Tuesday, June 14, 2011
The Ads of Dragon: The Traveller Book
Issue #69 (January 1983) brings us to an ad for which I have particularly fond memories:
For me, Traveller was the only serious competitor to D&D for my affections and The Traveller Book is one of my favorite iterations of it. This terrific rulebook had all the rules needed to play under a single 160-page hardcover, along with some sample adventures and basic details of the official Third Imperium setting. I can't shake the feeling that The Traveller Book was marketed to AD&D fanatics like myself, who instinctively associated RPGs with hardcover volumes. True or not, I loved this book and still consider it a great way to introduce oneself to Traveller.
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This ad got me into Traveller and I bought the Traveller book because of it. I never could get anyone around me to play, but my memories of the book are inordinately fond.
ReplyDeleteI lost this book, along with most of all my 1st ed books, in one of the moves back and forth from college, but I recently picked up a new copy.
Still just as fond of it.
The Traveller Book was awesome.
ReplyDeleteWhilst, it did introduce the Imperial Campaign via the Library Data, any good Referee would know to take this with a grain of salt...although, I started with the real sandbox game - Starter Traveller which took the game back to the LBBs but added most of that fantastic art of The Traveller Book.
ReplyDeleteFor hours, I pondered about the Emperor of Earth and/or was Earth a backwater of this thing called an Imperium. Then I started acquiring all the CT canon but I can fondly remember when the universe was mine to make.
I recently found my old boxed set of the original three, circa whenever. We never got past 'Sector Z' as an adventure zone with them, but loved it. I had Traveler, and that eventually led us to AD&D, which led us to D&D. What can I say?
ReplyDeleteThey did make the Traveller Adventure (which was awesome!) but not the Traveller Alien or Encyclopedia.
ReplyDeleteI always loved the "better hobby shops" line. For a long time, my "better hobby shop" was literally a hobby shop that also sold bicycles.
ReplyDelete@Anthony Emmel: The Traveller Alien was published as a set of "modules", each about a different race. You can buy them collected from FFE now.
ReplyDeleteREF: http://www.amazon.com/Aslan-Traveller-Alien-Module-1/dp/B000CIKBOU
I love the Traveller Book. It was such a wonderful introduction to Traveller; it made a lot more sense to me than the LBBs. Partly, it's a testament to how much art matters, IMO.
ReplyDeleteI never came across the Traveller Book until I had already been into traveller for 5 years. I have since acquired 2 copies (1 soft and 1 hardcover) I read it for nostalgia.
ReplyDeleteLong live Traveller.
@By The Sword: There were softcover copies? Wow, I had no idea!
ReplyDeleteMy (softcover) Traveller Book is right there alongside the Call of Cthulhu 4e and Warhammer FRP as the trinity of single-volume rpg classics. (RQ2 narrowly misses the cut on account of its brevity.)
ReplyDeleteOh, yeah, the softcover (which I owned first) had the pic with the guy with the moustache that's in the ad. The Hardcover (that I only bought a few years ago) was black with a red stripe like the LBBs.
ReplyDeletei haven't read this one, gonna have to track down a copy. also +1 for the ads of dragon, i love this series.
ReplyDelete"The Hardcover (that I only bought a few years ago) was black with a red stripe like the LBBs."
ReplyDeleteThe hardcovers when new had a paper jacket printed with the image from the ad. Presumably few of the jackets have survived. I know I ditched mine, in favor of the sleek black cover.
Nice to know. See, these ad retros are good for that reason. Knowledgeable people chime in with their knowledge. :)
ReplyDeleteFYI, I sold my copy of TTB a while back, and then acquired another (unfortunately, more worn) copy a few years ago. Both have the dust cover with the art featured in the ad.
ReplyDelete