Archive through March 02, 2005
Star Fleet Universe Discussion Board: Star Fleet Battles: SFB Proposals Board:
The "X" Files:
OLD X2 FOLDER:
New X2 Generic Weapon:
Archive through March 02, 2005
They are called Micro Phasers.
Well I for one would rather have a setting of punch pin-picks all the way through ships than a shift based on target siz clas as my everybody gets this new weapon.
So is the (perceived) consensus here that Phasers should somehow be radically improved in order to provide a new "universal" weapon for X2? SVC did seem to be implying something else in P6 but at the same time is the Phaser route the most likely candidate for now?
It is certainly the easiest answer to say that everyone gets the P5 as the universal weapon. Most other choices cut deeply into racial flavor.
I think the P5 is a good start, but what else can we do with Phasers for X2 (without slipping down into the pre-X-fix muck)?
I had an idea today for a variant on the turret-mauler idea. It would be a phaser-cannon-mauler hybrid.
It damages plasmas and attacks seeking weapons with the accuracy of a phaser but is less damage-eficient.
It is also limited to drawing off of its own internal capacitor system which is hit on phaser hits from any direction. A capacitor box rates above a P-5, allowing the player the option to take boxes or not as he wishes. Energy can only used by the phaser-mauler in certain amounts, never going above 4 points on any given round. It may be fired on any or every impulse.
The mauler is a hit/miss weapon
| range | 0 | 1-4 | 5-8 | 9-15 | 16-30 |
| Hit(2d6) | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 |
| damage |
| 1/2 pt | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| 1 pt | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| 2 pt | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 |
| 4 pt | 9 | 7 | 6 | 4 | 3 |
I had an 8-point setting that doubled the 4-point but deleted it. I'm still stuck on capacitor energy. should a box hold 1,2, or 3 points of power?
The capacitors are not batteries. power xferred to them goes in and doesn't come out. You can transfer energy into the capacitors during direct fire and use it immidiately, just as you could with a phaser.
The neat trick is: every consecutive impulse the beam is focused on a unit the ship gets +1 ECCM to a maximum of +4 but only as long as the beam is on and firing at the same target. A miss loses 1 point of ECCM and the ship starts over if it switches targets.
The weapon's intended tactic is to take 1/2 point shots every impulse to build up the ECCM then cutting loose with the heavy stuff.
Optional interesting effect: The weapon tends to make deep gouges in a ship and is resolved as a separate volley. After 8 points of damage are scored on a ship, even if totalled over multiple impulses, the "A" row is no longer accessable even if there are undamaged system boxes on that row. Damage After 16 points of damage "B" row systems my no longer be hit and so on, digging deeper into the ship.
Interaction with my ASIF (which shields some or all DAC columns): The key phrase above is "damage scored on the ship". Destroying the boxes shielding the new row does not count as damage scored on the ship. If the B-row ASIF shielding is 6 boxes, those 6 have to be destoryed then another 8 "B" row damage points have to be scored, before the beam starts with the "C" row.
My ASIF will massively slow the ability of this weapon to dig into a ship as compared to what would happen to a GW or X1 ship.
Thought about a fleet's worth of these things shooting at the same target and decided the 1/2 point mode was too powerful. New table.
| Range | 0 | 1-4 | 5-8 | 9-15 | 16-30 |
| Hit(2d6) | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 |
| Damage | --- | ---- | ----- | ------ | ------- |
| 1/2 pt | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 1 pt | 4 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 |
| 2 pt | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 |
| 4 pt | 9 | 7 | 6 | 4 | 3 |
I'm also split on whether to use a 120-degree or mauler arc for this thing. Given its advantages, I'm leaning toward an extended mauler arc.
Phaser Mauler or Phaser Lance? How about Pulsar? I know I'm splitting hairs here but I like the sound of "Pulsar." Also does it have to be turreted? Couldn't there just be an array of emitters kind of like the AN/SPY-1D radar (a bunch of emitters that can be energized as needed)? We're talking about X2 and "turret" just sounds so retro. Okay so maybe the array housing is called a turret. Whatever.
($0.02 cha-ching)
"Pulasr" does sound good, but it has an area-effect overtone to me and if anything the phaser-lance is *more* focused than a regular phaser, not less.
No, it doesn't have to be turreted, but it's a mauler-like bukly weapon and is therefore limited to a mauler arc. I'm open to alternatives that give it some limited ability to alter firing arcs.
And my Fed looks so cool with the turret,(at least to me):
http://www.vorlonagent.com/sfb/x2/vorlonagent/Fed-XCA.gif
The turret+lance together was what I thought of as the common thing for everyone. Not everyone would get as much use out of it as the Feds, however.
Given that TNG phasers are laid out something similar to the array you're describing, I'm uneasy with the idea. The phaser-matrix is as close as I want to go to that.
Come to think of it, you're pretty much talking about the phaser-matrix concept.
