Armies of the Fifth Frontier War, Impressions Not Errata

[tomfreshwater]

One benefit of a lower TL could be that it would allow the use of fabricators to produce all spare parts and ammo much closer to the point of use? Therefore reducing the ‘tail’ of imperial units. You could conceive enormous recycling vehicles molecularly breaking down what would essentially be battlefield waste into raw materials to feed back into fabricators? If not those, then at least providing raw materials to the front would be much more straight forward logistically? Considering you could turn your raw materials into what was needed preventing you having a spare turret facile when all you needed was another helmet?
Of course TL-13 would be the aim for production with TL-15 fabricators.

 

[Condottiere]

I would think more, that it would depend on what they're facing, and how much resources they've allocated to a particular arm, or branch, of their military.

 

[MasterGwydion]

One benefit of a lower TL could be that it would allow the use of fabricators to produce all spare parts and ammo much closer to the point of use? Therefore reducing the ‘tail’ of imperial units. You could conceive enormous recycling vehicles molecularly breaking down what would essentially be battlefield waste into raw materials to feed back into fabricators? If not those, then at least providing raw materials to the front would be much more straight forward logistically? Considering you could turn your raw materials into what was needed preventing you having a spare turret facile when all you needed was another helmet?
Of course TL-13 would be the aim for production with TL-15 fabricators.

Except there are somethings that We know of that cannot be made with Fabricators in Charted Space, such as Bonded Superdense armor. (At least not until TL-17 or 19. I don't remember exactly which one @Terry Mixon and I were discussing at one point)

 

[tomfreshwater]

Well you couldn’t make a spare turret then. But are you going to be making much of the armour for your combat armour out of superdense materials? For instance we don’t just use the latest ceramic armour for body armour? It is only used as the very top thin layer to shatter rifle rounds and then Kevlar underneath, which does the really life saving. So in the imperial army the top layer couldn’t be made but the bulk of the under components could be. Would you use superdense materials in the components for inside your armoured vehicles, or ammunition?
More fabricators I say

 

[MasterGwydion]

Well you couldn’t make a spare turret then. But are you going to be making much of the armour for your combat armour out of superdense materials? For instance we don’t just use the latest ceramic armour for body armour? It is only used as the very top thin layer to shatter rifle rounds and then Kevlar underneath, which does the really life saving. So in the imperial army the top layer couldn’t be made but the bulk of the under components could be. Would you use superdense materials in the components for inside your armoured vehicles, or ammunition?
More fabricators I say

The problem is that we don't know if any of the super high-tech stuff is made from stuff like superdense. For all we know it could be used in wiring or light bulbs too. So, in theory, yes, but in reality, how do you use a TL-13 part on TL-15 armor?

Also, a problem. We have rules for Fabricators, but not Makers. Makers were able to build entire starships, Fabricators can not.

 

[Sigtrygg]

I would think more, that it would depend on what they're facing, and how much resources they've allocated to a particular arm, or branch, of their military.

They are facing the Zhodani, the Solomani, the Julian Protectorate, and the Vargr states that take a dislike this week.

You don't build an Army or navy to face that threat level at anything but your TL maximum.

 

[Condottiere]

Governments tend to prioritize, especially when something costs them money.

If I recall correctly, seventy percent of the military budget goes to the Navy.

Even if you go for a one in a thousand ratio for ground forces, that's still a pretty vast number of personnel you have to equip and pay for.

 

[Sigtrygg]

You have a vast number of credits to pay for it, the "taxation base" of the Imperium is vast...

The Imperium has roughly ten field armies in the FFW, which I estimate as being of the order of 5 million men at arms - note that infantry, artillery, cavalry units will have different numbers, and combat vehicles for some units are going to be more expensive than for others.

That's 5 trillion credits for the entire Imperial Army available during the FFW boardgame, one BatRon of Tigress class costs in the order of 2.8 trillion credits... this is using CT numbers.

 

[Terry Mixon]

Except there are somethings that We know of that cannot be made with Fabricators in Charted Space, such as Bonded Superdense armor. (At least not until TL-17 or 19. I don't remember exactly which one @Terry Mixon and I were discussing at one point)

TL19 Superior Fabricators can make collapsed materials according to Geir.

 

[Terry Mixon]

The problem is that we don't know if any of the super high-tech stuff is made from stuff like superdense. For all we know it could be used in wiring or light bulbs too. So, in theory, yes, but in reality, how do you use a TL-13 part on TL-15 armor?

Also, a problem. We have rules for Fabricators, but not Makers. Makers were able to build entire starships, Fabricators can not.

A big enough TL19 Advanced Fabricator could make a starship in hours. Just not the collapsed armor.

 

[MasterGwydion]

TL19 Superior Fabricators can make collapsed materials according to Geir.

I knew it existed. I just didn't remember what TL it existed at. Thanks!

 

[Terry Mixon]

I knew it existed. I just didn't remember what TL it existed at. Thanks!

This isn’t a printed rule in any book, just what he says.

 

[MasterGwydion]

This isn’t a printed rule in any book, just what he says.

Yeah, but it was based on the book saying that TL-19 could create stuff down to the quantum level, so it makes sense.

 

[MasterGwydion]

Yeah, but it was based on the book saying that TL-19 could create stuff down to the quantum level, so it makes sense.

TL-19 also may be the earliest you can have a Ferengi barkeep...

 

[Terry Mixon]

TL-19 also may be the earliest you can have a Ferengi barkeep...

If you're not going to buy a drink, you need to move along.