I personally would prefer to differentiate the "Scout/ELINT" capabilities from the standard FC and CM as this would make them different and "special" compared to the equipment on a "regular" ship. Then again, I guess maybe the ability to loan them to another ship would automatically make them special, especially in a setting where the regular warship has neither.
Erik

I think the trick becomes that you have to do a lot of hand-waving and MK I eyeball conversions when the source material contains some suspect technical information. In the end, if a ship "feels" right relative to another, that is a lot more important than some kind of statistical accuracy. This is especially true when dealing with ships that were originally created without any kind of cohesive technical architecture, or one that was more concerned with aesthetic or background for an RPG than playability. There is no reason to get caught up in 1040 individual batteries. The Star Destroyer you mentioned above has 5 Batteries as far as I can see, with a variety of arcs and different statistical capability than those on the Nebulon-B. That doesn't seem like too much of a problem. MC capital ships may call for the return of Redundant Shields, but I think that is even doable in the context of a specific universe conversion. I'll have to poke around as time permits and see if I can do some conversions that make some sense.
Erik

Cool! Macro scale fighters! 
E

After thinking about it more, it seems that if you look at converting source material, they all treat "combat scouts" a bit differently. Maybe in the end it is easiest to create a setting specific set of scout abilities and require some special equipment to operate them. I was also thinking of what was mentioned earlier that 1 special equipment equals 1 game effect (something like that) and I thought maybe the answer is to make several pieces Special Equipment that can do different things that can be built in to simulate Scout abilites. In other words, an "Offensive" scout equipment for increasing fire control, a "defensive" for loaning protection, a "Jamming" for increasing range, an "Advanced Sensors" for increasing detection abilities (anti-cloak, etc). This more "modular" approach would also leave room for some "scouts" that are more or less capable in absolute terms of electronic warfare. Anyway, just thinking out loud as it were.
Erik

Ok, so our campaign test ground to a shuddering halt due to real life. Recently though I have been working through some conversions which brought me back to some ideas for the campaign system. I intend to do another draft/edit of the overall system in the next week or so changing a couple of things and darkening some of the grey areas but I figured I would post up the first draft of these ideas (be kind...it is a rough draft thank you) to see if others thought I was on a useful path. Thanks in advance for the input. Erik

Simple Nodal Map Generation

    To start, the players must decided whether they will used fixed starting locations for Home-worlds or random. If using fixed Home-worlds, they may be placed at the players' discretion, usually on opposing sides of the map, a few hexes in from the edge. The procedure for random placement of home-worlds is as follows: First, determine and mark the center (or a close approximation) of the hex map to be used, and mark the six facing sides with the numbers one through six. Next, roll 1D6 for each Empire in the campaign, re-rolling any duplicate numbers. The result is the “bearing” from the central hex to the Home-world of each Empire corresponding to the matching numbered hex-side. Then each Empire rolls an additional 1D6, and consults the following chart:
Die result      Distance
     1              2 Hexes
    2-3           4 Hexes
    4-5           6 Hexes
     6             10 Hexes
This is the distance from the central hex of the map to the hex containing an Empire's Home-world (placed in the nth hex).

    Once Home-world placement is determined Jump Routes can be placed, if it is to be a “fixed map” campaign. If pre-generating Jump Routes, create only one Route for a single Empire and then go to the next to create a Route. Continue in this fashion one Empire at a time until the available map is suitably filled, or until all Empires are in contact with at least one opponent. It should be more interesting, though more time consuming, for Empires to explore a map by scouting Jump Routes (covered later).
    To create Jump Routes choose a Home-world and roll 1D6; this number is the base number of Jump Routes possible from this system. Next roll 1D6 for the “bearing” of each possible route, numbering the system's hex as you did the map's central hex earlier. If multiples of a single number occur, drop the additional rolls completely.  Now that number of routes is know, the “length” of each route must be determined. This may refer to physical or hyperspace distance, or even time debt for campaigns where such systems are in use. In settings with instantaneous interstellar travel, the “length” of a route can be ignored for game-play, but should still be generated to help fill out the map. To determine the length of a Jump Route, roll 1D6 and consult the following table:
Die Roll         Route Length
    1                   1 Hex
  2-5                  2 Hexes
    6                   3 Hexes
While different campaign settings could use different movement rules, the default is that all ships move 1/2 of their Starmada Engine Rating (rounded DOWN, minimum of 1) in strategic hexes during 1 Strategic Movement Phase.

