Archive through November 30, 2022
Star Fleet Universe Discussion Board: Star Fleet Battles: Battle Forces for Captain's Log:
Archive through November 30, 2022
In your defense it was a little odd this time around with the stickied post being different that the rules for this battle force.
Omega Cartel, Raiding Force Victor-Victor Mk I Mod III
C6 Paravian Alternate Timeline
Jeff Guthridge Little Rock, Arkansas
| Ship | OPT Mounts | CMDRs | Subtotal | Total | Balance |
| Double-Jepardy (DBR) | A: QWT-FA, B: QWT-FA, C: AWR, D: QWT-LF+L, E: QWT-RF+R | Package A | 100+0+5 | 105 | 105 |
| Double-Cross (DBR) | A: QWT-FA, B: QWT-FA, C: AWR, D: QWT-LF+L, E: QWT-RF+R | Package A | 100+0+5 | 105 | 210 |
| Pro Se (LR+) | A: AWR, B: QWT-FA, C: QWT-FA | Package B | 73+0+6 | 79 | 289 |
| Ex Parti (LR+) | A: AWR, B: QWT-FA, C: QWT-FA | Package B | 73+0+6 | 79 | 368 |
| Objection! (LR+) | A: QWT-FA, B: ADD-12, C: ADD-12 | Package C | 73+2+14 | 89 | 457 |
| Certiorari (LRS+) | A: Probe | none | 93+0+0 | 93 | 550 |
Commander's Options:
Package A: One T-bomb (4) and convert two BPs to Commandos (1) for 5 BPV total.
Package B: One T-bomb (4) and two extra Commandos (2) for 6 BPV total.
Package C: One T-bomb (4), replace 8 ADDs (4 per rack) with Type VI-M drones (2+2), 24 extra ADD rounds (6) for 14 BPV total.
Editorial note: As it was implied that I was rules-lawyering with the initial presentation of this battle force, I decided to lean into that theme in the naming of the ships, all in good humor of course. Certiorari (from Writ of Certiorari) is a directive for a lower court to present all of the relevant records to the Supreme Court, so in this context, it works well for a scout.
Jeff's comments: If I've done my sums right, Objection! will have 8 ADDs and 4 Type VI-M loaded in each rack, with 16 ADDs and 8 Type VI-M for reloads before the extra supply of 24 ADDs on board as Commander's options. 14 <= (73 * 20%) so I do not think I have not overspent on my options budget.
With a good number of participants naming the ships in their group, I kinda feel like I gotta do so as well. Thing is, what sort of names do Hivers give their ships? With your indulgence, I'd like to present some potentials based on assumptions I have.
First assumption: Hivers don't "Human Talk." It has been established as part of Omega Canon that Queens can telepathically contact ANY member of her hive. This implies a genetic predisposition towards telepathic communicative abilities among the whole species (at least to my way of thinking).
For this reason, I'm assuming that Hivers communicate among themselves with telepathy as much, if not more, than with vocalizations.
Second assumption: with their communication being largely telepathic (and possibly chemical?), Hiver naming conventions won't fit the same naming conventions as we normally apply them. The given "Identity" a ship might have could easily just be more a feeling or a subconscious "Understanding" about what ship is being talked about.
Besides, with her telepathic networks, I'm expecting a Queen to have a specific empathic understanding of which ship is which.
With these two assumptions in mind, here are "Names" I'm considering...
1. "Guards the Hive from those who would attack it." Translation: "Guardian"
2. "Protects the Hive from threats." Translation: "Protector"
3. "Secures the Hive and Queen." Translation: "Security"
4. "Defends the Hive from enemies." Translation: "Defender"
5. "Alertly watches for those who may come to try and harm the Hive" Translation: "Watcher"
"Watcher" is the scout.
As always for these discussions, I welcome feedback on these ideas. 
I like the names Jeff!
They give me a buzz.
Randy
CLASSIC FLIVVER
by Michael F. Guntly
USS Missouri
FLIVVER:
DW “Duesenberg Model J” (115): replace 9 hyperdrones in magazines with type IM drones (0); replace 2 explosive drones with probe drones (0); replace 2 explosive drones with ECM drones (0); add extended range to ECM drones (+1); replace 1 explosive drone with starfish drone (+2); 1x T-Bomb (+4); 2x Boarding Party (+1) = 123.
[Cargo storage consists of 75 hyper, 12 explosive, 5 ECM, 5 probe, 3 star.]
DW “Rolls Royce Silver Ghost Torpedo” (115): replace 9 hyperdrones in magazines with type IM drones (0); replace 2 explosive drones with probe drones (0); replace 2 explosive drones with ECM drones (0); add extended range to ECM drones (+1); replace 1 explosive drone with starfish drone (+2); 1x T-Bomb (+4); 2x Boarding Party (+1) = 123.
[Cargo storage consists of 75 hyper, 12 explosive, 5 ECM, 5 probe, 3 star.]
