G U ® R P ANYTHING CAN HAPPEN! S GURPS T GURPS Time Travel is the complete guide to dimension-hopping adventure. I M Now GURPS players can tie all their campaigns together . adventuring across E time, or in parallel universes, to visit every GURPS worldbook ever published. T R Winner of the 1991 Origins Award for Best Roleplaying Supplement, this book A V is a collaboration between two previous winners – Steve Jackson (Illuminati, Car E Wars, GURPS) and John M. Ford (Yellow Clearance Black Box Blues). L TIME TRAVEL GURPS Time Travel includes: Adventu res Across Time and Dimension ∞ Parallel worlds . “what if” ∞ A survey of time and dimension travel as dimensions where something, presented in fiction – and current scientific or everything, is different. thought. Travel by time machine, by dimension-gate, ∞ A timeline of even by the powers of the interesting dates in mind! our own world’s history . as places ∞ Six complete campaign for time travelers to backgrounds (and several visit, or as “branch mini-backgrounds) for points” for a parallel- travel through time or world campaign. parallel worlds, or both! Each has its With this book, the own rules for GURPS system characters, travel, and reaches its full paradoxes. potential for ∞ A detailed discussion of universal adventure. S the paradoxes you should Any time, any place, T any world, any E consider in creating your own V time-travel campaign. Is genre. Anything can E meddling with history easy? J happen! A Impossible? Or just a Very Bad Idea? C K S O Written by Steve Jackson 1ST EDITION, 3RD PRINTING N PUBLISHED APRIL 2020 and John M. Ford G SJG 01-6059 A Edited by Loyd Blankenship M Cover by John Zeleznik E Illustrated by Ben Anglin, Guy Burwell S Printed on ® B Y S T E V E J A C K S O N A N D J O H N M . F O R D and Dan Smith Demand 0 1 - 6 STEVE JACKSON GAMES 0 5 www.sjgames.com 9 STEVE JACKSON GAMES G U ® R P ANYTHING CAN HAPPEN! S GURPS T GURPS Time Travel is the complete guide to dimension-hopping adventure. I M Now GURPS players can tie all their campaigns together . adventuring across E time, or in parallel universes, to visit every GURPS worldbook ever published. T R Winner of the 1991 Origins Award for Best Roleplaying Supplement, this book A V is a collaboration between two previous winners – Steve Jackson (Illuminati, Car E Wars, GURPS) and John M. Ford (Yellow Clearance Black Box Blues). L TIME TRAVEL GURPS Time Travel includes: Adventu res Across Time and Dimension ∞ Parallel worlds . “what if” ∞ A survey of time and dimension travel as dimensions where something, presented in fiction – and current scientific or everything, is different. thought. Travel by time machine, by dimension-gate, ∞ A timeline of even by the powers of the interesting dates in mind! our own world’s history . as places ∞ Six complete campaign for time travelers to backgrounds (and several visit, or as “branch mini-backgrounds) for points” for a parallel- travel through time or world campaign. parallel worlds, or both! Each has its With this book, the own rules for GURPS system characters, travel, and reaches its full paradoxes. potential for ∞ A detailed discussion of universal adventure. S the paradoxes you should Any time, any place, T any world, any E consider in creating your own V time-travel campaign. Is genre. Anything can E meddling with history easy? J happen! A Impossible? Or just a Very Bad Idea? C K S O Written by Steve Jackson 1ST EDITION, 3RD PRINTING N PUBLISHED APRIL 2020 and John M. Ford G SJG 01-6059 A Edited by Loyd Blankenship M Cover by John Zeleznik E Illustrated by Ben Anglin, Guy Burwell S Printed on ® B Y S T E V E J A C K S O N A N D J O H N M . F O R D and Dan Smith Demand 0 1 - 6 STEVE JACKSON GAMES 0 5 www.sjgames.com 9 STEVE JACKSON GAMES TIME TRAVEL Adventu res Across Time and Dimension By Steve Jack son and John M. Ford Timeline research by Chris McCu bbin Additional material by J.M. Caparu la, Walter Millik en, David Pu lver, Daniel U. Thibau lt and Dale F. Reding Edited by Loyd Blank enship Cover by John Zeleznik Illu strated by Ben Anglin, Gu y Bu rwell and Dan Smith Additional Illu strations by Dan Frazier GURPS System Desig n: Stev e Jack