The GZG Digest V2 #1887

(snipping: re: MD2 advanced + multi-arc weapons
> Since he's able to make only 2-pt turns, it is fairly easy to

I've tried many times to get into the F or A arcs. One thing I've noticed,
and have pointed it out to him, is that each of his 1-pt turns seems
to be closer to 45 degrees instead of 30. I doubt he's doing this
deliberately, but it
bugs me to no end when my MD4 ships seem to be out-turned by MD2
ships.

Also, it's really not that easy to determine where he will be. He can go port
or starboard; it's not like I can have a "tailing" advantange and get to know
which direction he goes before I plot. It only takes a slight turn
to get those multi-arc weapons back in arc and if I have single arc
weapons I have to guess right or I don't get to fire them.

> >Sometimes I think having an advanced drive should have added 5%

Well, that was my idea. To me, the loss of weaponry for faster speed is a
losing situation for faster ships in cinematic movement; especially when
someone plays with many-arc weapons.  Changing the cost for advanced
drives does not significantly make faster speed ships better over slower
advanced MD ships (is there an acronym, for this?), it just makes them a bit
more expensive; so even increasing the cost to x4 is probably not
going to help - except for ships without advanced MDs.
With the current situation, I now list all new ship designs with a normal MD
with a second cost as it were to have advanced drives.

I've lost my thrill of FT for several reasons: faster ships are worse off in
cinematic (and I'm the only one willing to play vector), I'm very unlucky with
dice, and Steve is just so dang lucky with dice; (which may be my main problem
and NORMALLY the rules are just fine) a couple minor nits: needs better sensor
rules and better cloaking rules. We do not play except when Steve comes to
town during school breaks. And there is another Steve who is also lucky, the
mini's he has are NSL (oh joy).

And don't tell me to play with book ships. I generally hate them, and I have
no care to play in the "official" universe (I don't like playing the Traveller
RPG universe either, so its not just GZG's). There's also this thing about
having ships based on our current wet navy designations when space ships may
follow a whole other criteria (i..e, aircraft, submarines). I have scads of
Star Trek miniatures, and an assortment of other miniatures that I'd prefer to
use.

Glen

> I've tried many times to get into the F or A arcs. One thing I've

If you have hex bases or indeed anything else hex-shaped, it's fairly
easy to put it down and say "okay, from a flat to a point is a 1pt turn".

> Also, it's really not that easy to determine where he will be. He can

This is why multi-arc weapons cost more.  However, even a single-arc
covers a lot of room at longer range, so it depends on whether you can keep
the range open and how fast you're both moving.

> I've lost my thrill of FT for several reasons: faster ships are worse

I'd dispute that faster ships are worse off, but you do need to have the

right tactics to take advantage of it. If you line up face to face and charge,
then yes, you're toast; but if you take advantage of your superior speed to
strike the edges of his formation and then run away and set of the next
strike, you can nibble him to death (the Boom and Zoom tactic).

You might want to try FT Java
http://home.nycap.rr.com/davisje/ftjava/index.html
and then go to the sign up page and create a vector battle.

> a couple minor nits: needs better sensor rules and better cloaking

Concur-- have you tried Derek Fulton's sensor rules?

> Glen Bailey wrote:

> >Since he's able to make only 2-pt turns, it is fairly easy to predict

That's a problem with him not following the rules though, not with the rules
themselves...

> Also, it's really not that easy to determine where he will be.

Sure, but that's not what I said. I said was that it is easy to determine
where his *(A) arc* will be, and it is: if he can only make 2-pt turns,
then as long as he's moving forward at all the point where he starts the

turn will always be in his (A) arc at the end of the turn.

Regards,