DW “Stearns Knight” (115): replace 9 hyperdrones in magazines with type IM drones (0); replace 2 explosive drones with probe drones (0); replace 2 explosive drones with ECM drones (0); add extended range to ECM drones (+1); replace 1 explosive drone with starfish drone (+2) = 118.
[Cargo storage consists of 75 hyper, 12 explosive, 5 ECM, 5 probe, 3 star.]
FF “Studebaker Roadster” (90): replace 6 hyperdrones in magazines with type IM drones (0); replace 1 explosive drone with probe drone (0); replace 1 explosive drone with ECM drone (0); add extended range to ECM drone (+0.5); replace 1 explosive drone with starfish drone (+2); 1x Boarding Party (+0.5) = 93.
[Cargo storage consists of 75 hyper, 13 explosive, 4 ECM, 4 probe, 4 star.]
FF “DeSoto Roadster” (90): replace 6 hyperdrones in magazines with type IM drones (0); replace 1 explosive drone with probe drone (0); replace 1 explosive drone with ECM drone (0); add extended range to ECM drone (+0.5); replace 1 explosive drone with starfish drone (+2); 1x Boarding Party (+0.5) = 93.
[Cargo storage consists of 75 hyper, 13 explosive, 4 ECM, 4 probe, 4 star.]
TOTAL = 550.
Omega Cartel, Raiding Force Victor-Victor Mk I Mod IV
C6 Paravian Alternate Timeline
Jeff Guthridge Little Rock, Arkansas
| Ship | OPT Mounts | CMDRs | Subtotal | Total | Balance |
| Double-Jepardy (DBR) | A: QWT-FA, B: QWT-FA, C: QWT-FA, D: QWT-LF+L, E: QWT-RF+R | Package A | 100+0+5 | 105 | 105 |
| Double-Cross (DBR) | A: QWT-FA, B: QWT-FA, C: QWT-FA, D: QWT-LF+L, E: QWT-RF+R | Package A | 100+0+5 | 105 | 210 |
| Pro Se (LR+) | A: QWT-FA, B: QWT-FA, C: QWT-FA | Package B | 73+0+6 | 79 | 289 |
| Ex Parti (LR+) | A: QWT-FA, B: QWT-FA, C: QWT-FA | Package B | 73+0+6 | 79 | 368 |
| Objection! (LR+) | A: QWT-FA, B: ADD-12, C: ADD-12 | Package C | 73+2+14 | 89 | 457 |
| Certiorari (LRS+) | A: Probe | none | 93+0+0 | 93 | 550 |
Commander's Options:
Package A: One T-bomb (4) and convert two BPs to Commandos (1) for 5 BPV total.
Package B: One T-bomb (4) and two extra Commandos (2) for 6 BPV total.
Package C: One T-bomb (4), replace 8 ADDs with Type VI-M drones (2+2), 4 extra Type VI-M (3), and 12 extra ADD rounds (3) for 14 BPV total.
Editorial note: As it was implied that I was rules-lawyering with the initial presentation of this battle force, I decided to lean into that theme in the naming of the ships, all in good humor of course. Pro Se is a legal term that roughly translates as "for one's self" and is used to describe someone acting as their own council in court. Ex Parti is a legal term that roughly translates as "one side only" and is used to describe actions where the court only speaks to one side of the case in a hearing or action. Certiorari (from Writ of Certiorari) is a directive for a lower court to present all of the relevant records to the Supreme Court, so in this context, it works well for a scout.
Jeff's comments: I'm an idiot... when I came up with the original notion of this force, I was applying the size class three engine doubling rules universally. G15.213 doesn't read that way. After that discovery the need for AWRs to bolster the longevity of the attrition abilities of the force is rendered moot. This force removes the AWRs and replaces them with more QWTs, 17 in total. Note: All QWTs are FA arc, except the DBRs wing mounts are LF+L/RF+R. Objection! will have 8 ADDs and 4 Type VI-M loaded in each rack. That leaves a total of 40 ADDs and 20 Type VI-Ms for reloads.
I know I'm cutting it a bit close to the deadline, but I ask to withdraw my Zosman force from consideration for this battle round.
I don't know if I'll think of another empire to submit in time. But if not, there's always the next round... or the one after that, perhaps.
Don't do it Gary! I was hoping to see a good Zosman tactical analysis.
As the only other Omega submission (I think), I would also very much have liked to see the tactics for them.
TBH, I was expecting to be paird up against them, so I've also been thinking about how I'd fly them (hey, I'm not much of a tactician, but as I figure things, fly both sides, come up with enemy expectations, and plan a defense against it).
Two thoughts came to mind. The group presented had engine refits for all of its ships, so the possibility of a high speed "Slash-and-Run" seems reasonable, especially with the long range accuracy of the Tachyon Guns.
(Also, the arming levels are tailored to the firing ship determining the range of engagement.)
The other attack plan is the close range knife fight; both sides under the penalties of passive fire control, courtesy of the Stealth Field, make it an obvious plan.
A variant on that plan is the "Bait-and-Switch," in which the Zosman appears to be on a "Slash-and-Run," but fires at a range that's not optimal right before engaging the Stealth Field (although power requirements make that iffy) and is perfectly protected from counterfire.
