You are right regarding game pieces providing a potential point of reference for maneuvers. The difference is that any advantage from other objects in play is inherent to the game as designed - marked maneuver templates are not.

You are also right that this isn't a big issue, but imagine a tournament game when the last turn ends with your opponent performing a perfect maneuver to achieve the optimal result in one of my example situations while using marked maneuver templates. Maybe he/she would have pulled it off without the help provided by the additional measurement reference, but maybe not. Again, I just don't see the point of arguing against the proliferation of unmarked templates.

I've played against enough people who can eyeball the perfect move, without the aid of measurements.

Unless of course they happened to remember the range to the target and how that helps with movement templates (each range being 2 and a half forwards).

There are planty of tips and hints that helps people with good memories vs people without, much like real life.

Ultimately, I chose acrylic templates because they fit better to the movement pegs rather then card ones, and I went with Cogotwo because they have great customer service, and the templates looked pretty.

Those are all fine reasons to buy whatever you want. But, in the end, certain templates provide additional information that is not meant, by virtue of the original design, to be available. The reasons for choosing a certain manufacturer and the mental abilities of the average player are irrelevant to that concept.

Anyone who is tossing blind accusations of intentional cheating is crazy, but the potential for marked templates to provide an advantage is pretty easy to identify.

You are also right that this isn't a big issue,

Everyone agrees! Now we can stop posting about it. Especially since the whole thing seems like a kinda sleazy viral marketing attempt for a new entrant in the custom template market.

(There needs to be a way to post replies that don't bump the thread in the main list of threads. Sigh.)

I'd think marked templates probably fit under some sort of rules of "not modifying game pieces". I've heard of people "mashing"/flattening their range rulers to make them longer and being called out on it and removed from events by TOs and what not. That is clearly a violation of this rule, slightly more useful and extreme though.

I mean, do you really think I could just draw the lines on my cardboard templates with a sharpie? I'm not sure...Seems like the TO would be all over that pretty quick.

Could I maybe even draw some hints on my templates, telling me exactly how far horizontally and vertically a 3 bank moves me? Maybe a picture of the geometry? If we can put markings on our templates, then I don't see why I couldn't put legitimate information in writing on my templates. Companies that make custom templates could whip something up that is very readable.

The good news is, Tourney rules DO allow players to request the use of one set of templates. So if your opponent has marked template, just ask to use those! Haha!

Obviously, the advantaged gained isn't GIANT, since your ship already moved. But maybe it'll provide range information for boosting, or give another ship that is directly in line with you some additional information (useful for formation flying in some fashion, I could find a way with some effort, which is exactly what I'd do if marked templates were definitely legal. Find a way to actually use that to my advantage, that is).

However, it is obviously using something that wasn't initially built into the game's movement templates. They would have put markings on those things if they wanted it!

This again? Really? Give it up. Egads.

"The lady doth protest too much, methinks."

I don't like being told to google stuff.

Google don't even like people being told to google stuff

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Generic_trademark#Avoiding_genericization

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