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  #1  
Old 01-11-2010, 03:29 PM
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Phases of the game?

Like I mentioned in the intro... Lets discuss phases of the game.... We can add/remove/modify/change phases. This is just an building the framework.

my initial thoughts:

Phase 1:
Outespace - hauling resources, troops, vehicles to planet/system in conflict. Disrupt enemy in space

Phase 2 - Delivering items as above to planet. Disrupt enemy in planet/atmosphere. Build structures, deploy troops, fighters and vehicles

Phase 3 - Conquer enemy. Claim planet

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  #2  
Old 01-12-2010, 03:56 PM
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One Idea of a turn

1) Strategic Phase. What goes where. Transports and combat ships take small dropships into where they can drop it.
2) Tactical Phase.
a) Deep space interception Step. (If there are spaceships and figters guarding the planet then combat happens.
b) Orbital Combat Step. The dropships that passed the onslaught try to land. The orbital defenses, fighters and other defenses are activated.
c) Land Combat Step. Land combat starts. Will it be decided in this turn? Or it lingers on if the defenders put up a good defense?
3) End Phase
a) Repair Step
b) Income Step
c) Production Step
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Old 01-17-2010, 08:14 AM
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I'd separate the phases into a standalone battles which can be played one after another or as standalone encounters:

SPACE:

1. Simulation of a space sector - the stars are connected with warp corridors allowing for interstellar travel. Each star system has it's characteristics - number of planets, production points (Industrial/Farming), planetary/system defences
2. A battle in space with the opposing fleet, or a battle on the reaches of planetary system, with no planet nearby.
3. Space battles in interior of space system - around of it's planets, with possibility to enter planetary orbits and bombard the planet under fire from planetary batteries and to drop the invading forces to the surface.
4. Strategic battles on the planet surface - a city is one hex, units represents divisions which are parts of entire armies.
5. Tactical battles representing a battle on one hex of strategic map - one tank represents entire tank squad, one troop represents entire platoon
6. Skirmish, with single troopers and machines - this can be also a prelude to landing - like a ground attack on Planetary Defence battery, before main space desant.

This is like a flow, but players can concentrate on space, strategy, tactical or skirmish levels without need of the others - which can be determined by dices on tables.
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Old 01-17-2010, 09:22 AM
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This is already the plan

There will be three phases - deep space, orbit/atmosphere (deliver resources and units to ground and establish bases, and last ground battles.

Long game will be all three together, short games will be one phase (this can be setup as scenario cards)
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Old 01-17-2010, 09:57 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by lehcyfer View Post
I'd separate the phases into a standalone battles which can be played one after another or as standalone encounters:

SPACE:

1. Simulation of a space sector - the stars are connected with warp corridors allowing for interstellar travel. Each star system has it's characteristics - number of planets, production points (Industrial/Farming), planetary/system defenses
2. A battle in space with the opposing fleet, or a battle on the reaches of planetary system, with no planet nearby.
3. Space battles in interior of space system - around of it's planets, with possibility to enter planetary orbits and bombard the planet under fire from planetary batteries and to drop the invading forces to the surface.
4. Strategic battles on the planet surface - a city is one hex, units represents divisions which are parts of entire armies.
5. Tactical battles representing a battle on one hex of strategic map - one tank represents entire tank squad, one troop represents entire platoon
6. Skirmish, with single troopers and machines - this can be also a prelude to landing - like a ground attack on Planetary Defense battery, before main space desant.

This is like a flow, but players can concentrate on space, strategy, tactical or skirmish levels without need of the others - which can be determined by dices on tables.
I think that 3 different games to play a strategic campaign it's already a lot. Remember that players tend to quit games if things don't happen. So, five different games to conquer a planet is too much. We must find a balance between complexity and playability. This game is for us, of course, but it is also for other people, so we must think about them. It doesn't have to be a simpleton game but it must be:

Fast to play, even if long to end.
Everybody must have things to do during all the game turn, not like warhammer, where I move all my troops and half an hour later you start to play yours.
Simple Core Rules so that a person can start to play without more than 5 minutes of rules demonstration from a friend.
Everything must be easy to look at. Rules are in the table game. Being in the miniature base or in a unit card.
Last, but never least. Suspension of disbelief. A player using an army must believe in the reality of that army. This is what sells a game. One of the last games I liked in GW was Battlefleet Gothic. The rules where a curious simplification of Full Thrust, but workable but with a childish and horrible twist. The Nova Cannon. You choose a ship and guess a distance... A friend of mine, who is an excellent schemer but a terrible guesser would be sick with this rule. We changed it, of course, but the suspension of disbelief was forever shaken for us in this game...
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Old 01-17-2010, 10:34 AM
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I loved Nova Cannon - had to walk for a few days guessing distances between different objects and then measuring the real distance with a tape to get the guessing part click with me. This ability to guess very prcisely the distances at a glance also helped me immeasurably with other Warhammer games.

Gothic rule for continuously moving ships was great - this made for a fast changing battlefield. I loved it and would very much like to see in space phase of this game.
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Old 01-17-2010, 11:20 AM
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As an astronomer friend of mine once told me, a very big ship would have such momentum that it would be very difficult to be used as a weapon platform.

I like games with resemblance of Newtonian rules, but not those where reality messes with game play.

Still, on the account of momentum I prefer other games than BFG.

Momentum and fleet rules must be dealt with naturally other than a mechanical rule that designers impose in the game. Small ships squads in BFT is a poor rule in my opinion. It's an imposition with no internal logic reason.

Why are fighters faster than capital ships? To simulate small masses acceleration and deceleration. But given time, a capital ship could move as fast as a fighter in space. So why will we give max speed to ships? Because these are the maximum maneuverable speeds. Turn that into rules? Later today as I put the first rules of building a capital ship by points for you to consider and punch.
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Old 01-17-2010, 11:29 AM
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Shall we keep physics out of the game altogether? Or personally I would go on rant about all the unreals of sci-fi space physics... If we are to include physics in the game, the balancing reality with game balance would be a pretty demanding job, as I once found out to my peril.
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  #9  
Old 01-17-2010, 11:38 AM
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We are going to make a 2 dimensional movement game in a 3 dimensional universe. What else can I say?

Let's make it the way people will be able to suspend reality, and play happily, but state very clearly that we are not concerned with real physics.
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Old 01-17-2010, 06:20 PM
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OOF - no physics!
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