As with the Vulpa-Nucian-Paravian trio discussed over here, one of the groups of three "Omega's Lost Futures" empires listed in the August 2012 memo (and mentioned in Bruce Graw's article from Captain's Log #36) are the Echarrri Dynasty, the Scon, and the Zosman Marauders.

Unlike the V/N/P trio, there doesn't seem to be any obvious technological connection between these powers. Nor does there look to be any formal alliances (or rivalries) between the two. Given the method by which the Dynasty established itself upon arrival in the Omega Octant, it's likely that their first contact with the Zosmans came before any others; but it remains to be seen whether or not the Zosmans raided (or served as mercenaries to) the Echarri, or if Echarri weapons systems (whatever they may be) are in any way compatible with Zosman modular technologies. And as for the Scon, they seem likely to be the most "out there" empire of the bunch... or, perhaps, the most "down there" instead.


Once again, this thread is intended to collect the information that is known about these three powers at this time, and is not intended to act as a design thread any time soon. The data poste here is strictly for future reference.


-----


The first Echarri scouts were encountered in Y201, emerging near what was once Branthodon space. They claimed to be in the process of fleeing their home region of the galaxy (which Bruce stated to be the Sigma Octant, as shown on the Milky Way galaxy map; on the way over from the Omega Octant to the Xorkaelian Empire). They truly arrived in force in Y205, and quickly established themselves as a force to be reckoned with. As of Y221, they seemed set to launch an "Echarri Expansion" in the Eighth Cycle, but the nature of that endeavour remains to be seen.

The Scon are, according to Bruce's CL36 article, a species native to subspace, who have been gradually driven insane by "our" use of subspace communications. They have been trying to find ways to construct ships capable of "emerging" in normal space, and are reportedly the cause of the wormholes reported to appear in the Seventh Cycle timeline. (At least one of those wormholes has been retconned out of existence as of the Federation survey cruiser class history article in CL41; the others have been declared by SVC as having no place in the setting, but have yet to be formally edited out.) Their own threat is another Big Event set to happen in the Eighth Cycle, as is (or was) the Wormhole Wars (which, again, may now be nixed as a concept).

The Zosmans are the closest thing Omega has to the Orion, Jumokian, or M81 High Piraate Band raiders. Their hom space seems to be in the Phi Sector, near the Omega/Sigma Void; but they are said to have fled there from some as-yet-unknown point of origin. (Is is speculated that they may have had domething to do with the Bolosco once upon a time, but neither side is willing to discuss the matter). While the Zosmans are willing to act as both pirates and mercenaries, they really take exception to the Bolosco. They don't seem to care much for the Iridani or Qixa, either. According to the CL36 article, their ships were intended to be wholly modular (and to be done last, for reasons I'll go into a bit further down).


As with the V/N/P trio, Each of the E/S/Z powers will have their own thread, with similar info seen in other recent Omega topics (such as the Omega Warships thread).

By Gary Carney (Nerroth) on Wednesday, July 10, 2013 - 09:14 am: Edit

Omega's Lost Futures - The Echarri Dynasty

So far as the Echarri claim, they come from what is most likely to be the Sigma Octant of the Milky Way, which they fled en masse in order to avoid the spectre of Andromedan domination. (Given how much ground the Andros had gained in Omega itself by that time, this may have been a case of jumping from the frying pan into the fire.) Fortunately for them, by the time their full-scale arrival and consolidation in what had once been the home of the now-fallen Branthodon Regime, the threat of the Invasion had already passed.

While we know next to nothing about their pre-Omega history (or even if the Echarri's word can be trusted when it comes to that little we do know), we have a better sense of what they got up to in the Seventh Cycle proper. Their first wave of consolidation took place in Y205, a move which neither the Hivers nor Alunda were in any position to respond to. After establishing a formal border with the Alunda in Y206, they began expanding to coreward, where they encountered the lone Unihive in Y207. (The Unihive were afragment of the Hivers who had fled Hiver home space in Y200 to try and escape the Andromedans and Souldra.)

