Archive through September 27, 2018
Star Fleet Universe Discussion Board: Star Fleet Battles: Rules Questions:
SFB Rules Q&A:
Archive through September 27, 2018
Very sensible, sir, and was my first guess too.
However, it DOES beg a "Kick around the Cold Ones" question (at least in my alleged mind) about drone racks there.
IF the HDW is set up with all NWO boxes assigned as shuttles and the Power Option ALSO set up as shuttle, with the ship operating as a Mobile Carrier, BUT the two aft Option Weapon mounts are drone racks, would the drones be regular drones or would they have to be treated as type F drone racks, subject to potential chain reaction.
If not, why are drones protected from that, but drogues are not.
(BTW: I am aware that this question may only exist in my mind from having tossed down a few too many of the aforementioned "Cold Ones" and the brain freeze is more serious than I think...) 
Jeffrey George Anderson:
For what it is worth, you have to picture the drone racks as basically sealed systems. That is to say that the drone racks are contained in an armored module that slides into the weapon mount. Now the module is obviously pierced in a number of ways (the power connections, the systems connections for fire control, personnel access, and of course an access for reload drones to be delivered, and etc.). But this module is designed such that when it is inserted into the weapon option it effectively places a wall (even if that wall is, again, pierced by a hatch, but that hatch is designed to withstand, within limits, the explosion of an armed fighter in the bay) between the rack and what would have been the rest of the shuttle bay.
Note that I mention "within limits" because a chain reaction explosion scores "an additional internal" and that additional internal can strike virtually anywhere on a ship (distributed by the Damage Allocation Chart), meaning it might be a "drone" damage point and thus destroy the drone rack.
Drogues are not protected because they are a "shuttle space." You do not install drogues anywhere but in a shuttle bay. And while the drone rack module has a "drone port," a drogue requires the use of a "shuttle hatch." And as noted, converting boxes (whether power options, weapons options, or non-weapon options) on a heavy war destroyer does not add any additional shuttle hatches, i.e., the drogues you are installing still need to use the existing shuttle hatch, or hatches, and thus have to be connected to the rest of the shuttle bay.
Under E11.17 a 10 ship ie a 12 ship fleet by S8. can have 8 total PPDs. DN scout and 10 ships.
Under S8 the ISC can have a gunline of 6 ships counting as 4 for command rating. Increasing the fleet to
DN, scout, gunline 3DD, 3FF, 1CC, 2CA, 3CL. (any combination of 6 ships plus the gunline) total ships 14. E11.17 still says max 8PPDs.
I am asking if I have this correct?
Gregory S. Flusche:
I am at home just now, so I will look into it when I get to the office tomorrow. From memory, yes, eight is an absolute limit.
Ok my mind is slipping it seems.
Quick question on the way Carrier escorts are set up...as in which are required. With say the Hydran UH Carrier in 169...the R section says it needs De, 2 EH. So is that it needs a single De or 2 EH. Or it needs all 3? Seems a bit excessive to need all 3? Also Can a UH have two DE escort it per S8 or is one the max it can have per carrier?
Charles Carroll:
DE, 2xEH does mean all three escorts are required.
It would have to read something like DE or 2xEH to go the way you are asking.
If it reads something like DE/DWE, 2xEH you could use either the DE or the DWE, but you would still have to have both the EHs.
Beyond that I will have to look at Module G3A, the Hydran Master Starship Book, and rule (S8.0) when I get to the office.
