[FT] Self-Playtesting Scenarios

Hi All!

As it's sort of quiet around here, I thought I'd share a few thoughts.

So you've got your new scenario all written up, but are lacking 
either a regular gaming group or time before your gem needs to be 
perfected.

Playtest it yourself, using counters (blank wargame counters are 
readily and cheaply available) and a small table using a small MU 
scale.

You can either roll all the dice yourself, or you can assume median 
damage for each shot (i.e. 1 beam die does 0.8 points of damage 
against an unscreened target). I like the median damage thing because 
it evens out the "hot/cold dice" factor, and gives you what the 
average player would achieve. Make a chart of various weapons at 
range and keep it at hand!

Make sure to play both sides to the best of your ability - NO 
FAVORITES. This can be really hard to do. Most people secretly want 
one side to win. Avoid this at all costs. Remember, the closer you 
get to a tie, the better balanced your scenario. If you have time, 
try STUPID things; if they work, you need to rethink things (after 
all, this is how the GEV defense in OGRE was born!).

Make sure to play more than once (more is better). Using the above 
techniques, you can crank out a full game in no time flat. This 
allows to to try different tactics, different forces, etc.

Toodles,