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Friday, January 29, 2010

Kate’s Cooking: Savory Snacks

Greetings folks. The picture is my cooking supervisor, Miss Ginny who loves to get in on the act of anything I’m doing. She especially likes to sit in our small kitchen and get her cute nose into everything! You can read about her in Miss Ginny’s Diary on the House Abukoff site.

On these colder winter days (in the northern hemisphere) I love to indulge in eating tasty snacks and toasted sandwiches, especially so when I am having soup. I have a lot of savory snack recipes that I have collected over many years and here are two of them from my collection, for you to try. Enjoy!

BACOO (a bacon-topped cookie)

2 to 3 rashers of bacon
2 oz. (60 gm) butter or margarine
1 egg yolk
2 oz. (60 gm) grated cheddar cheese (own choice)
2/3 cup all purpose (plain) flour
Extra cheese - 60 gm (2 oz.) grated

Remove any rind from the bacon and cook and then chop finely. Beat together the butter (or margarine) and the egg yolk. Add the first lot of grated cheese and flour (in that order) and mix to a firm dough, wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface to about 1/8 th thick. Cut into rounds with a medium cookie cutter and put on lightly greased oven trays and sprinkle with the bacon bits and the extra grated cheese. Bake in a moderately hot oven until golden – approximately 10 minutes. Cool on a wire cooking rack. These are really delicious.

CHEESE STICKS

1 packet pre-rolled puff pastry
1 egg white
185 gm (6 oz.) cheddar cheese – grated
90 gm (3 oz.) parmesan cheese – grated
2 tablespoons paprika

Cut each sheet of pastry into 1 cm. or 1/2 “wide strips and brush with beaten egg white. Take two strips of pastry and twist them around each other to form one strip. Place strips on a greased baking tray and sprinkle with combined cheeses and sift the paprika over the top. Bake in a hot oven for approx. 7 minutes. If you like, you can use just one cheese and what type of cheddar etc. is your own choice. These are so good and they are great with tomato soup. NOTE: you might like to cut them in half before you bake them if you don’t like the long strips.

I do have other savory snack recipes along these lines. If you would like the recipe for any of the following, then please contact me at House Abukoff:

Satay Nibblets, Curry Strips, Cheddar Cookies, Cheese Crunches, Indian Curry Munchies

Go safely out there and keep well. Bless you.

Kate

Thursday, January 28, 2010

Miss Ginny's Diary Jan 28th 2010

Meow to you. I haven’t written anything for a while. I am just being lazy. Right now it is a rainy day here in the desert south west and I am in a small cane laundry basket. We were given this and I laid a claim to it. HM put in a nice blanket in it and it is great to curl up in on a day when you can’t do much. I am watching Grandma Carrie trying to talk HM into getting an early supper for us. I don’t think GC is going to succeed. However I admire her because any minute now she is going to get the boot from where she is. She is actually in between HM and her laptop and HM is peering over the top of her. GC gets away with a lot because she is way old and has, as I said a while back, been with HM for about 17 years. I thought we might be in our new place by now but HM and HD both say that it is too cold for us to travel right now and we will go in the early spring hopefully. I like to follow HM around when she is looking through our stuff and I like to see what she is throwing out. She told me yesterday that she is not throwing anything of ours out. She said she is going to pack our toys into the cane washing basket and that will be ok with me. She told me that I am getting bossy. In fact HD called me a Field Marshal – that is a military title. Field Marshal von Ginny was what he actually called me. So I bit his finger – I was only playing. I just love to cuddle on his chest. He squints his eyes at me so I squint right back at him. HM says we are like two children being pesky. What is pesky? HM says it is being a tad silly. Well I don’t care and HM says they love me no matter what so that’s just fine. Well GC is now sitting as close as she can to HM who is trying to catch up with her columns. Great Aunt Daisy is sleeping on her back with her front legs crossed – it looks a little odd. My sister and I had a great play this morning. We chased each other around the room and through the closet and over and under everything. HM said we were nuts – it seems that it is a day for being nuts. Well what’s a cat to do but eat and sleep and play on a rainy day? ShooShoo has gone to see what HM is doing and this is not going to work because GC is on the table and as they don’t care for each other much I think HM may just get up and move to go and get our supper. Good move on ShooShoo’s part. Yeah! HM has moved. Cool, here comes supper. I will talk to you later. Oh, I have included a photo of me and my sister, ShooShoo when we were playing.








Meow to you for now, Miss Ginny.

Chatter With Kate: Pesky Politicians


PESKY POLITICIANS


Greetings folks on a rainy day in the south western United States. Are politicians driving you crazy lately? I have often wondered just who is at fault with our pesky politicians. Is it us for electing them and not looking too much at all into who they really are? Or is it the politicians who have this peculiarity about them that even though we elect them in basic good faith, thinking ‘oh he or she seems ok’, they get elected and then they seem to undergo some metamorphosis when they get hold of a bit of power and then whoops - they change into pesky politicians. Oh I know that you can find some who are pretty good but right now, where are they? This is a global issue – it must be the power thingy? I have lived in several interesting countries and there is not one of them that have not had this problem. I wonder sometimes if politicians think that we, the public, aren’t taking any notice of them and that they can get away with their power playing partisan nonsense. There was an election recently in the state of Massachusetts in the United States in which a senate seat that had previously been held by the late Edward Kennedy (of the well known Kennedy clan) for nearly 50 years changed to a republican seat and completely upset the balance of political routine. The new senator-elect took notice of what the folk in his electorate were thinking and saying and the public in this electorate were taking notice of what was going on in the federal capital of Washington DC and didn’t particularly care for the behaviour and disrespectful way of the federal politicians. One hopes, that this should be a lesson to other politicians not only in the United States but around the world, that we, the public are watching you and actually do take notice of what is going on and you, the incumbent politician should not take your electorate for granted. If you are a student of politics, then I would suggest you might take a look at how this new Senator-elect from Massachusetts, ran his campaign. It is good stuff.

You know folks, it is all about respect. I like to see politicians being respectful. If they don’t respect each other, then they are not going to respect an electorate’s intelligence. I say to them, wake up! Don’t think we aren’t listening to you. Your electorate has brains and you will do well to remember this. To you good folk out there, that no matter where you are on this great planet, YOU HAVE THE POWER TO VOTE PESKY POLITICIANS OUT OF OFFICE if you have a system of government that allows you to do this.

Final word on this, *only respectful politicians are respectable politicians* - I am probably asking for miracles but you can live in hope.

Cheers and go safely out there, Kate.

Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Fantasy Trek Summary of Events Stardate 0110.27

If you'd like to be able to jump right in to see if you like this game, you might want to try a few rounds of Simple Combat. The Simple Combat Game is a way for you to quickly resolve combat between vessels, or fleets of vessels. This is useful if you are playing a scenario or campaign that involves more than a few ships. Otherwise a simple scenario could take weeks to play through.




It is useful to keep a copy of the Simple Combat Template. This makes it possible to copy and paste the basics of your bit of 'paperwork', add however many ships you may need to, and change or insert ship names. Here is a very basic template (there are more in the files):



IKS rolls: o/d

USS rolls: o/d

Result:

IKS damage /15

USS damage /15



The first section is for points rolled (1d6 result times the appropriate multiplier), and how the points are allocated (offense/defense). The second "Result" section shows the calculated damage. In the case of basic AI ships, the damage potential is 15.. so you would indicate 5 points damage with 5/15. Pretty simple.



If you are playing a single player game, roll a 1d6 to see who 'wins the toss'. If you roll a 1-3, you do. Then you roll the 1d6 for your opponent first. Allocate available points according to this multiplier chart:



2 (DS) Defense Sat/(FR)Freighter X1

3 (FF) Frigate X4

4 (DD) DestroyerX6

5 (CL) Light Cruiser X8

6 (CA) Heavy Cruiser X10

7 (CC) Command Cruiser X12

8 (HCA) Heavy Battlecruiser X15

9 (DN) Dreadnought X20

10 (BB) Battleship X22

11 (CV)Carrier X25

12 (STB ) Starbase/ (BS)Base Station X50/75 (reroll, 50/50)



Here is an example of simple combat between the Klingon heavy cruiser Perseus and the Sha'kurian heavy cruiser Count: In this case, I won the toss, playing as the Perseus. That meant that I had to roll and allocate for the Sha'kurian first. (The point of all this 'coin tossing' is to add randomness to the gameplay in the single player game. It puts the luxury of being able to react to your opponent's first move on a totally random footing. And of course, whoever rolled second first time rolls first the next. Compare it to the coin toss to determine who receives the kickoff in a football game ) That first roll was a 6 (on a 1d6), for 60 points. Acting for the Shakurian, I decided to play it safe, putting it all on defense. As it turned out, the caution was unnecesary. The Klingon only rolled a 1.



IKS Perseus rolls:10 0o/10d

SRS Count rolls:60 0o/60d

Result:

IKS Perseus damage 0/25

SRS Count damage 0/15



For the next volley, the Klingon ship took its turn rolling first. It rolled a "3", for 30 points, and put them all on defense. It didn't save him, because the Count rolled a 6.



IKS Perseus rolls:30 0o/30d

SRS Count rolls:60 60o/d

Result:

IKS Perseus destroyed

SRS Count damage 0/15



You'll note that the Perseus is able to take 25 points of damage. That is because all of my play has given me a "Elite" rating. The increased available points is one of the benefits of that. For details, see "Experience Points: How to Get Them and What They Get You". If you want to take it a step further, you can capture ships using Simple Combat. You have to cause 10 points of damage to lower the enemy shields, then transport over. Ah, but to so that you have to lower your own shields. Do that by giving yourself (just for the 'transport' volley) 10 points damage. A bit tricky, with careful timing involved, but a great tactic. And of course, as new races are added to Fantasy Trek, there will be a few necessary variations to these rules (i.e. Tholian Webs).



So what to do with all of this? As I said, the Simple Combat Game is ideal for extended scenarios involving many ships in combat. For example, Head to Head Sector Assault was written with Simple Combat in mind:



Rules

The goal is to conquer and hold all 5 systems.



In order to do this, you must conquer (in order, 1 through 5), and sufficiently defend all systems while denying your enemy access to those same systems. Reduce the enemy fleet sufficiently to prevent them from building a shipyard, and stop/destroy enough enemy convoys to deny random reinforcements sufficient to threaten your shipyards. You must also attain a minimum of 13 points (see 'Victory Conditions' below)



System Conquest:

Regardless of whether a system has been taken by enemy forces, you will face a random-sized enemy fleet upon first arrival in a new system. Roll 1d6 for size of enemy fleet, then subtract any applicable random fleet disadvantage (see below). If the size of the enemy fleet is less than the random fleet disadvantage, then there is no contact. Then use appropriate simple combat template. All surviving ships retain damage but can move and fight until destroyed. They can only be repaired by remaining in place for two turns (subject to random enemy attack each turn-50% chance of random attack. 1d6:1-3=no contact. 4-6=attacked) or by docking at shipyard for one turn (subject to random enemy attack, same odds as above). The system remains yours once you've defeated the initial fleet, but if left undefended, any attempt to conquer it will only be countered by a randomly generated fleet. You can (and should) choose to leave any combination of ships and/or a shipyard to defend it.



Open Space:

Enemy convoys will only be encountered in open spaces. Roll for encounter (1d6:1-3=contact). Then roll 1d6 for enemy escorts. 1-3= 1 CA escort. 4-6= 2 CA escorts. The random fleet disadvantage does not affect this. Random enemy convoy(s) must be stopped=at least 3/5 freighters destroyed or captured (5/15 damage and successful boarding party action), escorts destroyed or disabled (10/15 damage) in 5 volleys or less. Every convoy that is stopped decreases random enemy fleet size by one. This is the random fleet disadvantage. For every three freighters captured, your random fleet disadvantage is reduced by one. You will not encounter convoys in open spaces when you have conquered both adjacent systems



Shipyard:

Shipyards are recommended. They can only be built in systems that you hold (by destroying an initial assault fleet). Three starships must remain in system or open space area for three turns to build shipyard. During each turn 50% chance of random attack. (1d6:1d6:1-3=no contact. 4-6=attack, then roll 1d6 for size of enemy fleet. If the size of the enemy fleet is less than the random fleet disadvantage, then there is no contact.) LOS (line of sight) must be maintained to use or attack shipyard. Shipyard has X75 multiplier. Shipyard can construct replacement ships in 3 turns. While your fleet can not exceed 6 ships, additional ships built at shipyards do not count against this total. They cannot fight with full-sized fleets, but can supplement diminished fleets. The same rule applies to surviving random reinforcements. Since you must have a minimum of three ships to build a shipyard, it is recommended that you build at least one shipyard and at least two reserve ships just in case of unforseen losses. A fleet reduced to two ships and no shipyard to fall back would have little chance of victory.



If you want to register as a player, notify me through a comment on the

blogsite. I recommend keeping a record of your games played, as they add up to experience points that enrich your gaming experience.