See for yourself:
http://www.vorlonagent.com/sfb/x2/sect-e/phaser-matrix.htm
Well the TNG phaser bank rings the hull; what I had in mind was more compact. Not to drag copyrighted material into this but (for example) think of the movie NCC-1701: look under the saucer at the "floodlight" mounts just above the lower sensor dome. That's more what I had in mind; visually even more compact than that.
And I really do like how "Pulsar" sounds. Maybe it could be an area-effect variant for bases or something like that.
This is NOT a weapon that all races should have, I just didn't know which thread to put it. It's just a weapon that one race might showcase as their new X2 weapon ala Fusion Beam ---> Hellbore.
Warp Resonance Torpedo
Every warp capable starship when using warp creates a warp field that can be honed in on. Other races recognized this, but were not able to capitalize on improved targeting benefits. The main reason for this was the firing ships own warp field interfered with its own targeting. However, in the X2 era, the weapons engineers effectively solved this problem by using a very different warp field configuration that did not interfere with targeting.
To hit modifier & damage
| target speed | 0 | 1-6 | 7-12 | 13-19 | 20-26 | 27+ |
| to hit modifier | +2 | +1 | 0 | -1 | -2 | -3 | |
| damage | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 |
| Range | 0-1 | 2-3 | 4-6 | 7-13 | 14-20 | 21-34 |
| to hit | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
Arming
2 points to fire plus 1 point from warp energy to activate warp resonance targeting for a total of 3 points.
Rate of Fire
Can fire every turn with a standard 8 impulse delay.
Ok, weaponsmiths, go for it!
...so what's the modified roll to hit at each range bracket?
Looks like 8-6-4-2-0-(-2)
If not, what is the "to hit modifier" for?
Looks like the 'to hit modifier' is based on the target's speed, not the range.
Sorry, the chart is daunting. First check target range:
| Range | 0-1 | 2-3 | 4-6 | 7-13 | 14-20 | 21-34 |
| to hit | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
Then, target speed:
| target speed | 0 | 1-6 | 7-12 | 13-19 | 20-26 | 27+ |
| to hit modifier | +2 | +1 | 0 | -1 | -2 | -3 |
| damage | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 |
Ex. Target range 13, speed 21=5 out 6 to hit, 7 damage.
Arming
2 points to fire plus 1 point from warp energy to activate warp resonance targeting for a total of 3 points.
Rate of Fire
Can fire every turn with a standard 8 impulse delay.
Ok, weaponsmiths, go for it!
That's the most awsome retrograde weapon proposal I've ever seen. Damage doesn't depend on range, only on speed of the target.
Who wouldn't love a weapon that costs 3 to arm, fires every turn and does an average of 5.33 damage at range 30+ on a high speed closing enemy?
Any fleet armed with this weapon would rule the galaxy.
Thank you Jonathan. I appreciate the criticism. What would you suggest to 'cap' the problem?
We can cut out the last range bracket.
| Range | 0-1 | 2-3 | 4-6 | 7-13 | 14-20 |
| to hit | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 |
You could simply cap the damage.
Write a MAX line in the damage table for each range bracket and have a rule that says that the added damage produced by speed can not produce more damage than the maximum damage listed in the maximum damage line of the table.
Then put the maximum damage to be in line with the Disruptor and you should be fine...maybe a little more if you add in enalties ( like the weapon requires warp power to fire ).
You could also throw in other penalties like your own warp feild makes the weapon harder to fire ( say 1 ECM to the enemy for the square root ( rounded up ) of the speed at which you are travelling ).
Or you could give it to the Xorks.
If speed is life...the Xorks will kill you.
On the other hand, if the Jibdos didn't have the WRG, this would fit their tactics really nifty.
Oy All I'm going to say is I might have to re-evaluate my Warp Field Disruptor (WFD) for the Xonos in the Shield Galaxy.
Kenneth, I am not sure what you mean? Tell me about the Shield Galaxy.
It's an E Module I've been plugging away on for over a year. There will be 8 new races and 3 old favorites.
Andromedan
Seltorian
Neo Tholian (As a Major/secondary race)
There are 4 new plasma types. 6 DF weapons and 4 (Maybe 5) types of new shielding tech. (And thats not all
)
The warp Field disrutor does damage based on the targets effective speed. At the extremes of movement it even has a modified to hit chance based on Natural EW, (for the WFD only.) It's a very complex chart with damage numbers based on the tragets range and speed.
It will see release when SPP says that it's good to go for playtesting.
Cool, since the discussion in these X2 threads seems to always bang up against 'speed is life' tactics and already fast X1 ships I tried to think of a weapon that penalizes flying fast all the time.
With the Warp Resonance Torpedo I am more concerned with its general function rather than numbers (playtest and discussion are necessary).
Of course, I tried to make the numbers work. It might work as a 2 turn arming weapon.
I also have another weapon related to warp fields and targeting. A different take from the WRT.
Roger, you tried to think of a weapon that penalizes flying fast all the time. I'd like to think I just came up with one in the Disruptors thread.