Progress on the Rink

Alright! School's out until the new year! For me, at least. I wrote my last exam last night, so now that I'm done with the studying, I can get back to blogging more regularly. Now, on to the topic at hand...

Well, I always said this was going to be a learning experience...here's what I've learned so far from working on the ice rink.

First, water is very, very heavy. I didn't realize just how heavy it could get. I mean, obviously, I know how heavy water can be, but the way we put the frame together did not handle the weight very well. The boards have pulled apart in a couple of places where the ground was lower and the water pulled the tarped boards away from the top brace. So, we've had some leaks so far.

Second, not all the water freezes right away; the top of the ice is good, but underneath, it's still very much water. We discovered this when I accidentally ripped a couple of holes in the tarp trying to fix the aforementioned pull-aparts, and the water drained out to create a second patch of ice on the ground instead. I've tried blocking it off, but with no success.

Third, make damn sure the ground is level, or at the very least, very carefully level the entire frame before letting any water get in. The side closer to the road is lower than the backside, so we've got some nice ice on one side of the rink, but bare tarp at the other side. Now, if it wasn't leaking, we could fill the roadside up some more, and it would fill up the whole think and cover up that tarp. But so far, that's not happening, yet.

So, tomorrow Ashton and I are going to figure out how to repair those little holes in the tarp so we can properly fill this rink. Next year, we'll have a better idea of how to do this, and we'll make it even better. For now, we're not giving up just yet.

Let's Read: Traveller 1977 Edition, Starships, page 33

Let's finish off the computer programs. There are two more 'routine' programs on this page: Navigation, and Anti-Hijack. Navigation is primarily used for jumping, in conjunction with the Jump program. The Generate program makes the flight plan, then it's dumped into the Navigation program for processing. Seems rather cumbersome to me. Anti-Hijack is basically a defensive program that will lock the controls and bridge access if hijackers are detected. It's possible to get around this program; hijackers throwing a 5 or less (on two dice, not one, I assume) will get through the security system undetected.

PCs can come up with new programs if they like, assuming they have the Computer skill (from the first book). The standard ones seem to have all the necessities covered, though.

Smaller ships (the parasite kind) don't carry computers, or at least not the type described, so they are limited in what they can do: Maneuver, or shoot. They can't do both in a turn, and they can't participate in the laser return fire phase, or use anti-missile fire. Gunners only get half their expertise on these smaller ships, which sucks. Does that mean no snub-nosed fighters, like X-Wings and Vipers? That would definitely suck; those are important!

And we're done with computers; next up, Detection and Damage. Not in the same section.

Detection is straightforward; civilian ships are going to detect anyone within 500 inches (half a million miles). Military ships are going to do so up to 2000 inches away (two million miles). So much for sneaking up on someone, then.

Except that the next paragraph says if you're trying to be stealthy, you can get to within 100 inches before being seen. That's still over eight feet, so you're not likely to get on the game board undetected unless you're using one of GDW's football-field-sized game boards. If you're orbiting a planet, though, while being quiet, ain't nobody gonna see you until they're ten inches or less away from you, which means that planets are great for setting up ambushes.

Moving on to damage definitions, we get a few descriptions of what's going to happen when your ship gets hit. Drives and power plants are one of the most important ones, so they get listed first. Basically, if your drive or plant gets hit, it moves down the alphabet (C becomes B, X becomes W, etc.). This can be a problem for ships whose drives or plants are at the minimum needed for the ship to operate, since one shot could strand the ship in the system until repairs are made. Best to have some leeway in that regard if you're expecting to take a ship into combat. Or run into pirates. Because it is a statistical fact that whenever a ship enters a new star system, any pirates in the area will be able to get to striking distance in a hurry. It's science; what can you do? Have a bigger engine in your ship, obviously.

