Re: FT tactics vs slow ships, tiny ships are toast

Glen Bailey wrote:

> >  > btw, we allow firing out the rear arc.
> >  
> >  Even when you used the main drive (if you didn't it's allowed
anyway)? 
> 
> Yes.	How does it throw off the balance?  If he can fire out the rear
then
> I can, too.  And I do.

It is a lot harder for a thrust-1 ship to keep its rear arc (or "blind
spot", to use the Starfire term) away from the enemy than it is for a
thrust-4 or faster ship. Because of this, thrust-1 ships gain more from
this house rule than thrust-4 ships do, and he's the one flying
thrust-1 ships.
 
> My last post came about from frustation since I just came from a
night
> of combat.  I lost twice, but then my partner takes one of my designs
and
> doesn't do what it is designed to do.  He runs off away from the area

> defense ship I was running and gets toasted by 6 salvos.   

:-(

>The second had my 12 MT missiles miss his movement 1 ships.  I think I
>didn't lead him enough.

Sounds likely, yes.

> I admit it.  "Standard" designs can't beat his.

Depends on what you consider a "standard" design <shrug> I wouldn't
mind taking a Fleetbook force in an 1500-pt battle against the
battlewagons you described in your previous post (not NAC, though <g>).
But, well... that's me <g>

> But first I came
> up with another idea: 2 cruiser-sized 4 Needle Beam ships and a small

> Nova Cannon ship plus whatever with remaining points. I'll go for the
> drives and once hit then just line up the NC from outside 36" and pop
> him every turn.  He'll probably be able to FTL away unless I want to
> modify my needle attack and attempt both the maneuver and FTL
> drives.

Two FCs on each needle ship. The first ship to shoot fires two needles
at either of his ships' main drives; the second also fires two needles
at each target, but goes for the FTL drive if the first took the main
drives out.

If you're using the FTL rules on FT p.24 and his capitals were within
ADFC range of one another when their drives went, they may have some
trouble going into FTL, too... having a capital ship blow up in the
middle of a formation can be quite spectacular :-)

>  This brings up a question:
> 
> If two hits by needle beams are scored on the manuever drive in
> one volley does the drive get reduced to 0 or just to 1/2 as if hit
once?

A 1-point drive gets reduced to 0 on the first needle hit or failed
threshold roll. Not sure if the rules say this explicitly anywhere, but
it's in the FT FAQ at
http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Station/3565/faq-index.html , in the
FB1 section.

> >If you can, maneuver to end your movement in the spot he occupied
the
> >previous turn - it is guaranteed to be in his rear arc, which cuts
his
> 
> *sigh*  why didn't I ever think of this?

Another of those things I didn't realise until I had played a couple of
years <shrug>

Well, the start spot is not *entirely* guaranteed to be in his rear arc
- if he makes a 4-point turn it will be on the very edge of his rear
arc, and if he	makes a 5-point turn or more it'll actually be outside
the rear arc... but  unless Steve suddenly starts using Kra'Vak ships
(or thrust 8+ human ships) it'll hold true <g>

> I bow to the Master. 
> I'm still studying your Maneuver 101 class assignments and doing
> the "lab" work (or is that "field study"?).	:)

<g>

Good hunting,

Oerjan Ohlson
oerjan.ohlson@telia.com

"Life is like a sewer.
  What you get out of it, depends on what you put into it."
- Hen3ry