Gregory S. Flusche:
Rule (R11.17) as it appears in the Master Rulebook says that the Inter-Stellar Concordium is limited to the number of PPDs on the 'flagship' (which max out at four on the dreadnought or battleship) plus one for each group of three ships, counting any ships left over (after dividing them into threes) as a group of three with a maximum overall limit of nine (9) PPDs. So in the case of your Fleet:
DN (4 PPDs), 2xDDs and 1xCA (as first group of three ships, now five total PPDs), 2xFF, 1xCA (as second group of three ships, now six total PPDs), 1xDD, 1xFF, 1xScout (as third group of three ships, seven PPDs now authorized), 2xCL 1xCC (as fourth group of three ships, eight PPDs authorized, and eight in use), and 1xCL (counting as fifth group of three ships even though it is a single ship, but the left over fraction rounds up whether it is one ship or two ships, which authorizes a ninth PPD but the fleet as defined cannot use it). Note that you could, legitimately replace one of the CAs with a CA(T) which has no PPD and change one of the CLs to a CS which has two PPDs, or alternatively replace one of the three CLs with a CM (which has one PPD) giving you the full nine PPDs allowed.
NOTE SPECIFICALLY that my groupings above have nothing to do with anything other than showing three ships authorizing a PPD. The fact is that the fleet as given had a DN and 13 other ships, and the 13 other ships broke down into four full counts of three ships and with one ship left over counting thus as a group of three ships in its own right under the rule as given in the Master Rulebook, so the fleet was authorized what was on the flagship (four PPDs) and five additional PPDs for the five groups of ships. The five PPDs could have been three CAs and a CC or CS, two CSs and a CA or CM. or two CAs, a CM and a CC or CS. Five PPDs are authorized in the fleet in addition to the four on the DN, how you arrange the fleet to use (or not use) the allowed five PPDs is up to you.
Note that a DNT has only two PPDs, but would still be the flagship, and if the fleet proposed used a DNT instead of a DN, it would max out at seven (7) PPDs because the "flagship" has only two, and the rule is "what the flagship has plus." You do not get to use a DNT and then use five CAs and a CC or CS, three CSs and a CA or CM, or three CAs, two CMs and a CC or CS.
Charles Carroll:
If you are using the patrol rules (S8.0), the basic rule requires that the carrier appear with the escorts given in its ship description (S8.31).
There is a caveat that the players can mutually agree to ignore that rule [(S8.0) introduction] entirely, or modify, or adopt the alternate rule in (S8.315). Note: MUTUAL CONSENT. You cannot force your opponent to let you use (S8.315), or just totally ignore (S8.31) and do whatever you wish.
Note also that the extended ship description in the Hydran Master Starship Book CAN allow you to replace the DE/DA in a Uhlan group with a NEC/NAC, but this would be exceedingly rare. And if you are using (S8.315) and providing the Uhlan with "flexible escorts," its one escort must be a DE/DA, or DWE/DWA, or EH/AH.
Thanks Steve. I was afraid of that lol. The carrier becomes a carrier group all on its on lol.
SPP
Thank You so very much. I am adding it up correctly. Other then the realization that I can have 9 PPDs. One has to love the Battle group. The rules also say i can put carrier escorts in the battle group. So i could buy a Carrier of some type as well just have the escorts in the gunline.
Gregory S. Flusche:
Within limits. You can put an FFE/FFA and/or a DE/DEA in the Gunline Battlegroup, but not a CLE/CLA. There are not a lot of cruiser sized ISC carriers that do not include a CLE/CLA, and it is questionable when forming an echelon if the smaller carriers are worthwhile in such a situation. But as the smaller carriers are ultimately themselves "destroyer type" and "frigate type" hulls they could be in the Gunline Battlegroup as well along with their escorts.
EDIT: Nope, I am wrong, the FFV and CVE cannot be part of a Gunline Battlegroup because both are "true carriers," but their escorts can be part of a Gunline Battlegroup.
Yes I made the same mistake this turn in the campaign we are playing.
Sent a DWL,2DW,DWV,DWA,DDL and DD. seven ships. Was thinking 6 size class 4. For the Battle group and one command ship. The DWL CR5.. OOOPs.
Gregory S. Flusche:
To be clear, you could not form a battle group at all (unless the ship's were an ISC force) as neither a true carrier (the DWV) nor a carrier escort (the DWA) can be in a battle group (the ISC have a specific exception allowing their carrier escorts to be in Gunline battle groups).
