RE: cm scale

On Fri, 28 Nov 1997, Samuel Penn wrote:

> What I mean is, you can change your expected position a
> lot more when going fast. A 2 point turn at speed 4 will
> only put you a couple of inches away from your 'expected'
> position, whereas at speed 20 it puts you half a table
> away.

Ok. Not exactly what I understand by maneuverability, but I get your 
point. 

> Unless they're non-FTL, they should be able to just FTL out
> anyway.

Well, it was a non-FTL campaign, so you have a point there. True FTL 
ships won't be vulnerable for more than 1-2 turns after making an attack

pass. Kind of kills any idea of pursuit (which isn't fun, but something
I can live with).

> I tend to prefer to concentrate my firepower.

This is true for heavies, but small ships have to manouver to get a good

shot without being blasted out of space. 
 
> If, as you say above, you're quite happy with ships going
> off the table, and you just want to limit how far they go
> off the table, then speed caps are better.
> 
> If (as in my case) you don't like ships going off the table
> at all, because of the hassle it involves, then I still
> maintain that area caps are best.

Agreed. Different goals, different methods.
 
Some general thoughts: Unlimited speeds offer untold tactical 
possibilities, especially when you're targeting an unmoving object (like

a station). Ludicrous attack pass speeds not only make some weapons 
(missiles, fighters) nearly unusable, but they also make interception of

attackers very hard. Not to mention that the only way to play
three-digit 
speeds is on paper or computer.

I find it insulting to one's intelligence to set up a certain tactical 
parameters (unlimited speed) then to defuse it with poorly thought out 
limitations ("you can't use it that way, cuz it's no fun").

Rather than trying to address each issue as they crop up, developing n+1
separate rules to deal with the situations (often also poorly thought
out
and resulting in myriad *new* loopholes), I'd prefer a simple rule to
handle all situations. Namely, top speeds. 

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