Re: (fwd) Re: [FT] F***ters [was: Operational game]

----- Original Message -----
From: "Aaron Teske" <mithramuse@yahoo.com>
To: <gzg-l@csua.berkeley.edu>
Sent: Wednesday, February 05, 2003 3:53 PM
Subject: Re: (fwd) Re: [FT] F***ters [was: Operational game]

> --- Eric Foley <stiltman@teleport.com> wrote:
> > And of course, this is the main hang-up some people have
> > that I don't understand.  If your opponent is using soap-
> > bubble carriers, then by definition it's a custom-design
> > game.  Which means that you're no more limited in what
> > you're allowed to throw back at them than your opponent
> > is.  So why are people not simply just throwing the
> > scatterguns together and extending the digitus imputicus
> > to the soap bubbles?

> ..because most of the games played by many people (though not
> you & your group, I know, but it is something to always keep in
> mind), even with custom-designed ships, use human tech only.	So
> you don't *have* scatterguns (or MKPs) to work with.

I can understand that... but if soap bubbles are being used, the "human"
doctrines laid out in the fleet book are already being abandoned
wholesale
anyway.  If you're going to allow custom designs but want those
doctrines to
be followed, I'd say it's the house rules' job to enforce that.  If the
house rules are allowing overwhelming numbers of fighters but are
conveniently banning the countermeasures that keep those fighters in
check,
I'd say that's the house rules' fault.

On the other hand, if someone insists on bringing the "soap scum",
demand a
floating table measured in centimeters, starting speeds of 40, and start
packing the class 8 beams, I guess.  :P

> Apart from that (and I don't have my rules books handy), I
> thought that scatterguns were downgraded from the MT version in
> FB2?	Not sure what version of what you're using in your game,
> but I *think* it's different... so many people wouldn't be using
> scatterguns even on Kra'vak.	(And lots of people don't have MT
> anyway.)

Scatterguns kill 1d6 fighters.	Each.  If they're heavy fighters, it's
cut
in half.  Which basically means that most soap bubble fleets are in
really
deep trouble if they run into any significant numbers of the things.

I could see that the human tech fighter defenses could be changed a bit.
But the simple statement, "Fighters' strength scales non-linearly" is
not
true -- it's the gap over the enemy's defenses that scales non-linearly
in
value, and that gap scales in _both_ directions.

E
(aka Stilt Man)