Bundle(s) of Holding: Traveller Explorations & Great Rift

The Mongoose edition of Traveller is pretty fantastic. As an RPG that is both fun and pragmatic, I really appreciate it. I’ve run one game of it and played in a few one-shots. I’m keen to run the game again as my campaign petered out somewhat as our group drifted apart due to occurrences that occurred. As we learned from Jurassic Park, life finds a way… to really get in the way of our RPG campaigns.

Now, Bundle of Holding is offering two Traveller-themed bundles. Huzzah! One is a collection of recent eBooks, whilst the other is focused on the Great Rift campaign. Let’s take a look and see if the deals are worthwhile.

Bundle 1: Mongoose Traveller Explorations

Alright, so, these bundles follow the usual Bundle of Holding template of consisting of two tiers. You pay one amount for the first tier, or pay a higher amount to get both. The first tier of this bundle costs $12.95 and will get you these three items:

First of all, let’s acknowledge that, unlike two recently reviewed bundles, this bundle gets it right by including the actual rules of the actual game in the actual first tier of the bundle… actually. This should not be something that I need to praise, but since people seem to be getting that wrong at the moment, I feel that I should pick out good behaviour when I see it. Bravo. Well done. The rulebook itself is the latest updated version. The first book for this edition came out in 2017 and there has been a wee bit of drift over the ensuing half-decade. This version has incorporated these collected updates for the sake of clarity and simplicity but is still fully compatible with the original version of the book and the supplements thereof. Cannae really argue with that approach; I really like it.

The remainder of this tier consists of setting books. These outline particular areas of space, the planets therein, the factions and inhabitants, and so on. Behind the Claw gives information on The Spinward Marches and Deneb. The Spinward Marches are a long-beloved setting on the edges of Imperial space, with the potential for adventure, exploration, and the interesting prospect of border politics. I know; that might just be for me. I like that stuff. Deneb is another borderland, fought over by regional nobility and, once again, with lots of opportunities for political play, as well a more action-oriented approach as players attempt to defeat (or perhaps join) marauding corsairs and pirates.

Sword Worlds explores… well, the Sword Worlds. That’s unsurprising, I suppose. Specifically, it looks at the Sword Worlds Confederation and how they fit into the wider Traveller setting. The confederation exists outside of 3rd Imperium space and its denizens are seen as backward andd reckless by their imperial neighbours.

Tier 2 contains another 8 items, though they are grouped into five items in the descriptors. This tier is priced at a moving threshold which, at the time of writing, is sitting at $35.03. This price will not only get you the items from tier two, but will also unlock everything from the previous tier.

This selection of titles builds on the foundation laid by the books in the first tier. First of all, the two volumes of Aliens of Charted Space books expand upon both our knowledge of the major alien species of the Traveller setting, and also give new options for playing as characters of those species. In total, seven alien species are covered in these books; namely the Aslan, K/kree, Vargr, Zhodani, Solomani, Droyne, and Hivers. Handily, the books, totaling aa combined 576 pages, also contain supplements to both the Central Supply Catalogue (equipment book) and High Guard (ship book) to really flesh out these species from a rules perspective.

The rest of the books in this tier are adventures for the settings established in the books from the first tier. These adventures take place in Denab, The SpinwardMarches, and the Sword Worlds. These are a lot more useful for a GM than for a player, as they will give lots of information, scenarios, rules, encounters, and core stories to use in running a game.

Bundle 2: Traveller Great Rift

The second of the current Traveller Bundles is very focused on a single part of the Traveller setting; namely the Great Rift. Again, the bundle is broken down into two tiers. The first tier costs $9.95 and contains digital editions of two boxed sets:

The first of these boxed sets is The Great Rift, which was first published in 2017. This setting is all about exploration and contains four books:

• Book 1: The Great Rift – A Traveller’s guide to the Great Rift, how to traverse it, and explorations of Corridor sector and the Riftspan Reaches.
• Book 2: Touchstone & Afawahisa – Continue exploring deeper into the Great Rift with Afawahisa and Touchstone sectors.
• Book 3: Reft – The worlds and peoples of the most populated sector of the Great Rift.
• Book 4: Deep Space Exploration Handbook – What is beyond Charted Space in the cold void of the Great Rift? Push further into the night with this guide to deep space phenomena and the spacecraft that traverse it.

This set provides a really cool sandbox in which to play, but it’s the second box, Deepnight Revelations, that brings more of a narrative focus. The story takes place on a single ship (the titular Deepnight Revelation) on an epic journey to explore the Great Rift. Again, this set contains four books:

• Book 1: Deepnight Legacy – the introductory adventure that sets the scene.
• Book 2: Campaign Guide – outlining the entire voyage and regions of space travelled.
• Book 3: Referee’s Handbook – containing all the rules you need to know to run this epic campaign.
• Book 4: Terminus Point – the incredible grand finale that will take your Travellers where no Traveller has gone before…

Whilst I like the idea of a nice, big sandbox, I think I’d find the structure afforded by the Deepnight Revelations box quite reassuring.

The second tier is, again, priced on a threshold and gets you not just a load of new content, but also the contents of the previous tier. At the time of writing, the price is sitting at $35.49.

The second tier of this bundle follows the template set in the previous bundle. Whereas the first tier establishes the setting of the Great Rift, and the slightly more specific situation of the Deepnight Revelation, this second tier builds upon that foundation. There are three Great Rift Adventures to either run as their own game, or to incorporate into your wider campaign. In addition to the three Great Rift adventures, there are six Deepnight Revelation supplements as well.

Being adventures, these are all really geared towards the GM. They are adventures to run, rather than additional content to be employed by players.

The Verdict

First of all, these are pretty good bundles. The first tier of the first bundle is the one to be considered by anyone who wants to enjoy Traveller. Simply put, it includes the game. It has the core rulebook that is necessary for anyone who intends to play. The rest of that tier contains some great books to really help the players understand their setting.

The second tier of that bundle is good for whoever runsthat game. It gives some adventures and some other content, and it’s good. It’s worth it. It’s just not really stuff that a player needs, at least not unless they intend to play as an alien, I suppose.

The entire second bundle is also aimed at the GM. It’s all about running a campaign in the Great Rift. There’s no need for anyone not running a game to have this stuff. Oh, as a player you might find this content interesting, of course, but that’s not the same as necessary.

So, as a player, I likely wouldn’t go past the first tier of the first bundle.

As a GM, I’d definitely grab the whole first bundle, and probably the second bundle as well. The second one is certainly less important than the first, as it does not have the core rules, but it gives you a really expansive setting in which to play. That’s pretty exciting.

If you wish to visit the bundle pages for these deals, please find a pair of links below:

• Bundle 1: Mongoose Traveller Explorations
• Bundle 2: Traveller Great Rift