Another "Bait-and-Switch" involves closing under the Stealth Field for the knife fight, but then going active at ranges outside of the five hex maximum for direct fire under passive fire control.
(Among us, I find the Zosman designs to be pretty darned cool and have even come up with a Battleforce 550 Zosman group of my own.)
First empire listed enters from the left side of a standard SFB map, second empire listed enters from the right side. Both enter on turn # anywhere along their side of the map, both speed Max, WS-III. an object has appeared in hex 2215 of the map, and the forces are charged with both gathering as much inofrmation (labs, probes, special sensors, BUT NOT SHUTTLES, this is not a monster scenario) and denying information to the opposing force. The object will disappear from the map at the end of Turn #15. Any ship can disengage from the map by exiting off of the edge it entered from, leaving from any other edge will count as the ship being destroyed.
R4J Romulan (Chobot) versus Andromedan (Eitzen)
Federation (Crutchfield) versus Jindarian (Douglas Power)
Klingon (Soren Klein) versus Kzinti (Fay)
Tholian (Trevor) versus LDR (Merritt)
Paravian (Flusche) versus ISC (Downing)
Orion (Guthridge) versus Gorn (Blank)
Hiver (Anderson) versus Loryill (McMurray)
Hydran (Sledge) versus Lyran (Frazier)
SPP, Jeff Anderson withdrew his Chlorophon force and submitted multiple versions of a Hiver force. Will I be facing Chlorophon or Hivers?
Ginger Mcmurray:
Sorry about that, it would be Hiver.
Whew! I haven't looked at the Hiver SSDs but the Chlorophon ones pointed to an almost guaranteed loss. LOL
Can someone please give me info on the Hiver Barb-2? I found the SSDs for the ships in SFBOL but it doesn't have an image of the fighters. At least not somewhere this newb can find.
The Paravians have been paired vs the ISC.
I looked to see what the ISC force is. I noticed it was a bit incomplete. Checked for a updated force but cannot find any updates.
The Force I see as is.
1 CVE (100 BPV) with 7 plasmaD fighters. and 1EW fighter 13'7 +12 (103 BPV)
1 DE escort (DEA ?) (88 BPV)
1 DDG plasma G destroyer (90 BPV)
1 Scout. (126 BPV)
507BPV total. A few T-bombs deck crews is about right.
Is this the right force?
SPP - Request for clarification: Can EW fighters gather information on this object? G4.13 lists them as a separate type of source from Administrative Shuttles, but I wanted to check before I submit something invalid.
Barb-2 from the Omega Master Fighter Chart.
Speed: 14*
Phaser: 2xPW-3-FX
Missiles: --
DMG: 14*
Special: 1xST-FA, 5 energy
BPV: 10/14
Year: 141
DFR: 2
Ref: 10.F2
Please note that I put the asterix in for both Speed and Damage because the rules for Hiver Fighters allow the energy to be alotted for purposes on increasing speed (at a rate of four points of additional speed for each full point of power) and to put forth a minimal shield (maximum of one energy point for a one point shield).
Looks like I'm in for a bit of a challenge...
Good luck to us all, and may we have brilliant solutions!
J
Does the energy recharge on its own and do the STs have charges?
The Barbs power recharges every turn, note that they have to pay out of that reserve to rearm phasers, the sting torpedo each Barb has. Also note the Barb-2 can overload their torpedo, if overloaded it is 32 impulses before it can overload it again.
The power is marked off as used, effectively being reserve power, at full strength. i.e. no halving to use unallocated.
Thanks!
SPP: Are information points gained shared throughout the force or do only ships that survive the encounter add their total? Can the info be dumped onto one ship to flee after the bulk of the info points have been retrieved?
In other words, is it worthwhile to crush the OppFor’s ships with the best gathering facilities before they escape, or are the points once-gathered forever as long as one unit escapes?
Well boy howdy, I sure seem to like hopeless odds…. Had I known that it would be a science hunt, I’d have selected a different force.
Heeey….. The rules say I can revise up to 30 November, thats tomorrow? (Relax, unless I’m given specific leave to do so, I won’t try, I selected blind and got bitten for it, even if I selected what appears to be a lore-correct raiding force)
This will be interesting to chew on. We email our tactics rather than post here, correct?
Hey, Ted!
Seems my Klingon Squadron has come a little short of drones during pre-planning.
Would you mind helping me out and sending some of yours over to me?
:-D
Mit freundlichen Grüßen
Sören Klein
I was a little unsure last time too, Jeff, but yeah, we email SPP with our tactics.
The formal format is we need to do all of what we see in the columns in Captain's Log, including our names, state/province, etcetera.
EWFs are treated as per (G4.13), so are fighters with EW pods. Shuttles normally would count as labs, but I have excluded that function but I did not exclude EWFs or fighters with pods.
Jeff Guthridge, the lab information gathered can be transferred to a ship friendly to that player on the map, but cannot be transferred off the map other than by a ship leaving the map with the information.