============ OGREverse list, July 12th (Last: July 10th) ============= ===== Re: OGREverse List, July 10th. From: Steve Jackson ===== RolePlaying in OGRE/GEV/SW From: "Eric T. or Maryann C. Holmes" ===== Misc tech questions From: "Todd A. Zircher" ===== FOs in the OGREverse & OGRE AIs From: Noah Doyle ------------------------------ From: Steve Jackson Subject: OGREverse list, July 10th. Factory States munitions are simply hellaciously effective penetrators. And yes, a lot of them bounce off anyway. Factory States combat would need a different CRT, which I have never gotten around to thinking about. There is no spillover; everything is a bit harder to hit (which we could ignore) and a lot harder to kill. Vehicles can be killed without necessarily eliminating the crew, and F-kills that leave the vehicle able to move, or M-kills that leave it able to shoot, become credible enough that they could be added to the CRT. You could also get an occasional personnel kill that left the vehicle substantially intact . . . say, a marginal hit renders the vehicle no longer airtight, and it subsequently encounters a gas attack (maybe launched for just that reason). Not a likely CRT result, but certainly a roleplaying situation. Steve Jackson - yes, of SJ Games - yes, we won the Secret Service case Learn Web or die - http://www.sjgames.com/ - dinosaurs, Lego, Kahlua! The heck with PGP keys; finger for Geek Code. Fnord. ----- [The problem with penetrators is that if they use kinetic energy for the kill then they'll travel in rather straight lines. (So long to missile tanks, etc.) How did the major powers manage to run out of tac-nukes before they ran out of warm bodies? -HJC] ------------------------------ From: "Eric T. or Maryann C. Holmes" Subject: RolePlaying in OGRE/GEV/SW Henry and Steve: I'm wondering if you realize that Steve Jackson games has recieved the rights to produce Traveller:GURPS. The reason I bring this up is that I ran a Classic Traveller adventure several years ago ala GEV/OGRE using the GDW Traveller Mercenary Character development rules, the mini board game rules for GEV/OGRE, some Avalon Hill game boards for Squad Leader and the Panzer Blitz series, and a background base upon "Hammer's Slammers" and "Bolo" genre books. The Traveller Skills fit real well into role playing skills needed. The AI rules from GDW's Robotics seemed to fit well into the development of the OGRE. The Striker rules seemed to fit well into the building of the vehicles. Player characters were developed to operate the Super Heavy tanks without AI, the GEVs, the artillery and the infantry. I played the OGREs when they were not allied with the PCs. Thought you might be interested. Eric Eric T. Holmes holmberg@thuntek.net 6pm to Midnight Mountain Time 505-896-8061 ----- [Yeah, I heard about the Traveling Gurps, did you read the story "Courier" in The Compleat BOLO collection? (Hint: It's got Retief) -HJC] ------------------------------ From: "Todd A. Zircher" Subject: Misc tech questions > [Ouch! Hey, if they're not tossing nukes during factory states, > how do they even scratch that super armor? -HJC] Just a few ideas... Hyper kinetic missiles with BPC penetrators. Chemical (acid?) or proto-nanite rounds that like to eat BPC. Tandem warheads (penetrator followed by a round that goes off inside the armor.) >> Maybe Steve could update this aspect of the rationale. It would >> be darned pricey to develop the Ogre's brain and software, but >> the unit cost would not be the most expensive thing on the Ogre. > > If OGRE AI required truly massive amounts of memory and very > high processor speeds, then this might drive up the cost of > building an OGRE. Shielding the CPU from a hostile EMP riddled environment will take up space as well as dead space, shock absorbers, and auxiliary power supplies. Or, what if the computer scientistis gave up on silicon as a means to build AI? Using organic material would require a controlled environment to isolate the brain from heat, shock, over pressure, vibration, etc. TAZ ----- [But think of the computerization required for powersuited infantry. Just how much space and expense is needed for each and every grunt? -HJC] ------------------------------ From: Noah Doyle Subject: FOs in the OGREverse & OGRE AIs In some of my house rules, we did not use FOs as such, but proximity became important: If a target is out of LOS (blocked by an urban, forest, swamp or hill hex), the attack was shifted down by one odds column. If ANY friendly unit had LOS to that particular target, the odds penalty was negated. Point targets (vehicles, buildings) had to have an entire blocking-type hex between firer & target. Dispersed targets (Infantry) could just be IN a blocking-type hex and get the out-of -LOS bonus, unless the firer/targeter was adjacent. Infantry were rather nasty in our games. OGREs rarely operated without support. but then again, they were the commanders in our milieu... OGRE AIs would probably be very expensive - regardless of computing power, creating an AI program good enough to act as it's own operational, tactical & occasionally strategic commander would be very difficult &/or expensive. These AIs would undergo months, if not years of high-speed testing to determine battle-worthiness. They would, as SJ said, always be on the bleeding edge, and be quite valuable. Even if an OGRE's hull was wrecked, recovery of the AI was paramount. So was its capture by the enemy. If you can find people who can create & teach OGRE-class AI programs, you'll pay them whatever they want. From the Descartes Revolution to the end of the Final War, if you had a Factory or OGRE that could create & teach OGRE-class AIs, you gave it whatever it asked for... Noah V. Doyle nvdoyle@midlink.com ----- [Have you seen the LOS rules in Ogre Minis? (Would you like to buy a copy? Just follow the link below...) One thing I haven't spotted at the SJG site is that game design book Steve wrote with that other guy. (Most of the game related items I'm after used to be produced by SJG ;-) -HJC] Henry J. Cobb hcobb@io.com http://www.io.com/~hcobb All OGRE-related items Copyright (c) 1998, by Steve Jackson Games.