> 
> >
> >Bug or feature?  I'm trying to create some sense of societal borders -
> >if you can just bypass recalictrant or warlike systems, you remove a lot
> >of the danger and intriuge of the game.
> 
> Whats stopping societies from sending ships to patrol around and intercept 
> enemy ships? Your suggested FLT would remove several options  and ideas to 
> make various societies players might want to have.

What's stopping them?  The bigness of space.

If FTL ships aren't detectable from distances, then I can fly through
(or over, and in intergalactic space) and you'll never see my ships.

"Patrol around" doesn't work well in real 3-space, IMHO.  The empty
space in between is just so vast.

And yes, my suggested FTL would remove several options - but it would
give everyone a common framework.  There's are reasons why most SF systems
have one "accepted" form of FTL.

For instance, if your ships are moving via FTL in "normal" space, and my
ships travel via jump points in B5 hyperspace, how are you going to
patrol for my ships?  I've set up a big advantage for my ships just
by how I've defined my FTL.

On the other hand, your ships can fight FTL in normal space, and mine
can't.  What's the combat bonus or penalty for that?  

Another for-instance - if everyone uses the same FTL, then common
tactics can be built around FTL, like "interdictor cruisers" in
Star Wars, or jump point detectors in B5.  If everyone can use the
different FTL, then FTL stops feeling like real "science" and more
like space opera.

There's also an argument that SF should (to be _science_ fiction) diverge
from real science in only a few, clearly marked places, and that those
places be handled as if they were new scientific laws.

If I have inertialess drives (a la Lensmen series), you have anti-matter
Warp drives, he has b5 hyperspace, and she uses Dune "folding" technology,
then it doesn't feel (to me) like we're really in the same shared
scientific world.


> >This way, people can "close their borders", you have defined trade routes,
> >and a real sense of terrain.
> 
> They can still have it anyway without what you suggested. Societies would 
> depend on solar system also, o they woul need to conquer strategic systems 
> and etc....

Not all societies would depend on solar systems, and also it would be
pretty trivial to just bypass fixed defenses.

Now, granted, there's an argument for a system where it _is_ trivial
to bypass fixed defenses, and so all defenses are mobile (except for,
say, planetary defense grids).  Mobility-dependent fighting is pretty 
standard.

But (again IMO) everyone needs to be on the same page.  I could also
handle limiting FTL to one type that involved going through normal
space at an accelerated pace, was detectable at long range, and
we had to create 3-D starmaps.  

> >
> >
> >Would it be easier or harder to update a full 3-d map with travel times,
> >distances, and borders?
> 
> Sure since it would be the players and societies job to define systems and 
> worlds! Of course, with GM or GMs supervision so they don;t go out of hand 
> with it.

I think you'll find that in Quayore all the maps were created by the GM's.

I think a 3-D map is a much harder problem than you think it is.  (I tried
to create one when I was thinking of running a B5 tabletop game.  Ow.
Even based off of real star maps, it was a pain to try to sketch out areas
and trade routes.)

> >Nothing stopping them from doing any of that.  How exactly will a sentient
> >gaseous race handle FTL?  Most of these races sound STL.  They would all
> >exist, but would either be beholden on being schlepped around by other
> >races, or would just stay in one place and hold court on those races that
> >came to him.
> 
> Actually, the Gasuous beings in TNG have the ability to go into Light speed. 
> Same with AMoadas, Crystal entities and etc...

Yeah, but I prefer my SF a bit less squishy than trek.  Make that a _lot_
less squishy than Trek.  How much sense does it make for a sentient cloud
race that evolved where? to just be able to go FTL by an undefined
process?

If they're old and NPC, it's okay for the process to be mysterious,
but if they're a PC race, I think it would need to be sketched out...

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