Once the Echarri realised how weak and isolated the Unihive were, they made their first aggressive move against another Omega power, by rushing (and crushing) the Unihive in Y209. Unwilling to accept slavery in the Dynasty, the Unihive Queen commits suicide, after ordering those cres who survive to seek out their own futures. A surprisingly high percentage of Unihive ships "go rogue", and go on to become a persistent thorn (ahem) in the side of the Dynasty, often operating out of sympathetic Hiver bases (which will cause trouble later on).

In Y214, the Hiver support of the Unihive raiders comes to ahead, as both sides begin massing for war over a fierce border incident is triggered by Echarri ships pursuing Unihive rogues into Hiver-controlled territory. The Echarri-Hiver war lasts from Y215 to Y220, when the Dynasty sues for peace (knowing that they cannot defeat the Hivers at the present time). When the war ends, they extend down to claim thise hexes near the Galactic Rim that had not already been claimed by the Vulpa Confederacy.

Ah, but why would the Vulpa be the ones now at their doorstep by Y221? The answer begins in Y215, with a treaty between the Dynasty and the Alunda Host. The Echarri, looking to get the Alunda to join the fight against the Hivers, offer a treaty providing the resource-strapped Host with an influx of cash and control over several occupied border systems. The Alunda sign the deal, but are not in a position to attack the Hivers until Y216.

But then, in Y218, the Echarri stab the Alunda Host in the back (or whatever the closest equivalent is for an Alunda or Mirn), swarming into Alunda space while showering the Alunda comm net with false messages using cracked codes. By the time the Alunda recover from this miscommunication, half of their space has been lost, and the rest is no longer tenable. The Alunda government conceded defeat and flees to Vulpa space, where they joined the Confederacy; the Echarri and Hivers jumped in to gobble up what remained of Alunda space, their own war still waging for another two years. As of Y221, they had a long border with the Confederacy, stretching from Vulpa-occupied Vari space down to the Galactic Rim.


So, what does that tell us about the Echarri Dynasty?

Right now, we don't know exactly who (or what) the Echarri actually are. Are they a single species of beings, or a collection of species akin to the Mæsron Alliance? If the latter, are all member species at least nominally equal, or is one member clearly in charge (as seen in the Vulpa Confederacy)? And whether they are one species or several, what kind of physiology do they have?

And for that matter, what do they use for their ships? We don't know if they build "normal" metal hulls, or fly some sort of bio-ships, or have some other weird means of comporting themselves as a star nation. There is no news regarding their weapons, either. (Bruce's CL36 article stated that his provisional plan was to sieve through the unused entries in the old Nexus #13 new empire design contest, as was done for the Branthdons in Module Omega 4. But that may not stop the Eharri fleet from being wholly new instead.)

Nor do we know exactly what happened in theor old neck of the woods. Whatever it was they went though, they were still in a good enough position to transport a very large series of convoys onto the map (and through Zosman-infested territories along the way) and establish themselves as a major new power almost overnight. There must have been a serious amount of time and effort put in "back home" in order to get them ready for the crossing.

And quite frankly, we only have their word on what was actually going on bac in Sigma (or wherever). Were they really fleeing from the Andromedans? Could someone else (such as the Xorkaelians, who could come in from the far side of the Sigma/Xork Void) have shown up in force as a threat instead? Or could it have been one or more powers native to Sigma itself who threw out the Dynasty? Or, could they have been lying all along, and perhaps still have a major presence back in Sigma to this day?

If the decision is made to have the Echarri come from Sigma, the question may have to be answered as to how much we need to know about their time there before we get to their new holdings in Omega itself.

On the upside, some of their later innovations (such as X-tech) could be said to take place post-arrival, so wouldn't need to be extrapolated back to their home region of space.


What we do know, however, is that they are by no means shy of conquest, and are both willing and able to subvert a nominal ally in order to further their own ends. Given their show of form in the Seventh Cycle, signing any sort of treaty with them may be a fool's errand. And from a military perspective, the coming Echarri Expansion won't be easy for their new neighbours to handle.


- What do we know about their technology? Not a thing. For all we know, they have an entirely different tech base to anyone else in Omega, just as Omega itself has so many technologies that do not (or cannot) exist in the Alpha Octant. (Perhaps the "Sig-Tech" of the Alunda might face the "Sigma-Tech" of the Echarri.)


