Traveller: Far Trader #1 - Markosia
W: Chris Griffen
A: Xavier Bernard
Synopsis…
Mayday! Mayday! We are under attack! Main drive is gone! Please help... this is Far Trader Slowhand... Mayday!
The clarion call of a Starship in distress cannot be ignored, but sometimes there's no one there to help. The crew of far trader Slowhand travels the dangerous frontier worlds of Aramis Subsector. Just honest merchants trying to make a Credit - without being killed in the process! Traveller is the role-playing game of the far future, first published in 1977, now brought to you by Mongoose Publishing.
Thoughts…
This first issue really starts us off in the thick of the action, with the Slowhand having been boarded by pirates. Things look quite dire for our crew and all seems lost….but not before a flashback to see how they got into this situation in the first place.
This issue does a great job of setting up the story and introducing us to the characters that make up the crew. There are personal dynamics already at play that show this crew have been together quite a while and that they work well together, close to a family unit but also all tied in to the business side of things as well. We get a chance to see the crew do their thing and it gives us a glimpse of their personalities and such that goes a long way to get you into the heads of the characters. I didn’t realise until I have finished reading the issue that with was based on an old school table top RPG, but it really did feel like this we setting the first parts of an adventure up and just as everything is put in place, bam its all goes wrong and the crew are left helpless and alone in space.
I really liked the art style throughout, there were a lot of bright colourful backgrounds (even in the space panels) and everything had a painted look to it all. The character designs were quite interesting, especially Gaz, who was a wolf/human hybrid species and Feitalih a Lion like species called The Aslan. The design of the Slowhand is also quite cool, as is the crew's logo which has a passing resemblance to the Lego Space logo..
I really enjoyed this first issue, it was a great intro to the setting and the characters. The whole thing was paced really well and there is some intrigue being woven into the plot as well. Also a nice bonus feature at the back of the issue is a section of roleplaying information, with a write up about the pirates, their ship and even stats to use them in a game. I would give this first issue 8 out of 10, and I will definitely be reading on to see how or if the crew survive.