• Registered: 2010-10-21
  • Posts: 55

Topic: Plasma Bolt

So I just finished getting hammered by an K5R using plama bolts to crater my federation FF.  Now both ships are close in points, but the K5R definitely has a firepower edge with its plasma bolt.    The ability to hit any target at 12 hexes on a 4+ makes this weapon even better than phasers even accounting for the the Range Based ROF.

I don't remember the plasma bolt from SFB being nearly that effective. It was a short ranged (6 hexes or so) weapon that gave a plasma armed ship a chance to hit something without being nailed by a wild weasel.

  • Registered: 2010-01-07
  • Posts: 35

Re: Plasma Bolt

I haven't tried the SFB-Starmada crossover rules, but you're misremembering plasmas in SFB badly.  The Plasma-S in seeking mode could knock down just about any shield a cruiser carries out to range 10, and was serious damage out to 15-ish.  If you were running away from it at speed it was less of a threat, but closing just extends the high-damage threat zone.  The two plasma-S torps on a K5R ought to take a frigate and (barring a weasel) crush it like an eggshell if you're modelling SFB even semi-accurately, and that's without the little plasma-F torps the refits added or the phaser array firing.

No frigate should be able to hold up to a cruiser.  If the point values are making them similar in value, there's something wrong with the translation between systems.

  • Registered: 2010-10-21
  • Posts: 55

Re: Plasma Bolt

The seeking plasmas aren't the problem, those seem to have been translated pretty well.  Its the "Bolt" that seems a great departure. 

BTW, the K5R is the Romulan description of the KF5R from SFB...its rated as a destroyer.

  • Registered: 2011-06-08
  • Posts: 40

Re: Plasma Bolt

plasma bolts in Starmada are definitely more powerful than seeking plasma, and they may even be relatively more powerful than plasma in SFB/FC.

  • Registered: 2008-12-22
  • Posts: 654

Re: Plasma Bolt

terryoc wrote:

plasma bolts in Starmada are definitely more powerful than seeking plasma, and they may even be relatively more powerful than plasma in SFB/FC.

The "Bolt" is too powerful IMO compared to its SFB counterpart, but, even though it plays differently than the "original" I've come to actually like it a bit better. Try to forget SFB/FC for a moment and think of the "Bolt" mode as the primary firing mode with the Seeker mode being a long range option used to soften up the opposition a bit, but not intended to be decisive.
Then look at the source material, and specifically the old ToS episode. Romulan ship de-cloaks and fires a powerful short range plasma bolt into the teeth of the Fed cruiser, then re-cloaks while its powerful but slow firing weapon re-charges. After it re-charges, the Romulan de-cloaks and attacks again in close, fading out before the Fed can respond. In a lot of ways I like that better than lobbing torps across the board from a battle-line of ROM ships while the opposition tries to close in where they can do the most damage.
Just my two cents.
Erik

  • Registered: 2010-10-21
  • Posts: 55

Re: Plasma Bolt

I think that the 3+ to hit is way too generous given the range bands.  Most other heavy weapons are 4+ in normal mode and 5+ or even 6+ at longer ranges.

I would argue a base of 4+ with doubled range modifiers would be more appropriate based on the show and the game.  The weapon is intended to be SHORT ranged.  smile

  • Registered: 2011-06-08
  • Posts: 40

Re: Plasma Bolt

Erik,

The plasma that hit the Big E in Balance of Terror was a torpedo, not a bolt - the Big E had time (barely) to fire phasers into it. A plasma launched at short range will hit very soon and at full strength, which is reflected in the SFB/FC rules. And remember that the Warbird in the show was packing a Type-R torpedo, the biggest that a ship can carry.

  • Registered: 2008-12-22
  • Posts: 654

Re: Plasma Bolt

terryoc wrote:

Erik,

The plasma that hit the Big E in Balance of Terror was a torpedo, not a bolt - the Big E had time (barely) to fire phasers into it. A plasma launched at short range will hit very soon and at full strength, which is reflected in the SFB/FC rules. And remember that the Warbird in the show was packing a Type-R torpedo, the biggest that a ship can carry.

Ok, it's officially been too long since I saw the ep because I don't remember the phasers firing part. I guess the plasma bolt/seeker doesn't bother me as much anyway because I am not a SFB/FC purist.
E

  • Registered: 2008-12-22
  • Posts: 654

Re: Plasma Bolt

csragamaster wrote:

I think that the 3+ to hit is way too generous given the range bands.  Most other heavy weapons are 4+ in normal mode and 5+ or even 6+ at longer ranges.

I would argue a base of 4+ with doubled range modifiers would be more appropriate based on the show and the game.  The weapon is intended to be SHORT ranged.  smile

If I had to guess, part of the reason that Cricket made the bolt mode so potent was for costing purposes since only the bolt mode "counts" towards the ships SUs and he wanted o model large weapons. Perhaps it would have been better to have the weapon made as a dual mode weapon with the more powerful mode being the one currently presented as the bolt mode, but being there only to represent the seeker component and unusable in the direct fire phase. Then the second mode could be the "bolt" mode with poorer fire control (4+) carronade, and double range mods? Done that way, the plasma torp system would be slightly more massive than its current incarnation and much less potent as a direct fire weapon.
E

  • Registered: 2008-12-22
  • Posts: 654

Re: Plasma Bolt

terryoc wrote:

Erik,

The plasma that hit the Big E in Balance of Terror was a torpedo, not a bolt - the Big E had time (barely) to fire phasers into it. A plasma launched at short range will hit very soon and at full strength, which is reflected in the SFB/FC rules. And remember that the Warbird in the show was packing a Type-R torpedo, the biggest that a ship can carry.

Hey, i was just wondering if anyone had seen the re-mastered Trek (with the modern CG) version of this episode. If so, did the new and improved graphics change the "feel" of the firing exchanges at all?
Just curious.
Erik