Re: Points, Mass and FT3 [FAO MJE-JMT-GZG]

On Thu, 12 Dec 1996, Samuel Penn wrote:

> > > The "A-battery problem" is solvable in a mass-driven system by
> > > bumping it up to 4 mass.
> > 
> > I'd say 5 or 6, but I agree...
> 
> 5 or 6?!?! I'd say that the problem isn't that the A battery is
> only mass 3, but that Cs and Bs are as much as they are. A bats
> are about on par with pulse torpedoes (ie X mass of pulse torps
> are about equivalent to X mass of A batteries). Bumping A batteries
> up to 5 mass would render them practically useless.

Lessee:

Expected damage per weapon mass at given ranges, assumed mass 5 PT and 
mass 3 A:

Weapon:        Range: 6    12	 18    24    36
Pulse Torp	     0.47  0.35  0.23  0.12  0	     
A vs no screen	     0.67  0.67  0.44  0.44  0.22
A vs lvl-1	     0.5   0.5	 0.33  0.33  0.17
A vs lvl-2	     0.33  0.33  0.22  0.22  0.11
A vs lvl-3	     0.17  0.17  0.11  0.11  0.06

So X mass of pulse torps is better than the same mass of A batteries 
against heavily shielded targets at very close range. I don't see very 
many engagements at that close a range, though - in fact, since I
measure 
in cm, actually placing the models less than 6 mu <1> apart can be 
difficult if one of the models is large enough (ie, large enough to 
represent a ship with level-3 screens)...

Having said all this, I agree that mass 5 or 6 A batteries would be too 
large; mass 4 seems fair - big enough to let the smaller batteries 
actually be better at close range, but not so big as to make the smaller

batteries rule unchallenged. (I've also found it very hard to keep the 
range open enough to avoid B-batteries... the commonest engagement
ranges 
in my experience are 10-25 cm or so.)

It would be a little difficult to reduce C- and B-batteries any further 
in size, unless we want mass 0.5 batteries. (Hm - why not? Mass 0.5 
single-arc C batteries...)

Regards,

Oerjan Ohlson

<1> mu = measuring unit. Avoids talking about inches when I mean cm....

"Father, what is wrong?"
"My shoes are too tight. But it does not matter, because
 I have forgotten how to dance."
- Londo Mollari