I think I like T5.09 space combat

[robject]

It seems simpler than the original rules.

The attack task is straightforward (and I do like Difficulty = Range).
The damage rule is simple. The battery and virtual battery rules are very helpful.
I like that armor is worn away by hits.
Even the defense check seems reasonable (although I think the defense values themselves need to be changed).

There are a lot of missile types, even though I think most combat would stick to the standard ones.
The charts are few, but dense. The main one is helpful, but you have to study it to know what's there. Definitely a referee reference.

It lacks the wargame things I find attractive -- vector movement -- but it has the range bands, so I suppose that's a reasonable decision.

 

[whulorigan]

I have not actually played it, so I cannot say I speak from any experience, but I have been glancing over the T5 Starship Combat Rules ever since T5.00 and (at least from the glancing-it-over perspective), I like it. There are some things perhaps that need adjusting or tweaking, but in the main it looks like it has the potential to be really solid. I particularly like the "hotspots" rule for targeting by sensors, and how flux is then used to find the location hit in a region about that hotpsot. And it is actually a pretty cool idea that every compartment of the ship (and its contents) are detailed for each respective hit location.

But the real test, of course, will be to have some people play it out and see if the impression is matched by the actual experience of play.

 

[kilemall]

I have not actually played it, so I cannot say I speak from any experience, but I have been glancing over the T5 Starship Combat Rules ever since T5.00 and (at least from the glancing-it-over perspective), I like it. There are some things perhaps that need adjusting or tweaking, but in the main it looks like it has the potential to be really solid. I particularly like the "hotspots" rule for targeting by sensors, and how flux is then used to find the location hit in a region about that hotpsot. And it is actually a pretty cool idea that every compartment of the ship (and its contents) are detailed for each respective hit location.

But the real test, of course, will be to have some people play it out and see if the impression is matched by the actual experience of play.

Oh heck, that sounds like my highly detailed HG system to come.

 

[mike wightman]

I want to know what tasks are available to keep every PC engaged with ship combat.
Any player left with nothing to do during ship combat is a bored player.

 

[robject]

Wayne: I like T5.09's rules better than T5.00's. I've played T5.00 space combat, and I didn't like how it handled anti-missile attacks. Battery rules have changed as well (but I think there is still an erratum against it). Also, I think T5.00 armor was pen or no pen, rather than being worn down by degrees as it is now.

Mike: I don't think it's a role-playing combat system. It more resembles CT-with-range-bands rules that can handle MT weapons and armor. SO there's only things for the gunner to do really... or the captain, if the guns are automated.

What T5.09 combat does is allow you to figure out what a single shot from a Corsair actually does to the Corvette escorting the players' Beowulf, and it's not hard to do that.

That means the RPSCS for T5 is wide open to anyone who wants to submit an article to Imperiallines... (and yes I recognize I have to get off my butt and push Imperiallines No. 8 out the door already and get No. 9's content finalized and edited).

 

[Ulsyus]

It lacks the wargame things I find attractive -- vector movement -- but it has the range bands, so I suppose that's a reasonable decision.

The range bands are that simple-to-play-during-a-RPG-session concession for players & refs who don't want to plot everything. You can always just use the thrust ratings in a Newtonian movement mechanism on a mat or grid or whatever if you have miniatures or want to measure it out very carefully on paper. Easy!

 

[kilemall]

The range bands are that simple-to-play-during-a-RPG-session concession for players & refs who don't want to plot everything. You can always just use the thrust ratings in a Newtonian movement mechanism on a mat or grid or whatever if you have miniatures or want to measure it out very carefully on paper. Easy!

I assume 1 G still means 10 meter per second accel, yes?

If so, give me the round times between range band values and I can extrapolate round seconds, which should help answer Mike's question re: crew boredom.

 

[Ulsyus]

I assume 1 G still means 10 meter per second accel, yes?

If so, give me the round times between range band values and I can extrapolate round seconds, which should help answer Mike's question re: crew boredom.

I normally just work of the scales and turn durations from Brilliant Lances and Battle Rider - a game turn is 30 mintues, a hex is 30000km (or for you Star Blazers/Space Battleship Yamato fans, 30Mm), and 1 G of accel will change your velocity by one hex in one turn. No displacement accounted for during the accel, but if you want to do the maths go ahead.