A battle group can be six ships counting as five, and you have only five ships eligible to be in a battle group at all (DWL, 2xDW, DDL, DD), so the five ships count as five ships (you do not get, as you are aware, to count five ships as four ships by claiming the five ships are a battle group, a battle group MUST consist of six ships).
Strange question. Had a ship hit an esg...that was a range 3. He side slipped into it. It was a straight up and down line...where he hit it in the middle of the line. And the rule G23.513 seems to invalidate all concepts of shield impacts. As in it says...the shield hit is the one toward the ship with the ESG....so even though his number 6 crossed into the esg first...because the ship if it fired at him would be on his number one...it means the ESG hit his number 6. Is this how it should be handled? Since it would appear to be like hitting the wall of a tourney barrier...and be the number 6...yet....the rule says it is the number 1.
I will not be in the office until Monday, at least normally. If you really need this, I will head in to check the rules.
Nah it has happened...was in a RAT game...and they went with the belief that it hit his front shield as the rule seems to state. But for the future. I would like clarification because this seems very...opposite of every other rule to me.
Charles Carroll:
In re ESG question.
The rule is pretty clear that if all the tie-breakers are resolved, the shield facing the generating ship is the shield that is hit.
I have a question regarding rule S8.317.
Rule says:
(S8.317) One or two carrier escorts (no more than one size class 3)
could be assigned to protect tugs, FRDs, repair ships, PFTs, or
convoys.
Does it mean in a fleet action, an escort can be used to escort a BT even if no carrier are present?
Michael Trahan:
Loosely, that is what it means.
Question regarding (S8.47) DRONE SHIPS:
Rules state that no more then 1 in 3 can be a drone ship. My question is regarding F5D, E4D and E3D. Since they are not DB ships, are they in the limit of 1 in 3 ships and in the maximum of 3 per fleet or are they considered standard warships?
As the years progress, those small ships usually needs to go to drone version to have any chances to survive battles.
Michael Trahan:
It applies to all drone ships. Not just drone bombardment ships. That is why the text says "as well as any variant which replaces all of the base hull's heavy weapons with drone racks."
The F5D, E4D, and E3D all replace the disruptors of the base F5, E4, and E3 with drone racks and are drone ships for the purpose of the rule.
Michael Trahan:
Correction to your question about tugs and carrier escorts.
Rule (S8.317) comes into Star Fleet Battles by way of Federation & Empire. As a result there are some dichotomies between them.
However, Federation & Empire is specific that escorts can only be provided to tugs that are essentially "moving cargo," that is acting as a supply point or moving economic points.
There is also an exception for a tug acting as a carrier, and under that proviso a tug with a battle pod/light battle pod and a light carrier pod (in the case of the Federation) would qualify as a carrier.
Repair ships cannot be attacked in Federation & Empire, but obviously can be in Star Fleet Battles, and that would obviously include a "repair tug."
Convoys can have the escorts, as can PFTs.
The last dichotomy is the Fleet Repair Dock, and a fast look at the rule that I have in Federation & Empire Fighter Operations does not mention such, but rule (S8.317) does.
The upshot is that the only way you are assigning escorts to a "battle tug" is if the tug in question also qualifies as a carrier. A tug with a battle pod and a cargo pod does not qualify as a cargo tug (a tug with one or two self-defense pods would) and cannot be assigned carrier escorts.
Thanks Steve for both rules clarification.
Rules question for D15.126
Where do the Commander's Option Points come from to buy the Ground Defensive Systems (GDS)?
The whole force? A single ship? Which ship?
Asking for a friend...
Randy Blair:
The rule is basically assuming the defending force has Commander's Option Points available, whether on defending ships, or on other defending ground bases. Note that the rule only allows one GDS to be added to any control station, and any control station that already had three GDS cannot have a fourth one added by this rule.