Victory Conditions/Points-

Shipyards 5 (max)

Fleet size 6 (max)

Reinforcement capacity 6 (max)



You must conquer 5 systems and attain 13+ VC points



Templates (it is recommended that you keep a master copy of these, making working copies to modify suit your needs):



Klingon fleet vs Federation Fleet

KCA IKS Kandido rolls: o/d

KCA IKS Kurry rolls: o/d

KCA IKS DuranQo rolls: o/d

KCA IKS Ok'ran rolls: o/d

KCA IKS D'Han rolls: o/d

KCA IKS Glommer rolls: o/d

FCA USS Washington rolls: o/d

FCA USS Roosevelt rolls: o/d

FCA USS Cleveland rolls: o/d

FCA USS Detroit rolls: o/d

FCA USS Abraham Lincoln rolls: o/d

FCA USS Guadalcanal rolls: o/d

results

KCA IKS Kandido damage: /15

KCA IKS Kurry damage: /15

KCA IKS DuranQo damage: /15

KCA IKS Ok'ran damage: /15

KCA IKS D'Han damage: /15

KCA IKS Glommer damage: /15

FCA USS Washington damage: /15

FCA USS Roosevelt damage: /15

FCA USS Cleveland damage: /15

FCA USS Detroit damage: /15

FCA USS Abraham damage: /15

FCA USS Guadalcanal damage: /15



Klingon fleet versus Federation convoy with two escorts



KCA IKS Etlh rolls: o/d

KCA IKS Dk'tagh rolls: o/d

KCA IKS Bertaa rolls: o/d

KCA IKS BortaS rolls: o/d

KCA IKS Chang rolls: o/d

KCA IKS tIQ'etlh rolls: o/d

FCA USS Komack rolls: o/d

FCA USS Nogura rolls: o/d

Fr rolls: o/d

Fr2 rolls: o/d

Fr3 rolls: o/d

Fr4 rolls: o/d

Fr5 rolls: o/d

results

KCA IKS Etlh damage: /15

KCA IKS Dk'tagh damage: /15

KCA IKS Bertaa damage: /15

KCA IKS BortaS damage: /15

KCA IKS Chang damage: /15

KCA IKS tIQ'etlh damage: /15

FCA USS Komack damage: /15

FCA USS Nogura damage: /15

Fr1 damage: /15

Fr2 damage: /15

Fr3 damage: /15

Fr4 damage: /15

Fr5 damage: /15



Sample First Turn:



Turn 1)

(1209.13)

System 1: FCA USS Essex FCA USS Challenger FCA USS Tahir FCA USS Robau FCA USS Abrahms FCA USS Orci form Fed 1st Fleet (FF1). Contact: 4 KCA's *won toss. (1209.13) FCA USS Essex FCA USS Challenger FCA USS Tahir FCA USS Robau FCA USS Abrahms FCA USS Orci vs KCA IKS D'Qu KCA IKS NaQjej KCA IKS Ej'QuD KCA IKS Qaw'lu: Klingons destroyed. No damage to FF1.

System 5: KCA IKS Kandido KCA IKS Kurry KCA IKS DuranQo KCA IKS Ok'ran KCA IKS D'Han KCA IKS Glommer form Klingon 1st Fleet (KF1). Contact: 4 FCA's *won toss. (1209.13) KCA IKS Kandido KCA IKS Kurry KCA IKS DuranQo KCA IKS Ok'ran KCA IKS D'Han KCA IKS Glommer vs FCA USS Washington FCA USS Roosevelt FCA USS Cleveland FCA USS Detroit: Feds destroyed. No damage to KF1.



TNG Era:



Kri'staK Sector

Ab'Qaff Battle Group

Ab'Qaff Class Klingon Heavy Command Cruiser (KCVC) IKS Ab'Qaff

General Kapact Commanding



wej'Hom System-

The Ab'Qaff has established a mining outpost on the second planet in the wej'Hom system. The planet is rich in many resources used for Klingon hull material and armor. There are still no signs of Romulan involvement in the system



Games in Play:



"Eyes on the Prize" (see Dev notes for rules)

Turns 9 through 20. Klingons are going for the Federation jugular, attacking convoys to reduce the Federation's ability to build new ships. At the same time, as the Klingon commander, I am letting the Feds do the leg work, traveling across space to pick up the artifact, and trusting in their ability to capture the Fed ship carrying it back. On the Fed side, FSY1 (Federation Shipyard #1) is in real trouble. As of Turn 20, they are facing imminent attack by eleven Klingon ships. They'll have six heavy cruisers defending them. Numerically, they still have the edge in that fight. But they have much more to lose. If they lose, they will have essentially lost the war. Their fleet traveling to the edge of space will have the chance to build a shipyard, but that shipyard will take three turns to build a single ship. And all the while, KSY1 (Klingon Shipyard #1) will still be cranking out more ships. On the other hand, if the Klingon armada is defeated, the Federation will have the upper hand, with their First Fleet in position to pick up the artifact and get home with little opposition.



Turn 9)

(0110.18)

Klingon: (c,17) KSY1 continues construct KF2 turn 9/18 (K7,8 complete) KF1(K1-6) moves to (d,10). KF1 encounters Fed convoy W/2 escorts. (0110.18) K1-6 vs F1,2, Fr1-5. Fed convoy destroyed. No damage to Klingons.

Federation: (c,5) FSY1 continues construct FF2 turn 9/18 (F7,8 complete) FF1(F1-6) moves to (k,5) F7,8 dispatched to engage KF1.



Turn 10)

(0110.20)

Klingon: (c,17) KSY1 continues construct KF2 turn 10/18 (K7,8,9 on station) KF1(K1-6) moves to (d,10). KF1 encounters Fed convoy W/2 escorts. (0110.18) K1-6 vs F1,2, Fr1-5. Fed convoy destroyed. No damage to Klingons.

Federation: (c,5) FSY1 continues construct FF2 turn 10/18 (F9 on station). FF1(F1-6) moves to (k,5).F7,8 moves to (c,6).



Turn 11)

(0110.22)

Klingon: (c,17) KSY1 continues construct KF2 turn 11/18 (K7,8,9 on station) KF1(K1-6) moves to (c,9).

Federation: (c,5) FSY1 continues construct FF2 turn 11/18 (F9 on station). FF1(F1-6) moves to (l,6). F7,8 returns to FSY1



Turn 12)

(0110.22)

Klingon: (c,17) KSY1 continues construct KF2 turn 12/18. K7,8,9 moves to (c,16) KF1(K1-6) moves to (c,10) Contact: Fed convoy W/2 escorts. (0110.22) K1-6 vs F1,2, Fr1-5. Fed convoy destroyed. No damage to Klingons.

Federation: (c,5) FSY1 continues construct FF2 turn 12/18 (F9 on station). FF1(F1-6) moves to (l,6). F7,8 returns to FSY1



Turn 13)

(0110.22)

Klingon: (c,17) KSY1 continues construct KF2 turn 13/18. (K10 on station) K7,8,9 moves to (c,15) KF1(K1-6) remains on station (c,10) No contact.

Federation: (c,5) FSY1 continues construct FF2 turn 13/18 (F7,8,9,10 on station). FF1(F1-6) moves to (m,7).



Turn 14)

(0110.22)

Klingon: (c,17) KSY1 continues construct KF2 turn 14/18. (K10 on station) K7,8,9 moves to (c,14) KF1(K1-6) remains on station (c,10) Contact: Fed convoy W/1 escort. (0110.22) K1-6 vs F1,Fr1-5. F1,Fr1-5 destroyed. Klingons undamaged. FSY1 deactivated.

Federation: (c,5) FSY1 continues construct FF2 turn 12/18 (F7,8,9,10 on station). FF1(F1-6) moves to (n,8).



Turn 15)

(0110.22)

Klingon: (c,17) KSY1 continues construct KF2 turn 15/18. (K10 on station) K7,8,9 moves to (c,13) KF1(K1-6) remains on station (c,10)

Federation: (c,5) FSY1 construct suspended FF2 turn 12/18 (F7,8,9,10 on station-reactivate FSY1: Turn 1/3). FF1(F1-6) moves to (o,9).



Turn 16)

(0110.22)

Klingon: (c,17) KSY1 continues construct KF2 turn 16/18. (K10,11 on station) K7,8,9 moves to (c,12) KF1(K1-6) remains on station (c,10)

Federation: (c,5) FSY1 construct suspended FF2 turn 12/18 (F7,8,9,10 on station-reactivate FSY1: Turn 2/3). FF1(F1-6) moves to (p,10).



Turn 17)

(0110.22)

Klingon: (c,17) KSY1 continues construct KF2 turn 17/18. (K10,11 on station) K7,8,9 moves to (c,11) KF1(K1-6) remains on station (c,10)

Federation: (c,5) FSY1 construct suspended FF2 turn 12/18 (F7,8,9,10 on station-reactivate FSY1: Turn 3/3). FF1(F1-6) moves to (q,11).



Turn 18)

(0110.22)

Klingon: (c,17) KSY1 continues construct KF2 turn 18/18. (K10,11 on station) K7,8,9 moves to (c,10) KF1(K1-6) remains on station (c,10)

Federation: (c,5) FSY1 resumes construct FF2 turn 13/18 (F7,8,9,10 on station). FF1(F1-6) moves to (r,11).



Turn 19)

(0110.22)

Klingon: (c,17) KSY1 continues construct KF3 turn 1/18. (K10,11,12 on station) K7,8,9 joins KF1 (c,10)

Federation: (c,5) FSY1 resumes construct FF2 turn 14/18 (F7,8,9,10 on station). FF1(F1-6) moves to (s,11).



Turn 20)

(0110.22)

Klingon: (c,17) KSY1 continues construct KF3 turn 2/18. KF1 (K1-9) moves to (c,9). Contact: Fed convoy W/1 escort. (0110.22) K1-9 vs F1,Fr1-5. K1-8 undamaged. K9 destroyed. F1,Fr1-5 destroyed. KF2 (K10,11,12) moves to (c,16).

Federation: (c,5) FSY1 continues construct FF2 turn 15/18 (F7,8,9,10 on station). FF1(F1-6) moves to (t,11).



PvP games reported:



(0110.18) PCA AV Sitka vs KCA IKS 'etlh: IKS 'etlh destroyed

(0110.18) PCA AV Sitka vs KCA IKS 'etlh: IKS 'etlh destroyed

(0110.18) PCA AV Sitka vs KCA IKS 'etlh: AV Sitka destroyed

(0110.18) PCA AV Sitka vs KCA IKS 'etlh: Both ships destroyed

(0110.22) PCA AV Sitka vs KCA IKS 'etlh: IKS 'etlh destroyed

(0110.22) PCA AV Sitka vs KCA IKS 'etlh: AV Sitka destroyed

(0110.22) PCA AV Sitka vs KCA IKS 'etlh: AV Sitka destroyed

(0110.22) PCA AV Sitka vs KCA IKS 'etlh: IKS 'etlh destroyed

(0110.22) PCA AV Sitka vs KCA IKS 'etlh: AV Sitka destroyed

(0110.22) PCA AV Sitka vs KCA IKS 'etlh: AV Sitka destroyed

(0110.22) PCA AV Sitka vs KCA IKS 'etlh: Both ships destroyed



(As you might guess, Mrs Kapact and I had another marathon PvP session. This is a good way to build experience points quickly. I consider the PvP aspect so important that not only do they count as Simple Combat experience points, 10 games for 1 point, but at the same time you get credit for the PvP Simple Combat eperience point, 5 games for 1 point. So 10 Simple Combat PvP engagements gets you 3 experience points)



Heavy Combat: KCA IKS Etlh(A) vs KCA IKS Etlh(B) combat simulation in progress.



Command College:



"What Are Your Orders, Captain?"



(TMP Era) "Common Foe"



Investigating a mysterious and unidentified Federation starship trapped in what appears to be a Tholian interspatial gravity well, Captain Robau of the Akula Class destroyer USS Sparta moves to investigate, and encounters two Klingon warships, a K'tinga Class Battlecruiser and a Levek Class Destroyer. As the Klingons move to intercept, two Tholian ships arrive, throw a web around the K'tinga, and open fire.



Captain Robau decides to help the Klingons in this instance and opens fire on the Tholians. After a brief exchange of fire, the Tholians are destroyed. The jewel-shaped starships explode in a dazzling display... and the entire region of space ripples and shifts, and the stars vanish.



When the brilliant flash subsides, Captain Robau notes that the Tholians are gone, along with the mysterious Federation ship. The two Klingon ships are adrift, but still occupy the same positions relative to the Sparta. Scans show that the warships are still powered, but show extensive damage. At the same time, the science officer reports a massive intallation at extreme range that shows a distinct Tholian signature.



"The Devil You Know, Or...?"



A further scan of the Klingon ships indicate that they are not in immediate danger, but still refusing to acknowledge hails. After commenting about the unique nature of Klingon gratitude, Captain Robau orders a course set to approach the installation. His idea is to approach to just within sensor range, and try to learn more before choosing his next course of action.



What should Captain Robau do next? (No cliff-hanger this time. Just choose the next course of action)



Post your solution here for a Command College Point. Feel free to discuss this with the 'comment' feature



"Captain's Log"



"... an unimaginable scale..."



20) At some point during the mission, the planet disappears.



Class S-T Ultraglacial

Age: 2-10 billion years

Diameter: 10-50 million km (Class S)

50-120 million km (Class T)

Location: Cold Zone

Surface: Tenuous, composed of gaseous hydrogen and hydrogen compounds; radiates considerable heat.

Atmosphere: Zones vary in temperature, pressure and composition; water vapor may be present

Life forms: Unknown



(ENT Era)

Captain Sam Carpenter

Challenger NX-07



In a year that has seen Romulans close to within 20 lightyears of Earth, there has been little time for pure scientific exploration. So much so that it is easy to forget the Earth Starfleet mission, which is to seek out new life and new civilizations. So even to find an ancient one, in the last days of its existence is a treat. In an uncharted region of space towards the center of the galaxy, we began to pick up strange gravitational forces at work on what seemed to be an uninhabited system. Eventually, we discovered that a distant black hole was acting on the system starting to not only pull the sun off of its orbit, but pull the planets out of their orbits. We knew at the time that there was about six months left until the system would, well, disassociate is the cold and scientific term, and hoped to find an opportunity to revisit the system towards the end of its life cycle depending on how the war went. As it turns out, there was less than six hours. A science team exploring the ninth planet, an enormous ultraglacial world, discovered what appeared to be artificial catacombs. We were fascinated to consider that life in this system had existed this far away from the sun, and were starting to properly explore the catacombs when an asteroid collision passed through the outer system, completely obliterating the super gas giant seventh planet. Two hours later, planet eight moved through the remnants of the asteroid collision and was destroyed. Planet nine would be moving through the same area in a few hours. I ordered the team to withdraw immediately. Fortunately, they were able to bring with them hundreds of crystal tablets that at first glance seemed to a form of art, but turned out to be a unique form of record keeping. It is estimated that there are thousands of years of records in the tablets. Knowledge that we hardly knew existed a day ago would have been lost, irretrievably. As it is, we have a wonderful thing, a piece of an unknown civilization in the face of destruction on an unimaginable scale. So as we moved to a safe distant, the sight of this cold planet disappearing in a really catastrophic event was not nearly as sad as it might have been.



