Tactical FTL

pcaron%nhqvax.dnet@rapnet.sanders.lockheed.com writes:
@:) <David Brewer wrote:>

@:) >FTL, on the other hand, should cost nothing because, tactically, it
@:) >is worth nothing.
@:) 
@:) Our gaming group uses this slight modification to the disengangement
@:) rules:
@:) 
@:)	It takes time to plot a course and also warm up the 'ol
@:)	engines for jump into hyperspace.  Warships cannot disengage
@:)	until turn 5 of the tactical game.  Merchant ships cannot
@:)	disengage until turn 10.

  For one campaign we modified the FTL drives so that instead of just
removing you from the map, they provided enormous acceleration.  They
could only be used above a certain speed (twice or four times your
thrust, I think) but once they kicked in, the ship would begin
doubling its speed every turn.	Ships disengaged by getting so far
away that the bad guys gave up (in practice we considered this to
occur whenever any ship's movement would remove it from the room in
which we were playing).  We added some other restrictions, in
particular that you couldn't manouver or fire when the FTL drive was
active.  This made for some interesting entry and exit activity, as
ships entered the game at speed 80, desperately trying to slow down to
speed 20 so they could take a shot at their very rapidly approaching
enemies.  We never had a scenario long enough to allow multiple groups
of widely separated ships interacting by moving under FTL power, which
was what I was hoping to see.  I got this idea from Star Wars
(actually the X-Wing computer game) and/or Star Trek.  In each, ships
appear to (very rapidly) accelerate up to warp or hyperspace speeds
instead of just instantaneously jumping from zero to infinite speed.

-joachim