TRAVELLER Digest 501

Topics covered in this issue include:

  1) FASA? by George Herbert <gherbert@crl.com>
  2) Non uniform hull armour. by Les Howie <lhowie@lrmi.com>
  3) On Traveller computers by Alvin Plummer <alvin.plummer@sheridanc.on.ca>
  4) Assorted items from Trav Digest 500 by Alvin Plummer <alvin.plummer@sheridanc.on.ca>
  5) RFT IN Troop Transport by BARTZ@emuvax.emich.edu
  6) RE: FASA? by That Computer Guy <darkstar@UDel.Edu>

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Date: Thu, 30 Nov 1995 23:25:46 -0800
From: George Herbert <gherbert@crl.com>
To: traveller@MPGN.COM
Cc: gherbert@crl.com
Subject: FASA?
Message-ID: <199512010725.AA04401@mail.crl.com>


>From what I've heard of FASA, they have more or less sold out on the
corporate level to the idea of making money doing suppliments with
lots of glitz, rather than roleplaying and serious gaming anymore.
Did you have to pick them?

I mean god, if it's that bad, can't we start our own company
(and yes, I *do* know what's involved in making that work,
as do several other list members...) to Keep the Flame?

-george william herbert
gherbert@crl.com

"Pondscum Five, did you just napalm that column of
 tanks in sector five?  That's a no-fire zone!"


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Date: Thu, 30 Nov 1995 09:12:18 -0400
From: Les Howie <lhowie@lrmi.com>
To: traveller@MPGN.COM
Subject: Non uniform hull armour.
Message-ID: <9511301312.AA03507@ lrmi.com>

Starwolf wrote:
> And now I ask: Is it OK to leave a gap in the hull to the drive plunge? As
> the rules stands there is no hole at all. Cutting a hole will save several
> tons on the design. The drawback is that a hit in this hull location will go
> straight to the drive without passing through armor.

My impression has always been that all forms of irregular armour is fine:
you should be able to juggle armour around the 20 hull sections, and also
modify armour at  specific surface location PROVIDED you can identify hits
which impact that location.  Armoured things have always been built that way.

The problems comes in moving the design to BR, which uses the a single
armour factor: you could probably do fine with a weighted mean armour value
based on the percentage of surface area at each thickness.

I was disappointed by the fact that the use of internal armour which is
allowed in FF&S is not well refelcted in the BR rules: I had always thought
that the WWI "Protected Cruiser" was an interesting idea.
Les Howie
Senior Software Developer
Atlantic LRMI


------------------------------

Date: Fri, 01 Dec 1995 07:31:28 -0500 (EST)
From: Alvin Plummer <alvin.plummer@sheridanc.on.ca>
To: traveller@MPGN.COM
Subject: On Traveller computers
Message-ID: <Pine.OSF.3.91.951201072041.27397A@hubble.sheridanc.on.ca>


On Thu, 30 Nov 1995, Mark Hughes wrote:

> Alvin spake:
> >Hi. How did you determine that a TL 16 computer is similar to a TRS-80?
> >And what is a TRS-80, anyways?  A IBM mainframe?
>
>   How soon they forget...  The TRS-80 was the very popular Radio Shack
> computer from the early home computer days...  I don't have my Trav
> books handy, so I can't give chapter and verse, but the Trav Model/7
> computer stats match a TRS-80 pretty closely - around 64K memory, and
> from the times taken to solve various problems given in one of the
> adventures, they're about the same speed,  and the Trav computers are
> massive mainframes...  My calculator is more powerful than their
> best.  Not that this is a bad thing - realistic  computers make a
> mockery of space opera.
>  -Mark Hughes
>

Looking at starship computers and the Vampires sourcebook, are Traveller
computers still primitive?  I thought they were pretty powerful, as TL 17
computers were effectively sentient, even pre-Virus.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Alvin Plummer
"Imperial troops have entered the base! Imperial troops have
 en*SSSSSSKKKKKKKK*"

Reply to: alvin.plummer@SHERIDANC.ON.CA
------------------------------------------------------------------------------


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Date: Fri, 01 Dec 1995 07:52:00 -0500 (EST)
From: Alvin Plummer <alvin.plummer@sheridanc.on.ca>
To: traveller@MPGN.COM
Subject: Assorted items from Trav Digest 500
Message-ID: <Pine.OSF.3.91.951201073900.27630A-100000@hubble.sheridanc.on.ca>

From: sma@kiel.netsurf.de (Stefan Matthias Aust)

> Let's take one of this newly repaired ships from Auction on Aurora, a 400t
> merchant, refitted with a recovered Jump-3 engine and two laser and missile
> turrets, called 'The Memory of Trees.'

Ahh, another Enya fan... the caliber of the Traveller group just continues
to climb...


> Plan some useful flight routes based
> on the old available star maps and then let's imagine what could happen to
> the 'Memory of Trees' one their two year mission to find other surviving
> civilisations.
>
> This is captain Eibedo Oleido [EYEbedow olEYEdow],
> owner of the Memory of Trees.
<snip: minor spelling errors corrected in above quote>

> Anybody's other contribution to the crew?

You'll be hearing from me...

