I'm referring to Non-Standard Forces - those ships and vehicles that
I've
acquired singly and/or kit bashed, the stuff that is either to
out-of-scale
with my normal units (My Battletech and micromachines vehicles are much
bigger than my C-in-c, GHQ, and smaller GZG stuff), or too individual to
fit into a TO&E, but looks too nifty to just not use. How do most people deal
with these figs? I was thinking of using the "Local-militia-acquired
stuff that isn't standardized but gets thrown into the battle because it's
handy." tack. Any other suggestions?
3B^2
> Brian Bilderback wrote:
Well, my size classes are a bit different as compared to some folks' size
classes here on the list. I do try to get a collection
(3-4 min) of a given vehicle whenever possible (did that before
discovering DSII :-) so I could have groups of them to work with.
Two of my B'tech tanks (the Von Luckner and the Rommel/Patton - which
is which I've long forgotten so I fake it ;-) I consider to be in
the Size Class 5 range. By comparison, the Future Wars "Andromeda" tank is
about the same size, the "Jupiter II" tanks I consider Size
Class 4, most of my Brigade stuff and main battle tank-sized Future
Wars vehicles Size Class 3, tanks from GHQ WWII are more like Size Class 2
(from Shermans and Panzers down to M113s*), and things smaller still are Size
Class 1.
* - some (even I ;-) could argue that M113s are a different size class
than Shermans and Panzers, but I like to keep the size class ranges somewhat
flexible so I can accomodate the largest to smallest stuff
all at the same time. But heck, it's all relative, anyway. :-)
As for misc vehicles, you say they are "attachments" from the Division
level thrown into your Company/Battalion/Platoon/what-ave-you. That
would be a plausible option, I'd think.
Merc forces... They tend to purchase what they can get their hands on at the
time they've the money... And the Black and Grey Markets are not known for
getting specific items at specific times, so any force purchasing from them
would end up with an ecclectic kind of force (re: some "modern" militaries and
freedom fighters have this problem...).
Freedom fighters/terrorists...
"3rd world" and "2nd world" countries.
Private organizations... Pirates... Privateers...
Or, as I've done with my Free Cal-Tex ships in FT (Which uses some NAC,
some NSL, a few starblazers, silent death, some Bab-5, and a bunch of
scratch builds), you can simply say that with multiple worlds, you have
multiple manufacturers, and thus many different looks and feels...
Rand.
> At 10:55 AM 4/12/02 -0700, you wrote:
> the "Local-militia-acquired stuff that isn't standardized but gets
> Indy wrote:
> Well, my size classes are a bit different as compared to some
I fear that would be an understatement when my stuff is considered. LOL
My
Micromachines Merkavas dwarf even the largest B-Tech vehicles.
I do try to get a collection
> (3-4 min) of a given vehicle whenever possible (did that before
I do to, but it's not always possible.
> Two of my B'tech tanks (the Von Luckner and the Rommel/Patton - which
The Rommel/Pattons have the wicked-looking cooling fins on the barrels.
I have both those designs too.
I consider to be in
> the Size Class 5 range.
I could see justification for anything class 5-7 for those, depending on
the rest of your forces.
> By comparison, the Future Wars "Andromeda"
Not sure which FW tanks I have, I bought them ages ago, but they're almost
as big as the R/P's and VL's.
most of my Brigade stuff and main battle tank-sized Future
> Wars vehicles Size Class 3,
I have a bunch of GHQ MBT's, some C-in-C futureistic MBT's, and some FW
tracks with the big rocket launcher top, all relatively the same size, and I
class them as size 4, given what they carry and how small my smaller stuff
gets.
tanks from GHQ WWII are more like Size
> Class 2 (from Shermans and Panzers down to M113s*),
Could b3 class 2 or 3 in my scale....
and things smaller
> still are Size Class 1.
Yup. Well, 1-2....
> But heck, it's all relative, anyway. :-)
True that
> As for misc vehicles, you say they are "attachments" from the Division
That works too, but some of them I don't even have a platoon's worth of.
3B^2
> --- Brian Bilderback <bbilderback@hotmail.com> wrote:
> >As for misc vehicles, you say they are
So?
My "usual" heavy mech/armored Company Team (Read:
Bandon) has 2-vehicle detachments of ADA and mortars.
Scout platoons also frequently get broken up as well. And FIST vehicles
operate independantly, among other things.
In a scenario using an ad hoc Kampfgruppe, you have an excuse to use whatever
you want to in whatever groupings you want.
> --- Brian Bilderback <bbilderback@hotmail.com> wrote:
> tack. Any other suggestions?
I know people have suggested using them for Merc forces, and I suggested ad
hoc emergency task forces formed out of surviviors of other units.
You could also have an ongoing campaign based around
them, call it "Survivors", an entire Xenephon-inspired
riff on the theme of a mighty nation that hired a wide assortment of mercenary
units to suppress a rebellion or stop and invasion. All of a sudden, their
employers are kicked to the curb.
And the nearest space port is 5,000 km THAT WAY.
Captured equipment?
On Fri, 12 Apr 2002 10:55:57 -0700 "Brian Bilderback"
> <bbilderback@hotmail.com> writes:
> On Fri, 12 Apr 2002, John Atkinson wrote:
> --- Brian Bilderback <bbilderback@hotmail.com> wrote:
You know, this could be a pretty cool campaign. I've read (and enjoyed)
Xenophon's "The Ten Thousand", wished that real world politics allowed me
to re-trace the route myself (eastern Turkey, Syria & Iraq - not a happy
region...) but never thought about it for a campaign, SF or otherwise.
And of course it's the perfect excuse for a come-as-you-are event, with
all sorts of odd vehicles straggling along. The only problem is that it's
harder for armoured vehicles to 'live off the land' like the Greeks did across
Asia Minor. Instead of raiding hill tribes for food, you'd try to raid
firebases and maintenance dumps for ammo, parts & fuel!
Course, we haven't played DS2 in a year or more around here...
> --- Brian Burger <yh728@victoria.tc.ca> wrote:
> And of course it's the perfect excuse for a
Yup.
Of course, even though nanites are my Numero Uno pet peeve as far as playable
SF wargaming goes, you could say that some of those big cargo trucks are
actually Unreplacable Nanite Vat Trucks, and that in the controlled
environment of the Nanite Vats, you can turn spare parts for the Mk VIII (or
even scrap metal)
into spare parts for the T-200 Grav Tank, as long as
the metal you start with is reasonably pure.
Give you a reason to be fanatic about protecting your baggage train.
[quoted original message omitted]
Local Manufacture.
"Space is big...". Perhaps all military equipment would come from one source.
But, politically, it may be difficult. Local (regional) manufacturers would
want to dip their fingers into the pie. It is also possible that all the local
manufacturers would work off the same template. But, again, politics and
economics may play a part (pay royalty to the owning company for the
template).
I don't think that it would be too far a stretch for politics to impose a unit
based in a region to use x% of local manufactures or give preference to local
manufacturers. Such things are already done (in the US) for small businesses
and minority owned businesses.
Odd vehicles could be locally produced vehicles. Or it could be that the odd
vehicle is the "centrally produced" vehicles and the others are the locally
produced ones.
---
Brian Bell bbell1@insight.rr.com Cygnus X1.info
http://www.cygnusx1.info/
---
[quoted original message omitted]