...in the ship-construction rules for the game _Star Cruiser_ (the ship-minis-combat game for _2300AD_ by GDW), the following phrase appears:
"Take the cube-root of the result...."
...in the ship-construction rules for the game _Star Cruiser_ (the ship-minis-combat game for _2300AD_ by GDW), the following phrase appears:
"Take the cube-root of the result...."
That is easy enough if you have a scientific calculator.
Sounds like somebody needs some STS Therapy... for once it's not French.
As in, "Steel-Toe Suppository"...
It will be referring to booklets of 'Logarithmic and Other Tables', which were used in schools and colleges to aid calculations.
I never understood it whilst at school I would have no chance now (LoL)
You can always use a slide ruler
I'm learning to fly, but I ain't got wings
Coming down is the hardest thing
I enjoyed Star Cruiser and the design rules (I enjoyed using Striker to design all sorts of vehicles and aircraft too). I never saw them as "over complicated"
Guess thats why I ended up in a career designing warships and submarines
True, but then companies making errors in their product isn't unique
I have a long and happy experience of outlier experiences - who wants tk be the same as everyone else?
The problem is: The best way to learn the game's design system is to reverse engineer the published designs, so one can determine if one is doing it properly. When it's both impossible to determine from the data given what a unit was designed with, *and* what math exists is Wrong, one wonder why'n'ell they bothered including a design system in the first place -- the message is: "We really don't want you designing your own units".
Traveller (old style) was littered with ships like that, engines wouldn't fit, fuel calcs not right, too many hardpoints etc. We just took it as sneaky designers in a few shipyards somewhere cutting corners on safety factors
WoG is so elegant! Complain? My gaming group was complaining about Sails of Glory being too hard because they kept running into each other. They wanted to go back to very rigid formations??? So I get to play this game by following you? Yuck.
In fairness I used to love Dawn Patrol (Orig. Fight in the Skies) but it became bee-hive dogfights. Whatever failings this game has is minimal and does not inflict pain on the players.
The worst set of rules was a napoleonic game that covered two 4 x 12 foot tables and was played for over 20 hours at a convention. The most "active" unit moved less than 1 foot. The charts were 11 double sided sheets. I suspect the rule book had a hernia warning.
In all fairness I too love this game. But I also love a variety of games. Some of them had complicated sets of rules for things such as Star Ship Design. Sometimes it was multiple dice rolls just to see if you damaged anything.
For a good example of this you might try the old Yaquinto game Ironclads. In that game one rolled for location; noted the armor vrs hit; checked the table for the correct ration; rolled on that table for damage; if there was a penetration on the prior roll, roll again on the penetration table; if either roll resulted in a critical, roll on the critical table; if there were sections on that table, roll again for which critical to apply. That is potentially 5 separate dice rolls on four tables for a single weapon shot. We still love that game.
It depends on the game and how it is designed. Some are so overly complex they become daunting and no fun. Sometimes I think I just no longer want to invest the time to learn a 75 page rule book to play the game. Sometimes, like Ironclads, the dice adds to the excitement of the shot and the thrill of an explosion or a total miss.
WoG WWI is right about perfect for what it does. Sure we can add our own rules for more realism and many do. But the lack of record keeping, except by a few tokens; everything you need being right on the board or plane card all keeps it simple yet thoughtful. Even the three maneuver cards per turn makes this a better dog fight game where you have to think ahead. Where will your opponent(s) be, where do I need to be. Even the altitude, though out of scale to the plane, if a good fit. Several of the options state that because theirs are so realistic you'll only use a small band of the entire range.
But I play WoG... ? No-one ever complains about the rules, we're too busy laughing and having a good time??Next Time Someone Gripes About Overly-Complicated Rules...
No complaints from me. It is fun game to play with friends.
If someone complains I am prepared to pull out a 40K Rulebook, Codex book, 3 Supplement books, as well as a multi-page FAQ... and that is just to play one faction!
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