*****-----*****-----

From: PPUGLIESE@pimacc.pima.edu
> >
> >> From: Michael Bailey <pd82495@wapol.gov.au>
> >> I'm slowly (I've finished 10 of 16 subsectors) transcribing the Spinward
> >> Marches UWP data found in the Regency Sourcebook into standard
> >> ASCII format.  When I'm done it'll be available to anyone who wants it.
> >
> >This sounds rather like copyright infringement to me.  If you do this,
> >what reason do most people have to buy the book itself?  Particularly
> >at a time when GDW seems to be in difficult straits, this seems grossly
> >unethical as well as unkind.
> >^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
> >
> >Well the RSB *is* a *little* bit more than just a list of UWP's.
> >Besides, do you really think that a list of numbers can be copyrighted?
> >Well, I don't.
> >
> >Phil
> >
> >ppugliese@pimacc.pima.edu
> >------------------------*-------------------------*-----------------------
> Actually, it can. Please realize that copyright infringement criteria
> includes an adverse economic impact component. That is, adverse to GDW's
> financial interests. It couldn't hurt to get their permission first, and it
> might save unnecessary hard feelings (or worse) later on.
>
> Eric
>
> ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
>
> Copyright infringement includes a bit more than just economic impact cri-
> teria. Precedent also figures largely. Besides, from the posts I've seen
> from GDW to this list, they've made it pretty clear, IMO, that they won't
> be giving permission for anything.
>
> Do you realize that *every* sub-sector of UWP data that's been published
> by GDW has been made avail. over the 'Net *except* for the data in the RSB?
> Sounds to me as though ample precedent has been set.
>
> Phil

Also note that even the rough drafts of the Regency had copywrite notices.

And speaking of what's available on the Internet... is there anyway we
can transfer the old deneb.cc.missouri.edu files to mpgn.com, now that
the deneb site is down?

*****-----*****-----

From: Christopher_Griffen_at_DMC-SJ3@dmcwave.com (Christopher Griffen)
>
> To celebrate the 500th edition of the TML, I thought I'd send a copy
> to all of you of an e-mail message I recently sent to the president of
> FASA Corporation.
> Basically, my message suggested that FASA should solicit GDW for the right to
> purchase the Traveller line from them.

That's a smart idea: I'll be doing so.  The payment should be enough to
repay any debts, including all those writers they still owe...

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Alvin Plummer
"Preserve what we created, Norris, and remember what we stood for."
                               - Strephon, 179-1126

Reply to: alvin.plummer@SHERIDANC.ON.CA
------------------------------------------------------------------------------


------------------------------

Date: Fri, 1 Dec 1995 12:11:10 -0500 (EST)
From: BARTZ@emuvax.emich.edu
To: traveller@MPGN.COM
Subject: RFT IN Troop Transport
Message-ID: <951201121110.2140fd15@emuvax.emich.edu>

Hi all;
I am steering my players into a search for an old, huge, TL 15
warship from before the fall. It will be...well, they all have
computers ;-)
If anyone has ever made, or is willing (please) to make a design
for me, great.
Here's what I was thinking of:
TL15ish
Ability to carry ~6000 troops (3 in regiments, 1 grav tank reg,
      arty, and an air/space defense btn, plus support trps)
Ability to carry 6000 tons cargo in different bays for troops supply
Ability to carry 100 grav tanks
Ability to carry 100 missile and directed energy weapons (50 tons each)
Ability to carry 1000 AirRafts
Ability to transport 10% of troops and gear to surface at a time (best
      way?)
Jump 4
G- Higher the better
heavy on defense
Ability to do orbital bombing
A troop training area (maybe simulated combat for plt of troops at a time?)
Workout rooms
Simulator for tank/arty crews
Heavy on com, and on sensors, and a troop command center

Doable?
Thanks, Gary

------------------------------

Date: Fri, 1 Dec 1995 14:34:30 -0500
From: That Computer Guy <darkstar@UDel.Edu>
To: traveller@MPGN.COM
Subject: RE: FASA?
Message-ID: <199512011934.OAA29665@chopin.udel.edu>

In Reply to Your Message of Fri, 01 Dec 1995 02: 27:42 EST
Date: Fri, 01 Dec 1995 14:34:29 -0500
From: That Computer Guy <darkstar@chopin.udel.edu>

:
: >From what I've heard of FASA, they have more or less sold out on the
: corporate level to the idea of making money doing suppliments with
: lots of glitz, rather than roleplaying and serious gaming anymore.
: Did you have to pick them?
:
: I mean god, if it's that bad, can't we start our own company
: (and yes, I *do* know what's involved in making that work,
: as do several other list members...) to Keep the Flame?
:

Not a bad idea.  But if we did this, then I think that we should hire
Joe Fugate Sr. et all from DGP.  Oh and Marc Miller.  And despite what
everyone else on this list thinks, we should definitely keep letting
Dave "Bwana" Nilsen writing as well.  8)

       --Jerry

8) Jerry Alexandratos                %  "Nothing inhabits my    (8
8) darkstar@strauss.udel.edu         %   thoughts, and oblivion (8
8) darkstar@canary.pearson.udel.edu  %   drives my desires."    (8

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End of TRAVELLER Digest 501
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