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[FT] Vector Silliness

From: "Bell, Brian K" <Brian_Bell@d...>
Date: Wed, 11 Aug 1999 09:05:40 -0400
Subject: [FT] Vector Silliness

As has been discussed before, there is a little silliness in the vector
movement rules.

Once can use the Main Drive (MD) to thrust one's full thrust amount,
change
your facing directly away from your heading, and use "push" thrusters to
add
1/2 your MD rating. This effectively give a ship 1.5 the thrust rating
of
the ship.

Current rules do not allow a "push" forward. So if a ship spend the
entire
turn using the main drive, it is only .75 times as effective as if it
takes
the time to turn and use the less powerful "push" thrusters. This is
utter
silliness.

I see three ways to change this:
  
1) Allow a ship that does not turn to have an extended movement (1.5 or
2 x
MD rating). Rationalization: The ship is burning the main drive longer
and
thus creating a greater change in velocity.

2) Allow a ship to "push" forward. This would allow the current effect
of
1.5 movement without the silliness of doing an about face to accomplish
it.
Rationalization: If thrusters could be mounted to other sides of the
ship,
why not the aft.

3) Limit "push" movement to 1 and allow a ship to "push" forward. This
brings "push" movement back to what it should be. Minimal, adjustments
for
docking. Rationalization: Maneuvering thrusters are MUCH less powerful
than
the main drive.

IMHO, solutions 1 and 3 are better. Both of them return some advantage
to
high thrust ships.

Feedback welcome.

-----
Brian Bell
bkb@beol.net
http://members.xoom.com/rlyehable/ft/	
-----

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