In-Reply-To: [email removed]
Bruce/Alistair - do you guys sit next to one another?
Bruce: "Something like the old Snapshot system ..."
According to Challenge 70, "Vampire Ship" (one of the 94 releases) will
fulfil the role of Azhanti High Lightning, way back, including "a
combat system optimized for boardgame play". This would seem to cover
the shipboard combat, or that within structures. It would be
interesting to know the proposed scales though - are we still looking
at 15mm?
It's not much good though for squad level combat, which is where
Striker II is presumably aimed. I'm not really that keen on building
and painting a vast collection of 15mm (or for that matter 25mm, or H/O
scale) miniatures, especially as it's unlikely I'd find someone else in
the same position (and if I did, they'd most likely be a collection of
orcs and mechs). So I'll reiterate my desire for a game on the SL
model.
Bruce: jelly beans
Actually I used to use the SJG cardboard heroes a fair bit. I threw in
the traveller ones when I sold my original collection, way back (now
just about reassembled, at some cost, sob). Anybody else remember them?
They were drawn by Kevin Simbeida (sp?), who has since gone on to
greater (or lesser, depending upon your perspective) things. I still
have the Villains and Vigilantes ones somewhere. I'm thinking of making
my own now that I have this vast array of DTP technology at my
disposal. I'll try and get them onto sunbane if and when I do.
By the way, look out for the forthcoming RAFM line of 25mm jelly beans
:-).
Alistair: "Especially if the rules were more towards the simplicity of
the GDW First Battle games, not Squad Leader."
I haven't tried the First Battle series, not being a big wargamer. In
the case of SL, you have to distinguish between the original SL (or
Panzer Leader, which was also brilliant) and ASL, or for that matter
the SL gamettes (the whole armor system changed between SL and Cross of
Iron, as I remember. But then I also liked Cross of Iron - I gave up
after Crescendo of Doom).
I'm beginning to get really turned on to this idea though -
imagine scenario pull outs in each issue of Challenge along the lines
of the ASL ones the General .... hmmm.
Andy: [C J Cherryh's books] "there's one which I forget the name of,
which is about freelance Belters and their fight against the big Corps
and the govt."
I suppose that's Heavy Time (it has a sequel, which is on my shelf but
which I haven't yet read - Hellburner) but there seem to be so many
novels set in the merchanter universe (I count 17, including 5 Chanur
novels. "Downbelow Station" and "Cyteen" both won Hugos) I'm not quite
sure. The Chanur novel you missed was "Chanur's Legacy". I think there
was a posting on TML a short while back about a Cherryh list.
Andy: A Mote in God's Eye
Well, Niven is always good for ideas. Unfortunately Pournelle (or at
least the proximity of Pournelle) seems to dilute them with gung-ho
militarism and jarring anachronisms (viz: the coffee perculator).
Published Traveller material sometimes seems to owe more to this book
than I'd like (viz: the pool table in Arrival Vengeance). Again,
there's a sequel (in the US: the Gripping Hand, in the UK, the Moat
Around Murcheson's Eye) just out, but whereas a few years ago I would
have been picketing the authors' house(s) for the manuscript, I'll be
content to wait till it hits the remainder bins.