 

[aramis]

I normally just work of the scales and turn durations from Brilliant Lances and Battle Rider - a game turn is 30 mintues, a hex is 30000km (or for you Star Blazers/Space Battleship Yamato fans, 30Mm), and 1 G of accel will change your velocity by one hex in one turn. No displacement accounted for during the accel, but if you want to do the maths go ahead.

1 G = 10 m/s²
1 turn = 30 min
1 turn = 1,800 seconds
∆V (1 turn) = T*G
∆V (1 turn) = 1,800*10
∆V (1 turn) = 18,000 m/s
∆V (1 turn) = 32,400,000 m/t
Which is off by several percent...

1 G = 9.8 m/s²
1 turn = 30 min
1 turn = 1800 seconds
∆V (1 turn) m/s = T*G
∆V (1 turn) m/s = 1,800*9.8
∆V (1 turn) m/s = 17,640 m/s
∆V (1 turn) m/t = ∆V_m/s * turn_seconds∆V (1 turn) m/t = 17,640 m/s * 1800 s
∆V (1 turn) m/t = 31,752,000 m/t

Close enough...
But note that turn of acceleration should shift final position by half that if you really want to be pedantic.

 

[ovka]

I normally just work of the scales and turn durations from Brilliant Lances and Battle Rider - a game turn is 30 mintues, a hex is 30000km (or for you Star Blazers/Space Battleship Yamato fans, 30Mm), and 1 G of accel will change your velocity by one hex in one turn. No displacement accounted for during the accel, but if you want to do the maths go ahead.

1 G = 10 m/s²
1 turn = 30 min
1 turn = 1,800 seconds
∆V (1 turn) = T*G
∆V (1 turn) = 1,800*10
∆V (1 turn) = 18,000 m/s
∆V (1 turn) = 32,400,000 m/t
Which is off by several percent...

1 G = 9.8 m/s²
1 turn = 30 min
1 turn = 1800 seconds
∆V (1 turn) m/s = T*G
∆V (1 turn) m/s = 1,800*9.8
∆V (1 turn) m/s = 17,640 m/s
∆V (1 turn) m/t = ∆V_m/s * turn_seconds∆V (1 turn) m/t = 17,640 m/s * 1800 s
∆V (1 turn) m/t = 31,752,000 m/t

Close enough...
But note that turn of acceleration should shift final position by half that if you really want to be pedantic.

What would be the negative effect of using 32,400 km/hex instead of 30,000 km?

Cheers,

Baron Ovka

 

[whartung]

What would be the negative effect of using 32,400 km/hex instead of 30,000 km?

Cheers,

Baron Ovka

Math. Complexity. Big Number syndrome.

You could just as easily say "1G" is 9.25m/s^2, since that fits the scale.

 

[robject]

Math is Bad(TM) -- except when that's the focus of the game (sometimes it is, although math usually should be downplayed during F2F tabletop RPGing).

 

[kilemall]

Ok, assuming Aramis has it right, the way to keep your crew busy is to divide up the phasing by 10 and allow for simultaneous discrete RPG action rather then stately wargame phasing (don't know which way T5 went, guessing the second).

That works out to 180 second phases, 3 minutes, which is great for having enough time to communicate AND act.

Each phase can have different mixes between accel, agility evades, charging weapons, launch, reload, etc.

Captain ends up managing his command time and subordinate time like the commanders in Striker. I might go so far as to put a stopwatch on his requests for info, time for feedback, and orders.

Have tactical intel tasks for both scanner guy AND gunners- detecting new contacts, maintaining locks, shooting, picking up EM activity to see what enemy weapons are charged, missile launch and track, etc. etc.

Pilot does pilot thing.

Comms does their thing if there are other ships to talk to or calls for help/reports through jamming, or breaking enemy coded comms.

Engineering DRAMA, virtually guaranteed once the photons start flying- preferably with an energy allocation system to juggle (don't know if there is such a thing in T5, ought to be).

Medical drama too, only fixing the crew, which given all those damn crew hits will be swamped, and likely of personal interest to players when their characters get hit with radiation.

Navigator on larger craft may be plotting course through challenging astrographic 'terrain', maintaining a plot display of all craft and objects, probably scanner/computer guy on smaller craft, or running a constant escape jump solution.

Flight ops and wing command doing what they do.

Or a step up in scope, a fleet admiral and his staff managing the battle, with limited comms and time critical decisions/order transmissions.