VBAM Games Forums

The latest version (v29) is in the yahoo group files and on the mj12 forum (.xls format.)
Updated to include all of the sourcebooks from ISS to Iron Stars.
The Starmada sheet has all of the items needed for a DIY data card if you do not wish to use the official format (or to add whatever you wish).
These items include VBAM ship and fighter stats.

Campaign Abilities so far:Agile, Assault, Atmospheric, Attack Boat, Ballistic, Blockade Runner, Carrier (Fighter), Carrier (Assault), Carrier (Missile), Cloak, Colony ship, Command, Diplomatic, Explorer, Field Repair, Fast, Freighter, Gunship, Hospital Ship, Jammer, Military Supply ship, Mine Controller, Minesweeper, Mobile Construction ship, Passengers, Scout level 1 & 2, Stealth*, Tender & Troop Ship.

*Note +1 DV not included in stats. It is part of the Dcr calculations but does not by itself add the +1 (Include?)
Starmada equipment requirements for these abilites are listed in the shipyard guide.

Going by VBAM:The Starmada Edition it is not possible to make a cost1 ship. In the latest version of the shipyard (v29), I have made this possible for Attack Boats and Gunboats etc. When designing the ship keep the SU under 70 for cost 1.

I have been thinking about putting a copy of the VBAM block on the Template sheet (cells AK111:AL119) up where they can easily be seen when designing the ship (cells W19:W27). This could make it easier to match a particular CSCR ship's stats, where they are all you have to go on.

I will note any changes here.

Any suggestions, errors or questions, please speak up.

Paul

OldnGrey wrote:I have been thinking about putting a copy of the VBAM block on the Template sheet (cells AK111:AL119) up where they can easily be seen when designing the ship (cells W19:W27). This could make it easier to match a particular CSCR ship's stats, where they are all you have to go on.

That would be particularly useful, I'd say. Ever so often, someone comes along and wants to gin up Starmada stats for the default races from the Campaign Guide. That feature would certainl help.

OldnGrey wrote:The latest version (v29) is in the yahoo group files and on the mj12 forum (.xls format.)
Updated to include all of the sourcebooks from ISS to Iron Stars.
The Starmada sheet has all of the items needed for a DIY data card if you do not wish to use the official format (or to add whatever you wish).
These items include VBAM ship and fighter stats.

Campaign Abilities so far:Agile,Atmospheric, Attack Boat, Ballistic, Blockade Runner, Carrier (Fighter), Carrier (Assault), Carrier (Missile), Cloak, Colony ship, Command, Diplomatic, Explorer, Field Repair, Fast, Freighter, Gunship, Hospital Ship, Jammer, Military Supply ship, Mine Controller, Minesweeper, Mobile Construction ship, Passengers, Scout level 1 & 2, Stealth*, Tender & Troop Ship.

*Note +1 DV not included in stats. It is part of the Dcr calculations but does not by itself add the +1 (Include?)
Starmada equipment requirements for these abilites are listed in the shipyard guide.

Going by VBAM:The Starmada Edition it is not possible to make a cost1 ship. In the latest version of the shipyard (v29), I have made this possible for Attack Boats and Gunboats etc. When designing the ship keep the SU under 70 for cost 1.

I have been thinking about putting a copy of the VBAM block on the Template sheet (cells AK111:AL119) up where they can easily be seen when designing the ship (cells W19:W27). This could make it easier to match a particular CSCR ship's stats, where they are all you have to go on.

I will note any changes here.

Any suggestions, errors or questions, please speak up.

Paul

I've designed a cost 1 ship, but its extremely hard and requires a TL of -3 in weapons.

It will very much depend on what exactly you try to cram into what is a very small ship. How powerful should a Hull 1 ship be?
For example:
Type:Gunboat , Class, (17)
Hull: 1
Engines: [TL0] 5
Shields: [TL0]
Weapons : 1:[3V], 2:[3V], 3:[3V], 4:[3V], 5:[3V], 6:[3V]
Weapons
Battery V: Light Laser Mk2 (E) TL0, 3/6/9, 1/4+/1/1
[AB] [AB] [AB]
Special Equipment
Anti-Fighter Batteries
Armor Plating
Damage Control Dice: 1
Which gives:
Cost:1 Maint:1/12 DV:1 AS:2 AF:1 CR:2 CC:1/2 Basing:0
This all being at tech level 0 and a SU of 70. Right on the limit.

I started with a SU limit of 75SU but reduced it to give some room for hull 1 ships that meet the cost 2 as per the official conversions. The line had to be drawn somewhere.

Thoughts?

Paul

Already working on the next version.
Added Q-Ship and Trade. Weapon batteries which may be Anti-Fighter or Starship-Exclusive are excluded as proper from either AS or AF. Put the VBAM stats where they can be seen when constructing the ship (Or station).