For next week. write a 100+ word log entry including the phrase "... extreme conditions...". Post it in the yahoo group or on the blogsite's "comment" feature for a Command College Point.



Dev Notes:

I've finished the final sketch of February's Fantasy Trek calender picture, the TNG Era "Constitution Phase Two" Class. That is essentially a Constitution Class done in a Galaxy or Sovereign mode. There are resemblances to both. It fills the classic heavy cruiser role, as a workhorse of the fleet, outfitted to be capable of handling anything on a day to day basis. Imagine a Sovereign built without quite so many bells and whistles. The prototype, or Class ship is just called USS Constitution. I plan to have it finished and online by Friday.

No progress this week on the Etlh Class Heavy Combat Trial #2. As I push through the Excel-based map/Simple Combat scenario called "Eyes on the Prize", I have amended the rules, eliminating the Single Player AI rules. The game works better as a head-to-head match. I've also removed the rules for system conquest. They were carried over from the Sector Assault but really weren't relevant here. And you need to stop or destroy three enemy shipyards to deactivate a random shipyard. Here are the amended rules:



The objective is to travel to the far side of unexplored space to recover the artifact and return it to your home world.



Random enemy convoy(s) may appear in enemy/unclaimed space. Three convoys stopped=at least 3/5 freighters destroyed, escorts (random, 1-2) destroyed or disabled (10/15 damage) within five volleys deactivates one random enemy shipyard. Shipyard will require at least three starships onsite for three turns to reactivate.



Enemy forces may be encountered in all enemy/unclaimed open spaces. Roll for encounter (2/6 chance), Roll for size of enemy fleet (use same method as in-system combat).



Shipyard:

Shipyards are recommended. They can be built anywhere. Shipyard can construct a ship in three turns. Three starships must remain in system or open space area for three turns to build shipyard. LOS (line of sight) must be maintained to access shipyard outside of home space. Shipyard outside of home space is subject to attack every other turn by random number of enemies.



Two complete fleets (12 ships) can construct an advanced shipyard in six turns. Advanced shipyards, in turn, can build a ship in one turn.



Fleets are designated by number/race. For example, the Klingon First Fleet is designated as KF1



Consult the Simple Combat Table for multipliers.

Saturday, January 23, 2010

Kapact's Rant:: The War on Arrogance


One of the greatest threats facing our country comes not from without but from within. I'm not talking about people deliberately trying to bring about the downfall of the government. I'm talking about people who have been blinded by their lust for power and money. This has been highlighted by the stunning return to democracy in Massachusetts with the election to the people's senate seat that was held for too long by Ted Kennedy. Martha Coakley assumed that the seat would go to her, not because she had earned it, or because she best represented the wants and needs and philosophy of the people represented by the seat. She assumed that she would win because she was a democrat. Nobody has denied that, not even her. And of course, the campaign she ran clearly demonstrates that. She might well as well have phoned the campaign in. But Martha Coakley is just a small, single example of the new war on arrogance.


We see Mr Obama back in campaign mode, putting on his common, populist suit, standing in front of a group of handpicked supporters with prescreened questions, railing against all the bad guys who are responsible for all the evils we are suffering from. And even with prescreened questions, he still struggled. But that's Mister Obama. He cannot speak without a teleprompter. As a student of history, I have learned that when an unpopular leader (and Mister Obama has the lowest approval ratiings in history for a president at this point in his term) starts to appoint a new villain at every corner, it is usually because they have nothing of real substance to offer. It is an attempt to distract you from the real problem. During the presidential election, it was "they're going to tell you, don't vote for him, because he's got a funny name, or he doesn't look like the guy on the dollar bill". You see, suddenly it wasn't why you should vote for him, it was about 'they'. About why you should look at 'them', because they're out to get you. Then it was 'the people who made this mess'. Don't look at Obama's record. Don't look at the record of his cohorts. Of course if you did look too closely at Mister Obama and his cohorts, you'd see that they are some of the 'people who made this mess'. Along with Mister Clinton and Mister Bush. Even now, it's the evil bankers. It isn't that Mister Obama has spent us into record deficits and unemployent with no end in sight. Come next year, when his cohorts in Congress are running for reelection, it won't be about the attempts to usurp the constitution, or the secret meetings or broken campaign promises, or the arrogance. It'll be about 'the people who want us to fail', or 'the people who want to take us back, rather than forward'. It will never be about their wrongs or their failures or their arrogance. And that, again, is the warning sign. If all you ever hear from a failing, desperate leader is how it's all about some nameless, faceless villain, then odds are its just an attempt to divert your attention.

Mister Obama and his liberal cohorts have been frightened by this second shot heard 'round the world' (coincidentally, both came from Massachusetts), and they have their idea-starved liberal playbook out. It is a book filled with the same old tricks and distractions and smoke and mirrors, and it didn't save Martha Coakley. This election in Massachusetts, this second shot heard 'round the world, wasn't about local issues, as they would like you to believe, or about 'those people' trying to stop so-called health care reform. It was really about arrogance. Entrenched, corrupt, out of touch arrogance. And next year, and hopefully 2012 will also be about arrogance.

I said entrenched, and that speaks to another fundamental, clear and present danger facing us. That is the legislators who are elected on promises and then dig themselves in to power that they never have to surrender. It is a tried and true process. Make promises to labor unions, corporations, and other special interests, to essentially buy elections, then spend their terms paying those bills, ignoring the needs and wishes of their constituents, and always looking to the next election. All the while, they do favors and exchange political markers, putting people in their debt and engaging in brinkmanship that would give the greatest thriller writer a headache. And in the end, they have more and more power, and less and less interest in actually serving the people that they got elected to serve. These virtual lifetime appointments guarantee nothing but an entrenched and essentially out of touch aristocracy that we cannot afford and cannot allow. What we need to truly make the legislature work for WE THE PEOPLE is a constitutional amendment mandating term limits for every elected official in the federal government. Make it impossible for any legislator to amass so much power that they are no longer answerable to the people. We also need to take money out of politics. Write a law that says that any political advertising of any kind, in any form of media, can only be paid by the government Require any aspiring candidate to obtain a certain number of petition signatures in order to qualify for funding, and then use taxpayer dollars to pay for that. I don't necessarily love the idea of more taxpayer dollars going out, but if it takes the unions and corporations and other special interests out of elections, I say it's worth it. If politicians are only going to serve the people who fund their campaigns, then lets make sure we control who does that funding. If it's going to cost me another bite out of my check to actually be represented, well, so be it.

On another note...

One thing that I've been struck by for the past week that my wife and I have watched the nightmare in Haiti unfold, is not just the outporing of generosity by common people who can barely make ends meet (including my household). That gives me hope for the country and the world. It isn't even the CNN correspondents who have shown the courage to not just report the news, but to intervene on behalf of the helpless, I don't normally like the idea of the crusading reporter more intent on making news than reporting it. But in this case, they've chosen principles over objectivity, and courage over manners. I like that. Anyone who pulls a bleeding child away from the thugs who attacked him has got it right. Sometimes you have to do the right thing, no matter why you're supposed to be there, or who's corporate logo is on your paycheck.

But what I'm really struck by is the huge number of celebrities giving their time during telethons for Haiti. That isn't a new thing, but what I note is the fact that they are giving their time, speaking very naturally and easily with people who are phoning in donations. I'm not a starstruck person. I've met enough celebrities to not be overcome by the very sight of them. But what struck me is that they are giving their time, willingly. They may be rich, and the small donation that my wife and I made would be nothing in their weekly budget. But their time is just as valuable and irreplacable to them as mine is to me. Time is important to everyone, and I appreciate them giving it. I saw Steven Speilberg and Julia Roberts among others take the time to talk to people who had called in. They didn't hurry the call, they took the time to get the callers' names and they took the time to actually talk with them. I am truly impressed by anyone giving their time, because, as I said, time is irreplacable for everyone. Well done.

Friday, January 22, 2010

Kate’s Cooking: Try These

Greetings folks on a very wet day in the desert southwest (USA). We hardly had any rain last year and in the last 3 days we have had as much as we had in the whole of last year. It’s good to see this rain as the desert needs a soaking from time to time. With this rainy weather on hand, I took the opportunity to read through some of my cooking books and novels and I came across a number of interesting recipes that I have not tried but thought I would over the next week or two. I thought you might like to try them to. So here they are:


*The first is a batter. I have a variety of batters that I use, mostly a variant of the traditional flour, egg and milk style. I have used soda water and beer in my batters but this depends a lot on what I am cooking. I found this batter in a cooking book from Alaska and for all the batter coated cooking that I have done I have never used this combination. I have always been a great believer in experimentation in cooking. Its fun, especially on a rainy day like today.

EGG WHITE BATTER

4 egg whites
1 bottle of beer
1 cup flour

Beat egg whites until stiff. Add beer and flour and whip until stiff. Whatever it is you are frying, lightly coat with flour and then dip in the batter and deep fry (preferably).

**The second recipe is I guess, in the cookie category and comes from a book emanating once again, from Alaska. It has an intriguing name and has all sorts of interesting ingredients. My husband is eager to try this and there is no reason why young folk and husbands can’t make it to!

EAGLE’S NESTS

3 cups pretzel sticks
1 cup roasted peanuts
1 cup raisins
1 cup mini marshmallows
2 cups chocolate chips
2 teaspoons oil (approx.)

Combine pretzels, nuts, raisins and marshmallows in a bowl and set aside. In a smallish saucepan heat chocolate chips and oil over a low heat, stirring constantly until chocolate chips melt. Pour the chocolate mix over pretzel mix and stir until evenly coated. Spoon into small muffin tins or something similar and refrigerate at least 20 minutes until the nests are hardened.

***The third recipe fascinates me. It is made with slices of salt (or fat) pork which was a very common food in the pioneering west and it comes from a book of life on the northern prairies. I don’t see why you can’t use modern bacon – an interesting thought and maybe experiment? I sometimes use salt pork in beans. It is available in most modern supermarkets. I am going to type the recipe as it appears in the book. Modern nutritionists and doctors who are trying to get us to use less fats will probably be against this but like our family, the occasional use of salt port and bacon is okay, unless of course, you have specific medical reasons why you should not eat these meats.

FRIED SALT PORT AND GRAVY

Cut the meat slices thin and set them to parboil in cold water. When the water boils pour it off. Then roll the slices in flour and fry them brown. When they are crisp, take them out onto a platter and pour off some of the fat and save it to use for butter. Then brown some flour in the fat left in the frying pan and pours in some milk and keep stirring it as it boils and until the gravy is just right.

Well that’s it for this time. Take care out there and be well and safe and warm.

Happy cooking, Kate.

Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Kate’s Cooking: Hints, Turkey, Packet Mixes and Fruit Cake


Greetings everyone. The column this week is in several parts! Firstly I wanted to remind those of you who shop at supermarkets et al, to check the packets, cans, bags of flour, meat packets for the recipes that are printed on these products by their company cooking experts. There are some wonderful ideas for cooking and I have found some of my favourite things to eat, this way. I particularly like the recipes that you can peel off the meat packets in supermarkets like Vons and Safeway (located in the west of the United States). I think having a job as a company nutritionist or chef or recipe creator would be just about perfect.


Secondly, I was asked recently by the meat clerk in a supermarket to write down my method for cooking a turkey in a frying pan. It is fairly simple method. You do of course, have to judge the size of the turkey you buy by that of your frypan. For last thanksgiving, we had a 12lb turkey that fitted in quite well. You must wash your turkey inside and out, pat it dry and settle it in the frypan. Put about 2 to 3 cups of water in the pan and cover the turkey with foil and tuck the foil in as tight as you can. Then put about 2 damp towels (of appropriate size) over the top of this. Cook on a low to medium heat for most of a day. I cook my turkeys on a single burner element. It needs to be watched so the towels remain damp (but not wet!), safe from any element and the pan doesn’t dry out. It’s a nice way of cooking your turkey. Depending on the size of your frypan (and the turkey), you can put vegetables around the turkey and let them steam away.

Okay, now for number three. I just wanted to let those of you, who only have a microwave to cook with, that you can cook packet cakes like white cake, German chocolate cake etc and for that matter, brownies, in a microwave. I adapted these cake and brownie mixes when I didn’t have an oven for a while. It takes a bit of experimentation but for both I use a microwave-proof ring pan. For the cake mixes I generally do 10 minutes and for the brownies, about 8 minutes. I don’t have a powerful microwave – about 700w. For the brownies I like to keep them in the fridge overnight and they solidify more. This is, of course, a personal preference. A few days ago I made a white cake packet mix in this way and it was great!

Finally, today’s recipe is for those of you out there who live busy lives but might, like me, enjoy a piece of homemade cake with my coffee or cup of tea. It’s an easy-to-make light fruit cake. You can just throw everything a mixing bowl, stir it around until mixed well and bake it.

EASY FRUITCAKE

8oz. (225g) flour
6oz. (175g) butter or margarine
6oz. (175g) sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
3 eggs
4 oz. (100) raisins (sultanas are ok to)
2 oz. candied peel (about 1/3 cup) – orange is excellent
½ cup cherries (sliced into quarters)

Line and grease a deep 8xinch cake tin. Bake in a preheated oven 180C, (350F) or Gas 4, for about 1 ¼ hours approximately. Test the cake with a cake skewer to see if it comes out clean. If by some chance it looks as if it needs cooking for a bit longer and it is beginning to get a little too brown on top, then cover the top of the cake with some foil.

This is a nice cake and I am sure you will enjoy it. Take care out there, be safe and be well.

Happy cooking, Kate.



Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Kapact's Rant: Haiti, "Kennedy's Seat", and Forgiveness


I'd like to start off by mentioning the terrible, terrible tragedy in Haiti. I can offer no words as eloquent as those that have already been spoken. So many countries and organizations have contributed through money, goods, and services, and it is truly a testament to the goodness of the world's citizens that during these times of a world-wide recession, people and governments still find a way to give. Crises seem to be almost a dime a dozen these days, and that is a shame. But this is a big one. Too big to ignore. I am proud and touched to see in this country that we can actually (with a few notable, embarrassing exceptions) put aside our political differences to make a difference: http://clintonbushhaitifund.org . Indeed, people of all faiths and beliefs seem to be coming from all corners of the globe to help the people of Haiti.


And I'll just point out that the murderous thugs who claim to work on behalf of God (or Allah, as they call him) have been noticably silent. We know you have the means. How about working for the God you claim to serve and saving and creating rather than killing? You won't, because you are cowardly thugs who truly care nothing for religion. It means something when you feed off of death and chaos and desperation rather than life and truth and light. Just like cockroaches, you only thrive in filth.

I am pleased to see that what our liberal friends still like to call "Ted Kennedy's Seat" is actually back in the hands of the people, to whom it was actually always supposed to belong. That magical 60th senate vote may well be going to Massachusetts Republican state senator Scott Brown. This is very important, because for one thing, it needs to go to someone who represents not just the people of Massachusetts, all Americans, because he'll be voting on something that affects us all. It's also important because we need a reminder that these seats belong to us all. Something else. I feel sorry for the Kennedy's who no longer have Ted. Nobody should have to lose a family member. But it gives us a preview of what life would be (indeed, how it should be) with term limits. The Founding Fathers well understood the dangers of government out of touch and out of control. When people can run for term after term and gather more and more power and money, until they are so entrenched that they are untouchable, we find that we are no longer represented. We find ourselves ruled by distant (not geographically, but culturally), out of touch despots. Despots who regularly submit to show-elections that rank with Cuban and North Korean elections for real challenge and suspense. Truly, there is no greater threat to true democracy in this country than politicians who are so powerful that they have, for all intents and purposes, lifetime appointments. This is how we find ourselves with a government shoving illegal programs down our throats. Illegal programs that are so heinous and crooked that they can only be crafted in secret meetings. Certainly there are exceptions to the lifetime appointments. Sometimes they are so foolish and crooked that they run before they're arrested (so long, Chris Dodd!). But the old axiom still stands. Absolute power corrupts absolutely. Term limits now.

Finally, I'd like to talk about forgiveness. I have been guilty of holding grudges many times in my life, against many people. Any real or imagined slight, and I'd decide that they were not only bad people, but that I would never forgive them. Why should I? Why should I let them get away with what they'd done? But I finally realized (and way too late in life for my own taste) that when you refuse to forgive someone, you are really hurting yourself more than anyone else. You are robbing yourself of happiness. Especially if the object of your anger doesn't know or care that you don't forgive them. It's like a house in wintertime where you heat every room but one, and you force yourself to live in that cold room. The only person living in that cold is you. When you forgive, you are freeing yourself of a burden of your own making. And that goes for forgiving yourself. We all do things we regret. We all make mistakes, and it is easy (and probably seems virtuous) to condemn ourselves. But if you can admit to your mistakes and learn from them, it is okay and important to forgive yourself. Nobody can say that they've never regretted anything that they've done, so you've got lots of company. Give yourself a break. Throw it off. Be free. Live your life as fully as possible. The tragedy in Haiti is a good reminder of just how short and precious life can be. Don't waste it.

Monday, January 18, 2010

Fantasy Trek: Summary of Events Stardate 0110.18

If you'd like to be able to jump right in to see if you like this game, you
might want to try a few rounds of Simple Combat. The Simple Combat Game is a
way for you to quickly resolve combat between vessels, or fleets of vessels.
This is useful if you are playing a scenario or campaign that involves more
than a few ships. Otherwise a simple scenario could take weeks to play
through.

It is useful to keep a copy of the Simple Combat Template. This makes it
possible to copy and paste the basics of your bit of 'paperwork', add
however many ships you may need to, and change or insert ship names. Here is
a very basic template (there are more in the files):

IKS rolls: o/d
USS rolls: o/d
Result:
IKS damage /15
USS damage /15

The first section is for points rolled (1d6 result times the appropriate
multiplier), and how the points are allocated (offense/defense). The second
"Result" section shows the calculated damage. In the case of basic AI ships,
the damage potential is 15.. so you would indicate 5 points damage with
5/15. Pretty simple.

If you are playing a single player game, roll a 1d6 to see who 'wins the
toss'. If you roll a 1-3, you do. Then you roll the 1d6 for your opponent
first. Allocate available points according to this multiplier chart:

2 (DS) Defense Sat/(FR)Freighter X1
3 (FF) Frigate X4
4 (DD) DestroyerX6
5 (CL) Light Cruiser X8
6 (CA) Heavy Cruiser X10
7 (CC) Command Cruiser X12
8 (HCA) Heavy Battlecruiser X15
9 (DN) Dreadnought X20
10 (BB) Battleship X22
11 (CV)Carrier X25
12 (STB ) Starbase/ (BS)Base Station X50/75 (reroll, 50/50)


Here is an example of simple combat between the Klingon heavy cruiser
Perseus and the Sha'kurian heavy cruiser Count: In this case, I won the
toss, playing as the Perseus. That meant that I had to roll and allocate for
the Sha'kurian first. (The point of all this 'coin tossing' is to add
randomness to the gameplay in the single player game. It puts the luxury of
being able to react to your opponent's first move on a totally random
footing. And of course, whoever rolled second first time rolls first the
next. Compare it to the coin toss to determine who receives the kickoff in a
football game ) That first roll was a 6 (on a 1d6), for 60 points. Acting
for the Shakurian, I decided to play it safe, putting it all on defense. As
it turned out, the caution was unnecesary. The Klingon only rolled a 1.

IKS Perseus rolls:10 0o/10d
SRS Count rolls:60 0o/60d
Result:
IKS Perseus damage 0/25
SRS Count damage 0/15

For the next volley, the Klingon ship took its turn rolling first. It rolled
a "3", for 30 points, and put them all on defense. It didn't save him,
because the Count rolled a 6.

IKS Perseus rolls:30 0o/30d
SRS Count rolls:60 60o/d
Result:
IKS Perseus destroyed
SRS Count damage 0/15

You'll note that the Perseus is able to take 25 points of damage. That is
because all of my play has given me a "Elite" rating. The increased
available points is one of the benefits of that. For details, see
"Experience Points: How to Get Them and What They Get You". If you want to
take it a step further, you can capture ships using Simple Combat. You have
to cause 10 points of damage to lower the enemy shields, then transport
over. Ah, but to so that you have to lower your own shields. Do that by
giving yourself (just for the 'transport' volley) 10 points damage. A bit
tricky, with careful timing involved, but a great tactic. And of course, as
new races are added to Fantasy Trek, there will be a few necessary
variations to these rules (i.e. Tholian Webs).

So what to do with all of this? As I said, the Simple Combat Game is ideal
for extended scenarios involving many ships in combat. For example, Head to
Head Sector Assault was written with Simple Combat in mind:

Rules
The goal is to conquer and hold all 5 systems.

In order to do this, you must conquer (in order, 1 through 5), and
sufficiently defend all systems while denying your enemy access to those
same systems. Reduce the enemy fleet sufficiently to prevent them from
building a shipyard, and stop/destroy enough enemy convoys to deny random
reinforcements sufficient to threaten your shipyards. You must also attain a
minimum of 13 points (see 'Victory Conditions' below)

System Conquest:
Regardless of whether a system has been taken by enemy forces, you will face
a random-sized enemy fleet upon first arrival in a new system. Roll 1d6 for
size of enemy fleet, then subtract any applicable random fleet disadvantage
(see below). If the size of the enemy fleet is less than the random fleet
disadvantage, then there is no contact. Then use appropriate simple combat
template. All surviving ships retain damage but can move and fight until
destroyed. They can only be repaired by remaining in place for two turns
(subject to random enemy attack each turn-50% chance of random attack.
1d6:1-3=no contact. 4-6=attacked) or by docking at shipyard for one turn
(subject to random enemy attack, same odds as above). The system remains
yours once you've defeated the initial fleet, but if left undefended, any
attempt to conquer it will only be countered by a randomly generated fleet.
You can (and should) choose to leave any combination of ships and/or a
shipyard to defend it.

Open Space:
Enemy convoys will only be encountered in open spaces. Roll for encounter
(1d6:1-3=contact). Then roll 1d6 for enemy escorts. 1-3= 1 CA escort. 4-6= 2
CA escorts. The random fleet disadvantage does not affect this. Random enemy
convoy(s) must be stopped=at least 3/5 freighters destroyed or captured
(5/15 damage and successful boarding party action), escorts destroyed or
disabled (10/15 damage) in 5 volleys or less. Every convoy that is stopped
decreases random enemy fleet size by one. This is the random fleet
disadvantage. For every three freighters captured, your random fleet
disadvantage is reduced by one. You will not encounter convoys in open
spaces when you have conquered both adjacent systems

Shipyard:
Shipyards are recommended. They can only be built in systems that you hold
(by destroying an initial assault fleet). Three starships must remain in
system or open space area for three turns to build shipyard. During each
turn 50% chance of random attack. (1d6:1d6:1-3=no contact. 4-6=attack, then
roll 1d6 for size of enemy fleet. If the size of the enemy fleet is less
than the random fleet disadvantage, then there is no contact.) LOS (line of
sight) must be maintained to use or attack shipyard. Shipyard has X75
multiplier. Shipyard can construct replacement ships in 3 turns. While your
fleet can not exceed 6 ships, additional ships built at shipyards do not
count against this total. They cannot fight with full-sized fleets, but can
supplement diminished fleets. The same rule applies to surviving random
reinforcements. Since you must have a minimum of three ships to build a
shipyard, it is recommended that you build at least one shipyard and at
least two reserve ships just in case of unforseen losses. A fleet reduced to
two ships and no shipyard to fall back would have little chance of victory.

If you want to register as a player, notify me through a comment on the
blogsite. I recommend keeping a record of your games played, as they add up
to experience points that enrich your gaming experience.

Victory Conditions/Points-
Shipyards 5 (max)
Fleet size 6 (max)
Reinforcement capacity 6 (max)

You must conquer 5 systems and attain 13+ VC points

Templates (it is recommended that you keep a master copy of these, making
working copies to modify suit your needs):

Klingon fleet vs Federation Fleet
KCA IKS Kandido rolls: o/d
KCA IKS Kurry rolls: o/d
KCA IKS DuranQo rolls: o/d
KCA IKS Ok'ran rolls: o/d
KCA IKS D'Han rolls: o/d
KCA IKS Glommer rolls: o/d
FCA USS Washington rolls: o/d
FCA USS Roosevelt rolls: o/d
FCA USS Cleveland rolls: o/d
FCA USS Detroit rolls: o/d
FCA USS Abraham Lincoln rolls: o/d
FCA USS Guadalcanal rolls: o/d
results
KCA IKS Kandido damage: /15
KCA IKS Kurry damage: /15
KCA IKS DuranQo damage: /15
KCA IKS Ok'ran damage: /15
KCA IKS D'Han damage: /15
KCA IKS Glommer damage: /15
FCA USS Washington damage: /15
FCA USS Roosevelt damage: /15
FCA USS Cleveland damage: /15
FCA USS Detroit damage: /15
FCA USS Abraham damage: /15
FCA USS Guadalcanal damage: /15

Klingon fleet versus Federation convoy with two escorts

KCA IKS Etlh rolls: o/d
KCA IKS Dk'tagh rolls: o/d
KCA IKS Bertaa rolls: o/d
KCA IKS BortaS rolls: o/d
KCA IKS Chang rolls: o/d
KCA IKS tIQ'etlh rolls: o/d
FCA USS Komack rolls: o/d
FCA USS Nogura rolls: o/d
Fr rolls: o/d
Fr2 rolls: o/d
Fr3 rolls: o/d
Fr4 rolls: o/d
Fr5 rolls: o/d
results
KCA IKS Etlh damage: /15
KCA IKS Dk'tagh damage: /15
KCA IKS Bertaa damage: /15
KCA IKS BortaS damage: /15
KCA IKS Chang damage: /15
KCA IKS tIQ'etlh damage: /15
FCA USS Komack damage: /15
FCA USS Nogura damage: /15
Fr1 damage: /15
Fr2 damage: /15
Fr3 damage: /15
Fr4 damage: /15
Fr5 damage: /15

Sample First Turn:

Turn 1)
(1209.13)
System 1: FCA USS Essex FCA USS Challenger FCA USS Tahir FCA USS Robau FCA
USS Abrahms FCA USS Orci form Fed 1st Fleet (FF1). Contact: 4 KCA's *won
toss. (1209.13) FCA USS Essex FCA USS Challenger FCA USS Tahir FCA USS Robau
FCA USS Abrahms FCA USS Orci vs KCA IKS D'Qu KCA IKS NaQjej KCA IKS Ej'QuD
KCA IKS Qaw'lu: Klingons destroyed. No damage to FF1.
System 5: KCA IKS Kandido KCA IKS Kurry KCA IKS DuranQo KCA IKS Ok'ran KCA
IKS D'Han KCA IKS Glommer form Klingon 1st Fleet (KF1). Contact: 4 FCA's
*won toss. (1209.13) KCA IKS Kandido KCA IKS Kurry KCA IKS DuranQo KCA IKS
Ok'ran KCA IKS D'Han KCA IKS Glommer vs FCA USS Washington FCA USS Roosevelt
FCA USS Cleveland FCA USS Detroit: Feds destroyed. No damage to KF1.