Turrets that get hit don't work. If you've got more than one, dice rolls determine which one gets hit. Note that turrets with more than one weapon on them are totally knocked out, so that triple turret you are so proud of is going to be melted into scrap just the same as the single one on the other ship.

Hull hits cause decompression. Once. After that, the ship is already decompressed, so what's the point? I mean, you would think that hull integrity would be affected if the ship takes enough hull hits to look like a block of Swiss cheese, but apparently not. Go for the engines, kids.

The hold is where the cargo is; get hit in the hold, and you lose cargo. And, finally (on this page), fuel hits. Every time your fuel tank gets hit, you lose about 20 tons of fuel. If you lose 60% of your fuel (which might not be in three hits, depending on how big your tank is), you ain't jumping out. If you lose all the fuel, obviously you're not moving at all. Or at least, you're not going to be maneuvering. Which would suck, especially if you're pointed at a big heavy object like a planet or asteroid.

Operation: Skate Zone stage 1 complete

The rink is assembled! It took a few days, thanks to the lack of daylight after I get home from work, but it's done! Man, that was a good feeling. Father-son bonding time, working together as a team...it all came together. Now, it's just a matter of filling it and letting it freeze.

This is how it looked the other night when I first mentioned the rink. The tarp was laid out, and we had the wood more or less in place. Looking back, I realize that we didn't need to do more than just trim the boards, instead of cutting them to twelve-foot lengths; the sides are almost sixty feet long anyway. Still, it gave us some smaller pieces to use, which came in handy later on.

And here's what it looks like now.  The ground isn't exactly even; the near left-hand corner is definitely lower than the one with the two stakes, and there's a gap on the far end in the middle where the boards are held up by the cross-piece. Honey Bunny wasn't going to let me dig up the front yard to make it all even, though, so we make do. If you look very closely, you'll see that there is a small piece of wood under the left-hand corner, raising it up off the ground to even things out a bit more. It's still not perfect, but it doesn't have to be.

And yes, that's the highway behind the rink; we put it in the front yard. We couldn't have done this back on our Ontario property, that's for sure; the backyard wasn't that big. Here, we had to weigh pros and cons of where on the property we wanted to put it. Having eighteen acres is pretty awesome.

So, the next step is filling it up, one bit at a time. Ashton is going to hose it down today and get a thin layer in place so it can start to freeze; we don't want to overdo it, of course, since we don't want to drain the well dry. But if we work on it a little bit each day, and the weather continues to be cold, we'll have a nice rink before Christmas Day.

One of our neighbours stopped by yesterday and mentioned that there's a pond up the road that freezes in winter, and someone keeps it clean for skating. Well, that's great, but that's nearly two miles down the road; this is a hundred feet from our front door. I know which way I'd rather go. And we can invite people over to skate, too; it's a great way to socialize, even in the days of Corona-mania.

Let's Read: Traveller, 1977 Edition, Starships, page 32

More computer programs. There are six more offensive programs: Selective, Launch, Multi-Target, Return Fire, Anti-Missile, and Double Fire. They're pretty self-explanatory, but let's take a look for any hidden gems within the descriptions.

Selective allows the gunner to pick either the main compartment or the Engineering Section as the targeted spot on the enemy ship. It means it's a tougher shot (DMs depending on which version of the program), but when you do hit, you'll hit what you were aiming at.

Launch...other than also needing the Target program, there's not much else to this one.

Multi-Target is, again, self-explanatory. Note, however, that each turret can only fire at one target; if you've only got one turret on the ship, don't bother buying this program, because it will be useless. You only need this if you're going to have multiple turrets (not hardpoints) firing at different targets. And, of course, you need the target program. Note, however, that the Anti-Missile program doesn't need this; it targets multiple missiles automatically.

Return Fire was mentioned earlier; you can only shoot back at someone who just shot at you. You also need the Target program, and if you're surrounded, you'll need the Multi-Target program as well.

