Federation Commander

Do ships start the game with turn and slip modes fulfilled?

And do we assume that the ship was 'stopped' before the first turn, and can therefore move in reverse immediately?

Unless otherwise stated in the scenario rules, all ships are assumed to have been moving forward in a generally straight line prior to the start of the scenario.

Therefore, a ship's turn modes and sideslip moves are all fulfilled. Also, the ship would have to pay braking energy to move in reverse.

This exact question is one of the Q&As in Communique #30. (Which should appear this week.)

Yes, turn mode / slip modes are assumed to be fulfilled at the start of the scenario.

I would think that you can also start the scenario "stopped" or even in reverse, if that is your choice.

If the scenario has rules that specify the starting condition, use them.

If the players of a scenario (or pick-up game) want to start with some specific type of parameters, then they are always free to do so.

But, the default start assumes that the ships were moving forward in a basically straight line.

I guess they aren't generally assumed to be starting "stopped" if that's what the ownign player wantrs to do. hmmm.
It's a good thing that we never attempted that.