Re: FT: % or Fixed Mass Screens etc?

>I was playing around with a spreadsheet for Full Thrust III (I know it 
>is not out until spring but I wanted to see how it would work) when 
>several points occurred to me:
>
>1.	There are fixed mass items such as weapons and others whose mass
is % 
>based such as drives. Are screens fixed or % based? If they are fixed 
>they let off big ships too lightly and if they are % based they might
be 
>practical in small ships, and I would hate to see small ships with 
>screens.

They're both at this point, but I dont feel I'm at liberty to expand
the details. I'll let Jon do this.

>2.	I would like to see armour replacing screens. The same comments
apply 
>as for screens. 10% per armour level (if 1 to 3) or even 15% does not 
>seem too much to pay. See table II below.

Armour is being looked at in a different light at the moment.

>5.	Now a really odd suggestion, why not invert the battery ratings,
so a 
>C becomes an A and an A becomes a C. This allows easier upward 
>expansion, so the AA Megabattery becomes a D (or maybe an E) and so on.

Actually, a point that hasn't been addressed yet would be an 'early
years'
battery. Something like what I came up with for my 'early years' B5
rules
(the D-battery - basically a C-batt of range 6")

>7.	Streamlining should cost Mass, eg. semi-streamlining uses 10% of
a 
>ships mass and full 25%. Why? It seems reasonable and it would be
useful 
>in campaign games.("Streamlining is for shuttles").

...if I understand you correctly, this does not seem reasonable to me.
Could you please elaborate on this?

>Table I. Beam Batteries
>	Mass		Damage at range:
>	FT2	FT3	12"	24"	36"	48"	60"
>C	1	1	1d	-	-	-	-
>B	2	2+1	2d	1d	-	-	-
>A	3	4+2	3d	2d	1d	-	-

FYI, the masses have since been tweaked a bit here.

>D			4d	3d	2d	1d	-
>E			5d	4d	3d	2d	1d
>F			6d	5d	4d	3d	2d
>G			7d	6d	5d	4d	3d
>H			8d	7d	6d	5d	4d
>
>I assume that 60" is the maximum possible range due to limitations of 
>fire-control technology.

I would think that if you can create a big enough gun (such as your
proposed H-batt), you can make a better, longer-ranged fire control
system. Higher tech and all that. Unfortunately there is no tech-tree
or tech level system in FT. The only way you have right now to balance
things out is by Mass or Point Cost.

>	I think I would prefer lower damage at all ranges but some other

>effect, such as improved penetration for the big guns.

There is a mechanism being intro'd in FT3 to cover improved penetration.

Mk
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     all those who wander are not lost.

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