I have built the TOS and command tray at full and half scale, while the half scale would be functional, the graphics are not formated correctly for that scale (text is to small textures are too rich.

regardless of size the curent stuff is very hard to transport and IMO still requires an ungodly amount of paper and time to make.

so here i present a potential solution


this is a prof of concept model and needs quite a bit more work




This is the flat TOS it's total size is that of a poker size playing card, with the two sided switches and a support fold you can print up to six on one page, while laying flat damage is tracked with a hole punched paper counter or a glass bead. each switch has two sides, one shows the inactive switch the other side shows the image of it's order




This is a command strip



It holds the flat TOS at an angle, while in the command strip damage is tracked by moving the card back and forth in it's slot, the red holder points to the ships current damage level.



the command strip is made from only one page and while it's sable on it's own i could easily see it with some type of interlocking foam core base.


like i said this is a prof of concept model so it needs a whole lot of work before it is presentable.

If you put the slider on it, you've essentially got the 2d TOS.

The stand is interesting.

If you're sitting at the table ... A horizontal (side-by-side) layout would be far easier to use than having to reach over the TOS in front to get to the ones in the back.


On the subject of 2D TOS ...

I just mounted all of my 2D TOS to cardboard, and then I just clipped it into an old clipboard.

Yet ... I seemed to be missing some of the "cool" factor and visual appeal of the game. So, I'm going back and replacing it w/a full on 3D TOS.

you can mount the 2d version on foamcore to give it some weight, and by taping a strip of acetate sheet behind the slider track you can still use the TOS slider. I made some this way when the defense platforms were released. I posted it on here somewhere if you want to see the pics.

i am intrested in this concept in that the ability to print a sheet with 6 tos on it appeals to my cheap nature

the real question would be which 6 tos? perhaps sheet 1 with a hammer head a carrier and 2 each fighter missle fighter and sheet 2 with 2 Pbow and 2 control corvett and 1 each figher missle figher i think those units are currently used most. a player could print one of sheet 1, and two of sheet 2 and have a total fleet of
1 each captiol ships
4 Pbows
4 covetts
4 fighters
4 missle fighters

sounds good to me.

then one sheet with 3 missle fighters and 3 skirmish fighters for more of those

also the reduced size for a 2d tos is a very good thing. i am used to haveing cards to track damage and orders and such layed out on the game table but they really should not be huge. (i am planning on hosting some BIG games.)

anoughter idea i was bouncing around was to mark orders with a dry erase marker. (after lamination of course.) as well as damages.
or maybe a sliding switch for each order to "reveal" the effect.

just thinkin...

edited to make my print to finish ratios work correctly

Printing the TOS and command Tray at 50% is not very readable. Printing it at 66% is perfectly readable. I changed the view to 66% and then used a screengrab program (Zapgrap) to drop the images into microsoft word. Then I printed. Much easier to transport and perfectly readable.

I took the advice of other and printed the ships and bases at 50%. I can fit 2 fleets of moderate size in a box the size of the old GW spacehulk box.