Re: [FT] A FB/FT3 question

G'day guys,

 >Someone recently suggested that the Nova cannon and Wave guns weren't
so
 >impressive now that plasma bolt launchers were on the scene.

I can't speak for the original poster (Glenn I think), but they're
weren't 
so impressive anymore full stop (even pre-plasma bolt). Sorry Schoon I
just 
don't agree with you here, I don't think they're unbalancing in fact
given 
the amounts of damage dished out by other weapons the wave gun/nova
cannon 
just aren't worth the effort as they stand (making sure you can't fire 
anything else, but being a natural fire magnet themselves).

 >How do they interact with armour ?
 >a)	Like K-guns
 >b)	Like plasma bolts
 >c)	Like pulse torpedoes
 >d)	Ignore armour boxes (snail killers)

We've been playing c (I think we used to play d at some point).

 >I'm also inclined to say that wave guns should have faster recharge
rates
 >(say every other turn) and don't damage the owner when lost to
thresholds.

I actually don't mind those facets

 >Perhaps with screens being a less dominant feature of the game, the
wave gun
 >could be affected by screens (like plasma bolts are, for example), and
could
 >be expanded to have the F arc (which is significantly smaller than it
once
 >was).

Not a bad idea. Do you mean though that it fires with existing template,

but anywhere in the front arc or that it now covers the front, a bit too

wide I would've thought (I've been playing with the idea of just twice
as 
wide as is now)? If you are increasing the size of the template I'd go 
further and say damage is only done to ships whose centre falls within
the 
arc of fire.

 >The Nova Cannon is another weapon which might benefit from having
slightly
 >fewer restrictions, though I can't think of many.  Perhaps a single
arc of
 >fire,

Same question as for wave guns here.

 >perhaps allowing acceleration, deceleration (no turns),

Not in favour of that one.

 >PDS (strictly as point defence) and ADFC,
 >but no fighter launches or recoveries, on the
 >turn it is fired.  Also, I'd consider allowing the firer to keep his
screens
 >up, since we want screens and armour to be relatively balanced ship
 >defences, but armour is unaffected by firing a nova cannon and screens
are
 >not...

While I understand the motivation I probably wouldn't do this either.
I'd 
personally prefer to make it worth the risk of not being able to do 
anything else that turn, rather than having a smaller effect and keep
your 
defenses, but that's just me.

Cheers

Beth

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Elizabeth Fulton
c/o CSIRO Division of Marine Research
GPO Box 1538
HOBART
TASMANIA 7001
AUSTRALIA
Phone (03) 6232 5018 International +61 3 6232 5018
Fax 03 6232 5053 International +61 3 6232 5053

email: beth.fulton@marine.csiro.au