RE: FT fighters question [was Couple More Questions For FT...]

>> 1. How do you model Q-ships in FT?

> From: ~ On Behalf Of Oerjan Ohlson
> Sent: 08 July 2003 08:28
> Subject: Re: FT fighters question

> Stats-wise a Q-ship is a freighter with its cargo holds
> replaced by weapons and/or fighters; modelling-wise I
> just use standard freighter models.
>
> They lose much of their purpose in solo play though,
> since the main idea with Q-ships is that the enemy don't
> realise that they're present until it is too late...
> and when the same player plays both sides, you kinda lose 
> the element of surprise.
>
> You can get interesting games if the attackers use pre-
> programmed manoeuvres (or their course of action
> determined by a die roll) and the solo player plays the
> Q-ship, though.

I'd say it's more entertaining to play the hunter. If you
like shipbuilding, try building a pot of ships and drawing
them as needed. Your merchant convoy starts as Bogey
markers (FT2 pg 21) moving at low thrust. You need to get
close enough to ID whether you are dealing with an unarmed
merchant, armed merchant, auxiliary or full warship. You
also need a reaction table to automate the targets, which
might heave to, scatter, FTL, engage then strike or
agressively pursue.

There's also the possibility that you are dealing with a
Q-ship; as scenario designer you need to determine under
what conditions your Q-ship will blow its cover and start
firing, then test for this whenever these conditions are
first met when a target is intercepted.

If you don't like shipbuilding, try the simpler approach
of grabbing the stock Privateer (MT pg 23, but do yourself
a favour and replace that needle beam with a B-battery)
and match it against an underweight escort, say the FT2
Frigate on pg 14 and a pack of mixed merchants from both
pages. Write a simple programmed sequence for the escort
but add random reaction for the merchantment, and see
what chaos results. If you put anything other than a very
small Q-ship in this mix, the Privateer will be too light.

In both cases, don't forget to add the big bad warship
arriving on the penultimate turn. Remember, raiders always
lose if their drives get knocked out!