Re: FT-EMP/NEEDLE WEAPONS

In message <006501c211fb$acf53610$0100a8c0@inty2k>
	  "Bif Smith" <bif@bifsmith.fsnet.co.uk> wrote:

> This is just a VERY rough idea at the moment, feedback would be
useful.
> 
> Reading the WOTW archives, and the lack of agreement on using needle
or EMP
> weapons, I thought about nicking a idea from the starfire game. We
could
> have at the bottom of the SSD a text list of all the weapons/systems
aboard
> the ship (using a standard notation), and have these weapons hit one
at
> random (IE-The attacker says the needle beam will hit the 3rd system,
> although he doesn`t know what it is). Every ship can be different
(within
> reason, to be determinded what the limits are), after all, no 2 ships
are
> identical. A attacker may look at the list if he can get within
scanner
> range (to be determinded what the range is for the different sensors,
also
> makes advanced sensors a battlefield weapon useful in the game) and
suceeded
> at a die roll. Once a scan has been performed, the list and order of
that
> ships systems are avalible to the attackers fleet until said ship goes
in
> for repairs/refit at a shipyard (to represent the ship having been
recorded
> and identifiable) as long as one of the attackers ships can pass said
info
> back to the HQ (IE-suvives).
> 
> Any comments?
> 
> BIF
> 
>
Well, I've been thinking that this subject needs to be addressed again
recently as well, there are a number of EMP-type weapons in the WDA that
affect a number of ship systems, rather than just inflicting a blanket
threshold roll, however, they use a number of different methods to
determine which system is affected.

These EMP weapons are:

Ion Cannon (Type 1) - beam-type, has a 'priority list' of systems to be
affected, may ignore screens?

Ion Cannon (Type 2) - beam-type, ignores screens, defender chooses
systems to be affected, number of systems affected is the total number
that must _fail_ their threshold checks.

Ion Pulse Weapon - beam-type, has a different 'priority list', affected
by screens.

Plasma Torpedo - torpedo-type, has a priority list.

I think Needle-Beam like weapons and 'blanket' EMP weapons should be
considered a separate subject, that can be addressed elsewhere.

Some of the possible methods of determining which systems are affected
by this class of EMP, or disabling, weapon are as follows:

1) Priority List - used by 3, (but each has a separate list)
2) Defender Chooses - used by 1
3) Defender & Attacker alternate choices - not used
4) Attacker Chooses - not used - would be very similar to needle beams
5) Random Selection - not used - would require some method of randomly
   selecting systems to check

Of these 5, which does everyone prefer? or do you prefer a different
(not listed) option?

If you prefer option 1) which list do you prefer? If you prefer option
5, what is your preferred method of randomly selecting a system to be
affected?

Charles