Anti-Missile does what it says on the box; point lasers shoot at enemy missiles that have come into contact with the hull (but haven't exploded yet). This program is self-contained; it doesn't need any other programs to work, and no other programs affect it.

Double Fire is for improving your laser power for a short time. You have to have a bigger power plant than M-drive (and it has to be undamaged to pump out this much power). This gives you two rolls to hit; you might still miss, or hit just once, or hit twice for double the power. Not a bad deal. Of course, you might damage the power plant; the first time you do it, you're fine (roll better than 1 on 2D). The second time as well (2 or more on the roll). After that, the chance of overload goes up one point per shot until your power plant effectively takes a weapon hit and is damaged.

Okay, we're moving on to the routine programs. These are Maneuver (as opposed to Maneuver/Evade), Jump, Library, and Generate. I cheated and peeked ahead; there are a couple more. These are your basic ship-handling functions for out-of-combat stuff.

Maneuver and Jump are self-explanatory, although the Jump program requires a specific program for the jump distance needed. Library is basically your on-board Wikipedia. Generate is the program that takes care of flight plans to various destinations. If you don't have this program on-board, you can buy single-use flight plans (self-erasing cassettes, and man, that's old tech right there) for all worlds within jump range and for which space lanes exist. That's some tantalizing stuff there, but we won't learn about it until Book 3.

Next up, we finish the programs and move on to whatever is next.

Construction Project is Underway

I, as everyone who knows me knows, am utterly horrible when it comes to tools and building things. Tools are allergic to me; I've broken three screwdrivers in a single day, and even managed to dent a hammer. That's not easy to do, believe me. But I can do it. And so, the idea of taking on even a simple project isn't merely daunting; it's foolhardy.

Which is why I'm building a skating rink in our front yard. Because if you're going to be foolhardy, you might as well go big.

Speaking of big, this really is going to be quite the project. And, I'll freely admit, I'm cheating; I'm getting our eighteen-year-old son to do most of the work, because unlike me, he and tools are the best of friends. So, my wife bought the tarp on the weekend, I arranged for the wood, and Ashton picked it up this morning. When I got home from work, we got started.

We didn't get much done; it was getting dark. But we did cut the boards and we laid out the tarp, weighing it down with over 40 two-by-fours to keep it in place overnight. Tomorrow morning, I'm going to take a picture of it to post on the blog; while I'm at work, Ashton will begin assembling the frame for the rink. It's not going to be fancy, but it will hold a whole bunch of water and, eventually, ice. It's not a small rink; it's going to be about 28' x 58'. The tarp is 30' x 60', but we're going to be wrapping it around two-by-fours to make the rink waterproof.

I'm excited about it; I haven't skated much in the past few years, but having our very own rink? That's going to be fun. And it will give the kids a chance to learn to skate, as well. Honey Bunny is looking forward to it, as well; she used to play hockey herself, so it will be fun to lace on the skates and shoot some pucks. And yes, we brought a hockey net with us from Ontario, as well as lots of sticks and pucks. If we're going to stay in Canada, we're going to embrace it.

Let's Read: Traveller, 1977 Edition, Starships, page 31

Okay, so we're actually finishing page 30 tonight, with a couple of lines on Computer Programming (no pun intended). The ship's computer controls everything (except the people), and is useful for improving the weapons fire accuracy, defensive systems, maneuvering and jumping, and pretty much everything else on board. But since the computer is limited in how many programs it can run at once, it can't do it all at the same time.

So, how it works is simple enough: Each level of computer has a maximum storage and maximum processing capability. Level 1 is limited to 4 programs in storage and 2 running at once (hence why laser return fire isn't going to be happening too often with one of those ships). Level 7 can hold 50 and run 20 at a time. Since there are only 17 different programs available, Level-7 systems can actually run everything at once. Of course, they also cost 60 million Credits, so don't expect to see too many of them floating around.