TNG Era:

Kri'staK Sector
Ab'Qaff Battle Group
Ab'Qaff Class Klingon Heavy Command Cruiser (KCVC) IKS Ab'Qaff
General Kapact Commanding

wej'Hom System-
The Ab'Qaff battle group arrived in the wej'Hom system. Initial findings
revealed debris similar to that found in the wa'Hom and cha'Hom systems. A
massive asteroid field, stretching across space that could have occupied at
least four planets, is littered with the same hull material as the other
systems, as well as other unidentified material.

Games in Play:

"Eyes on the Prize" (see Dev notes for rules)

Opening moves here. The Feds are making a bee line for the distant prize.
The Klingons are aiming for the Federation infrastructure.

Turn 1)
(0110.17)
Klingon: (c,17) KF1(K1-6) assembles. KSY1 begins construct KF2 turn 1/18
Federation: (c,5) FF1(F1-6) assembles. FSY begins construct FF2 turn 1/18

Turn 2)
(0110.17)
Klingon: (c,17) KSY1 continues construct KF2 turn 2/18 KF1(K1-6) moves to
(c,16).
Federation: (c,5) FSY1 continues construct FF2 turn 2/18 FF1(F1-6) moves to
(d,5).

Turn 3)
(0110.17)
Klingon: (c,17) KSY1 continues construct KF2 turn 3/18 KF1(K1-6) moves to
(c,15).
Federation: (c,5) FSY1 continues construct FF2 turn 3/18 FF1(F1-6) moves to
(e,5).

Turn 4)
(0110.17)
Klingon: (c,17) KSY1 continues construct KF2 turn 4/18 (F7 complete)
KF1(K1-6) moves to (c,14).
Federation: (c,5) FSY1 continues construct FF2 turn 4/18 (K7 complete)
FF1(F1-6) moves to (f,5).

Turn 5)
(0110.17)
Klingon: (c,13) KSY1 continues construct KF2 turn 5/18 (F7 complete)
KF1(K1-6) moves to (c,13).
Federation: (c,5) FSY1 continues construct FF2 turn 5/18 (K7 complete)
FF1(F1-6) moves to (g,5).

Turn 6)
(0110.17)
Klingon: (c,13) KSY1 continues construct KF2 turn 6/18 (F7 complete)
KF1(K1-6) moves to (c,12).
Federation: (c,5) FSY1 continues construct FF2 turn 6/18 (K7 complete)
FF1(F1-6) moves to (h,5).

Turn 7)
(0110.17)
Klingon: (c,13) KSY1 continues construct KF2 turn 7/18 (F7,8 complete)
KF1(K1-6) moves to (c,11).
Federation: (c,5) FSY1 continues construct FF2 turn 7/18 (K7,8 complete)
FF1(F1-6) moves to (i,5).

Turn 8)
(0110.17)
Klingon: (c,13) KSY1 continues construct KF2 turn 8/18 (F7,8 complete)
KF1(K1-6) on station (c,11).
Federation: (c,5) FSY1 continues construct FF2 turn 8/18 (K7,8 complete)
FF1(F1-6) moves to (j,5).

PvP games reported:

(0110.17) PCA AV Sitka vs KCA IKS 'etlh: AV Sitka destroyed PVP
(0110.17) PCA AV Sitka vs KCA IKS 'etlh: AV Sitka destroyed PVP
(0110.17) PCA AV Sitka vs KCA IKS 'etlh: IKS 'etlh destroyed PVP
(0110.17) PCA AV Sitka vs KCA IKS 'etlh: AV Sitka destroyed PVP
(0110.17) PCA AV Sitka vs KCA IKS 'etlh: Both ships destroyed PVP
(0110.17) PCA AV Sitka vs KCA IKS 'etlh: IKS 'etlh destroyed PVP
(0110.17) PCA AV Sitka vs KCA IKS 'etlh: AV Sitka destroyed PVP
(0110.17) PCA AV Sitka vs KCA IKS 'etlh: AV Sitka destroyed PVP
(0110.17) PCA AV Sitka vs KCA IKS 'etlh: IKS 'etlh destroyed PVP
(0110.17) PCA AV Sitka vs KCA IKS 'etlh: IKS 'etlh destroyed PVP

(As you might guess, Mrs Kapact and I had a marathon PvP session)

Heavy Combat: KCA IKS Etlh(A) vs KCA IKS Etlh(B) combat simulation in
progress.

Command College:

"What Are Your Orders, Captain?"

(TMP Era) "Enmeshed"

Discovering a mysterious and unidentified Federation starship trapped in
what appears to be a Tholian interspatial gravity well, Captain Robau of the
Akula Class destroyer USS Sparta moves to investigate, but is challenged by
two approaching Klingon warships. As the Klingons close, they are revealed
as a K'tinga Class Battlecruiser and a Levek Class Destroyer. Their weapons
are charged, and they are on course to intercept the unknown ship, intent on
either capturing or destroying it. The Klingons ignore Captain Robau's
hails, and seconds later, two Tholian ships arrive, throw a web around the
K'tinga, and open fire.

What are your orders, Captain?

"Common Foe"

Despite the obvious enmity between the Federation and the Klingons, Captain
Robau decides to take his chances with the Klingons rather than the
Tholians, and locks photon torpedos on the lead Tholian cruiser. Then he
sends a hail, ordering them to stand down. The Tholians respond by hitting
the Sparta with a phaser blast. As the second Tholian ship comes around to
engage the Sparta, the Akula Class destroyer responds with a full spread of
torpedoes. As the Tholian turns to engage them, Robau is surprised to see
the Levek join the fight on their side. Disruptors slam into the turning
Tholian, and a phaser barrage bring down the Tholian shields. The
jewel-shaped starship explodes in a dazzling display... and the entire
region of space ripples and shifts, and the stars vanish.

When the brilliant flash subsides, Captain Robau notes that the Tholians are
gone, along with the mysterious Federation ship. The two Klingon ships are
adrift, but still occupy the same positions relative to the Sparta. Scans
show that the warships are still powered, but show extensive damage. At the
same time, the science officer reports a massive intallation extreme range
that shows a distinct Tholian signature. What should Captain Robau do next?

Post your solution here for a Command College Point. Feel free to discuss
this with the 'comment' feature

"Captain's Log"

"... a threat we weren't prepared for..."

Class N Reducing
Age: 3-10 billion years
Diameter: 10,000-15,000 km
Location: Ecosphere
Surface: High surface temperature due to greenhouse effect; water exists
only as vapor
Atmosphere: Extremely dense, carbon dioxide and sulfides
Life forms: Unknown
Example: Venus

17) A seemingly abandoned device on the planet threatens to destroy the
ship.

(Post-TNG Era)
Captain T'leenvil
RIS D'Shoanna
D'deridex Class Warbird

We responded to a distress signal from the theoretical warp facility on the
third planet in the Tal system. As we came into sensor range, we noted waves
and waves of compressed temporal displacement, originating from the
facility. This phenomenon is rare, but not unheard of. But coming from a
theoretical warp facility that deals in artificial singularities leads to
numerous scenarios, each more frightening than the last. Now, as our Praetor
is using the same technology to meddle in time travel to vanquish enemies
that he cannot defeat through any other means, and facilities like this
sprout up all over the Empire, I fear that these kinds of disasters will
become more and more commonplace.

We assumed standard orbit, and immediately scanned for life readings. None
were apparent, but the facility itself was building to an implosion.
Normally, I would have destroyed the facility with plasma torpedoes, but the
unusual gravimetrics created by the device prevented us from using our
impulse engines to break orbit. Finally, the chief engineer proposed a
solution once employed Captain Kirk, on the USS Enterprise more than a
hundred years ago. The procedure involves jumping directly into warp from
one fixed planetary orbit to another fixed planetary orbit in a different
system. The effect on the originating planet is, unfortunate, but as Tal III
will soon be another casualty of our Praetor's ambition anyway, I ordered
the procedure implemented. We were minutes away from our warp jump when
received another distress signal. Apparently the temporal displacement was
even affecting sensor readings from the surface. A probe launched directly
at the facility showed twenty-seven life signs. Most of the scientists still
lived, even as we prepared to leave. Fortunately our transporter was able to
beam the survivors from the life support domes on the otherwise
uninhabitable world to the safety of the D'Shoanna before we literally
warped out of orbit of the dying planet.

So we celebrate the lives of twenty-seven scientists who might otherwise be
dead, without so much as a corpse to mark their passage. And our Praetor,
who sold herself as a savior to the Romulan people in our darkest hour, may
in fact represent a threat we weren't prepared for.

for next week. write a 100+ word log entry including the phrase "... an
unimaginable scale...". Post it in the yahoo group or on the blogsite's
"comment" feature for a Command College Point.

Dev Notes:

I am still pushing through the Etlh's second combat trial. Slow going as RL
is a bit of a pain right now. Also talking myself into working through an
Excel-based map/Simple Combat scenario called "Eyes on the Prize":

The objective is to travel to the far side of unexplored space to recover
the artifact and return it to your home world.

Single Player AI engagement rules: AI will move to engage enemy fleets
within 3 spaces in neutral space. AI will move to engage enemy fleets within
5 spaces in friendly space.

System Conquest: In enemy/unclaimed territory, roll for encounter (2/6
chance). Roll 1d6for size of enemy fleet. Then use appropriate simple
combat template. All surviving ships retain damage but can move and fight
until destroyed. They can only be repaired by remaining in place for two
turns (subject to random enemy attack each turn) or by docking at shipyard
for one turn. System can be held by shipyard, starbase or at least three
ships in-system.

Random enemy convoy(s) may appear in enemy/unclaimed space. All convoys
stopped=at least 3/5 freighters destroyed, escorts (random, 1-2) destroyed
or disabled (10/15 damage) within five volleys deactivates one random enemy
shipyard. Shipyard will require at least three starships onsite for three
turns to reactivate.

Enemy forces may be encountered in all enemy/unclaimed open spaces. Roll for
encounter (2/6 chance), Roll for size of enemy fleet (use same method as
in-system combat).

Shipyard:
Shipyards are recommended. They can be built anywhere. Shipyard can
construct a ship in three turns. Three starships must remain in system or
open space area for three turns to build shipyard. LOS (line of sight) must
be maintained to access shipyard outside of home space. Shipyard outside of
home space is subject to attack every other turn by random number of
enemies.

Two complete fleets (12 ships) can construct an advanced shipyard in six
turns. Advanced shipyards, in turn, can build a ship in one turn.

Fleets are designated by number/race. For example, the Klingon First Fleet
is designated as KF1

Consult the Simple Combat Table for multipliers.

Sunday, January 17, 2010

Miss Ginny's Diary Jan 17th 2010


Meow to you. It’s me, Miss Ginny. How are you today? It has been a lazy day for us. HM says we are all slacking off which means we are mostly asleep. I have included a picture of me sleeping that HM took earlier today. I think we slept so much because it was quite a warm winter’s day and the sun was shining and we had lots of food to eat and all was well. HD rang in to see how we are and he is bringing us home some kitty treats – he does this every now and then. I love these – they are crunchy and the name of them is Friskies Natural Sensations. We have the ones made with chicken. HM gets yoghurt which she does not let us eat because she gets one with fruit in it. Today I watched HM pack some china bowls and I supervised her. She calls me her ‘kitchen boss’ because I like to watch what she is doing. My sister and Grandma Carrie were spitting at each other today so they were both sent to the opposite ends of the living room. ShooShoo was just being a pain! Well it is the next day now and the maintenance man came to fix our door. We needed a new key plus lock and as he had to cut into the iron door the noise was awful so HM put us all in the bathroom and then closed the door so the noise was less of a problem for our ears. We all behaved quite well I think. ShooShoo hid behind the toilet and I jumped in the bath and Grandma Carrie sat on top of the toilet and ShooShoo did not annoy her at all. GAD just sat in the middle of the bathroom wondering why we were all there. God Bless her, she lives in her own world. My mum Lapper, jumped on the bench and sat there. It took a while to finish – about 45 minutes. HM gave us a nice supper of turkey and gravy. So now it is early in the evening and we are all settled and HM is working on her writing. Because of the door being fixed we did not get any packing done today. HD got called into work early and I am hoping he might bring home some more treats. He spoils us. HM just said to me that I had treats yesterday so not to expect any today. Well I shall live in hope. HM is shaking her head at me and says I am a spoilt little princess that she really loves and knowing HD there will be something in his jacket pocket for us. ShooShoo has just come to join me and HM wants to know what she is talking about. It’s a big story. I wish she wouldn’t try to wash me. I hate having my ears washed. HM just told me not to fuss because ShooShoo has been doing this since we were very young and just to let it be. I am staring HM out. She just looked at me and shook her head. I like to curl up with HM and I am watching her so I can go and curl up with her when she has finished the column she is working on. Both HM and HD do a lot of writing. HD has already written nearly 5000 words this week and HM told him to take a rest. Well, it is the next day now and HM is not well and so I am keeping an eye on her. She says she is going to bed soon – it is about 6pm and HD will be home later from his work and he will cheer her up. I will cuddle up with her when she gets into bed in a moment – she calls me her little furry best friend. HM is frowning. She is watching the television on CNN (I’m not sure what that is). She was talking earlier to HD about some big problems in another country. HM looks very upset. She is frowning. Well looks like she is getting into bed so I will talk to you later.


Be well and many meows to you from me, Miss Ginny.