- Can they refit their "middle years" ships? Once the previos question is answered, so can this one.


- Are they required to build wholly new "war" classes? As blow-ins from another octant of the galaxy, they have no need to be beholden to Omega's timetable of innovations. "War" classes might not make for good candidates as escorts for their grand exodus, but seem like reasonable ships for them to build quickly as part of their consolidation.


- What about X-ships? There are two options that stand out here. Did they develop their own first-generation X-tech "back home", or adopt it in Omega based on a pre-existing template? If the former, doing X-ships for them might end up with ships that look different to anyone else's. If the latter, that would still be true, but to a lesser extent (if they can be said to use certain common Mæsron-made X-systems).

By Gary Carney (Nerroth) on Wednesday, July 10, 2013 - 09:31 am: Edit

Omega's Lost Futures - The Scon

According to Bruce's CL36 article, the Scon are a species native to subspace. To them, the rapid growth in subspace communications by "us" is an increasingly intolerable intrusion. In order to fix this problem, they have decided to try and materialise themselves (or at least their "ships") in normal space, as a means of forcibly putting an end to whatever is causing this commotion.

The CL36 article claims that the wormholes which appeared in the Seventh Cycle timeline are their doing, as side-effects of their attempts to translate into "our" universe. This is not noted in the published timeline, but may have been placced as part of the "Wormhole Wars" and the "Scon Threat" set to happen in the Eighth Cycle.

(That time period is certainly shaping up to be a busy one...)

The problem with this is that said wormhole appearances may no longer exist. As noted above, the Y214 event (which was the original means of explaining how the Sakharov made its way to the Omega Octant) was retconned in CL41. The others have yet to be formally erased from the timeline, or replaced with some other event instead.

So, even if we get the Scon Threat, the Wormhole Wars may be dead on arrival.


- What do we know about their technology? Supposedly, the Scon have the means to "teleport around and turn space itself against their enemies", but how they did these things has been lost in unrevoerable files. Essentially, the Scon may end up as the next Souldra, in the sense that their "nature" as beings would oblige them to be quite far "out there" in terms of technology. (Bruce did want them to advance their technology to keep up with the "normal space" empires, as far as the X2 era; and for them to be a threat to the entire galaxy, not just to Omega. whether or not either idea holds water has yet to be determined.)


- Can they refit their "middle years" ships? Once the previos question is answered, so can this one.


- Are they required to build wholly new "war" classes? They may now even have "war" classes, as we understand them.


- What about X-ships? If they are supposed to keep up with first- and second-generation X-technology, they may need something at least broadly equivalent. But, as with Alunda "Sig-Tech", whatever they can (or cannot) do will likely be unique in the Star Fleet Universe.

By Gary Carney (Nerroth) on Wednesday, July 10, 2013 - 10:06 am: Edit

Omega's Lost Futures - The Zosman Marauders

Who are the Zosmans?

Are they a lone species (like the Jumokian pirates in the LMC), a motley collection of them (as with the M81 High Pirate Bands), or perhaps simply a term used by rogues and pirates of all shades to identify themselves (like most "Orion" pirates)?

Might they have been related to the KoTanRho (the species which chased the Bolosco out of their original home galaxy)? Or were they a species that one or more Bolosco exodus fleets ran into beyond our galaxy? (Not all Bolosco came to the Omega Octant; others exodus groups may still exist elsehere in the universe.) Or did they have nothing to do with the Bolosco before their arrival in Omega, and the two factions simply fell in hate at first sight?

It is known that "members of the Zosman Marauders" were vulnerable to Sigvirion infection, though we don't know what kind of vaccines they can use to try and counteract this threat.

Whatever their origins, their new core territory seems to be in the Phi Sector, beyond the spinward edge of the Omega Octant map.

(Personally, I would argue that the "Omega area" on the galaxy map is not big enough to account for the full size of the Omega map; and that the latter should extend up to the edge of the Storm Zone and over about halfway or so into the Phi Sector. Otherwise, the Omega map would not be in the same scale as the Federation and Empire map, which would raise far too many complications for my liking. This would still leave the Zosmans with the space between what was left "off-map" and the nearest edge of the Omega/Sigma Void.)