Now, a ship can be carrying more than its maximum storage; a Level-1 might have six or seven programs, but it can only store four at a time, and run two at a time, cycling the other two in as needed. It turns out that the Level-1 can handle laser return fire, since it only needs targeting and return fire programs. It just isn't going to be moving around much.

The computer reprogramming phase is when programs can be switched in and out of storage. So, that Level-1 computer isn't going to be very flexible in combat; there just isn't enough storage to handle surprises like that on the fly. It takes the entire turn to change computer storage files, but there doesn't seem to be a limit as to how many can be changed at once.

And now, we get to learn about the computer programs. They are divided up into defensive, offensive, and routine programs. First up, the defensive programs. These are Maneuver/Evade, Auto/Evade, and ECM.

Maneuver/Evade has six versions, depending on the maneuvering drive. No, wait...the computer's level determines the program's version. So, you could have a maneuvering drive rated for 3, but the computer can't handle one that powerful, so it's got a 1 instead. I think. Or, it could be related to the program's size in storage; none of them go higher than 4. This is confusing. I'll have to read it more carefully.

Hmm...going back for a quick read of page 13, there's no indication that the computer's level limits the ship's programming capability, other than the storage limit itself. So, if you've got a Maneuver/Evade 4 in a Level-1 computer, it can't handle any other programs because M/E 4 takes up 4 units, leaving no room for the computer to do anything else. Okay, that's clear enough.

Getting back to it, M/E adds a DM based on the pilot's expertise. It's a fraction of the pilot's skill, basically. It's useful, depending on how good the pilot is. Auto/Evade is similar, but it's a straight-up -2 DM. ECM is quite handy when someone is shooting missiles at you; during the laser return fire phase, if there are any missiles in contact with the ship (and about to explode), ECM can destroy them first on a 7 or better. Well, that's useful.

But of course, the best defense is a good offense. Target, Predict, and Gunner Interact are mentioned on this page; there will be more on the next page, I'm sure. Target is straightforward; it runs all the turrets, and is required for shooting everything except anti-missile fire and boat launches.

Predict is basically a tracking program that anticipates where the opponent ship is going to be. Basically, you get to lead your target. With laser fire. Which is a beam of light, and thus travels at a speed of 186 game inches per second. Or, since a turn is ten minutes, 111,600 inches in a turn. It's unlikely that ships are going to be moving at speeds where this is a factor, or even remotely close to that far apart; 186 inches is 15 feet. Unless you're running combat at relativistic on a grid the size of a small state; 111,600 games inches is more than a mile and a half.

Just what kind of games were the guys at GDW running, anyway? I wish I'd been there.

Alright, Gunner Interact and we're done for today. This basically just adds the gunner's skill level as a positive DM to hit with lasers. While leading them with the Predict program. Do you really need both? Unless you're insanely far away from them (186 inches, perhaps?), I doubt it.

And that wraps this page up. Tomorrow, more computer programs.

Let's Read: Traveller, 1977 Edition, Starships, page 30

Okay, we've got Laser Return Fire next. Actually, we've got a table of DMs for laser fire (from the previous phase). The only way to get a positive DM is to use a 'Predict' program; the targeting program doesn't give a modifier, and a pulse laser gets a -1. For the defense, the Maneuver/Evade program and the Auto/Evade program are good, depending on which version of the Maneuver/Evade program you're using. At long range, there are negative modifiers as well (who's paying on a game board with ranges greater than 300"?), and finally sand is useful, giving a -3 per...HALF-INCH of obscuring sand?!! Half-inch? That's 500 miles!! 500 miles of sand!! How big are these canisters? Is this magic sand that expands when coming into contact with pure vacuum?

Okay, I know...enough about the sand. But seriously, 500 miles of sand? That's crazy.

Alright, back to the Laser Return Fire phase. You have to use a Return Fire program as well as a Target program to do this. So, does that mean that the Level-1 Computers can't do this? Because they are only good for two programs at a time. So, if you're flying the ship, that leaves one program left. I guess the moral is, don't get in a starship fight with a level-1 computer.