The same procedure is used in every system beyond the Home-world to create jump routes. If, when rolling for bearings, the number of the facing which leads to a previous system is rolled it is discarded as the prior route has precedence. This can lead to “dead-end” or “cul-de-sac” systems. Similarly, if an exploring/expanding Empire connects a jump route to a system previously explored by another Empire, the route becomes “fixed” along with the route that brought the opposing Empire to the hex in dispute. A route that is generated is not considered "opened" until units move along it to another system, until the route is explored it is just theoretical. Full rules for scouting jump routes are found in the Optional Rules for Auxiliary Services (Science).
NOTE: one of the things I will do in the rules edit is flesh out the mechanics a bit as far as "scouting" goes with options for using both "Science" type scouts and Small/Fast type scouts.

Optional Random System Habitability:
   
     In the basic campaign rules it is possible to place a colony in any controlled hex, and the maximum possible Level for any Colony is five(5). If the players decided to use Random System Habitability, the odds are that most star systems will not be perfect for colonization, and there may even be some totally unable to support a colony at all. When this option is in play each Empire's home-world is automatically considered "Ideal" as it begins the game at Level 5. Whenever a new system hex is entered for the first time roll 1D6 and consult the following chart:
Die Roll         Habitability
      1              Uninhabitable
    2-3             Marginal
    4-5             Acceptable
      6              Ideal
Uninhabitable systems cannot support a Colony of any type for some, or various reasons.
Marginal systems lack many of the essentials to build and sustain a thriving colony, are generally relegated to being small outposts or way stations. Colonies built in Marginal Systems may not exceed Level 2.
Acceptable systems have many more advantages than Marginal ones and will form the backbone of most Empires though they may present some challenges to colonists. Acceptable systems have a maximum Colony Level of 4.
Ideal systems are as the name suggests, perfect for settlement and expansion, reminding colonists of their home-world and providing everything that is needed for settlement.
Optional Habitability Cost Increase: Players may also choose to apply a surcharge to the building and expansion of colonies based on habitability. Using this option, building a colony in a Marginal system costs an additional 25% to the base cost (fully explained in the section on system improvements), colonizing an Acceptable system costs 10% more, with no additional charge for an Ideal system.

well, it's probably not a record for first errata , but still it's gotta be in the top ten! 
I'm interested to see what others think of QL, but I'm afraid I already have too little time to spend with the games I know and love already.
Still, keep 'em coming Cricket...lord knows I'll probably end up buying it anyway just to add to my collection  :geek:
Cheers,
Erik

I don't know about that, I have had plenty of simply bad ideas!  :roll:

Erik

You might be better off modeling the Gravitic Shifter on a tractor beam from the trek-crossover stuff. In other words make it a piece of equipment with weapon-like qualities rather than a weapon with a special gimmick trait. Just a thought.
Erik

How about something like this,
For each Scout level a vessel may perform one of the following actions each turn: Add +2 to the attack rolls of one vessel, subtract -2 from all of the attack rolls from one ship.
For 2 Scout levels a vessel may Negate Stealth Special Ability of one vessel.
For 3 Scout Levels a vessel may perform one of the following actions each turn: Negate the Cloaking Special Ability of one vessel, Add +1 to the attack rolls of all friendly ships, Subtract -1 from the attack rolls of all enemy ships.
For 4 Scout Levels a vessel may create the effect of Dust Cloud Terrain within 10 Hexes of its current location.

If you normally allow both opponents to see each others ship data during the game you could make that a Scout function instead, using one Scout level to reveal a sheet or one Scout level to block an opponent from seeing one.

How you determine Scout levels would be somewhat tricky (and probably specific to your campaign or games), but I would suggest a scout would have to have Countermeasures, Fire Control and Science(500) for level 1, then increase the level of Science by 500 for each level.

Of course this was all typed before I finished my first cup of coffee, so be kind 
Cheers,
Erik

Hey Dan, with the end of the current season fast approaching (and therefore having complete stats!) I was wondering how this project was looking. Thanks.
Erik

I'll second all of that. Some people like the challenge of "One-Up" games where design takes precedence to some degree. I have found that it is far more enjoyable to put restrictions in place, which seem to bring tactics more to the forefront. This is particularly true if you limit ranges...a max range of the entire table pretty much leads to a game where both sides just sit there and blast the crap out of each other.
The best thing to do is try and convince your group/players to try several different variations, or play a lot of the pre-made designs from the sourcebooks until the system becomes more second nature.
Erik