son Pag e Layou t and Typog raph y: Su san Pinsonneau lt and Jeff Kok e GURPS Line Editor: Sean Pu nch Cov er Produ ction: Jeff Kok e GURPS Project Manag er: Stev en Marsh Produ ction Assistance: Lillian Bu tler and Sh erri Barras Ch ief Execu tiv e Officer: Ph ilip Reed Art Direction: Lillian Bu tler Ch ief Creativ e Officer: Sam Mitsch k e GURPS FAQ Maintainer: Vick y “Molok h ” Kolenk o Ch ief Operating Officer: Su san Bu eno Director of Sales: Ross Jepson Playtesters: Ph ilip Bardav ille, Tim Carroll, Lee Grah am, Dav id Gross, Rob Henderson, Stefan Jones, Steph en Kaye, Dav id Ladyman, Jay Linnell, Rog er Linnell, Scott McClu re and family, Ch ris McCu bbin, Walter Millik en, Steffan O’Su lliv an, Greg Porter, Joh n Post, Ch ris Repch ik , Brett Slocu m, Lowell Stou der, Daniel U. Th ibau lt, Tony Wink ler, Rich ard Wu and th e u sers of th e Illu minati BBS The authors would like to thumb their noses at the Stopwatch agents who, for over three years of our personal time, have frustrated our attempts to finish this book. It’s finally done. So there. GURPS, Wareh ou se 2 3 , and th e pyramid log o are reg istered trademark s of Stev e Jack son Games Incorporated. Pyramid and th e names of all produ cts pu blish ed by Stev e Jack son Games Incorporated are reg istered trademark s or trademark s of Stev e Jack son Games Incorporated, or u sed u nder license. GURPS Time Travel is copyrig h t © 1 9 9 1 , 1 9 9 5 , 2 0 2 0 by Stev e Jack son Games Incorporated. All rig h ts reserv ed. Printed by KDP. Th e scanning , u ploading , and distribu tion of th is book v ia th e Internet or v ia any oth er means with ou t th e permission of th e pu blish er is illeg al, and pu nish able by law. Please pu rch ase only au th orized electronic editions, and do not participate in or encou rag e th e electronic piracy of copyrig h ted materials. You r su pport of th e au th or’s rig h ts is appreciated. Softcov er: stock # 0 1 -6 0 5 9 • ISBN 9 7 8 -1 -5 5 6 3 4 -8 8 8 -4 • PDF: stock # 3 0 -6 0 2 0 • Version 3 .0 –April 2 0 2 0 STEVE JACKSON GAMES INTRODUCTION . .4 Magical Time Travel . .42 About GURPS . .4 Parallel Worlds . .43 About the Authors . .5 Talking To Yourself . .43 Alternate Worlds in Other Campaigns . .5 Time Travel and Space Travel . .43 Communication and Observation . .44 1. THE TIME TRAVEL CAMPAIGN . .6 Geometrodynamics . .44 Mission Types . .7 The Observer Effect . .45 The Bad Old Good Old Days . .7 Degrees of Observation, and Loopholes . .46 Magic in History . .8 Oscillating Time . .46 Mission Control . .9 No Machines! . .46 Time Travel in the Magical Campaign . .9 Working Around the Observer Effect . .47 The Hardware Dilemma and the Software Mismatch: or, Parallel Worlds . .47 Why the Biggest Problem Isn’t So Big . .10 Through the Rabbit-Hole . .10 4. THE TIME CORPS . .48 Turning a Historical Campaign Into Time Travel . .10 Mechanics . .49 Accidental Transport . .11 Time Travel Glossary . .49 Gates . .11 Agent Slang . .49 Crosstime Recruitment: Horror . .11 Game Mechanics . .50 Unstuck in Time . .11 The Windows . .51 Space Travel . .13 Eddies and Uncertainty . .51 The Scam . .13 Crunch Time and Slack Time . .52 Things to Invent . .13 The Enemy . .52 Cross-Time Inventors . .14 The Hive . .52 Raising Local Tech Levels . .15 Other Realities and Doubled Agents . .53 Gadgeteering . .15 Time Agents . .53 Black Powder . .15 Stopwatch Agents . .53 Duplicating Strange Gadgets . .16 Field Agents . .54 Other Weapons Technology . .16 Detecting Interventions 54 Medicine . .16 Time Agent Equipment . .54 Quick Gadgeteering . .17 Changing History . .56 Packing for a Trip to the Past . .17 Long-Term Effects . .57 Optional Rule: “Gizmo” Gadgets . .19 Typical Mission . .58 Other Sources: A Shameless Plug . .19 Visitors From The Future . .58 2. CHARACTERS . .20 Record-Keeping and the Observer Effect . .58 Typical Character Types . .21 The Observer Effect vs. Changing History . .59 Advantages, Disadvantages and Skills . .26 Gross Changes: A Bad Idea . .59 Advantages . .27 Revival: Medical Help at ABET . .60 Disadvantages . .27 Skills . .28 5. PSIONIC TIME TRAVEL . .61 Physical Projection . .62 New Advantages . .29 The Time Draft . ..