By the way, why do you need a 'return fire' program? Is this a program that literally calculates that the ship has just been fired upon, and therefore you can shoot back? The next line says that laser return fire can only be directed at an enemy ship which fired at you first. Okay, so I guess it does calculate that the ship has just been fired upon. Interesting. Seems a bit specific, but then, I'm used to current computers, not Traveller computers. Still, they should install a GUI on this or something, Even Windows 10 would be better; at least then the computer could multitask.

And of course, you need the Multi-Target program to shoot back at more than one target. Of course. Anti-missile fire happens now as well, if you've got the right programs running. Anti-missile fire doesn't require the Target program, though.

After this, it's the Ordnance Launch phase, so you can launch missiles, sand, and mini-ships. You nee launch and target programs for the first two; mini-ships can handle the launch without those. This is also the phase where previously-fired missiles and sand that have reached their targets take effect.

Interesting...you can launch the missile (or sand) now, but it doesn't actually move until your next movement phase. Which won't be until after the opponent has done their entire turn. And all ordnance stays on the ship's current vector, although I assume missiles can retarget as necessary.

Each launcher has an ammo rack of three missiles or canisters per turret. After they are used, it takes a full turn to reload one turret. If one gunner is handling three turrets, that's three turns of reloading for a full load. And of course, you can't shoot while you're reloading. Well, that will make things interesting. Do you settle for just one missile available, or take an extra turn to load another turret?

So, the ordnance hits the target in the movement phase, but doesn't take effect until this phase. That's some serious abstraction going on. Missiles don't explode on contact, and they don't actually move when first launched. When they do blow up, though, they do 1-6 hits based on a die roll. Each hit takes a DM of -4 on the hit type table (which I assume comes shortly).

Next up is Computer Programming, but the paragraph continues on the next page, so I'll do that page next time.

Birthday Boy

Happy Birthday to Garrett Sprigg, our youngest! He's eight! How in the blue hell did that happen? It seems like it was only yesterday that he was seven. Time flies.

He's much like his older brother Ashton; they are both heavily into toy trains, especially (in Garrett's case) Thomas trains. He got a nice set tonight, and all three of the boys were upstairs playing with it. It's great to see them being brothers together.

We had a nice little birthday party for him here, just the five of us. It was great to see Garrett react when we lit the birthday candles and started singing Happy Birthday. He grinned from ear to ear; it was the first birthday that he's ever done that. He understood what we were doing! That is such a great feeling for parents of an autistic child. My wife was almost crying. He isn't quite there on how to blow out candles, but he was very enthusiastic about ripping open the presents. He got some Thomas, a puzzle book, a bag of chips all to himself, and a toy tractor. All in all, quite the haul for a brand-new eight-year-old.

When we first found out we were expecting him, I started writing a daily journal for him. I kept it faithfully for two and a half years, but I made the mistake of storing it on a single flash drive. One night, I left it on the dining room table; Raven, our black lab, ate it. I lost the whole thing.

I wish I had it; it would have been so amazing to be able to read that now, looking back on those early days when we didn't even know if our baby would be a boy or a girl. And I had the whole day of his birth written out, hour by hour. And now it's gone.

I couldn't go on writing the journal after that; losing those precious early years was too painful. I regret that, now; I wish I had continued it, even missing those first three years. It would have been a great record of his life, and the lives of the people around him. But, it is what it is. There's nothing I can do about it now. We have him, and we have the memories, and that will do.

Now, off to watching the boys play some more. Time to be a Dad.

Let's Read: Traveller, 1977 Edition, Starships, page 29

Alright! Now that we've done all those calculations, we get something to use them for. Those gravity bands are going to have an effect on ship vectors. Let's see if I got this right. "During the movement phase, lay out the vector of the ship to determine where it will move." Easy enough. "If the exact midpoint of the vector lies in a gravity band, a gravity vector will be added to the course vector to create a new vector." So far, so good. So, if the vector ends up being six inches long, check the three-inch point to see if it's in a gravity band.

