Vector Movement Made Simple

[Supplement Four]

Originally posted by flykiller:
</font><blockquote>quote:</font><hr />Then that ship is travelling "north west" at 16 squares per space combat round.

so we're talking one enormous sheet of paper here. </font>[/QUOTE]I always just keep track of the distance between two ships. The paper doesn't have to be that big for that.

It doesn't matter if velocity is 16 squares or 50 squares per space combat round. It's the distance between two combatants that counts.

 

[BlackBat242]

Of course, if you've been plotting ship's movements by drawing their movements on the paper, then you can see when (if) a ship crosses another ship's previous course.

Why, you ask? Mines (missiles with their drives slaved to a proximity detector [special supplement #3 Missiles, JTAS #21]... the launcher was used to kill their relative vector, so they are right where you left them... or maybe you left them drifting with your former vector...).

 

[BlackBat242]

Of course, if you've been plotting ship's movements by drawing their movements on the paper, then you can see when (if) a ship crosses another ship's previous course.

Why, you ask? Mines (missiles with their drives slaved to a proximity detector [special supplement #3 Missiles, JTAS #21]... the launcher was used to kill their relative vector, so they are right where you left them... or maybe you left them drifting with your former vector...).

 

[flykiller]

I always just keep track of the distance between two ships. The paper doesn't have to be that big for that.

don't need paper for just that.

It's the distance between two combatants that counts.

and if there's more than two?

say a warship and its supply vessel jump in to a world defended by an sdb. the supply is well back to stay out of range of the sdb's weapons, and the warship is between it and the sdb. the (say) smaller faster sdb can't kill the warship, but it can kill the supply vessel, so instead of trying to go straight past the warship it instead tries to loop wide around it and get to the supply vessel before the warship can intervene. the warship doesn't follow the sdb exactly but pulls back and towards it, trying to keep itself between the sdb and the supply ship while not letting the sdb get too close without coming under fire - meanwhile the supply vessel slowly is trying to loop around behind the warship away from the sdb, trying to evade it.

this is a very likely scenario, and I don't think range bands would be quite up to depicting it.

szurkey, could you handle an engagement like that on paper? could you handle it if the sdb were defending a world with a 100d of 4.3 light seconds and the warship and supply vessel could appear anywhere outside the 100d?

 

[flykiller]

I always just keep track of the distance between two ships. The paper doesn't have to be that big for that.

don't need paper for just that.

It's the distance between two combatants that counts.

and if there's more than two?

say a warship and its supply vessel jump in to a world defended by an sdb. the supply is well back to stay out of range of the sdb's weapons, and the warship is between it and the sdb. the (say) smaller faster sdb can't kill the warship, but it can kill the supply vessel, so instead of trying to go straight past the warship it instead tries to loop wide around it and get to the supply vessel before the warship can intervene. the warship doesn't follow the sdb exactly but pulls back and towards it, trying to keep itself between the sdb and the supply ship while not letting the sdb get too close without coming under fire - meanwhile the supply vessel slowly is trying to loop around behind the warship away from the sdb, trying to evade it.

this is a very likely scenario, and I don't think range bands would be quite up to depicting it.

szurkey, could you handle an engagement like that on paper? could you handle it if the sdb were defending a world with a 100d of 4.3 light seconds and the warship and supply vessel could appear anywhere outside the 100d?

 

[hunter]

Heh, you'll be interested in the new starship combat rules I've developed then

Vector-based battles with paper and pencil

Hunter

 

[hunter]

Heh, you'll be interested in the new starship combat rules I've developed then

Vector-based battles with paper and pencil

Hunter

 

[flykiller]

Heh, you'll be interested in the new starship combat rules I've developed then

yes, very interested, if you've solved the scale problem. can we get a peek?

 

[flykiller]

Heh, you'll be interested in the new starship combat rules I've developed then

yes, very interested, if you've solved the scale problem. can we get a peek?

 

[hunter]

I had posted it in the Moot a good while back, not sure if I want to make it publicly available yet, though it might make a good TA...

Scale isn't really too much of an issue, I had originally done the work on it for Honor Harrington where you are looking at accelerations in the hundreds of Gs, but have scaled it back for use with Traveller. 5000km distances, 1000 second turns, default of X and Y axis control, but you can add Z axis if you really want to get down to it. Can be played out using color pens/pencils and graph paper (I recommend scientific, 10 to the inch), or minis/counters on a tabletop/floor.

Nice part is, you get a sort of record of the battle if you do it on paper

More I think about it the more I might put this out as a small PDF.

Hunter

 

[hunter]

I had posted it in the Moot a good while back, not sure if I want to make it publicly available yet, though it might make a good TA...

Scale isn't really too much of an issue, I had originally done the work on it for Honor Harrington where you are looking at accelerations in the hundreds of Gs, but have scaled it back for use with Traveller. 5000km distances, 1000 second turns, default of X and Y axis control, but you can add Z axis if you really want to get down to it. Can be played out using color pens/pencils and graph paper (I recommend scientific, 10 to the inch), or minis/counters on a tabletop/floor.

Nice part is, you get a sort of record of the battle if you do it on paper

More I think about it the more I might put this out as a small PDF.

Hunter

 

[Supplement Four]

Originally posted by hunter:
More I think about it the more I might put this out as a small PDF.

I'm ready. Hit me.

 

[Supplement Four]

Originally posted by hunter:
More I think about it the more I might put this out as a small PDF.

I'm ready. Hit me.

 

[flykiller]

More I think about it the more I might put this out as a small PDF.

'd love to see it.

 

[flykiller]

More I think about it the more I might put this out as a small PDF.

'd love to see it.

 

[Border Reiver]

They are really good rules, need a little more putting through the wringer though. IMO they haven't been tested to destruction yet. I tried adapting them to the Vassal Engine but haven't managed (yet).

 

[Border Reiver]

They are really good rules, need a little more putting through the wringer though. IMO they haven't been tested to destruction yet. I tried adapting them to the Vassal Engine but haven't managed (yet).

 

[hunter]

Originally posted by Border Reiver:
They are really good rules, need a little more putting through the wringer though. IMO they haven't been tested to destruction yet. I tried adapting them to the Vassal Engine but haven't managed (yet).

Thanks! What areas do you think need the most work? Time to pop it back into the Moot and get feedback me thinks.

Hunter

 

[hunter]

Originally posted by Border Reiver:
They are really good rules, need a little more putting through the wringer though. IMO they haven't been tested to destruction yet. I tried adapting them to the Vassal Engine but haven't managed (yet).

Thanks! What areas do you think need the most work? Time to pop it back into the Moot and get feedback me thinks.

Hunter

 

[hunter]

Ok I just added it back into the Moot, with a new topic on it in the Moot Spire Forum with a link.

Hunter