MajorTom wrote:I'd like to see a series of supplements that showcase and even enhance the flexibility of the system by introducing a few homebrew settings with very different motiffs. So maybe like a hard sci-fi setting set during a colonial war between Earth and the inner worlds against the belters and the Jovian moons. Maybe you could introduce new rules for limited delta-vee, solar flares as in-game events, intership computer hacking as a new form of attack, etc.
Then you could do a full-on space opera supplement with rules for psionic crews, unobtanium shielding, warp missiles, and other such implausibilities.
One other thing I'd really like is a set campaign system for linking multiple scenerios together into a branching narrative. If there is a single official campaign system you could even run organized events, allow player groups to register to different factions and then the results of the various tournament events help guide the development of the game world.
I wasn't going to publicly post this yet as it's kind of an ongoing project, but I've created something along the lines of what you describe:
Warfleet: New Era (the website is very much a work in progress, forgive the occasional references to "old" data that was copied from the previous website).
I've constructed LEGO models of all of the starships, which will also be used to create the box-models for play. Basic starships descriptions are here
So far I'm working on shield and damage allocation modifications. Their are shield arcs that have different strengths, with the ability to destroy shields in specific arcs. It's also possible to make targeted attacks and completely disable ship subsystems like engines and weapons without destroying the ship. As boarding is possible in the Warfleet universe (and some scenarios revolve around boarding a ship) I'm looking into modifying the Starmada system so it can be used to perform boarding actions. I've also toyed with the idea of planetary ground combat.
Not all the fiction I've written is up on the website yet. I have a lengthy piece written on the use of Auxiliary Cruisers (armed merchant raiders) during the War of Independence, which goes into a lot more detail on hyperspace travel, how transfer of goods works from deep-space freighters to local supply ships, and why (and how) piracy is so rampant.
I've divided the technology levels into 4 distinct levels: Pre-war, Early-War, Late-War, and Post-War. Briefly:
Pre-War: Involves technology and starships that entered service prior to the war of 2272. These include older ships and older weapons. This is the most common technology base for civilian craft. Newer "pre war" ships are still quite effective against earl-war tech. The oldest pre-war ships generally don't even use laser technology, and are hopelessly outclassed.
Early-War: Ships and technology available in the 2272-2275 (ish) timeframe. The majority of military ships available in Warfleet fall into this category. Even ships in this timeframe gradually improve, and a ship design from 2275 will likely outperform a ship from 2272.
Late-War: This is where we start to see some more interesting technology -drastically improved ECM/ECCM capabilities, better shielding, more maneuverable ships, and some new experimental technologies like Light Attack Craft (very, very small starships that are carried by a tender. The closest my fiction gets to fighters/bombers).
Post-War: Introduction of new designs of ships and new weapons, particularly as a result of research done in the Aldebaran system: FLAK cannons, proton beam cannons, more deadly Light Attack Craft, etc. Ships of the post-war era are distinctly more powerful. Still trying to figure this one out; SAE had weapon options that would work well for the beam cannons I had planned.. SNE not so much.
Sorry, kind of went off on a long description there. I'm hoping to create a completely unique universe that, while it uses Starmada as a base, very much has it's own unique feel, both in fiction and in gameplay.
Once of my biggest complaints about Nova while working on this fiction is the lack of a way to track ammunition expenditure. In my initial draft nearly all of the ships relied heavily on ballistic and ordinance weapons. I could add a system in to do it, but I'm a numbertard so balancing it would be very difficult.
