Re: Dimension

> > From:	   "Noam R. Izenberg" <izenberg@jhuapl.edu>
> > Question:
> >	Has anyone tried incorporating the 3rd dimension into FT? The
> > simpler rules system almost invites it, since the main problem is
> > navigational record keeping and visual representation.It seems that
with
> > great computer aids like FTmap, it might be less hard to do than
solely
> > outside the virtual world. If such a thing could be done there'd be
a
> > final wedge driven between space sims and 2d navy or surface combat
> > sims.

	Well, as the original TRAVELLER rules pointed out,
	since 3 points define a plane, any ship engagement with
	three or fewer ships can be fought on a flat plane
	with little or no distortion.

	Other than that, I've tried many methods of doing 3-d,
	and they then to be more trouble than they are worth.

	SPI's Foxbat and Phantom had 30 counters for each plane, to show
	the plane at any of the 30 possible altitude levels.  Ick.

	Taurus' BATTLE FOR ANDROMEDA and SPI's Star Force merely had the

	ship's altitude recorded on a separate record sheet.  
	Hardly intuitive.

	SPI's Battlefleet Mars had two maps, one showing the x-y plane
	and the other showing the x-z plane (i.e., "top view" and
	"side view"). Each ship was represented by dual counters,
	one on each map.  It was a bit difficult to visualize.
	(It would have been better if the side view map was mounted
	on a sheet of metal, and set in a frame at 90 degrees to	
	the top view map. Stick magnetic counters on the side
	view map, and have fun)

	Metagaming's Holy War & Godsfire, and SPI's WorldWrecker
	made each hex huge, with spaces for each of the hex's level.
	Nice idea, but messy in practice.

	My idea never worked very well.  Have you ever seen a red-blue
	analglyph?  You look through red-blue glasses, and the image
	seems to be in 3-D.  The amount the red and blue images
	are separated determines how "high" the image appears.
	So I tried to make counters with a blue image, encased in
	a sleeve of transparent cellophane with a red image on it.
	By sliding the sleeve, one could adjust how high the
	counter was.

	Alas, it had problems.

	(for a red-blue 3-d starmap I made, chieck out my
	3-d starmap web page, at
http://www.clark.net/pub/nyrath/starmap.html

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