"The length of this gravity vector is equal (in inches) to the strength of the gravity band in Gs." Alright, the closer you are the planet, the bigger the effect. Still makes sense. "Thus, a vector dictated by the 0.5 G band of a world is 1.0 inches long." Um, wait. Half a G would be half an inch, wouldn't it? Now I'm confused. I checked the errata file, but it's got nothing. This can go one of two ways. First, it's an error and needs to be changed to '0.5 inches long.' Second, the error is in the first sentence, and the word 'twice' is missing in "to TWICE the strength". Of course, the third option is that I'm just confused and I'm missing something obvious. Maybe someone who has more experience with the rules can explain it to me.

Regardless, the vector shifts by bringing the ship closer to the planet by modifying the vector the appropriate distance directly toward the planet (start from the initial vector's midpoint, then move it directly toward the planetary template center). So, it won't be a major shift, but the closer you get to the planet, the more it will be. That can make for some interesting scenarios, especially if a ship in the gravity gets its engines damaged or destroyed.

Laser Fire! Yeah! This is the second phase in the turn, and it's broken down into five sub-phases. First, pick the target. On an individual ship, turret lasers have to all fire at the same target. If you have multiple turrets, they still have to fire at the same target unless you've got a multi-target computer program running. Geez, Traveller computers just suck. The player does the targeting for all his ships, then moves to the second sub-phase.

In Sub-Phase Two, DMs are calculated for each ship; each ship will have one specific DM. These DMs usually come from computer programs, but damage and other issues can modify the DM as well. Now the targeted player does the same for his defensive DMs. Again, this is done per ship. Sand gets a mention again, because sand can apparently travel at starship speeds in space. Gotta love that sand.

Fourth, throw the dice. As in man-to-man combat, the goal is a modified roll of 8 or better. Each laser weapon makes its own roll. I'm reading that as double turrets get two rolls, one per weapon. Count up the total hits achieved.

Fifth, use the dice to determine hit locations on a table (which hasn't appeared yet), then mark the effects of the ship on the ship's data card. The effects of these hits will take effect before the defending player gets to shoot back, so the defending ships might not get to fire all their weapons (if some got damaged in this phase).

If the attacker wants to shift targets in the middle of the fight (the initial target was already destroyed by earlier fire in the phase) it's a -6 DM on top of any others. So, switching targets isn't likely to be a productive activity, depending on how good your modifiers already are.

Next up...we'll see.

It's December Already?!

I'm having a hard time fathoming that it's December 1st. On Prince Edward Island. And the temperature was in double digits today; I was practically sweating in the car on my way to work this morning.

I know, I know..."global warming." I don't care. I just know that while everyone keeps saying 'winter's coming,' it's sure taking its sweet time getting here. If I wanted that kind of a tease, I would have stayed in Ontario. I mean, sure, I wasn't all that excited about getting huge mounds of snow twice a day, but come on! This is a letdown!

Anyway, it's an important month, obviously; Christmas is just over three weeks away. We don't have our tree up yet, although the house is looking quite decorated. Honey Bunny and our teenager worked on it quite a bit yesterday. But without a tree, it's obviously not quite Christmas time.

It's funny; we've always made a habit of putting the tree up either right after the US Thanksgiving, or the 1st of December. Well, we're not near the US border anymore, so their Thanksgiving seems much more remote, and we were too busy today to get the tree up today. Maybe on the weekend.

In the meantime, though, we're still playing the waiting game as we wonder when the legendary PEI winter is going to land on us. I'm okay with it waiting a while longer, though. If I wanted to, I could just go dig more gardens in the back yard; the ground isn't frozen yet. If it's not snowing by the weekend, I might dig up another one just to save me time in the spring.