Hello and some FT & DS2 questions

4 posts ยท Mar 15 1997 to Mar 17 1997

From: Edmund Hon <edmundh@i...>

Date: Fri, 14 Mar 1997 23:04:42 -0500

Subject: Hello and some FT & DS2 questions

I just bought both FT and DS2 a couple of weeks ago. After going through the
rules and only one game of FT, I've been wondering how could I have missed two
such fine sets of rules. Anyway, one thing leads to another and here I am
another subscriber to this mailing lists.

Here's some questions I have for both games:

FT: i) If I design a ship using special hulls instead of the standard ones in
p.14, what is the minimum mass of a ship that can carry a fighter group (my
guess is 60 as this is the mass of a standard battledreadnought)?

ii) Do sub-munition packs require a fire control?

iii) Anyone scratch build their own ships?

iv) Just curious: what would be the stats like for the Sunaco (sp?)
featured in _Aliens 2_?

v) Anyone have stats for ships in the Robotech anime series?

DS2: i) If I design a vehicle with transport capacity, do I have to designate
exactly what it will be carrying? e.g., a vehicle with 8 pts of capacity left,
do I have to specify that it will be carrying two infantry elements (and
nothing else), or can I also use it to carry a power infantry instead (or a
couple of arty ammo load or even a V.SMALL vehicle)?

ii) What is the advantage of designing an Open Top vehicle?

iii) Can I design a towed direct fire gun piece (i.e. towed AT guns), since
the rulebook already has rules for towed arty piece.

iv) Can LAD be used for missle defence? (The rulebook didn't say so but why
not?)

v) When resolving multi-barreled DF weapons fire against infantry, do
I total all the chits or do I resolve them separately, one barrel at a
time? i.e. a triple barrel DFFG/1 fire at infantry, do I draw all
nine chits and total them or do I three separate attack at three chits each?

vi) What is the capacity requirement and point cost of Backup Systems?

Whew! That's quite a lot for a first post!

---

From: Oerjan Ohlson <oerjan.ohlson@t...>

Date: Sun, 16 Mar 1997 14:51:54 -0500

Subject: Re: Hello and some FT & DS2 questions

> On Fri, 14 Mar 1997, Edmund Hon wrote:

> I just bought both FT and DS2 a couple of weeks ago. After going

The minimum mass is 12, unless it's a non-FTL ship in which case it has
to be at least mass 8. That's the smallest hulls you can fit a fighter bay in
:) The rules give no minimum size for carriers; in More Thrust you'll find...
Oops. I forgot it is out of print. Anyway, in More Thrust

there's an Escort Carrier built on a Battlecruiser hull. The rules gives

no minimum size for carriers.

For launching purposes (carriers can launch up to two squadrons per turn,
other ships only one - according to the rules) many on this list say
that
a "carrier" is any ship using at least 50% (...some say at least 2/3) of

their available mass for fighter bays.

> ii) Do sub-munition packs require a fire control?

No.

> iii) Anyone scratch build their own ships?

Anyone _don't_ scratch build at least some of their ships?

> DS2:

No need to declare what it will be carrying.

> ii) What is the advantage of designing an Open Top vehicle?

None that I can see, but if you're unlucky enough to have some open topped
models...

> iii) Can I design a towed direct fire gun piece (i.e. towed AT guns),

Sure. Soft-skinned, no power source (...at least unless you want to use
Railguns or HELs)

> iv) Can LAD be used for missle defence? (The rulebook didn't say so

Can a Stinger missile be used for anti-missile purposes? (I don't know -

that's why I'm asking - but I envision LADs as similar to Stingers.)

> v) When resolving multi-barreled DF weapons fire against infantry, do

> time? i.e. a triple barrel DFFG/1 fire at infantry, do I draw all

Resolve them separately. The advantage with multi-barrel weapons is that

you get an extra chance to hit. The disadvantages are that each barrel draws
fewer chits and that the mass goes up very fast.

> vi) What is the capacity requirement and point cost of Backup

No capacity requirement what I can see. OTOH there is no capacity requirement
for ECM or fire control either... The cost is either in the back of the book
(together with all the other points costs) or in the rules section on Backup
Systems; don't remember exactly where, though.

Two things you haven't asked, but which may be pretty important:

In the section on Vehicle weapons against Infantry, there are conflicting
notes on chit validities. Use the validities from the weapons table.

If a vehicle has multiple APSWs, it can fire each of them against a different
infantry base. This is the only time a vehicle can aim and fire weapons at
more than one target in a single activation. (SLAM and artillery can hit more
than one weapon, but they only aim at one point!)

Later,

From: k.g.mclean@c... (Kevin Mc Lean.)

Date: Sun, 16 Mar 1997 18:58:20 -0500

Subject: Re: Hello and some FT & DS2 questions

In reply to Edmund Hon:

> I just bought both FT and DS2 a couple of weeks ago. After going

> Here's some questions I have for both games:

> From my reading there is no minimum size (Full Thrust implies there is,
at least half of available 'weapon' mass must be taken up by fighters.

> ii) Do sub-munition packs require a fire control?
I think so, but it's been a while.
> iii) Anyone scratch build their own ships?
Yes, I use plastic or aluminium tubing (from cotton wool buds or hobby shops)
cut thin and filled for gun nacelles, long for ship beams. Thin plastic is
fine for small details. Doll's eyes, buttons are good for those rounded
details. Rounded or normal pins and thumbtacks are also used occasionally
used. I usually cut with nail clippers, modelling saws or pliers; smooth with
an nail file; assemble with tweezers; fill in with modelling compound or
milliput. Milliput can also have detail 'stamped' into it using tubing ends
etc. You need to keep a junk box for this sort of stuff (filled with Kinder
surprise toys, parts from old models etc.).

That's all I can really comment on. Good luck!!!

Regards,

From: Mike Miserendino <phddms1@c...>

Date: Mon, 17 Mar 1997 09:18:40 -0500

Subject: Re: Hello and some FT & DS2 questions

> Oerjan Ohlson wrote:

This is not stated implicitly in the book, but after consulting Jon and