Positron Torpedo:- Positon!

By R. Brodie Nyboer (Radiocyborg) on Monday, January 26, 2004 - 10:38 pm: Edit

Photon Torpedo works for me.

By Loren Knight (Loren) on Monday, January 26, 2004 - 11:33 pm: Edit

Photon Torpedo is the accurate term. It is a huge blast of photonic radiation.

Photons are not powered with mater/anti-matter they are charged with warp plasma.

By Christopher E. Fant (Cfant) on Monday, January 26, 2004 - 11:48 pm: Edit

Ya know, the Fed weapon has been photon torpedo since Star Trek began. Could you please not try to changee everything about thee game with X2? It is not that far into the future of thee timeline.

Sheesh.

By John Trauger (Vorlonagent) on Tuesday, January 27, 2004 - 12:42 am: Edit

I tend to agree.

By michael john campbell (Michaelcampbell) on Wednesday, January 28, 2004 - 10:02 pm: Edit

I'm just looking for something to restore racial flavour.

If we have X2 ships having merely fastloaded 16 point photons or 6 Disruptors with built in UIM...where's the big difference between 32 points of damage per turn and 30!?!...each and every turn?

By Christopher E. Fant (Cfant) on Wednesday, January 28, 2004 - 10:31 pm: Edit

It does make sense that, as time passes, technology will become more similar.

By Jeff Wile (Jswile) on Thursday, January 29, 2004 - 10:17 am: Edit

There is another alternative, though not a good one IMO.

What if, X2 photons were designed to "double shot" standard photons?

I mean, the infra structure is already in earlier generations (X1 GW MY) to power 16 point overloads, this idea assumes that the "Chamber" that holds the photon torpedo in its tube were redesigned so that 2 normal photons could be loaded and fired at the same cost of one overloaded photon...and doing the same total damage (assuming both hit) that one overloaded Photon would do.

For this idea to "fly" there would need to be advatages and disadvantages to differentiate between 1 photon loads and 2 photon loads.

Just off the top of my head, I would suggest that double shotted photons would not be able to exceed the range of a overloaded photon.

a second question that must be answered is if double shotted photons could be independently targeted...or must they be "slaved" to the same fire control solution?

a third question would be the minimum range...IMO double shotted photons may not be used at the 0 hex range and therefore are not "automatic hits" so normal overloads would hold the advantage in that comparision. (also, it eliminates the concerns over feedback damage from successful photons.)

A forth question is holding cost...if double shotted photons could be held at the normal (per torp) energy cost or if they couldnt be held at all.

a 5th question (technically already addressed, but included incase anyone missed it) is double shotted photons may never be armed with proximity settings.

A sixth question, (which might come up) is could double shotted photons be used against attrition units such as fighters or PF's? (the idea of a X2 ship being even more effective against PF's would also explain why PF's lost popularity over time.)

This idea also has the virtue that by using the standard photon as the base of the proposal no new rules need to be written for changes in ranges, damage, electronic warfare and many other rules sections.

By Tos Crawford (Tos) on Thursday, January 29, 2004 - 11:34 am: Edit

So the photon goes from 1/2 turn to 1/turn to 2/turn?

In theory I like it, it normalizes the damage curve, which is good.

I'll have to think more about your points but it isn't worth forcing them both to be launched at the same time, you wouldn't gain anything vs. an overload. I'd suggest you can fire them twice per turn but not within 8 impulses.

By Mike Raper (Raperm) on Thursday, January 29, 2004 - 11:46 am: Edit

Well, firing more but smaller does help guarentee at least SOME damage. So 8 half-sized ones fired at once will likely do more minimum damage than 4 full sized. I can live with the range 8 restriction, but not the range 0-1 one. That gives you an extremely narrow range band to work from, and the photon autohit at point blank is just part of the flavor I'd want to keep.

By Loren Knight (Loren) on Thursday, January 29, 2004 - 12:15 pm: Edit

Hey, wait a minute!

I proposed that in the beginning and no one really liked it. Said it took too much accounting.

By John Trauger (Vorlonagent) on Thursday, January 29, 2004 - 01:28 pm: Edit

If you're gonna do that, make it an overload function and limit it to overload range.

I'm not sure I'm too hot on the idea.