But then, it's not quite clear what makes this territory act as an "off-map" area. Is there something about it that makes it hard for other empires to occupy? (The "on-map" Omega empires don't seem to be able to go there; we don't know if the Andromedans or Souldra were able to thrreaten it; and the Echarri would have had to bypass it in order to get where they were going.) Do the Zosmans themselves properly occupy this region as an "empire" (with planets, provinces, and bases) or do they nerely "infest" it (with various roving bands and more discreet production facilities)? Perhaps they are simply restless as a people/s, and "roam" their territory akin to the nomadic horse tribes which emerged in central Asia on old Earth (while preventing anyone else from establishing a permanent foothold there)? And what kind of resources can it supply to those Zosman bands operating on the Omega map proper?

So far as their pirate operations go, they were noted as being widespread across the Omega Octant as early as Y125, but never made it as far out as the Iridani Cluster.


- What do we know about their technology? Bruce planned for Zosman ships to be wholly modular. He believed that simple option mounts would not suffice, given the wholly diverse nature of Omega technology, and thus each weapon system would need to have its own module. (So you could have an "implosion bolt module" with enough power and adequate radiation shielding to operate IBs, or perhaps a "tachyon gun module" to do the same for TGs, and so on and so forth.) There are a few counter-examples for this (the Bolosco can use different phaser type in the same set of mounts; while an Omega civilian freighter can be re-worked to equip different heavy weapons, abeit not in a modular sense), so perhaps the phasers could go on the base hull, and only the heavy or secondary weapons into such weapon pods. There are certain weapons already explicitly stated as being available to them:

*tachyon missiles,
*short-range cannons,
*focused energy beams,
*fighter shield pods, and
*shuttle bombs.

That would by no means be an exhaustive list, as there are many other weapons or systems implied to be available for Zosmans to use.

(At the same time, there are certain Omega systems they cannot use, such as Sigvirion kinetic wave generators or Iridani target illuminators, or the "out there" weapons of the Alunda and Souldra.)

The central hull would have all of the hull, cargo, engine, and control space boxes, and would remain unchanged for each ship class. Each size of ship would have a certain number of modules. Frigates would get one module (and be a single-mission ship), cruisers four, and the Godfather dreadnoughts six. In addition to weapon modules, the Zosmans would have "mission variant" modules for commando, cargo, carrier, and other purposes. The modular setup is the main reason why Bruce wanted to do the Zosmans last. Since each compatible Omega empire (those with technology the Marauders can actually steal) would need its own module, he didn't want to have to keep adding new modules as new empires were added to the setting. However, since not all new empires would necessarily be compatible, they might not have to be last on the table if those empires after them were deemed to be too exotic for the Zosmans to process.

Aside from this modular setup, the Omega timeline reports a series of stealth fields which were adopted in order to try and outpace the detection capabilities of their target empires. The first Zosman ships were encountered by the Mæsrons and Probr in Y107. In Y114, the Mæsrons figure out how to detect and destroy the first wave of Zosman bases, and pass this information on to the Probr as a gesture of good faith. In Y141, the Mæsrons make another breakthrough, enabling them to counter stealth fields and unciver even more hidden bases. This allows them to flush out nearly all Zosman based in their territory, until a new stealth field innovation in Y148 (and the turmoil of the Collapse) allows the Zosmans to launch a new wave of piracy. By Y186, they are reported as acting as mercenaries across most of the octant. By Y205, the huge losses inflicted upon the local star navies allowed them to raid almost without opposition. The breather at the end of the Seventh Cycle allowed several Omega empires to make one last known anti-piracy effort in Y220, but there's no word on how successful this effort will be by the onset of the Eighth Cycle.

And as for the other two empires in this trio, the Echarri may or may not have some tech that the Marauders can steal (we'll have to wait and see), but the Scon should likely be written off as too "out there" to handle.


- Can they refit their "middle years" ships? If their "middle years" raiders are given the same speed limitations as others in Omega, perhaps. Maybe the warp field limitations are such that a refitted ship has to have one less module than normal? (So, a speed-27 CA with four modules becomes a speed-31 CA+ with only three modules instead.)


