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Post by phgamer on May 16, 2016 12:17:26 GMT
Thank you very much.
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Post by phgamer on May 13, 2016 18:27:14 GMT
I don't know the exact math, but to obtain escape velocity on earth, a projectile would have to reach 7 miles per second. I am not sure, but with Mar's gravity being about 40% that of Earth, the escape velocity should be 2.8 miles per second. Of course a ballistic shot from Earth to Earth would be less than 7. But could they still take the G's necessary during launch? I guess the answer is how do you want the story written. As far as resources goes, Scott's book covers the Martian perspective on this and the launchers construction on Mars was with considerable resources, so much so, it was going to shorten the life expectancy of the planet.
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Post by phgamer on May 12, 2016 14:49:12 GMT
Sounds like I'll need to dust off my VB program to do a comparison of the points.
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Post by phgamer on May 12, 2016 14:13:00 GMT
Any extra crew for a MG has to do with the Ammo Runners. Extra Ammo tends to be stored in a supply wagon hidden somewhere. You could have a pile of ammo right next to the gun, and did if it was a stationary defense, but most of the time you set up, but have to be ready to move. So you don't want a ton of ammo right there. This also has to do with the army tactics. In WWII, the MG for a US Squad was a support weapon. But for the German Army the MG WAS the squad. All their squad tactics centered around the MG.
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Post by phgamer on May 12, 2016 13:58:49 GMT
Part of the problems with forces in a scenario is every one will pick what is best for them. And not necessarily what would be available "realistically" A human infantry force would most likely have a 1-1 ratio of infantry squads to field artillery. When no army could have fielded that mix. 8-1 might be realistic. But what player would want to play that way? Or invest and paint all that infantry? On the other hand, that mix would have 5 tripods against 2 field gun batteries, 2 MG squads, and 24 infantry squads. And have almost 200 points to spare! I think the Martians would be in a bad way there.
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Post by phgamer on May 12, 2016 13:49:46 GMT
The Martians will have to take Europe from Asia and Africa. There is no way the Martians will get a foothold by launched Cylinders into mainland Europe. The countries are just too will armed. The French had in 1914 29 Corps mustered, each about 45,000 men. The Germans 42 Korps. The Austro-Hunganians similarly armed. Even the Serbians had about 4 Corps equivalents. Even if, as with Scott's book, they launched 10 cylinders a day, with 30 tripods assembled in 24 hours, they would fall to the fire power of a single corps, even if it took a week to mobilize into the area. In points that would be 6,000 points for the Martians, while the Artillery batteries and MG's would be worth at leas 5,700 points. And if I have it right, 13,440 points of divisional infantry. Couple this in terrain where Line of sight rarely goes beyond 1,200 yards.
That comparison is against the armies that existed in 1914, not ones that have had nearly a decade to prepare for the Martian invaders. Ironically, I think the only problem the Europeans will face is the Martians have taken all their "trading" partners in the 3rd world. England without a regular supply if tea and bananas. Much heavy metals from Africa. The German Empire's economy was ruined by the British blockade in WWI, so there was something they needed from overseas. England had insufficient farming to feed itself. Modern fertilizers had only just been invented but were not in heavy production or use.
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Post by phgamer on May 11, 2016 18:15:50 GMT
Yes
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Post by phgamer on May 11, 2016 15:36:57 GMT
I think you have to consider how much effect an HE shell would have on a Tripod. Is the explosive really going to damage the outer shell? Or is it only the application of a kinetic hit along with the explosive charge backing it?
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Post by phgamer on May 11, 2016 14:44:07 GMT
The main reason for the lack of activity from the major European powers is that Alien Dungeon went bankrupt before they could get around to producing a unique figure line for each country. Anything else is just sophistry.
Along the lines of that sophistry, is that the ability to force project substantial forces, and more importantly, maintain the supply lines beyond their rail nets, is minimal. Most of the fights in Africa and Asia involving Europeans had really small contingents of Europeans, supplemented by Native forces. The mix of Artillery and Machine-Guns in an overseas force was much diluted compared to a first class corps in the homeland. A single German active duty Korps in 1914, of which they had 26, has 45,000 men, 144 guns 77mm and above, 144 Machine-Guns, and required 240 tons of supplies per day at rest, and about 1,500 tons per day of combat. At rest, the supplies can be foraged somewhat being mainly food and fodder. But combat requires bullets and artillery shells. I don't see much in the ability of the Europeans to invade Martian held lands over seas.
I think this war will have to follow the rail lines. As they move into Africa and recover Asia, they will have to build those lines as they go. And as Scott's Book seems to allude, the Martians on the ground can double their numbers every year. So it is also important to keep the pressure up on all fronts. Their numbers in Central/South America must be staggering by now.
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Post by phgamer on May 11, 2016 14:09:03 GMT
Looks like great fun, I shall go through it again when I have more time Please let me know if you can follow on Photobucket or if better to post directly to forum. My company's firewall blocks Photobucket. So the images do not get through.
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Post by phgamer on May 10, 2016 18:58:45 GMT
Nice add on with the 305.
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Post by phgamer on May 6, 2016 15:55:46 GMT
Scott, I am only on Page 24, and if anyone read both your book and my battle reports Martian Civil War and The Fall of Fort Edmonton, they would have thought we clouded on the topics. Your concept of Martian Clans and My concept of Hive establishment are very similar, and we both looked up and put General Miles in the book/battle reports.
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Post by phgamer on May 6, 2016 14:56:12 GMT
H.G.Wells's description of the heat ray has it as invisible, and instantly set things on fire. The only contact with metal described is with the encounter with the Thunderchild, " It must have driven through the iron of the ship's side like a white-hot iron rod through paper. " Since the heat ray is invisible, it could be either an Infrared, Ultraviolet, X-Ray Laser. I am leaning towards Ultraviolet, as Infrared carries less energy of the three, and I am not sure the X-Ray laser will interact with soft tissue, mostly passing through it leaving it only lightly (pun intended) damaged.
Being invisible also makes the targeting difficult. As the shooter can only see the beam by results. Making Sweep attacks more the norm. I don't think the Martians have targeting systems like today's weapons, because of the description of the fight with the Thunderchild. The Martian missed initially, "and a bank of steam sprang from the water at its touch. ", before penetrating a target some 600 feet long.
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Post by phgamer on May 5, 2016 13:33:02 GMT
When I came up with the straight line tactic, I was thinking the inside arc of the Sweep template had to line up with the disk of the base of the Martian. Once I found out that the template can pretty much take any orientation, that tactic went out the window. I think of it as a case of they thought of it one way, and wrote it another. After all, if you were to make a sweep from left to right, unless you have a tangent calculation in the movement, you are going to generate an arc. That being said, if you go from near to far, then you will generate a line.
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Post by phgamer on May 5, 2016 13:04:44 GMT
Or up the LIC to 1,500 points. Another thing I do as a home rule, is the LIC is exempt from the command rules. It does not count as a unit towards the Army breakpoint, nor does it contribute to the command point total. To quote my favorite dwarf, "I still only counts as one!" So if the LIC comes out on a 2,000 point game, then the Martians only have to kill maybe 2 or 3 units to rout the army.
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