Adventure 7: Broadsword, issues

[FlightCommanderSolitude]

In Adventure 7: Broadsword, the characters are assumed to be part of the crew or troop complement of a mercenary cruiser on ticket on the planet Vilis. At about the same time they land, a Zhodani Strike Cruiser is detected and enters orbit around the planet. It is stated in the text that the mercenary cruiser will be safe from the Zhodani vessel as long as it remains on the planet surface.

Funny thing, though, is that the mercenary cruiser is unstreamlined, and cannot land in Vilis' standard, tainted atmosphere! Besides being a huge glaring editorial error, this has repurcussions for the entire adventure - does anybody have any thoughts about how to fudge this?

FCS

 

[Vargas]

Sure, declare the Broadsword class streamlined IYTU.

 

[WendellM]

Yep, page 7 mentions being on the surface, which isn't possible for the partially streamlined Broadsword given Garda-Vilis' atmosphere. Page 7's last paragraph, though, equates being in orbit on the other side of the planet with being on the surface for purposes of protection from the cruiser. So, I'd just keep it parked in orbit (which gives the cutter crews something to do).

There's a possible problem with Scenario IV, but since the Zho's are teleporting aboard anyway, I think that they can still achieve the same result. They'd just need to teleport from orbit to minimize the difference in altitude (that is, gravity) and momentum (orbital velocity and direction). The commando's small craft would thus either need to get fairly close to the Broadsword (unlikely, since the ship would presumably shoot the craft) or get on the other side of the planet at the same altitude and in the opposite direction of revolution. Thus, the craft would take off in the opposite direction shortly after the Broadsword passed overhead, achieve orbit on the other side of the planet (the commandos teleport when the vectors match), then land before meeting the Broadsword head-on. Since Book 3, p. 46 allows planetary range (up to 50,000 km) for teleport when not on a planet surface (p. 44), that's possible. I may have overlooked something, but I think it'd work.

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Wendell (IMTU tc++ tm !tn !t4 !tg ru+ ge+ 3i+ c+ jt- au ls+ he)

 

[MJD]

Wouldn't that mean the commandos arrive with ressidual momentum in the opposite direction to the ship's orbit.

"Sensors operator: find out what that multiple wet splat sounds was"
"Boarders, sir."
"Master-at-arms; break out small arms... no, make that mops."

 

[WendellM]

No, that's why they need to be in an opposite direction of revolution on the other side of the planet. If the Broadsword were going clockwise and the small craft counterclockwise at the same altitude, they'd have the same direction and velocity (briefly parallel courses separated by the planet's diameter plus twice the orbit altitude) when on directly opposite sides. But, that's also why the craft needs to land after teleport, else it'd meet the Broadsword coming from the opposite direction (more worried about weapons fire than collision).

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Wendell (IMTU tc++ tm !tn !t4 !tg ru+ ge+ 3i+ c+ jt- au ls+ he)

 

[DrSkull]

Another thing about Adventure 7:

Why on Earth would anyone march the troops and prisoners overland to the spaceport after scenario 1 when he had 2 modular cutters at his disposal?

I can't see any of my players falling into the ambush in scenario 2 as written, they would just land the cutters and ferry the troops and prisoners back in the air.

If the scenario had laid out dire warnings about ground-based missile batteries or something, I could see it, but not the way its written.

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Dave "Dr. Skull" Nelson

 

[WendellM]

Good question. I guess just because they were "orderd" to (with the real reason being that it's a chance to use the Striker rules some more

).

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Wendell (IMTU tc++ tm !tn !t4 !tg ru+ ge+ 3i+ c+ jt- au ls+ he)

 

[FlightCommanderSolitude]

These are all good points; here are some of my comments:

1. Adv7, in the section towards the end regarding Zhodani commandos, states that teleports will rarely exceed very distant range (5-50km). While this doesn't mean it will be illegal, rule-wise, it will make the teleport-from-other-side-of-planet fudge difficult or unlikely.

2. I thought the same thing about the cutters - why the hell are they walking 350km there and 350km back, when they have the two cutters? There are two potential ways around this:

a. the Zhodani strike cruiser might decide to snipe them from orbit;
b. if the mercenary cruiser is in fact landed (which it can't be), then it will have to take off again to launch or receive the cutters; hassle, and possible exposure.

These are admitedly weak excuses.

-FCS

 

[DrSkull]

The funny thing is that even with these two gaping holes, which have always prevented me from actually playing the scenario, I really do love Adventure 7.

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Dave "Dr. Skull" Nelson

 

[TimAllan]

With regards to teleporting and the conservation of energy and momentum.
The comandos would need to be in the same orbit as the Broardsword and rotating in the same direction. This is because linia momentum is not necessarily always conserved, but angular momentum is. This being why the nutrino was first postulated, it being a particle with no mass but possesing angular momentum.

With regards to Broardsword landing, it has a 3g manuver drive and is a tail sitter. It should be able to maneuver into an atmosphere at a managable velocity, maintain a relitivly low relitive velocity to winds at various altitudes and come to rest on the ground without great trouble. This is perhaps why what was partialy streamlined in CT became streamlined in MT and is assigned a atmospheric top speed of 1000 km/hr. On the other hand, missiles from the orbiting Strike Cruiser FO directed on to the landed Broardsword, nasty.

 

[FlightCommanderSolitude]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>With regards to Broardsword landing, it has a 3g manuver drive and is a tail sitter. It should be able to maneuver into an atmosphere at a managable velocity, maintain a relitivly low relitive velocity to winds at various altitudes and come to rest on the ground without great trouble.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Well, OK, but that's not what the rules say. If I were playing Adv 7 as a one-off, I wouldn't make much of a deal about it. If, on the other hand, I was using the scenario in a campaign, I'd have trouble with the decision to allow one/some/all unstreamlined/partially streamlined vessels to make planetfall. It would, quite frankly, change the nature of the game for me.

-FCS

 

[DrSkull]

When it comes right down to it, the Broadsword Mercenary Crusier isn't that great of a ship. It's not a bad fighting ship vs merchantmen and patrol cruisers, I guess, but it's troop unit is too small and the whole modular cutter thing takes up too much space for not much usefulness. Some dedicated, smaller, armored troop landers would be better as would a streamlined ship in general.

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Dave "Dr. Skull" Nelson

 

[phydaux]

Yeah, IMTU I run a Broadsword II class that used Bunkrooms instead of Staterooms for all enlisted troops. It easily upstroop capasity to carry a full company of troops.

I also have a modified APC transport modules for Armored Cutters that can carry 2 APCs.

That way, the 2 Armored Cutters can drop 4 APCs. 3 APCs carry rifle squads with 3 3-man fireteams and a Sergent. The other APC carries the Platoon Leader and a Weapons squad with either heavy machine guns or morters.

I only putt these guys out when my players are running Mercs and they need to be taken down a notch (grin).