Re: [ST] Some more thoughts on System Thrust

Peter, have you thought about this any more?

----- Original Message -----
From: "Peter Mancini" <peter_mancini@msn.com>
To: <gzg-l@csua.berkeley.edu>
Cc: <rodney.c.fernald@siemenscom.com>
Sent: Friday, December 22, 2000 11:24 AM
Subject: [ST] Some more thoughts on System Thrust

> >From: Sean Bayan Schoonmaker <s_schoon@pacbell.net>
> <SNIP FROM HELL>
> >From here, we can just say that ships within 1 MU may engage in FT
> >style combat, and PRESTO, we have the basis for a system scale!
>
> That is a fabulous bit of work, however it is missing one thing.  I've
begun
> to play around with the document someone else here pointed out -
Definitive
> Sensor Rules for FF&S2.  Basically what I want to go with your
extremely
> well done analysis is a hidden movement system with electronic
detection.
I
> differentiate detection between CONTACT and FIRE SOLUTION, the latter
> requiring much greater precision.
>
> In my other gaming I play Battleground WWII and I am working out a
hidden
> movement system for that using computers.  What  have are a bunch of
really
> cheap interent terminals (Think NICs: $200 each).  My webserver has
software
> on it that allows the battlefield and all units to be tracked.  It
goes
> beyond doing line of sight calculations.  It also considers light,
sound
and
> environment and generates proper information from "something large
caliber
> fired from north of the building" to "you see a Falschimjager firing
an
MP40
> from the second storey."  What makes it interesting, however, is each
player
> has a different perspective on where the enemy is and on what they
think
the
> situation is.  A unit can be exposed and not know it as well.  The
system
is
> set up so that when two units have LOS and both units are aware of
each
> other they go on the table.  Once on the table the issue of being
hidden
is
> no longer considered.  The software is pre-beta and is also an excuse
to
> learn Java2 and JSP so I will make a formal announcement some other
time
> when it is worth a preview.  Needless to say I have been making the
> components generic enough that it could be use for many other game
types.
>
> Taking this back to Full Thrust:  If you consider the table to be
where
the
> fight takes place and all units on the table are in active ping range
then
> anything that happens pre-battle will be off table.  You could have an
> interesting and easily done on paper with dice sub-game where you can
split
> your fleet up somewhat and have taskforces come in on different sides
of
the
> table.  Further you could set up a reserve and have it come in a few
turns
> later.
>
> In my hazy imagination of this I see a player, maybe you Dorothy and
an
old
> woman named Aunty Em... Oops, need coffee... Ah much better
>
> In my imagination I see a player, allocating ships to task forces. 
This
> player then tries to determine the make up of an enemy task force and
it's
> inbound vector.  Imagine a card with the task force data on it on a
stand.
> While the task force is undetected the player can change it's inbound
vector
> (Clockface around the table with starting speed type of vector.) Once
> detected it is flipped over and committed to battle.
>
> Sensors and F/ECM are considered in the detection portion of the game.
> Perhaps no more than 3 turns are spent on this detection game? 
Minimum
> Taskforce MD number determines total number of clockfaces the craft
may
> change in 1 turn.  The three phases represent 3 rings of distance from
the
> junction point.  If a TF changes a clockface it doesn't move inward
and
thus
> comes in a turn late...
>
> Oh I like this idea.	It doesn't even need computers. I need more
coffee
and
> time to think about it some more.
>
> --Peter
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