Can this universe be saved?

>	I agree that there were "too many" ships involved in the war.
>	I can only assume this is because other portions of the
>	Imperium (and its opposition) are supporting this front, and
>	that it must be considered "key" because of four major races
>	holding it in contention (Zhodane, Imperium, Aslan, and Vargar)
>	as a stepping stone for greater advancement in the region.

Imperial naval forces at the start of the war consisted of 2 battle squadrons,
6 cruiser squadrons and 1 assault squadron, plus 16 assorted colonial
squadrons of varying type and quality. (From "Fifth Frontier War" Imperial
Order of Battle.) Many of the colonial squadrons were cruiser squadrons with
0 attack factor, which I take to mean they were the <1000 ton patrol cruisers
of various forms. Some are less powerful than scout squadrons! Zhodani forces
were much larger, which isn't surprising as they were attacking, and had
brought up their forces from all over the Consulate. When the Imperium did
likewise (reinforcements), they got a lot more. Incidentally, the Aslan weren't
involved unless you assume some of the mercenary units are Aslan. And where did
the TL16 battalion come from?

>		[...]
>	If I remember (and I don't have the books with me), population
>	is the only thing used as a modifier for GPP.  I was a little
>	dissatisfied, because looking at our world, it is also clear
>	that tech level, government type, and law level play major
>	roles in determining per capita income, GPP, and military
>	spending.

I do have the books here - Striker Book 2 (p.38) and Trillion Credit Squadron
(p. 31).
Striker: GNP=Pop. * Base GNP * trade class modifier
Base GNP comes from a table based on TL, which works out as 2000*(TL-4).
Trade class modifiers are: Rich 1.6; Industrial 1.4; Agric.  1.2
			   Poor 0.8; Non-ind.   0.8; Non-Ag. 0.8
Military budget=GNP * (3% normally; varies between 1% and 15%)

T.C.S.: Naval tax = 500 * Govt. modifier * population

Both systems have tables for converting local currency to Imperial currency,
based on TL and starport type. The tables are not the same!

>	A tech level 3 world is going to have a smaller GPP than a
>	comparable tech level 10 world.  And, because it is going to
>	spend more time worrying about feeding and sheltering its
>	people, a smaller percentage of its GPP is going to be
>	available to be skimmed off by the Imperial, Sector, and
>	Subsector defenses.
>...
>	Similarly (and I'll try not to get into any political debates),
>	certain governments promote production better than others.

So, use the Striker system, but with the T.C.S. government modifiers.

>	Law level should also be used a a modifier.  A very high law
>	level means a higher spending percentage by the military.  A
>	very low law level means a lower spending percentage.

Not necessarily. Efate/Regina has law level 0, but "Fifth Frontier War" gives
it a battle squadron, a cruiser, and a large army.

>	Another thing that both rule sets seem to overlook is that the
>	highest cost incurred by the military (and by most large
>	endeavors), is personell.

Agreed. And in T.C.S., what about starports? Can one upgrade them? For how
much?


 "Keyboard? Tis quaint!" - M. Scott

 Adrian Hurt			     |	JANET:  [email removed]
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