Re: New Fighter Types

Old post, late reply, probably old stuff re-hashed once more:
 
> New Fighter Types
> Endo Fighter	  A defensive fighter that can only operate within a 
> planetery atmosphere. It has no anti ship capability but attacks as an

> interceptor. (it does not have to comprmise itself with heavy
spaceplane 
> additions.)

Unless you define large parts of the gaming area as "within planetary
atmosphere" or you're playing a planetary invasion scenario, these
fighters will be of *very* limited use. Especially if you go with the 1
mu ~ 7500 km scale suggested on the list not too long ago :-/

> I have always rather suspected that normal FT figters are NOT
atmosphere 
> capable (and this was before starting to watch Babylon 5). 

This depends entirely on your background. Star Wars, SAAB, Battlestar
Galactica, B5 etc all have atmosphere capable fighters - 'course, some
of
those in Star Wars and B5 are more or less warp capable as well, but
note
that the *only* non-atmosphere capable fighter in B5 is the Starfury!
Minbari, Narn, Centauri and Raider fighters all seem to be capable of
atmospheric flight.

Paying for atmospheric capabilities adds very little to the game. IMO
you
should always pay for the base facilities (fighter bays or equivalents)
and their "hulls" regardless of if these facilities are on the ground,
aboard an orbital platform or on a space ship.

> The Thunderbolt. Everyone seems to think that this is the bees knees
but 
> is it much better than a Starfury? It is larger, more expensive and 
> atmosphere capable but it is the stramlining that makes it larger and 
> dearer, compromising it in the dogfighting role. So in space combat it

> should function at best just like a Starfury.

It also carries a *much* heavier weapon (streams of plasma balls rather
than one couple at a time, plus bomb/missile hardpoints) than the
Starfury, making it more likely to take tthings it shoots at out.

> I wonder how difficult it would be to add a longer nose to the UNSC
Star 
> Tiger fighter?

Not that hard to do with a pin vice, some fine wire and putty. And a LOT
of patience :-/

Regards,

Oerjan Ohlson
oerjan.ohlson@nacka.mail.telia.com

"Life is like a sewer.
  What you get out of it, depends on what you put into it."
- Hen3ry