- Are they required to build wholly new "war" classes? There would be two issues here. Would these "war" classes still be able to use the old modules, or do they need new ones instead? If only the base hull changes, their supply of older modules will still be valid. If not, this might lead to an increased set of expenses for them.


- What about X-ships? They seem to be a fairly "normal" empire as Omega construction options go, the modular issue notwithstanding. So, they should probably gain access to first-gen X-ships at some point.

By Gary Carney (Nerroth) on Wednesday, July 10, 2013 - 10:10 am: Edit

As for gunboats and workboats, options may vary.

For the Echarri, it may or may not be an option for them. (Even if it is, did they bring their own boats from elsewhere, or adopted "volatile warp" technology once they made it to Omega?)

For the Scon, it's far too soon to tell if the "gunboat" class is something they can (or will) work with.

The Zosmans are already noted as using "volatile warp" technology. Notably, they are said to be among the few Omega empires to actually bother with Interceptors, since they found them easier to disguise with a stealth field. (Stealth fields are voided by the use of afterburners.) Whether they would go so far as to build workboats, or to export them on the open market, remains to be seen.

By Glenn Hoepfner (Ikabar) on Wednesday, July 10, 2013 - 01:20 pm: Edit

As the original creator of the Scon, I'd like to post here what my original ideas were? I still have the original submission somewhere.

The history already indicated (above) is fairly spot on.
The Scon Manifestations (as I called them) used weapons called "Subspace Shockwaves" (a seeking weapon of speed 32 or 64) causing nominal damage and able to change targets after hitting the first target (special rules apply which I have no time right now to get into) and equivelancies to Ph-1s (I think wide phasers).
They entered real-space but required a constant working Tether to subspace (each module had their own tether). If a unit lost its tether, it would simply vanish (be destroyed).
Phasing into real space worked much like a cloaking device fade in/out, but more time consuming. However, weapons fire was allowed during that period but with big penalties.
The FF is a single module (imagine a hex shaped hull filled with FF level systems and weapons).
The CL was two modules put together.
The BC was three modules put together.
Classes between were made by adding diamond packs that have a few more systems/power.
Modules could disengage from other modules. Case in point, the CL, if seperated, would become 2 FFs.
Shields were unique as damage to one shield, between turns, could be transfered to adjoining shields. They are kinda like panels (capacity of 4 per block) and each shield facing can disperse one point. No battery transfers like the Andro.
As long as there was a tether active, it could generate one point of power (replacing APRs as the Scon don't have them)

Again, this was the bulk of my original submission and some or much of this might have been or will be change by the time it reaches publication.

Thank you for your time.

By Gary Carney (Nerroth) on Wednesday, July 10, 2013 - 01:32 pm: Edit

To clarify, would the Tether be envisioned as a discrete object on the map (a portal/wormhole/whatever) that the ships would be somehow connected to, or would each of the ships have a series of "Tether" boxes that would need to be destroyed in order for the ship to vanish back into subspace?

Also, do the Scon "species" manifest as Marines or crewmembers, or have some sort of "encounter suit" they use to interact with normal-space species; or would they be wholly energy-based, akin to the "crew" aboard a Souldra ship?


Personally, I'd be curious as to how some of these technologies might translate into FC, which I suppose wasn't an issue when the Scon were first proposed. (Well, depending on how the FC Omega project goes from here on, it still might not be an issue, but how and ever...)

By Glenn Hoepfner (Ikabar) on Wednesday, July 10, 2013 - 11:54 pm: Edit

I tried to post earlier but failed. This is test for tomorrows response.

By Glenn Hoepfner (Ikabar) on Friday, July 12, 2013 - 12:23 am: Edit

First paragraph: The latter is correct.
Second paragraph: I hadn't thought too much into that, but capture of a scon ship would prove most futile unless the capturers learned the rules quite quickly. The reverse is definitely the true as scon cannot coexist with "real space"
Third paragraph: I have no clue.

This was long ago, and one of the criteria of creating a new race was to establish a species that would exist in the realm of Omega which would not counteract the previously defined boundaries.

