FT.... my 0.02

Or 0.04, if you know how I tend to ramble. 

But it's Canadian, so that's aboout 0.02 "real 
money" .....

FT for my money is an easy to learn, fast to 
play game. This is both virtue and drawback. 
Too many (most) of the FT games I've played in 
have resembled massed end-end cavalry 
charges. Jousting with lasers. Not a _lot_ of 
tactics in them. FT doesn't have the fine 
granularity of tactical decision present in SFB or 
in a number of other single-ship focused (yes, 
people played SFB with 3000 BPV fleets - me 
too - but it shone with single ship 
engagements, something that FT kinda sucks 
for) games. FT has a pretty decent (as of FB) 
point system for most things (some aliens 
notwithstanding in FB2). But if you enjoy the 
tactical complexities and decision of ground 
warfare, playing on the black mat of space 
where no one can hide or take cover gets kinda 
dull. Yes, before anyone rants on, this can be 
fixed with cool scenario planning. But all too 
often people either don't bother or don't know 
enough. FT is a tinkerer's dream (as, to an 
extent, is DS2). But it isn't (in its raw fleet on 
fleet format) the most tactically interesting 
game. 

SG2, on the other hand, tends to (even with 
platoon on platoon clashes) offer more tactical 
options due to the command transfer 
mechanics, due to the range of weapons in the 
game, and due to the terrain factors which 
really really change how a battle is fought. 
Although its downfall is (to some) that it has no 
points system and can be a bear for newbies to 
balance scenarios with. Of course, list-advice 
can ameliorate that evil. I _like_ the lack of a 
points system - it tends to force you to think in 
terms of "what makes sense in this situation?" 
rather than "what can I do to spend those 
remaining 32 points?". 

And, I have to HEARTILY disagree with Mr. 
Engineer (Stay on the ground pal! Your MOS 
isn't space qualified yet....). He claims that 
vector is hard.... quite frankly I find the basic 
cinematic damn near impossible to navigate 
successfully. In vector, I always know pretty 
much where I'll end up and where the enemy 
could end up (the locus of possible locations). 
Can't seem to manage the same in cinematic... 
makes the game far too unpredictable (in that I 
have usually no idea where _MY_ fleet will end 
up, let alone his). Of course, in point of fact, 
some people may point out this may address 
part of my tactics comment earlier - vector 
allows more rotation, so getting flanked takes 
poor choices or a damn good opponent. In 
cinematic, this is much easier to achieve. out of 
arc experiences are more common. OTOH, I'm 
not really interested in the complexity being 
"where does my ship end up" but rather in "why 
would I want it to end up there". So I still think 
FT is weaker than SG. (Faster to setup and 
cleanup, and fun with a good scenario, albeit). 

So, vector or cinematic - how easy or hard you 
find it has a lot to do with how your brain 
works. I taught (in one game) a bunch of 
history majors (can't do real math to save their 
behinds) vector, and they refuse to play 
cinematic anymore. So it can't be _that_ hard...

<Maybe the drift + limited manouvre might 
overtake an Engineer brain though eh John? 
*wink* -- since it only knows things like how 
much C4 to put in the sarcastic listers' Lazy-boy 
to give him a good *bang*!>

Heh. And as for your comments about why 
there are so many Scots split offs - someone 
beat me to the comment about all Scots 
colonies being splinters. But the other truth is 
that deep down, everyone who has even a bit 
of Scots or Irish in their blood is proud of it and 
wants (a bit) to be there in the Glens. So the 
Keltoi-offshoot colonies basically reflect that 
natural desire. I mean, you don't see many split 
of English colonies now do you? :) 

And your idea of Basques ain't bad, but I'm 
already harvesting them, the Quebecois, some 
French coastal fishermen, and a few French 
Colonials to populate the canon-mentioned but 
little detailed NFR (New French Republic) - built 
in separatist tendencies! Vive La Republic 
Nouvelle de La Francaise! (Pardon my 
execrable Franglish). 

End Ramble. 

Tomb. 
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Thomas Barclay
Instructor, CST 6304 (TCP/IP programming for the Internet)
kaladorn@fox.nstn.ca 
http://fox.nstn.ca/~kaladorn/CST6304
http://stargrunt.ca/tb/CST6304
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