On Mon, Mar 14, 2016 at 10:08:17PM -0400, Richard Aiken wrote:
> 1) Having the flexibility to push missiles out from the firing arc
> where they are needed RIGHT NOW - instead of waiting for them to
> fire from the "wrong" arc, precess, lock-on and then re-vector
> toward the threat - could be vital to survival.

In space combat terms, missiles are *slow*.  At typical engagment
ranges, missiles will take at least an hour to get where they're
going.  Even at point blank (less than 10 Mm) ranges, they'll take
something like ten minutes.  Getting around the ship from the wrong
side will take a second or two of that.

That said, I agree that a central magazine or two is a good idea.

> On the other hand, a centralized magazine can be a net disadvantage
> when facing something armed with weapons capable of deep
> penetration, since a hit could possibly trigger a chain-reaction
> magazine detonation.

That seems extremely unlikely, since there are really only two types
of missiles that make much sense: those that kill by kinetic impact,
and those that kill by nuclear detonation.  The first won't blow up at
all (or at least no more than any other stored energy bank), and the
second almost certainly require precisely created conditions to blow
up, and furthermore seem to be forbidden in Traveller.

- Tim