Paul Lydiate's Tips -- Determining PRT

Paul Lydiate (who has done very well in a number of the games I've hosted) has offered some articles on STARS! play to me. This is the first:

FIRST CONTACT!

(or Determining Neighbours' PRTs)


By Paul Lydiate

The first alien vessel - probably a scout - has appeared on your scanners or has been found by your own scouts. What can it tell you about the race it belongs to?

Probably more than you'd think. Is it hopping between planets or been located in orbit around one? If so, the race probably doesn't have penetrating scanners yet - so is not a JoAT. Conversely, if it is travelling in straight lines and not stopping at planets, the owning race probably is a JoAT.

How fast is it going? If it's travelling at warp 8 or 9, it is probably fitted with a Fuel Mizer engine, so the owning race probably has Improved Fuel Efficiency and Propulsion Research at 2 or more. If it is going slower than this - when higher speeds would get it there faster - then it is probably fitted with standard engines.

Most importantly, what is it's mass? This is probably the most telling attribute - but note it while you can see it as the information will not appear in the 'enemy ships' section of your ship design screens afterwards. Knowing the mass, you can make a very good guess as to the ship's whole configuration - as the following table demonstrates:

Table of Scout Mass:

Engine Type Scanner Type Fuel Tank Beam Wpn Alpha Torpedo
Quick Jump 5 Bat 17 15 39
Quick Jump 5 Rhino 20 18 42
Quick Jump 5 Mole 17 15 39
Quick Jump 5 Possum 18 16 40
Fuel Miser Bat 19 17 41
Fuel Miser Rhino 22 20 44
Fuel Miser Mole 19 17 41
Fuel Miser Possum 20 18 42
Long Hump 6 Bat 22 20 44
Long Hump 6 Rhino 25 23 47
Long Hump 6 Mole 22 20 44
Long Hump 6 Possum 23 21 45
Daddy Long 7 Bat 26 24 48
Daddy Long 7 Rhino 29 27 51
Daddy Long 7 Mole 26 24 48
Daddy Long 7 Possum 27 25 49

So, a scout massing 29 kt almost certainly has a DL7 engine, Fuel Tank and Rhino Scanner - which means that, in the early part of the game it is probably owned by an Interstellar Traveller with elec research expensive, start at 3. Similarly, if it masses 20 tons it probably belongs to a SS race (in the early phases of the game) or, more unlikely, has a beam weapon fitted to a FM or LH6 powered vessel (which points towards the owners being WM or JoAT). Since their hulls have integral scanners JoATs will probably leave scanners off any further scouts they build, which will alter the mass of these vessels accordingly.

The start scouts of the various PRTs appear in the table below. Be warned that these don't take into account cheap research fields which start at three (which can throw out the configurations).

Starting Scouts

PRT Scout Engine/Scanner
AR Smaugarian Peeping Tom QJ5 / Bat
CA Smaugarian Peeping Tom QJ5 / Bat
HE Smaugarian Peeping Tom QJ5 / Bat
IS Smaugarian Peeping Tom QJ5 / Bat
IT Smaugarian Peeping Tom DDL7 / Bat
JoaT Long Range Scout LH6 / Rhino
PP Long Range Scout QJ5 / Bat
SD Smaugarian Peeping Tom QJ5 / Bat
SS Smaugarian Peeping Tom QJ5 / Possum
WM any* QJ5 / Bat

* (Note: the Armed Probe WMs start with is not a good long range scouting vessel)

Finally, what is the fleet number? If this is one of the ships which the race began with, it can tell you something more about it's PRT as shown in the table below. The table also shows the starting tech of the various PRTs (but again, does not take into account any expensive research fields which might start at 3, which can give some extra vessels to some PRTs):

Starting Fleets & Tech

(note: "SPT" means "Smaugarian Peeping Tom"

AR: -- Energy 1

  1. #1 SPT
  2. #2 Pinta (Special Colony Ship)

CA: -- Energy 1, Weapons 1, Prop 1, Con 2, Bio 6
  1. #1 SPT
  2. #2 Santa Maria
  3. #3 Change of Heart (50% Cloaked)

HE: -- None
  1. #1 SPT
  2. #2 Spore Cloud
  3. #3 Spore Cloud
  4. #4 Spore Cloud

IS: -- None
  1. #1 SPT
  2. #2 Santa Maria

IT: -- Prop 5, Con 5
  1. #1 SPT
  2. #2 Mayflower
  3. #3 Stalwart Defender (Destroyer)
  4. #4 Swashbuckler (Privateer)
  5. #5 SPT

JOAT: -- Everything 3
  1. #1 Armed Probe
  2. #2 LRS
  3. #3 Santa Maria
  4. #4 Teamster
  5. #5 Stalwart Defender
  6. #6 Cotton Picker (Mining Ship)

PP: -- Energy 4
  1. #1 LRS
  2. #2 Santa Maria
  3. #3 LRS

SD -- Prop 2, Bio 2
  1. #1 SPT
  2. #2 Santa Maria
  3. #3 Little Hen (mines)
  4. #4 Speed Turtle (speed trap)

SS: -- Electronics 5
  1. #1 SPT
  2. #2 Shadow Transport
  3. #3 Santa Maria

WM: -- Energy 1, Weapons 6, Prop 1
  1. #1 Armed Probe
  2. #2 Santa Maria

So, how does knowing the PRT of the owning race help us? It tells us whether or not a particular race might make a useful ally - in terms of the tech they could give us or the special attributes they have which may compliment our own. Conversely, if we ever go to war against them it tells us the strengths and weaknesses we will be up against.

Knowing a race's PRT is a great advantage in any negotiations with them - especially if they don't know what ours is. Consequently, it makes sense to determine the PRTs of our neighbours whilst masking our own from them where possible.

Some races have unique ships which immediately give away their PRT: SD Minelayers, CA Orbital Adjustors, the heavier colony ships of AR races, HE Spore Clouds etc. Others are more difficult to determine.

So far as masking our own PRT - at least in the early stages - is concerned, scrapping our tell-tale vessels (the minerals will come in handy, and a CA Change of Heart with QJ5 engines, for example, isn't going to get anywhere in time to be of much use) and/or building new scouts which mask it (standard Smaugarian Peeping Toms if you are WM, JoAT or PP, for example) will certainly help.

Information is Power. Try to ensure that you have it and your potential enemies don't.


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This page was updated on September 28, 1999

This page was created on September 28, 1999



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