Putting in Space Stations and all related (i.e. Shipyard) with the following:
SU x1.4
Drat x1.8
Requirement = armor plating
No Engines
No hyperdrive
May have Overthrusters, giving "pivot"

Have I missed anything? Thoughts before I post?

Paul

OldnGrey wrote:
Have I missed anything? Thoughts before I post?

Paul

I would go ahead and post it. Then I can give it a trial run on some of my "problematic" ship designs. With that in mind maybe we could work something out with MJ12 to keep this in a common download area. That may help with version management.

-Jay

mwaschak wrote:

OldnGrey wrote:
Have I missed anything? Thoughts before I post?

Paul

I would go ahead and post it. Then I can give it a trial run on some of my "problematic" ship designs. With that in mind maybe we could work something out with MJ12 to keep this in a common download area. That may help with version management.

-Jay

I have posted the new version (v31) (v30 was a test only).
I do not mind posting each new version on the yahoo groups and mj12 forum.
There seems to have been a bit of a "why should space stations be any different to any other ship without engines" on the mj12 forum today.

"Problematic"ship designs? Do tell.

It is easy using the weapon traits to make AS or AF exclusive ships now.

Let me know how it goes.

Paul

I tested v31 everywhich way I could (I thought) and yet when I went back to it last night/early today, the last few campaign abilities would not be listed.
Fixed it now (still do not know why it went wrong, maybe too many &'s).
Inserted cost for Uhlans shipyard. v32

Cannot say that I really like the way that AS is calculated, Teleporters give AS 1 without any weapons.

Paul

I could scream.
The tech levels were not working on the weapons!

I checked with the open office site and found that there is an update now available Oo 3.0.1
The site said that version 3.0 had some bugs (I never would have guessed!)

Upgraded to 3.0.1 and hope that all will work fine now. Tested for a few hours.

Paul

OldnGrey wrote:I could scream.
The tech levels were not working on the weapons!

I checked with the open office site and found that there is an update now available Oo 3.0.1
The site said that version 3.0 had some bugs (I never would have guessed!)

Upgraded to 3.0.1 and hope that all will work fine now. Tested for a few hours.

Paul

Thank you Paul!

-Jay

I have been using the Starmada Edition book for details of weapons carried etc. to help in making counters.

I have noticed that Attack Boats get treated as both individual small ships and in the Starmada stats as a fighter flight (50Su) per boat.

In the shipyard, individual Attack Boats can be designed which is fine. However it does present a problem when it comes to carriers for them.
Take the Szunheg class for example, with hull 5.
It goes overweight when 6 Attack Boats are added, even if the Tender Trait for Starmada X is used.

As the mass for the Attack Boats is paid for separately, I have been looking to a SU amount to house them in or on the Attack Boat Carrier / tender.
25% of the Attack Boat mass seems to work well when I put this into the shipyard.

Any thoughts? Should the set tender cost per hull 1 ship be used and the tender size increased? Or, should that trait be kept for ships that can recover Hull 1 and up size ships (Bigger than Attack Boats)?

And talking of overweight ships, has anyone questioned the Starmada stats for ships like the Jalalat class Gunboat? I thought that it might have been due to my using Starmada AE, but when I checked the ship with Starmada X it still used more SU than it had available.

Paul

Version 34 posted. Carrier - Attack Boats added for trial.
Cargo was sending cost through the roof, fixed.

Paul

OldnGrey wrote: And talking of overweight ships, has anyone questioned the Starmada stats for ships like the Jalalat class Gunboat? I thought that it might have been due to my using Starmada AE, but when I checked the ship with Starmada X it still used more SU than it had available.

Paul

Forgive my ignorance. is the Jalalat a ship in the Starmada AE material?

If so, I know Dan still did a lot of his calcs by hand at one time, even after the early Excel sheets were available. A simple mistake is not out of the realm of possibity.

The Jalalat Gunboat ( a Maghur ship ) is on page 106 of VBAM:The Starmada Edition.

Jay emailed today, some of the ships do not add up due to the BK book being years earlier than the Starmada X book.

Paul

OldnGrey wrote:The Jalalat Gunboat ( a Maghur ship ) is on page 106 of VBAM:The Starmada Edition.

Jay emailed today, some of the ships do not add up due to the BK book being years earlier than the Starmada X book.

Paul

Ah, ha. I knew I recognized the name of the ship, but couldn't remember where from exactly.


Anyway, I fiddled with the latest version of the shipyard briefly over the weekend. To be honest I hadn't looked it in ages, and never used it consisently. I like some of the changes since I last played with it. I had a couple of questions as I recall, but my notes are at home rather than at work with me (go figure).

Consider this a reminder to myself to dig them up.

I think one of the big ones was about printing, or what to print to play, or something. Pagination seemed odd.

Another goes back to the origin of the 'shipyard', and how you get multiple ships out of the file. But I didn't read the PDF, I should probably do that first.