This was my best effort (without re-writing boundaries)

By Gary Carney (Nerroth) on Wednesday, January 22, 2014 - 04:54 pm: Edit

Another thought for future consumption:


I was thinking over the kind of weapons that are currently listed as being available for Omega option mounts (errata questions notwithstanding), and recalled the notion of having to give each weapon type it own module (as Bruce Graw suggested back in CL36).

Not to place myself against the Father of Omega on this by any means, but I was thinking that perhaps only some of the available weapons would need to have a dedicated module in order to work.

For example, implosion bolts and type-L/M/H implosion torpedoes are available for use in Omega option mounts. But there is the issue of radiation shielding which non-Trobrin might need to install in order to not suffer a lingering death through radiation poisoning. So you could imagine the Zosmans building a "model-T" weapon module, intended to carry one or more of the Trobrin weapon types (and which may have the required radiation shielding factored into its economic BPV).

But on the other hand, many of the other weapon systems (tachyon guns, FEBs, particle beams, etc) don't seem to need any particularly onerous logistical issues for their respective crews to operate them. There'd be a difference between those weapons that would benefit from AWRs over APRs (such as photon torpedoes or antimatter cannons), or those which might need no power to operate (such as tachyon missiles), or those optional systems that might help support a ship's EW suite (such as special sensors and JPRs, unless an errata update takes the latter option away). But there seem to be at least some broad categories in which a broad analogue to some old-fashioned option mounts might work.

Or to put it another way, perhaps the Zosmans could have a range of "model-[insert letter here]" weapon modules, each of which would have a certain sub-set of weapon type it can put into its option mounts.

Say:

*A "model-W" type which added extra AWRs (which would be good for photon torpedo or antimatter cannon use),
*A "model-P" with standard APRs, (for tachyon guns, sting torpedoes, etc.),
*A "model-M" for tachyon missile types (and with a few cargo boxes to store extra missiles to be re-loaded between engagements),
*A "model-E" for escort use (for SRCs, more phasers, and possibly a limited Aegis system),
*A "model-S" (with room for special sensors and the option of taking JPRs),
*The aforementioned "model-T" (for handling implosion-based weaponry),
and what other types may be required that I'm not thinking of right now.

That would cut down on the amount of SSD space you'd need to account for the Zosmans' array of weapon options, but still make things distinct when compared to how Orion, WYN, M81 Pirate, or Jumokian option mounts are set up.


Does any of that seem like it might work?

By Nick Samaras (Koogie) on Thursday, January 23, 2014 - 09:47 pm: Edit

Well, considering there hasn't been an Omega Module since about 2007 and longer since a ship appeared in a Captain's Log...

By Gary Carney (Nerroth) on Friday, January 24, 2014 - 12:56 am: Edit

While we do have to wait for a chance to see another Omega module make the cut (let alone get around to the one that might handle this trio of "lost empires"), or to see how much (if any) room can be set aside for non-Alpha SSDs in future issues of Captain's Log, I figured that any of the ideas or concepts in threads like this one which are of at least some worth may be useful if/when the time comes to move the Omega project forward.

There are plenty of older threads elsewhere on the BBS which had to wait quite a while before they came to fruition, and others still which have yet to mark their own moments in the sun. But, as Bruce Graw noted when the Branthodons were published back in Module Omega 4, "there is no statute of limitations on good ideas".

(Not that I'm saying any of my ideas are good ones, mind you. But still...)

By Michael Grafton (Mike_Grafton) on Friday, January 24, 2014 - 09:03 pm: Edit

Actually, it might be interesting to see how many "races" are proposed out there...

I'm going to guess over a hundred...

By Glenn Hoepfner (Ikabar) on Friday, January 24, 2014 - 09:49 pm: Edit

Sadly. it appears the Scon is on the backburner, but y'know, it ain't bad that it, at one time, was considered.
That being said, I'm thrilled that the opportunity existed.
It was fun while it lasted.

By Gary Carney (Nerroth) on Tuesday, January 28, 2014 - 05:20 pm: Edit

I hope your time will come eventually, Glenn.

