Re: Speaking of verdammt pet peeves!

----- Original Message -----
From: John Atkinson <johnmatkinson@yahoo.com>
To: <gzg-l@csua.berkeley.edu>
Sent: Wednesday, January 30, 2002 1:11 AM
Subject: Speaking of verdammt pet peeves!

>
> --- Ryan Gill <rmgill@mindspring.com> wrote:
>
> > Wow. Really, even Fax machines come with Backup
> > systems? Does that
> > mean we don't need the Armored recovery vehicle for
> > the tanks in a
> > battle? I mean if the nanites can fix the basic
> > technology fax
> > machine by themselves, couldn't each tank carry
> > around a barrel full
> > of them to fix the broken track, grav impeller,
> > wheel, smoking hole
> > in the armor?
>
> Uh, guys!  If we're assuming nanites to the level that
> the most optomistic SF writers (and anyone discussing
> nanites is an SF writer regardless of how many PhDs
> they have), then we're not playing Stargrunt OR
> Dirtside OR Full Thrust.  We're not fighting over
> resources, we have NO economic costs, and every person
> is effectively immortal and invincible.
>
> Screw that and the horse it rode in on.
>
> It might make for interesting SF, it makes for a nice
> religion, it makes for absolutely CRAPPY wargaming.
> So can we please shitcan the argument that "Whatever
> I'm arguing for is possible because I'll get my pet
> freakin' NANITES to do it for me."  Once you've got
> pet UBERNANITES, you can do pretty much whatever you
> please.  You stop having limitations and at this point
> we're not discussing human beings, we're discussing
> nearly-omnipotent demigods.  Stargrunt will SUCK if
> tried to hammer into shape to deal with
> nearly-omnipotent demigods.
>
> IMU, Nanites are a nice toy, but have so limited
> computing power available that they are incapable of
> dealing with other than the most orderly of
> environments.  They have a handful of industrial
> applications, but that's it.	No super-gloop capable
> of defeating entire planet's defenses, no instant
> manufacturing (IIRC, the last example was "What if a
> special operations team uses supergloop to turn their
> truck into power armor!  Wouldn't that BE SO KEWL!),
> and no Planetary Infrastructure In A Box.
SNIP>
> John

Argh! The A-team in space! A horrible thought. As a joke, I can see a
MBT
with "live" nano-armour which eats and reuses incoming mass and energy
as
they arrive- the crew would be innoculated so that they don't get eaten.
 I
couldn't agree more that ubertech would spoil the GZG-games.  There's no
gaming fun in just saying, "Make it so".

Rob Paul