[Woolie Wool]

Here's the scenario:

The GTA had already been working on experimental shield systems before the attack on Ross 128--the Ross 128 installation had an "energy-based" "deflector array" mentioned in the tech room entry for the MX-50. In this story, the Shivans never come and the GTA's early experiments lead to prootype shield systems, which are distributed to elite squadrons in June of 2335. However, one of the pilots was a traitor who secretly aided the Vasudans. During the trials, he suddenly raced towards the jump node and jumped out of the system into Antares, where his Vasudan contacts were waiting. He gave the shield prototype and his shield-damaging Avenger cannons to the Vasudans. The Vasudans reverse-engineered the shield generator and Avenger and began fitting them to their own fighters and bombers. A new chapter of the T-V War has begun.

In the beginning, only elite pilots will have shield systems. You will fly an unshielded ship with ML-16s, and most of your Vasudan foes will be bereft of shields as well. But early on in the campaign, maybe in the fourth mission, you will stumble upon a combat test of shielded Vasudan ships and their version of the Avenger cannon. Both the Terran and Vasudan military leaders are mortified (but for different reasons), and the war quickly intensifies. Keep in mind that the Thoth and Ulysses will never exist in this scenario, since they're Terran/Vasudan joint ventures.

Terran ships at beginning of campaign:
GTF Apollo
GTF Valkyrie
GTF Hercules (in this campaign, the Herc will have 550 shield hitpoints and 300 hull hitpoints, since most Hercs will be unshielded)
GTB Athena (will probably have less shielding and a stronger hull, since most Athenas will be unshielded)
GTB Medusa (see Athena notes)
GTB Ursa (see Athena notes)
GTC Fenris
GTC Leviathan
GTCv-X Deimos (prototype vessel)
GTD Orion
GTD-X Uhuru (modified Orion with prototype beam cannons)
All FS1 Terran noncombatants
Terran weapons at beginning:
ML-16 Laser
HL-5 Laser (does more damage per shot and fires at a slower rate than the ML-16)
LL-45 Laser (does less damage per shot and fires more rapidly than the ML-16)
Disruptor
Flail
Avenger
Prometheus X (prototype weapon, does less damage than the normal Prometheus that is introduced later)
MX-50
Fury
Firebird (like the Interceptor but slower and does more damage)
Hornet
Phoenix IV (older version of the Phoenix V)
Phoenix III (backwater regions get these clunkers; really sucky anti-bomber missile)
Stiletto
Thor (less powerful bomb than the Cyclops, no shockwave, designed before shield development)
Tsunami
Harbinger X (prototype Harbinger)
Vasudan ships at beginning:
PVF Anubis
PVF Seth
PVF Horus
PVB Osiris
PVB Amun
PVC Aten
PVD Typhon
PVI Cheops
PVI Karnak
All FS1 Vasudan noncombatants
Vasudan weapons at beginning:
VLL-9 Laser (Vasudan Light Laser)
VPC-3 Retribution (Vasudan version of the Avenger; does less damage per shot and fires more rapidly)
VHM-4 Caiman (Vasudan version of the MX-50)
VDM-5 Fang (Vasudan version of the Fury)
VAM-11 Lance (Vasudan Interceptor, faster but does less damage)
VBM-40 Barracuda (Vasudan version of the Phoenix V)
VTM-29 Hammer (Vasudan version of the Tsunami)
VTM-X Nightshade (Vasudan version of the Harbinger, experimental)
VEM-1 EMP missile (it's an EMP missile)

Any takers for this idea?

[Gloriano]

sound's like Alternate Paths that was hosted here long ago but died

[karajorma]

Originally posted by Woolie Wool
During the trials, he suddenly raced towards the jump node...

And then he looked rather silly when he realised he didn't have an interstellar fighter jump drive cause they hadn't been invented yet

[Knight Templar]

Old Idea, been tried many times, not to mention this one isn't anymore clever than the others.

[Trivial Psychic]

For one, the Interceptor was also a combination of Terran & Vasudan technology, but you could have it that an operation stole some of the required Vasudan technology, perhaps using stolen Vasudan fighters to get the job done.  You also omited the Stiletto, Tsunami, Harbinger, Disruptor cannon, Flail, and others... whether you had planned on using them at all.  Finally, I think you should change the name of the Vasudan Avenger, since its code looks more like that of a cargo container.

Later!

[Starks]

THere is no friggin way you will give the GTI Riviera a shield system...

[Woolie Wool]

No, it has a deflector array that only covers a small part of the hull. It's an experiment designed to test the effectiveness of shield technology.

Karajorma: This is around two months after the Lucifer was destroyed in the main timeline, so the GTA does have interstellar jump drives for fighters.

EDIT: First post updated with additions and corrections.

[Solatar]

Thought the GTA only developed them because of the Shivans with the Vasudan's help.

Interceptor has a Vasudan engine.
According to the Port the Hornet came from the Vasudan Fang (I take most of the stuff from the port to be correct, but you don't have to)

[Woolie Wool]

Both sides need their ubermissiles. The Terrans get the Hornet and the Vasudans get the Lance, which is rather hard to shake (it tracks better than the Harpoon).

[Solatar]

How would it track better than the harpoon? The Terrans had the better tracking technology, as evidenced by the Terran warhead in the Interceptor. The warhead does the tracking.

And better than the Harpoon is just stupid.

[jdjtcagle]

Originally posted by Woolie Wool
No, it has a deflector array that only covers a small part of the hull. It's an experiment designed to test the effectiveness of shield technology.

EDIT: First post updated with additions and corrections.

This would be bad @$$ to have this a part of the game.
Give more defence from beam cannons only in certain areas.
which means the first actual capship protetion from those all so powerful weapons, therefore this is

[Woolie Wool]

A beam cannon would tear through even the Lucifer's shields, never mind the deflector array, which has a strength of about 2000 hitpoints in my concept for it.

[Knight Templar]

That's nice?