-----

So, in terms of how the modules themselves might work out, I was thinking to the setup Bruce had in mind; one module for a frigate, four for a CA, six for a DN, etc.

Perhaps one way to go about things would be to divide a ship's slots into "active" and "passive" ones. As in, only the "active" ones can mount the various heavy weapon modules, while the "passive" ones would be for things like cargo, commando, minesweeper, or other such support roles. (The "active" modules could be on the prow, and the "support" modules in the centre of the ship's main hull. "Peacetime" classes would be able to put "passive" modules in the "active" slots, but "wartime" hulls would not.)

Since a frigate would have a single module, it may have a lone "active" (or "passive") slot up front. One could stretch the FF hull forward to allow enough room for a "passive" module amidships, resulting in the DD. (While a DW could have two "active" module slots instead, but be incapable of taking "passive" modules at all.)

Similarly, while a CA would have four modules, only two of them can be "active" (but all four can be "passive"); so a CL (or CF) might have one "active" and two "passive", a war cruiser could have two "active" and one "passive" modules, and so on. (Like the DW, the CW would not be able to use the "active" slots to fit "passive" modules.)

And while a DN would have six modules (three "active", three "passive"), a DNL could have a 2+3 configuration, or a BCH 3+2. Plus there might even be dedicated support variants (akin to the Orion Viking), which may have a higher ratio of "passive"-only module slots.

If each "active" module had two adjacent centerline option mounts, that would keep the degree of firepower per class at a reasonable level relative to what is seen in other fleets. (If a given ship class had a number of "active" slots which risked a potential imbalance, perhaps it would have a fewer amount of phaser mounts on the hull proper for "dynamic balance purposes". Or be given a Shock rating, akin to that of the New Jersey.)


So, the list would be something like this:

Class	Active	Passive
FF	1	0
DD	1	1
DW	2*	0
CL	1	2
CW	2*	1
CF	1	2
CA	2	2
BCH	3*	2
DNL	2	3
DN	3	3
DNH	4*	3
BBL	3	4
BB	4	4

*"Active" slots only


Not counting any dedicated support hulls, which may have a higher "passive"-to-"active" ratio.


Does that seem like it might work well, or would a different module alignment be a better option?

By Glenn Hoepfner (Ikabar) on Tuesday, January 30, 2018 - 04:56 pm: Edit

Wow, 4 years and 2 days later I see your post, Gary.

I think your module alignment is definitely more elaborated than I had expected, and yet may be easier to implement than my more "simplified" idea (which I had never been a huge fan of the diamond packs).
The BB would be a HUGE SSD.

I'll see if I can find in my archives a sample SSD of the CA.

Wow, I should check this thread more often.

By Gary Carney (Nerroth) on Wednesday, January 31, 2018 - 01:18 pm: Edit

If you haven't seen them already, there are rules and SSDs for six playtest Zosman Marauder units in Captain's Log #50, the Captain's Log #50 Supplemental File, and Captain's Log #52. There is a discussion thread for these Zosmans over here.

For the time being, the playtest SSDs have generic "weapon" and "system" modules; there is an update file in CL52 which (I hope) clarifies the various options that can be taken for them.

By Mike Grafton (Mike_Grafton) on Tuesday, January 24, 2023 - 07:44 am: Edit

If only SVC had the time to mess with player empire/ race proposals... And yes, I know it seems to be low return unless the race/ empire needs very little "SVC time..."

By Gary Carney (Nerroth) on Tuesday, January 24, 2023 - 10:35 am: Edit

In fairness, there has been a degree of forward progress on the "Omega's Lost Futures" file in recent issues of Captain's Log.

As noted in my last post, the Zosman Marauders have been featured in CL50, CL50SF, and CL52; there's even a number of Zosman miniatures over on ADB's Shapeways storefront. Although any feedback on this playtest material would be best posted over in this BBS thread.

Also, Captain's Log #54 introduces a set of four antiproton variant ships for the Paravians of Omega - variants which, conveniently enough, are intended to use the same Shapeways miniatures as their "lost empire" Paravian counterparts over in SFB Module C6. Any feedback on those ships should perhaps be posted over in this thread.