Cosmic Balance + FT

     Having played Cosmic Balance again for the first time in years
(thanks
again to whoever posted the site) I found I enjoyed its variety of
weapons.
Both Cosmic Balance and Star Fleet Battles have a category of weapon
missing
from Full Thrust that have been very interesting: multi-turn arming
weapons.
The Cosmic Balance has three of these: a two-turn arming disruptor which
is
the best weapon at close range in the entire game, a two-turn arming
pulse
cannon (my favorite!!) which is designed to penetrate shields and a
three-turn arming plasma torpedo (a seeking energy projectile which
damages
the ship across three of its six facings at once).

	It occurs to me that these weapons would not be difficult at all
to
incorporate into Full Thrust. The disruptor could be some variant on
Adam
Delafield's close range beam battery design, except it would probably
have
to do even more damage to compensate for its firing only once every
turn.
(This weapon would also resemble the fusion beams of Star Fleet Battles
which have to cool a turn after firing).

	The pulse cannon could be a beam battery that has some other
reduction by screens than the existing scheme (to represent its greater
screen-penetrating abilities) perhaps a reduction of dice or points of
damage per level of screens. I don't know.

	The plasma torpedo could be a seeking weapon that would move
like a
missile (although it would probably be more maneuverable) but would
first
require powering. It could either require three turns of charging or use
the
existing wave gun charging mechanism. Plasma torpedoes would be most
interesting if combined with the directional armor proposal as they
could
damage not only the armor facings they hit but both adjacent ones as
well.

	What do you think, sirs?

	James
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	Battlecruiser INTREPID, CORMORANT-class
	Captain James L. Butler III, Commanding
	JAMESBUTLER@worldnet.att.net