RE: cm scale

In message <Pine.LNX.3.91.971126085937.21890A-100000@swob.dna.fi>
	  Mikko Kurki-Suonio <maxxon@swob.dna.fi> wrote:

> On Mon, 24 Nov 1997, Samuel Penn wrote:
> 
> > I'd go the other way, and say speed caps are more ridiculous
> > than area caps. If you're playing on a limitless area (a
> > moving table, changing scales, or a really big hall), then
> > I can't see much reason for needing speed caps.
> 
> In case you missed it, let me refresh our collective memories how this

> little debate started: I had found out that fast ships tend to fly off

> the table really fast if they want to capitalize their speed
advantage.

Okay (and yes, I did miss it). To add my 2p to this - I
don't consider a thrust 8 ship to have a speed advantage,
but to have an acceleration advantage. Generally, such
ships don't fly that much faster than my low thrust ships,
they just accelerate a lot more often.

> Moving the table is
> 
> - Often impossible, as Brian Bell generously pointed out
> - A pain in the butt I do not enjoy in the least
> 
> I already tried changing to cm-scale, which our group disliked (hence
the 
> subject of this post) and list members already refused to pay for a
new 
> gaming room, so...

We're a tight fisted lot... :)

> 
> Given the two remaining choices, I still think speed caps are more 
> realistic.

Okay then, we'll just have to agree to disagree.

> > I'd say both are unwanted limitations, but since we normally
> > have to play with the first, keeping all the capping there
> > makes more sense.
> 
> It's certainly a lot less fuss, if your players with the fast ships
don't 
> mind being tactically castrated.

What sort of speed capping are you thinking of? Presumably it
would be some multiple of the ship's thrust?

If it's four times the thrust, then it's not going to make
much difference. My thrust 8 ships rarely go above a speed
of 16. OTOH, my thrust 4 dreadnaughts tend to fly around at
10+, a limit of x2 or x3 is going to be most unwanted.

Because of the way the movement system works, low thrust ships
are more manouevrable at high speeds. Capping their speeds to
a low value will cripple them (IMO).

Anyway, to repeat a point you made earlier...

> I had found out that fast ships tend to fly off the table
> really fast if they want to capitalize their speed advantage.

You can either:

  a) Limit the play area, which forces them to keep their
     speed down so they don't fly off.
  
  b) Limit their speed, which forces them to keep their
     speed down so they don't fly off.

In both cases you're restricting fast ships. In the latter,
you've also got to cope with what happens when ships go off
the table. With a few ships this is easy. With 100+ ships
and fighter groups, it's not worth it.

We tend to play with large fleets btw... (which may explain
why I'm approaching the problem from a different direction
to you).

> > > "Sorry, you just can't fly past Pluto without FTL."
> > 
> > "Sorry, you just can't fly faster than 30km/s or the giant
> > space hamster will eat you."
> 
> This isn't really a fair comparison.

It also wasn't a serious comparison (hence the reference to
giant space hamsters).

-- 
Be seeing you,
Sam.