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Re: DS2 Another armour\mobility idea

From: "John Crimmins" <johncrim@v...>
Date: Wed, 10 Apr 2002 13:16:25 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: Re: DS2 Another armour\mobility idea


On Wed, 10 Apr 2002 17:48:47 +0100, Tony Francis <tony.francis@kuju.com>
wrote :
> These aren't mutually exculsive. The points system could rate vehicles
> regardless of their origin and produce compatible results. Those who
> wish to game 'hard' SF, putting limitations in place to avoid 'cheese'
> vehicles (Uberbikes with class/5 MDC etc) would design their vehicles
> using the design system, feed the results into the points system and
get
> their 'combat value' out. Those who are less concerned with the
detailed
> design process would just write down what they want the capabilities
of
> their vehicle to be (or convert from a different system), feed this
into
> the points system and - hey presto - get a 'combat value' which is
fully
> compatible with the 'properly' designed vehicle, just derived in a
> different way.
> 
> DS3 keeps it's generic tag since the design system becomes an optional
> extra for the GZGverse background. Non-canon universes (Star Wars,
> Battletech, Hammers Slammers, Epic 40K etc) could all happily be
played
> out with the game and cross-genre battles would be possible since the
> points values are compatible. New weapons systems could be introduced
to
> the points system, but kept out of the design system if they aren't
> compatible with the PSB of the GZG background (so rules and points for
> Meltaguns are available, but they can't be designed into NAC tanks).
> Hell, you could even create new design systems for alternative
> backgrounds that allow the creation of (say) Battletech Mechs within
> limitations relevant to the FASA game universe.
> 
> We should be able to have our cake _and_ eat it.

Nailed it.  That's exactly the kind of approach that I would think best,
and it would 
be easy to include a lot of different...well, call them "Genre
Templates" in the book.  
One or two pages each, listing the design assumptions and limitations
for a variety 
of different genres, including the Tuffleyverse, a Mecha universe, and
some pop-culture 
(and gaming) settings with the serial numbers filed off.

It would be in these Genre Templates that things like weapon limitations
and vehicle 
capacities would be defined; the Tuffleyverse template would restrict
flyers to a maximum 
armor level of 3 (or whatever), forbid Mecha larger than size Class I, 
forbid Powerguns 
entirely, and so on and so forth.

This strikes me as the best way to make the maximum number of current
players happy
*and* draw in a nice crop of new players.

-- 
John Crimmins
johncrim@voicenet.com


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