Friday, January 15, 2010

Chatter With Kate: THE LOGISTICAL CHALLENGE OF HAITI and SOME INAPPROPRIATE WORDS


Hello there folks. A couple of days ago I sat down to write a few words to you about ‘pesky’ politicians. I set up the laptop and turned on the television to have some background noise. Then along came the breaking news on the CNN network about the dreadful earthquake in Haiti. This is a truly staggering situation. I have been watching the great effort of the United States and other nations to get assistance to Haiti and try and alleviate the suffering of the people there. These things take time and I am amazed that some of the rescue teams got there within 48 hours with all their equipment and personnel etc. The dogs that go into the rubble of collapsed buildings never cease to amaze me. Aren’t they terrific?! When you think about it, the logistics of starting to sort out a devastated city of nearly 2 million people is staggering and yet I hear criticisms beginning to appear. Well I would just like to say to these people; just button it, your mouth/s that is. The logistical challenges are as I just said, staggering. The scale of helping a city of this size needing EVERYTHING is mind boggling. Where do you start? With Haiti having a government that can’t cope and an infrastructure that has basically ceased to exist, the problems that have to be dealt with are compounded by these and a port that is broken up and an airport that has a cracked building and control tower. The challenges are everywhere. I hear that the US military has gotten the airport sorted out but the port is a mess. So give folk time to sort this out to! As I write this, I am thinking that perhaps the United Nations should take perhaps Haiti over and put the country under its protection until they can find a leader for Haiti that is not going to become a dictator and has a brain or two. This might sound harsh but if you look at the history of this beautiful country and its resilient people, they have been placed under some crazy governmental situations in their history. The largest percentage of Haiti’s population is under 18 years of age and there are many orphanages and schools that are trying to cope. Wow! It all sounds overwhelming. But you know, we will all help them. It may be physical help; it may be in our prayers. We may even be able to volunteer in some way. If you can do the latter, then please try. I know that many folk nowadays are struggling financially, but even a dollar or two to a reputable agency like Red Cross or the United Nations would be welcome.


Finally, I would just like to say to the well-known preacher who said on national television, that the people of Haiti (who seem to have a history of different troubles) basically deserve what they are getting because they had made a pact with the Devil to get the French Colonial power out of the country – well you need to button your mouth up too. My goodness me, perhaps you might like to think of finding a different profession. Sure, we live in a democracy with the right of free speech, but dude, this was way over the top. I have a lot of buttons of varying sizes – perhaps I should send you one of the larger ones.

Go safely out there folks and God Bless you.

Kate.

Wednesday, January 13, 2010

Fantasy Trek: Summary of Events Stardate 0110.13

If you'd like to be able to jump right in to see if you like this game, you might want to try a few rounds of Simple Combat. The Simple Combat Game is a way for you to quickly resolve combat between vessels, or fleets of vessels. This is useful if you are playing a scenario or campaign that involves more than a few ships. Otherwise a simple scenario could take weeks to play through.




It is useful to keep a copy of the Simple Combat Template. This makes it possible to copy and paste the basics of your bit of 'paperwork', add however many ships you may need to, and change or insert ship names. Here is a very basic template (there are more in the files):



IKS rolls: o/d

USS rolls: o/d

Result:

IKS damage /15

USS damage /15



The first section is for points rolled (1d6 result times the appropriate multiplier), and how the points are allocated (offense/defense). The second "Result" section shows the calculated damage. In the case of basic AI ships, the damage potential is 15.. so you would indicate 5 points damage with 5/15. Pretty simple.



If you are playing a single player game, roll a 1d6 to see who 'wins the toss'. If you roll a 1-3, you do. Then you roll the 1d6 for your opponent first. Allocate available points according to this multiplier chart:



2 (DS) Defense Sat/(FR)Freighter X1

3 (FF) Frigate X4

4 (DD) DestroyerX6

5 (CL) Light Cruiser X8

6 (CA) Heavy Cruiser X10

7 (CC) Command Cruiser X12

8 (HCA) Heavy Battlecruiser X15

9 (DN) Dreadnought X20

10 (BB) Battleship X22

11 (CV)Carrier X25

12 (STB ) Starbase/ (BS)Base Station X50/75 (reroll, 50/50)





Here is an example of simple combat between the Klingon heavy cruiser Perseus and the Sha'kurian heavy cruiser Count: In this case, I won the toss, playing as the Perseus. That meant that the 'AI' Sha'kurian ship had to allocate first. (The point of all this 'coin tossing' is to add randomness to the gameplay in the single player game. It puts the luxury of being able to react to your opponent's first move on a totally random footing. And of course, whoever rolled second first time rolls first the next. Compare it to the coin toss to determine who receives the kickoff in a football game ) That roll was a 6 (on a 1d6), for 60 points. Considering that there were several other engagements going on at the same time, I decided to play it safe, putting it all on defense. Lucky for the Klingon ship Perseus, because that ship only rolled a 1.





IKS Perseus rolls:10 0o/10d

SRS Count rolls:60 0o/60d

Result:

IKS Perseus damage 0/25

SRS Count damage 0/15



For the next volley, the Klingon ship took its turn rolling first. It rolled a "3", for 30 points, and put them all on defense. It didn't save him, because the Count rolled a 6.



IKS Perseus rolls:30 0o/30d

SRS Count rolls:60 60o/d

Result:

IKS Perseus destroyed

SRS Count damage 0/15



You'll note that the Perseus is able to take 25 points of damage. That is because all of my play has given me a "Legendary" rating. The increased available points is one of the benefits of that. For details, see "Experience Points: How to Get Them and What They Get You". If you want to take it a step further, you can capture ships using Simple Combat. You have to cause 10 points of damage to lower the enemy shields, then transport over. Ah, but to so that you have to lower your own shields. Do that by giving yourself (just for the 'transport' volley) 10 points damage. A bit tricky, with careful timing involved, but a great tactic. And of course, as new races are added to Fantasy Trek, there will be a few necessary variations to these rules (i.e. Tholian Webs).



So what to do with all of this? As I said, the Simple Combat Game is ideal for extended scenarios involving many ships in combat. For example, Head to Head Sector Assault was written with Simple Combat in mind:



Rules

The goal is to conquer and hold all 5 systems.



In order to do this, you must conquer (in order, 1 through 5), and sufficiently defend all systems while denying your enemy access to those same systems. Reduce the enemy fleet sufficiently to prevent them from building a shipyard, and stop/destroy enough enemy convoys to deny random reinforcements sufficient to threaten your shipyards. You must also attain a minimum of 13 points (see 'Victory Conditions' below)



System Conquest:

Regardless of whether a system has been taken by enemy forces, you will face a random-sized enemy fleet upon first arrival in a new system. Roll 1d6 for size of enemy fleet, then subtract any applicable random fleet disadvantage (see below). If the size of the enemy fleet is less than the random fleet disadvantage, then there is no contact. Then use appropriate simple combat template. All surviving ships retain damage but can move and fight until destroyed. They can only be repaired by remaining in place for two turns (subject to random enemy attack each turn-50% chance of random attack. 1d6:1-3=no contact. 4-6=attacked) or by docking at shipyard for one turn (subject to random enemy attack, same odds as above). The system remains yours once you've defeated the initial fleet, but if left undefended, any attempt to conquer it will only be countered by a randomly generated fleet. You can (and should) choose to leave any combination of ships and/or a shipyard to defend it.



Open Space:

Enemy convoys will only be encountered in open spaces. Roll for encounter (1d6:1-3=contact). Then roll 1d6 for enemy escorts. 1-3= 1 CA escort. 4-6= 2 CA escorts. The random fleet disadvantage does not affect this. Random enemy convoy(s) must be stopped=at least 3/5 freighters destroyed or captured (5/15 damage and successful boarding party action), escorts destroyed or disabled (10/15 damage) in 5 volleys or less. Every convoy that is stopped decreases random enemy fleet size by one. This is the random fleet disadvantage. For every three freighters captured, your random fleet disadvantage is reduced by one. You will not encounter convoys in open spaces when you have conquered both adjacent systems



Shipyard:

Shipyards are recommended. They can only be built in systems that you hold (by destroying an initial assault fleet). Three starships must remain in system or open space area for three turns to build shipyard. During each turn 50% chance of random attack. (1d6:1d6:1-3=no contact. 4-6=attack, then roll 1d6 for size of enemy fleet. If the size of the enemy fleet is less than the random fleet disadvantage, then there is no contact.) LOS (line of sight) must be maintained to use or attack shipyard. Shipyard has X75 multiplier. Shipyard can construct replacement ships in 3 turns. While your fleet can not exceed 6 ships, additional ships built at shipyards do not count against this total. They cannot fight with full-sized fleets, but can supplement diminished fleets. The same rule applies to surviving random reinforcements. Since you must have a minimum of three ships to build a shipyard, it is recommended that you build at least one shipyard and at least two reserve ships just in case of unforseen losses. A fleet reduced to two ships and no shipyard to fall back would have little chance of victory.



If you want to register as a player, notify me through a comment on the

blogsite. I recommend keeping a record of your games played, as they add up to experience points that enrich your gaming experience.



Victory Conditions/Points-

Shipyards 5 (max)

Fleet size 6 (max)

Reinforcement capacity 6 (max)



You must conquer 5 systems and attain 13+ VC points



Templates (it is recommended that you keep a master copy of these, making working copies to modify suit your needs):



Klingon fleet vs Federation Fleet

KCA IKS Kandido rolls: o/d

KCA IKS Kurry rolls: o/d

KCA IKS DuranQo rolls: o/d

KCA IKS Ok'ran rolls: o/d

KCA IKS D'Han rolls: o/d

KCA IKS Glommer rolls: o/d

FCA USS Washington rolls: o/d

FCA USS Roosevelt rolls: o/d

FCA USS Cleveland rolls: o/d

FCA USS Detroit rolls: o/d

FCA USS Abraham Lincoln rolls: o/d

FCA USS Guadalcanal rolls: o/d

results

KCA IKS Kandido damage: /15

KCA IKS Kurry damage: /15

KCA IKS DuranQo damage: /15

KCA IKS Ok'ran damage: /15

KCA IKS D'Han damage: /15

KCA IKS Glommer damage: /15

FCA USS Washington damage: /15

FCA USS Roosevelt damage: /15

FCA USS Cleveland damage: /15

FCA USS Detroit damage: /15

FCA USS Abraham damage: /15

FCA USS Guadalcanal damage: /15



Klingon fleet versus Federation convoy with two escorts



KCA IKS Etlh rolls: o/d

KCA IKS Dk'tagh rolls: o/d

KCA IKS Bertaa rolls: o/d

KCA IKS BortaS rolls: o/d

KCA IKS Chang rolls: o/d

KCA IKS tIQ'etlh rolls: o/d

FCA USS Komack rolls: o/d

FCA USS Nogura rolls: o/d

Fr rolls: o/d

Fr2 rolls: o/d

Fr3 rolls: o/d

Fr4 rolls: o/d

Fr5 rolls: o/d

results

KCA IKS Etlh damage: /15

KCA IKS Dk'tagh damage: /15

KCA IKS Bertaa damage: /15

KCA IKS BortaS damage: /15

KCA IKS Chang damage: /15

KCA IKS tIQ'etlh damage: /15

FCA USS Komack damage: /15

FCA USS Nogura damage: /15

Fr1 damage: /15

Fr2 damage: /15

Fr3 damage: /15

Fr4 damage: /15

Fr5 damage: /15



Sample First Turn:



Turn 1)

(1209.13)

System 1: FCA USS Essex FCA USS Challenger FCA USS Tahir FCA USS Robau FCA USS Abrahms FCA USS Orci form Fed 1st Fleet (FF1). Contact: 4 KCA's *won toss. (1209.13) FCA USS Essex FCA USS Challenger FCA USS Tahir FCA USS Robau FCA USS Abrahms FCA USS Orci vs KCA IKS D'Qu KCA IKS NaQjej KCA IKS Ej'QuD KCA IKS Qaw'lu: Klingons destroyed. No damage to FF1.

System 5: KCA IKS Kandido KCA IKS Kurry KCA IKS DuranQo KCA IKS Ok'ran KCA IKS D'Han KCA IKS Glommer form Klingon 1st Fleet (KF1). Contact: 4 FCA's *won toss. (1209.13) KCA IKS Kandido KCA IKS Kurry KCA IKS DuranQo KCA IKS Ok'ran KCA IKS D'Han KCA IKS Glommer vs FCA USS Washington FCA USS Roosevelt FCA USS Cleveland FCA USS Detroit: Feds destroyed. No damage to KF1.





TNG Era:



Kri'staK Sector

Ab'Qaff Battle Group

Ab'Qaff Class Klingon Heavy Command Cruiser (KCVC) IKS Ab'Qaff

General Kapact Commanding



cha'Hom System-

The IKS Ab'Qaff reports that a sample of the ancient Vulcan hull material has been transferred to a 'trusted representative' of the Vulcan High Council. It also transmitted all relevant data of a strong Romulan military presence in the sector. Having now completed its mission in the cha'Hom system, the Ab'Qaff battle group has departed for the wej'Hom system.



Games in Play:





Head to Head Sector Conquest

(Note:The end of the campaign was not a surprise. Klingon forces eventually overpowered withering Federation resistance. At the end, Klingon forces built their second shipyard to attain the required Victory Condition points. Reading over prevous notes, I see where I had allowed for losing fleet commanders to call in reinforcements. I changed my mind on that, because I thought that the law of averages would equalize any balance issue created by the advantage created by winning and losing the coin toss. I'll keep that issue in mind during the next Head to Head Sector Assault.)





Turn 38)

(1209.25)

System 5:

KCA IKS Poktarl FCA IKS Challenger FCA IKS Calgary on station. KSY Klinzai idle. Random attack? Contact: 4 FCA's *won toss. (1209.29) KCA IKS Poktarl FCA IKS Challenger FCA IKS Calgary KSY Klinzai vs FCA USS Indomitable FCA USS Alpha Centauri FCA USS Cochrane FCA USS Henry Archer: FCA USS Indomitable FCA USS Alpha Centauri FCA USS Cochrane FCA USS Henry Archer destroyed. Klingons undamaged.

Open Space:

KF3 (FCA IKS Jamestown FCA IKS Roanoke FCA IKS Mayflower FCA IKS Boston KCA IKS Chang KCA IKS tIQ'etlh) arrive in open space. Search for convoy? Turn 1: no contact



Turn 39)

(1209.30)

System 5:

KCA IKS Poktarl FCA IKS Challenger FCA IKS Calgary on station. KSY Klinzai idle.

