Pulsar suggestion

[Dan Ibekwe]

Looking through the Reference Rulebook, I saw rule 6E, Pulsars, and had an idea.

Now, I realise that the terrain rules are written to reflect those in SFB, but this could be included as a 'new' type of terrain...

In real life, Pulsars do not 'pulse'. They emit a beam of radiation, anywhere from radio frequencies to X-rays, which sweeps across the sky as they rotate, like the beam of a lighthouse (but usually very much faster).

If you are in line with the beam, and observing it from a fixed location at a safe distance of several light years, you *will* see a series of very rapid pulses. Flying a starship close to the pulsar would be a different matter.

To represent this in the game you could say that the Pulsar sweeps a 60 degree arc (=a sheild arc) around itself each impulse, damaging all units in that arc in the Offensive Fire Phase, and then advancing to the next arc clockwise (or anticlockwise) in sequence each impulse.

Ships could, of course try to 'jump' the beam by moving from the arc about to be swept to the arc the beam has just swept; to prevent this, the beam remains 'stopped' on the 'shield boundary' hex row during the Movement Sub-Impulses, and any unit entering or crossing that hex row during the impulse has a marker stuck to it's facing shield, just like a drone hit, and takes damage in the OF phase as if it was still in the affected arc.

Outrunning the beam by power-orbiting the pulsar in the same direction to stay ahead of it is an entirely valid tactic.

Just me being a frustrated astronomer...

[Dal Downing]

Looking through the Reference Rulebook, I saw rule 6E, Pulsars, and had an idea.

Now, I realise that the terrain rules are written to reflect those in SFB, but this could be included as a 'new' type of terrain...

Maybe just call it a Variable Pulsar?

In real life, Pulsars do not 'pulse'. They emit a beam of radiation, anywhere from radio frequencies to X-rays, which sweeps across the sky as they rotate, like the beam of a lighthouse (but usually very much faster).

If you are in line with the beam, and observing it from a fixed location at a safe distance of several light years, you *will* see a series of very rapid pulses. Flying a starship close to the pulsar would be a different matter.

To represent this in the game you could say that the Pulsar sweeps a 60 degree arc (=a sheild arc) around itself each impulse, damaging all units in that arc in the Offensive Fire Phase, and then advancing to the next arc clockwise (or anticlockwise) in sequence each impulse.

Ships could, of course try to 'jump' the beam by moving from the arc about to be swept to the arc the beam has just swept; to prevent this, the beam remains 'stopped' on the 'shield boundary' hex row during the Movement Sub-Impulses, and any unit entering or crossing that hex row during the impulse has a marker stuck to it's facing shield, just like a drone hit, and takes damage in the OF phase as if it was still in the affected arc.

Outrunning the beam by power-orbiting the pulsar in the same direction to stay ahead of it is an entirely valid tactic.

Just me being a frustrated astronomer...

Markers on shield facing really seems clunky. Why not just say that during the Other Phase (or Defensive Fire Phase or what ever phase) the shield facing the Pulsar gets hit and skip using markers. Yes someone could go fast enough to plow through the radiation belt but I think in Fed Com that is a reasonable compromise to keep game play fast.

Other than that seems like a cool ideal. Kinda like playing a game of Russian Roulette with Musical Chairs. Or is it the Spinning Wheel of Flaming Death....