I'm not sure I'd like to see it for anything other than 16-point overloads, which would eliminate being able to fastload a multishot photon.

By Jeff Wile (Jswile) on Thursday, January 29, 2004 - 06:03 pm: Edit

Loren- Perhaps more people are paying attention now?!?

By Loren Knight (Loren) on Thursday, January 29, 2004 - 08:21 pm: Edit

It's in the first archive.

It evolved into two arming stations with one tube. The max war head is 12 with some period between firing; Could be 8 or 16 impulses.

Personally, I've since gone with the wisdom of just adding CritOL (17-20). Same chart.

Maybe with a "Slowton" option. (which would be a general photon improvement, meaning it would be available to all era units.)

By R. Brodie Nyboer (Radiocyborg) on Thursday, January 29, 2004 - 09:58 pm: Edit

I give up.

By Kenneth Jones (Kludge) on Friday, January 30, 2004 - 01:37 pm: Edit

Don't give up. theres a LOT of stuff thats already been tossed onto (and possibly off) the table.

By John Trauger (Vorlonagent) on Friday, January 30, 2004 - 02:59 pm: Edit

Sure. There's plenty to live for.

By R. Brodie Nyboer (Radiocyborg) on Friday, January 30, 2004 - 03:09 pm: Edit

No, I give up trying to keep track.

By Jeff Wile (Jswile) on Friday, January 30, 2004 - 07:54 pm: Edit

What has not been answered yet, is if its better to have a 2 photons shot perturn with both photons fired at same instant (which was my original vision, though not expressed well) or 2 shot per turn photons with 1/4 or 1/2 turn firng delay which appears to be loren's idea.

From a tactical perspective, Loren's is the better choice.

The "Double shot" is slightly better than the 16 point overload in as far as 2 photons imply that they might be able to hit different targets (hence the comment about "slaved" fire control solutions.)

Another modification to consider, is if the double shotted photons ***could*** be effective out to 30 hex range on the normal tables...

By Loren Knight (Loren) on Friday, January 30, 2004 - 08:15 pm: Edit

Yes, IMO, each photon would have separate targeting and could be loaded independantly. They share a launch tube only.

You could have a prox loaded (8/2=4) and follow with a OL (12 point max). Or two OL or one prox one standard or any combination. But the max the medium photon could OL to would be 12.

I wonder how interesting it might be to have various combinations of these tow technologies in Fed Fleets. Large base 10's on cruisers and double laoders on smaller units.

By Jeff Wile (Jswile) on Saturday, January 31, 2004 - 10:18 am: Edit

wow, there is a tactical concept I hadnt considered!

putting double loaders on smaller units would improve the "gunline" fed defense against attrition units and smaller warships (since enemy frigates and destroyers shields tend to be smaller strength (as measured in total boxes) than the larger cruisers and command ships. by putting the heavier photons on the larger ships to increase the "leathality" of the photons (as measured by the larger damage potential of the 'base 10's') you concentrate the max number of 20 point overload torps on the few hulls with the best protection in the fleet and can then place them in the position to hit the enemy after the "gun line" has "softened up" the targets (err) that is the enemy with double loaded photons.

A side benefit is by relying on double loaders, the smaller ships need not close to point blank range (range 0 or 1) to launch the photons. by keeping outside of the auto hit zone, it might allow the smaller ships to survive with fewer hits from enemy weapons fire...

By John Trauger (Vorlonagent) on Saturday, January 31, 2004 - 02:44 pm: Edit

Would the double-loads have the full photon range (30)?

By R. Brodie Nyboer (Radiocyborg) on Saturday, January 31, 2004 - 02:49 pm: Edit

Wouldn't this idea (not that I'm against it) kind of reinvent the PPD, albeit with limited shots and no splash?

There's another idea, how about a photon with impoved to-hit that can only splash over shields (maybe allow ¼ of warhead to hit internally)?

By John Trauger (Vorlonagent) on Saturday, January 31, 2004 - 04:23 pm: Edit

It wouldn't if it were an overload-only fucntion.

By Loren Knight (Loren) on Saturday, January 31, 2004 - 07:33 pm: Edit

Would the double-loads have the full photon range (30)?

I don't see why not but perhaps the base damage should be 6. This would make proxi's hit for 3.