DS II: Capitulation (was point balancing)

Hellfire and damnation, I hate being wrong.  But the more I look at it,
the 
more it's bloody unavoidable that Oerjan's right about the whole issue
of 
multiplicative values as opposed to additive. it's the only way to
reflect 
the way all the different aspects of a vehicle complement each other.

I do have a couple of suggestions/observations, however.

First, for the sake of added game flavor, consider some of the added
aspects 
of firecon that have been suggested, such as increased number of shots, 
firing while moving, etc. Then calculate how this effects their combat 
effectiveness, and adjust your costing numbers accordingly.  In doing
this, 
you'll add flavor to the game and still balance it.

Given the difference in performance between them, the costing process
needs 
to take into account full turret vs. fixed arc vs. partial traverse
turrets.

Instead of mutiplying the rest of the vehicle times the FireCon
modifier, 
try calculating the cost for each direct fire weapon using a system
similar 
to the one I already suggested. Add to this number the value for all
other 
non-firect fire systems (GMS, PDS, APFC, APSW, etc), THEN multiply that 
number times a modifier based on mobility.  That way you take into
account 
the relationship between mobility and EVERY weapon and system on the
tank, 
but don't cause the FireCon to weigh against systems it doesn't help. 
Yes, 
A*B=B*C, but A*B+C does NOT equal A*(B+C)nor does it equal (A+C)*B.

Be careful how heavily you weigh cost for engine type as opposed to
mobility 
type. Remember that some of the high end mobility types require
those engine types, as do certain high-end weapons systems.  This puts
the 
DFFG at an advantage over the HEL and MDC, in terms of points, which it 
should not enjoy, given it's damage capacity.

I'm looking forward to seeing the results. And please, please, keep it
as 
generic a system as ever - that was one of it's biggest selling points
with 
me.

Brian Bilderback
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