Open Space:

KF3 (FCA IKS Jamestown FCA IKS Roanoke FCA IKS Mayflower FCA IKS Boston KCA IKS Chang KCA IKS tIQ'etlh) in open space. Search for convoy? Turn 2: no contact



Turn 40)

(1209.30)

System 5:

KCA IKS Poktarl FCA IKS Challenger FCA IKS Calgary on station. KSY Klinzai idle. Random attack? No contact.

Open Space:

KF3 (FCA IKS Jamestown FCA IKS Roanoke FCA IKS Mayflower FCA IKS Boston KCA IKS Chang KCA IKS tIQ'etlh) in open space. Search for convoy? Turn 3: no contact





Turn 41)

(1209.30)

System 5:

KCA IKS Poktarl FCA IKS Challenger FCA IKS Calgary on station. KSY Klinzai idle.

Open Space:

KF3 (FCA IKS Jamestown FCA IKS Roanoke FCA IKS Mayflower FCA IKS Boston KCA IKS Chang KCA IKS tIQ'etlh) in open space. Search for convoy? Turn 4: no contact





Turn 42)

(1209.30)

System 5:

KCA IKS Poktarl FCA IKS Challenger FCA IKS Calgary on station. KSY Klinzai idle. Random attack? No contact.

Open Space:

KF3 (FCA IKS Jamestown FCA IKS Roanoke FCA IKS Mayflower FCA IKS Boston KCA IKS Chang KCA IKS tIQ'etlh) in open space. Search for convoy? Turn 5: no contact





Turn 43)

(1209.30)

System 5:

KCA IKS Poktarl FCA IKS Challenger FCA IKS Calgary on station. KSY Klinzai idle.

Open Space:

KF3 (FCA IKS Jamestown FCA IKS Roanoke FCA IKS Mayflower FCA IKS Boston KCA IKS Chang KCA IKS tIQ'etlh) arrive in open space. Search for convoy? Turn 6: Contact: Fr1-5 w/1 FCA escort. *won toss. (1209.31) FCA IKS Jamestown FCA IKS Roanoke FCA IKS Mayflower FCA IKS Boston KCA IKS Chang KCA IKS tIQ'etlh vs FCA USS Komack, Fr!-5: FCA USS Komack, Fr!-5 destroyed. No damage to Klingons. Federation random fleet disadvantage= -3. KF3 departs for System 2.



Turn 44)

(0110.01)

System 5:

KCA IKS Poktarl FCA IKS Challenger FCA IKS Calgary on station. KSY Klinzai idle. Random attack? No contact.

System 2:

KF3 (FCA IKS Jamestown FCA IKS Roanoke FCA IKS Mayflower FCA IKS Boston KCA IKS Chang KCA IKS tIQ'etlh) arrive in System 2. Contact: 2 FCA's. *lost toss. (0110.01) FCA IKS Jamestown FCA IKS Roanoke FCA IKS Mayflower FCA IKS Boston KCA IKS Chang KCA IKS tIQ'etlh vs FCA USS Milliways FCA USS Gilliam: FCA USS Milliways FCA USS Gilliam destroyed. FCA IKS Jamestown damage 20/25. FCA IKS Roanoke FCA IKS Mayflower FCA IKS Boston KCA IKS Chang KCA IKS tIQ'etlh. Fleet remains on station while FCA IKS Jamestown repairs.



Turn 45)

(0110.01)

System 5:

KCA IKS Poktarl FCA IKS Challenger FCA IKS Calgary on station. KSY Klinzai idle.

System 2:

KF3 (FCA IKS Jamestown FCA IKS Roanoke FCA IKS Mayflower FCA IKS Boston KCA IKS Chang KCA IKS tIQ'etlh) remains on station while FCA IKS Jamestown repairs. Turn 1/2 contact? No contact.



Turn 46)

(0110.01)

System 5:

KCA IKS Poktarl FCA IKS Challenger FCA IKS Calgary on station. KSY Klinzai idle. Random attack? No contact

System 2:

KF3 (FCA IKS Jamestown FCA IKS Roanoke FCA IKS Mayflower FCA IKS Boston KCA IKS Chang KCA IKS tIQ'etlh) remains on station while FCA IKS Jamestown repairs. Turn 2/2 contact? No contact. Fleet departs for open space.



Turn 47)

(0110.01)

System 5:

KCA IKS Poktarl FCA IKS Challenger FCA IKS Calgary on station. KSY Klinzai idle.

Open Space:

KF3 (FCA IKS Jamestown FCA IKS Roanoke FCA IKS Mayflower FCA IKS Boston KCA IKS Chang KCA IKS tIQ'etlh) arrive in open space. Search for convoy turn 1? Contact Fr1-5, 2 FCA's. *won toss (0110.01) FCA IKS Jamestown FCA IKS Roanoke FCA IKS Mayflower FCA IKS Boston KCA IKS Chang KCA IKS tIQ'etlh vs FCA USS Alderaan FCA USS Probert, Fr!-5: FCA USS Alderaan FCA USS Probert, Fr!-5 destroyed. FCA IKS Jamestown destroyed. FCA IKS Mayflower damage 14/25. FCA IKS Roanoke FCA IKS Boston KCA IKS Chang KCA IKS tIQ'etlh undamaged. Federation random fleet disadvantage= -4. KF3 (FCA IKS Roanoke FCA IKS Mayflower FCA IKS Boston KCA IKS Chang KCA IKS tIQ'etlh) remain on station for repair of FCA IKS Mayflower.



Turn 48)

(0110.01)

System 5:

KCA IKS Poktarl FCA IKS Challenger FCA IKS Calgary on station. KSY Klinzai idle. Random attack? No contact.

Open Space:

KF3 (FCA IKS Roanoke FCA IKS Mayflower FCA IKS Boston KCA IKS Chang KCA IKS tIQ'etlh) remain on station for repair of FCA IKS Mayflower. Turn 1/2 random attack? No contact.



Turn 49)

(0110.01)

System 5:

KCA IKS Poktarl FCA IKS Challenger FCA IKS Calgary on station. KSY Klinzai idle.

Open Space:

KF3 (FCA IKS Roanoke FCA IKS Mayflower FCA IKS Boston KCA IKS Chang KCA IKS tIQ'etlh) remain on station for repair of FCA IKS Mayflower. Turn 2/2 random attack? Contact: 1 FCA *won toss. (0110.01) FCA IKS Roanoke FCA IKS Mayflower FCA IKS Boston KCA IKS Chang KCA IKS tIQ'etlh vs FCA USS Martha Washington: FCA USS Martha Washington destroyed. Klingons undamaged. FCA IKS Mayflower fully repaired. Klingon fleet departs for system 1.



Turn 50)

(0110.01)

System 5:

KCA IKS Poktarl FCA IKS Challenger FCA IKS Calgary on station. KSY Klinzai idle. Random attack? No contact.

System 1:

KF3 (FCA IKS Roanoke FCA IKS Mayflower FCA IKS Boston KCA IKS Chang KCA IKS tIQ'etlh) arrive in System 1. Begin construct KSY Kahless. Turn 1/3 Contact: 1 FCA *won toss. (0110.01) FCA IKS Roanoke FCA IKS Mayflower FCA IKS Boston KCA IKS Chang KCA IKS tIQ'etlh vs FCA USS Panama City: FCA USS Panama City destroyed. Klingons undamaged.



Turn 51)

(0110.01)

System 5:

KCA IKS Poktarl FCA IKS Challenger FCA IKS Calgary on station. KSY Klinzai idle.

System 1:

KF3 (FCA IKS Roanoke FCA IKS Mayflower FCA IKS Boston KCA IKS Chang KCA IKS tIQ'etlh) in System 1. Construct KSY Kahless. Turn 2/3 Random attack? No contact.





Turn 52)

(0110.01)

System 5:

KCA IKS Poktarl FCA IKS Challenger FCA IKS Calgary on station. KSY Klinzai idle. Random attack? No contact.

System 1:

KF3 (FCA IKS Roanoke FCA IKS Mayflower FCA IKS Boston KCA IKS Chang KCA IKS tIQ'etlh) in System 1. Construct KSY Kahless. Turn 3/3 Random attack? No contact. KSY Kahless complete.



Klingons defeat Federation



Victory Conditions/Points-

Shipyards 2

Fleet size 5

Reinforcement capacity 6 (max)

5 systems conquered.

13 VC points





PvP games reported:

(0110.03) PCA AV Sitka vs KCA IKS 'etlh: Both ships destroyed



Heavy Combat: KCA IKS Etlh(A) vs KCA IKS Etlh(B)



(0110.04) KCA IKS Etlh(A) vs KCA IKS Etlh(B) (Advanced/Prototype Test)



1)

Position

....1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21

1___________________________________________________

2___________________________________________________

3___________________________________________________

4_____________A_____________________________________

5___________________________________________________

6___________________________________________________

7___________________________________________________

8___________________________B_______________________

9___________________________________________________

10__________________________________________________

11__________________________________________________

12__________________________________________________

13__________________________________________________

14__________________________________________________

15__________________________________________________

16__________________________________________________

17__________________________________________________

18__________________________________________________

19__________________________________________________

Elevation

.... A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U

A___________________________________________________

B___________________________________________________

C___________________________________________________

D___________________________________________________

E___________________________________________________

F___________________________________________________

G__________________________B________________________

H___________________________________________________

I_________________A_________________________________

J___________________________________________________

K___________________________________________________

L___________________________________________________

M___________________________________________________

N___________________________________________________

O___________________________________________________

P___________________________________________________

Q___________________________________________________

S___________________________________________________

T___________________________________________________





A) Roll [9]

A) Helm: Position/Movement[9x4,JxI /Speed2]/[Course 90x000 ]

A) Countermeasures/Reinforce shields/Cloak/Tractor/Repair: [6ECM/ECCM()+retained] [Reinforce shields()+retained]Cloak[]Tractor[pts] Repair[]

A) Tactical: Target[BFWD] Target Bearing[45x45] Target Range[6] Fire weapons [FWDdisruptors(x) +FWDphotons(4x4)+AFTdisruptors(5x4)+AFTphotons(x)]

A) Auxiliary Craft: Shuttle[ , /Speed]/[Course] Target[] Target Bearing[] Target Range[] Fire weapons [def disruptors(x)]/(Fighter[ , /Speed]/[Course] Target[] Target Bearing[] Target Range[] Fire weapons [beam disruptors(x)+photons(x)]





B) Roll [6]

B) Helm: Position/Movement[15x8,NxG /Speed3]/[Course270/000 ]

B) Countermeasures/Reinforce shields/Cloak/Tractor/Repair: [ECM/ECCM(5)+retained] [Reinforce shields()+retained]Cloak[]Tractor[pts] Repair[]

B) Tactical: Target[AFWD] Target Bearing[45x335] Target Range[6] Fire weapons [FWDdisruptors(x) +FWDphotons(4x4)+AFTdisruptors(x)+AFTphotons(x)]

B) Auxiliary Craft: Shuttle[ , /Speed]/[Course] Target[] Target Bearing[] Target Range[] Fire weapons [def disruptors(x)]/(Fighter[ , /Speed]/[Course] Target[] Target Bearing[] Target Range[] Fire weapons [beam disruptors(x)+photons(x)]



Results:

A) Damage:16 pts total FWD Shields 16/32

B) Damage:36 pts total FWD Shields 32/32 FWD Armor 4/4



2)

Position

....1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21

1___________________________________________________

2___________________________________________________

3___________________________________________________

4_________________A_________________________________

5___________________________________________________

6___________________________________________________

7___________________________________________________

8___________________B_______________________________

9___________________________________________________

10__________________________________________________

11__________________________________________________

12__________________________________________________

13__________________________________________________

14__________________________________________________

15__________________________________________________

16__________________________________________________

17__________________________________________________

18__________________________________________________

19__________________________________________________

Elevation

.... A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U

A___________________________________________________

B___________________________________________________

C___________________________________________________

D___________________________________________________

E___________________________________________________

F___________________________________________________

G______________________B____________________________

H___________________________________________________

I_________________A__________________________________

J___________________________________________________

K___________________________________________________

L___________________________________________________

M___________________________________________________

N___________________________________________________

O___________________________________________________

P___________________________________________________

Q___________________________________________________

S___________________________________________________

T___________________________________________________





A) Roll [6]

A) Helm: Position/Movement[11x4,JxI /Speed2]/[Course 90x000 ]

A) Countermeasures/Reinforce shields/Cloak/Tractor/Repair: [5ECM/ECCM()+retained] [Reinforce shields()+retained]Cloak[]Tractor[pts] Repair[]

A) Tactical: Target[BPort] Target Bearing[90x45] Target Range[4] Fire weapons [FWDdisruptors(4x3) +FWDphotons(x)+AFTdisruptors(x)+AFTphotons(x)]

A) Auxiliary Craft: Shuttle[ , /Speed]/[Course] Target[] Target Bearing[] Target Range[] Fire weapons [def disruptors(x)]/(Fighter[ , /Speed]/[Course] Target[] Target Bearing[] Target Range[] Fire weapons [beam disruptors(x)+photons(x)]





B) Roll [10]

B) Helm: Position/Movement[12x8,MxG /Speed3]/[Course270/000 ]

B) Countermeasures/Reinforce shields/Cloak/Tractor/Repair: [4ECM/5ECCM()+retained] [Reinforce shields()+retained]Cloak[]Tractor[pts] Repair[]

B) Tactical: Target[ASTBD] Target Bearing[45x315] Target Range[] Fire weapons [FWDdisruptors(4x6) +FWDphotons(x)+AFTdisruptors(x)+AFTphotons(x)]

B) Auxiliary Craft: Shuttle[ , /Speed]/[Course] Target[] Target Bearing[] Target Range[] Fire weapons [def disruptors(x)]/(Fighter[ , /Speed]/[Course] Target[] Target Bearing[] Target Range[] Fire weapons [beam disruptors(x)+photons(x)]



Results:

A) Damage:24 pts total FWD Shields 15/32 STBD Shields 24/30

B) Damage:4 pts total FWD Shields 32/32 FWD Armor 4/4 Port Shields 4/30



3)

