 10 | +1 |
Copyright Information
The Traveller game in all forms is owned by Far Future Enterprises. Copyright © 1977 – 2024 Far Future Enterprises. Traveller is a registered trademark of Far Future Enterprises. Far Future permits web sites and fanzines for this game, provided it contains this notice, that Far Future is notified, and subject to a withdrawal of permission on 90 days notice. The contents of this site are for personal, non-commercial use only. Any use of Far Future Enterprises’s copyrighted material or trademarks anywhere on this web site and its files should not be viewed as a challenge to those copyrights or trademarks. In addition, any program/articles/file on this site cannot be republished or distributed without the consent of the author who contributed it.
Materials produced by Digest Group Publications (DGP) are copyright © Roger Sanger. Any use of Digest Group Publications’ copyrighted material or trademarks anywhere on this Web site and its files should not be viewed as a challenge to those copyrights. Usage is intended to follow the guidelines announced by Roger Sanger on the Traveller Mailing List for preserving the overall Traveller milieu.
No comments:
Post a Comment