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Old 10-05-2018, 06:55 PM   #1
nukesnipe
 
Join Date: Oct 2007
Default Triplanetary: Launching from a planet

Launching from a planet

The short question: Must a ship spend at least 1 turn in orbit prior to leaving orbit?

The longer question:

Per the rules:

1. "Boosters provide an acceleration of one hex from the world or satellite to an adjacent hex."

2. "The planetary surface gravity immediately cancels takeoff velocity, leaving the ship stationary in the gravity hex immediately above the base. Unless fuel is spent on the next turn, the ship would fall back to the planet and crash."

3. By expending a point of fuel, the snip may enter clockwise or counter-clockwise orbit. On a later turn it may burn fuel to leave orbit to return to the planetary surface or venture into space."

In #1 above, should "acceleration" read "velocity"?

The wording of #2 seems to contradict the rules regarding gravity which state that "gravity takes effect on the turn after an object enters the gravity hex." It would seem that, applying the gravity rules, on the turn after launch, without burning fuel, the ship would move one hex directly away from the planet (beyond the gravity hex), then "fall" back into the gravity hex for a net velocity of zero. On the following (third) turn, provided no fuel is burned, the ship would fall into the planet.

It would seem, following the gravity rules, that if I burned fuel directly away from the planet on the turn after launch the ship would end up two hexes above the planet with a velocity of 1.

However, #2 and #3, combined, imply that on the turn after launch the ship's net velocity is zero and its only option is to burn fuel to enter orbit. On the third or subsequent turn the ship can burn fuel to leave orbit.

So, a literal reading of the rules implies that it takes a minimum of three turns to leave a planets orbit: one to get off the planet, one to enter orbit and a third to leave orbit.

Is that how it is supposed to be?

Thanks for the help!
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Regards,

Scott Chisholm
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