Position

....1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21

1___________________________________________________

2___________________________________________________

3___________________________________________________

4______________________A____________________________

5___________________________________________________

6___________________________________________________

7____________B______________________________________

8___________________________________________________

9___________________________________________________

10__________________________________________________

11__________________________________________________

12__________________________________________________

13__________________________________________________

14__________________________________________________

15__________________________________________________

16__________________________________________________

17__________________________________________________

18__________________________________________________

19__________________________________________________

Elevation

.... A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U

A___________________________________________________

B___________________________________________________

C___________________________________________________

D___________________________________________________

E___________________________________________________

F___________________________________________________

G_____________B_____________________________________

H___________________________________________________

I____________________A_______________________________

J___________________________________________________

K___________________________________________________

L___________________________________________________

M___________________________________________________

N___________________________________________________

O___________________________________________________

P___________________________________________________

Q___________________________________________________

S___________________________________________________

T___________________________________________________





A) Roll [12]

A) Helm: Position/Movement[13x4,LxI /Speed2]/[Course 90x000 ]

A) Countermeasures/Reinforce shields/Cloak/Tractor/Repair: [3ECM/3ECCM()+retained] [Reinforce shields()+retained]Cloak[]Tractor[pts] Repair[]

A) Tactical: Target[BVENT] Target Bearing[315x45] Target Range[4] Fire weapons [FWDdisruptors(x) +FWDphotons(x)+AFTdisruptors(2x4)+AFTphotons(4x4)MicroTorp(8x2x4)]

A) Auxiliary Craft: Shuttle[ , /Speed]/[Course] Target[] Target Bearing[] Target Range[] Fire weapons [def disruptors(x)]/(Fighter[ , /Speed]/[Course] Target[] Target Bearing[] Target Range[] Fire weapons [beam disruptors(x)+photons(x)]





B) Roll [5]

B) Helm: Position/Movement[9x7,HxG /Speed3]/[Course315x225 ]

B) Countermeasures/Reinforce shields/Cloak/Tractor/Repair: [3ECM/ECCM()+retained] [Reinforce shields()+retained]Cloak[]Tractor[pts] Repair[]

B) Tactical: Target[AAFT] Target Bearing[135x315] Target Range[] Fire weapons [FWDdisruptors(x) +FWDphotons(x)+AFTdisruptors(1x4)+AFTphotons(6x4)MicroTorp(xx)]

B) Auxiliary Craft: Shuttle[ , /Speed]/[Course] Target[] Target Bearing[] Target Range[] Fire weapons [def disruptors(x)]/(Fighter[ , /Speed]/[Course] Target[] Target Bearing[] Target Range[] Fire weapons [beam disruptors(x)+photons(x)]



Results:

A) Damage:25 pts total FWD Shields 15/32 STBD Shields 24/30 AFT Shields 22/22 AFT Shields 3/3

B) Damage:72 pts total FWD Shields 32/32 FWD Armor 4/4 Port Shields 4/30 (VENT Shields 32/32) (VENT Armor 4/4) (VENT Hull 4/4) (VENT Systems 10/10) Tractor 2/2 Batteries 4/4 Warp 4/4, Hanger Bay 2/2 (FWD Systems 5/5) Photon 2/2 Bridge 1/1 Sensor 1/1 Transporter 1/1 (AFT Systems 3/3) Photon 1/1 Sensor 1/1, Impulse 1/1 (STBD Systems 3/3) Docking Port 1/1 Warp Nacelle 1/1 Cloak 1/1 PORT Systems Docking Port 1/1 Warp Nacelle 1/1 Cloak 1/1 (66 total) (DORS Systems 6/20) Bridge 1/1 Computer Core 1/1 Impulse 1/1 Transporter 1/1 Disruptors(FWD) 2/4



Catastrophic Damage: 1 more system (DORS Systems) Disruptors(FWD) 3/4



KCA IKS Etlh(B) completely disabled and adrift. KCA IKS Etlh(A) disengages.



A) KLINGON CA (Etlh Class)



SHIELD GENERATORS 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 (1 IN 10 NEEDED)

DORSAL SHIELDS: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32

VENTRAL SHIELDS: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32

PORT SHIELDS: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30

STARBOARD SHIELDS: 1 2 3 4 5 6

FORE SHIELDS: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17

AFT SHIELDS:



Armor:

Fore 1 2 3 4

Aft

Port 1 2 3 4

Starboard 1 2 3 4

Dorsal 1 2 3 4

Ventral 1 2 3 4



Hull

Fore 1 2 3 4

Aft 1 2

Port 1 2 3 4

Starboard 1 2 3 4

Dorsal 1 2 3 4

Ventral 1 2 3 4



INTERNALS

Control Capable:

CCS/ATC (Command & Control Systems/Auxiliary Tactical Control)

Bridge (DORS, FWD)1

Fire Control (FWD) 1 2

(CR)Computer Core (DORS, FWD) 1*

Engineering (DORS) 1 2 3 4



Photon Torpedoes (FWD) 1 2 (AFT) 1 (DOR) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

(CR) Sensors (FWD) 1 *

Tractors (VENT)1 2

Disruptors (DOR)(FWD) 1 2 3 4 (DOR)(AFT) 1 2 3 4

Hanger Bay (VENT) 1 2

Transporter (FWD) 1

(CR) Batteries (VENT)1 2 3 4*

(CR) Warp (VENT)1 2 3 4*

Warp Nacelles (PORT) 1 2 (STBD) 1 2 (AFT) 1 2

*Control Requisite (CR): Sensors/Computer Core/Power or Aux Power(1 battery per turn)



Internal Damage Chart

Roll 1 dice

If you roll a number for a system that is already destroyed, you roll again.

(Roll) Result

DORS:(1)Bridge 1, (2)Computer Core 1, (3)Impulse 1, (4)Transporter 1 (5)Disruptors(FWD) 1 2 3 4 (5)Disruptors(AFT) 1 2 3 4 (6) Photons 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

VENT: (1,2)Tractor 1 2, (3,4)Batteries 1 2 3 4, (5)Warp 1 2 3 4, (6)Hanger Bay 1 2

FWD: (1)Photon 1 2 (2)Bridge 1 (3,4)Sensor 1, (5,6)Transporter 1

AFT: (1,2)Photon 1, (3)Sensor 1, (4,5)Impulse 1

PORT: (1,3,5,6)Docking Port, (2)Warp Nacelle 1, (4)Cloak 1

STBD: (1,3,5,6)Docking Port, (2)Warp Nacelle 1, (4)Cloak 1



Boarding Parties: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

Additional Capture Defenses: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10





B) KLINGON CA (Etlh Class)



SHIELD GENERATORS 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 (1 IN 10 NEEDED)

DORSAL SHIELDS: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32

VENTRAL SHIELDS:

PORT SHIELDS: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26

STARBOARD SHIELDS: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30

FORE SHIELDS:

AFT SHIELDS: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22



Armor:

Fore

Aft 1 2 3

Port 1 2 3 4

Starboard 1 2 3 4

Dorsal 1 2 3 4

Ventral



Hull

Fore 1 2 3 4

Aft 1 2

Port 1 2 3 4

Starboard 1 2 3 4

Dorsal 1 2 3 4

Ventral



INTERNALS

Control Capable:

CCS/ATC (Command & Control Systems/Auxiliary Tactical Control)

Bridge (DORS, FWD)1

Fire Control (FWD) 1 2

(CR)Computer Core (DORS, FWD) 1*

Engineering (DORS) 1 2 3 4



Photon Torpedoes (FWD) 1 2 (AFT) 1 (DOR) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

(CR) Sensors (FWD) 1 *

Tractors (VENT)1 2

Disruptors (DOR)(FWD) 1 2 3 4 (DOR)(AFT) 1 2 3 4

Hanger Bay (VENT) 1 2

Transporter (FWD) 1

(CR) Batteries (VENT)1 2 3 4*

(CR) Warp (VENT)1 2 3 4*

Warp Nacelles (PORT) 1 2 (STBD) 1 2 (AFT) 1 2

*Control Requisite (CR): Sensors/Computer Core/Power or Aux Power(1 battery per turn)



Internal Damage Chart

Roll 1 dice

If you roll a number for a system that is already destroyed, you roll again.

(Roll) Result

DORS: 4 (5)Disruptors(AFT) 1 2 3 4 (6) Photons 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

VENT:

FWD:

AFT:

PORT:

STBD:



Boarding Parties: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

Additional Capture Defenses: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10





Command College:



"What Are Your Orders, Captain?"



(TMP Era) "Enmeshed"



Discovering a mysterious and unidentified Federation starship trapped in what appears to be a Tholian interspatial gravity well, Captain Robau of the Akula Class destroyer USS Sparta moves to investigate, but is challenged by two approaching Klingon warships. Despite the fact that the Klingons are approximately ten minutes away and the danger of Tholian activity, Captain Robau has no choice but to attempt a rescue. He decides to extend scans ahead, to gather whatever information he can before arriving on the scene. As the Sparta closes to transporter range, sensors show thousands of microfractures in the hull, allowing for more detailed internal scans. He is relieved to discover no life forms aboard, simplifying the task before him.

A detailed scan of the mysterious ship reveals low-level power emanations, leading from the electro plasma system (EPS) to the tactical systems. Any residual power left in the matter/antimatter reaction assembly would still be available to any functioning tactical systems. That might give them a chance to mount a brief defence against the Klingon attack. Of course, this would require transporting crew to the ship, which is hazardous for a number of obvious reasons. Is it worth the risk?



What are your orders, Captain?



As the Klingons continue to close, they are revealed as a K'tinga Class Battlecruiser and a Levek Class Destroyer. Their weapons are charged, and they are on course to intercept the unknown ship, intent on either capturing or destroying it.

Captain Robau continues to scan the ship as he hails the two Klingon ships, ordering them to withdraw or risk war. He doesn't expect it to deter them, but instead hopes to delay them, even if only for a moment. As it turns out, the Klingons don't slow down or hesitate. In the meantime, Captain Robau transports an engineering team, along with a small tactical. While the disabled Federation ship is in no shape for extended combat operations, it dwarfs all of the other ships in the area. He can only hope that his engineering team can bring the other ship into the fight quickly enough to make a difference.

As lights start to flicker across the massive hull, two other ships appear on the scene. These are instantly recognizable as Tholian heavy cruisers. Before the captain can catch his breath, one of the Tholians has launched a web at the K'tinga. These are weapons he'd heard of but never seen, supposedly brought by extra-galactic Neo-Tholians. They were webs instantly deployable, by a single ship. Unlike the older Tholian webs that required two ships and more than hour to construct, these neo-webs were launched almost like torpedoes, encasing their victim in a globular energy field that completely disabled maneuvering and tactical functions, leaving the ship completely vulnerable for a short time, during which the Tholian could hammer away at them unopposed.

In seconds, the K'tinga was trapped and taking a beating. Captain Robau is now faced with a unique dilemma. Should he defend the Klingon, or attempt to flee the area with the mysterious ship? What are your orders, Captain?



Post your solution here for a Command College Point. Feel free to discuss this with the 'comment' feature



"Captain's Log"



"...contrary to what we had believed..."



14) Members of the crew start to act very strangely when you enter orbit.



Class J Gas Giant

Age: 2-10 billion years

Diameter: 50,000-140,000 km

Location: Cold Zone

Surface: Tenuous, comprised of gaseous hydrogen and hydrogen compounds; radiates some heat

Atmosphere: Zones vary in temperature, pressure and composition

Life forms: Hydrocarbon-based

Example: Jupiter, Saturn



(Post-TNG Era)

Captain T'leenvil

RIS D'Shoanna

D'deridex Class Warbird



It was one of those days when you question not just the current aggressive policies of the Empire towards our Vulcan forebears and their human allies, but perhaps the thousands of years that have shaped our culture. From everything we thought we knew about the Federation, we were convinced that they hemmed us in, trapped and constricted us behind our borders because they hated us and wanted us either dead or powerless. From some of the earliest encounters, (distorted now, thanks to the current Praetor's temporal escapades), we assumed that every encounter with an Earth ship was a prelude to invasion, and every encounter with a Vulcan ship an attempt to reassimilate us into their stifling, passionless society. But now, as my crew and I witness the wreckage of a Federation cruiser, we all find ourselves questioning everything that we've ever thought we've known as a culture. The USS Eisenhower, a powerful Federation starship sacrificed itself in an attempt to rescue the Romulan crew of a science ship exploring a Class J planet in the Gamma Hydra system. A system that they claim and we claim. From all indications, the Eisenhower was pulled into the planet's unstable gravitation field and was lost with all hands. All that remains is an artifical ring, composed of sparkling duranium and tritanium debris. There is no sign of our science ship, nor of lifeboats from the Eisenhower. So strangely for us, and never to be reported once we reach home, my crew and I grieve not just for the loyal Romulans on the science ship, but also for the human crew who possessed a certain greatness contrary to what we had believed them capable, and died for that quality.



for next week. write a 100+ word log entry including the phrase "... a threat we weren't prepared for...". Post it in the yahoo group or on the blogsite's "comment" feature for a Command College Point.



Dev Notes:



While I think of creating more involved Simple Combat scenarios, I am also pushing the Etlh Class through a second heavy combat drill. The sticking point is the rack of micro torp launchers along the dorsal spine. There is a danger that they make the ship too powerful. I may adjust the power requirements, so that each micro torpedo costs a full point to launch, but only does half the damage as a normal torpedo. The advantage will hopefully be balanced by the power cost. If it does, it may provide a clue as to how to deal with other heavy and/or exotic weapons. On the subject of Heavy Combat, I am experimenting with simplifying some of the notation. I like having 3D combat, but the paperwork can be a pain. So rather than having to separate maps to track, I'll just note the elevation as a number from 1 to 9. Hopefully it will speed things up. One more note: Mrs Kapact (user Kate) is working hard on designs for the Blalock Class Fast (Penetration) Cruiser, as well as a Romulan dreadnought. Thank you Mrs Kapact!