Domestic food specifics.....

[.45cultist]

I was putting some cans in the storm supplies, when a "durr" moment caused me to realize the cans have the weight in grams. Now one can be creative with what is "X"kg of domestic food. Here are some samples.

Klim/Nido small can is .56kg
Tang plastic can is .36kg
Large coffee plastic can .79kg
Can of chunky soup .34kg
Don't know why this struck me.

[unkated]

Are these weights of the contents or of the packaged item

- You want the packaged item weight as your character has to carry it.
- you want the contents weight, as that is the part that nourishes your character. Unless you are a billy goat or a Runequest troll, in which case, the packaging counts as nourishment...

Uncle Ted

[.45cultist]

I put the content weight. Initially I thought of luxuries, but might expand the list. Refugees and salvage teams might like a quick list of actual items even if it's, generic condensed soup, or one serving beans and franks(.425kg and .22kg)

[pmulcahy11b]

I always thought of domestic food as something similar to what you might get at a field kitchen -- a sandwich or hot dog, A and B rations, a carton of milk or a can of soda, green eggs and ham, etc -- something like that.

[swaghauler]

Are these weights of the contents or of the packaged item

- You want the packaged item weight as your character has to carry it.
- you want the contents weight, as that is the part that nourishes your character. Unless you are a billy goat or a Runequest troll, in which case, the packaging counts as nourishment...

Uncle Ted

Always include the packaging weight. It is important for the longevity of the food and that weight reduces what your players can carry for weapons and ammo. Clandestine game balance at work.

[.45cultist]

I always thought of domestic food as something similar to what you might get at a field kitchen -- a sandwich or hot dog, A and B rations, a carton of milk or a can of soda, green eggs and ham, etc -- something like that.

But when doing salvage, most will be COTS items. This will be the case in "Armies of the Night" redux. In trading, like "The Free City of Krakow" it would be a mix, drawing rations from a depot would yield the above. It's mainly filler details, but I like that this has generated discussion, always useful stuff.

[Ancestor]

See, this is one of the most interesting yet least understood aspects of T2K. Sure, you have the MRE's but what of the human comforts of June 2000 Poland. Is it rotgut potato vodka or 1.5 bottle of Johnny Walker Red Is it homebrewed crap or the latest incarnation of Warsteiner My oldest son insisted that his PC rolled for a mountain bike, even though he rolled a "26" for a bicycle ( I made him spend 1000 xp for said bike, even though that could have bought him a generator with diesel). As much as we dispute the greater aspects of 20th/21st century Western War, the root of the game is surviving what happens after that, and that's why we love it!

[.45cultist]

See, this is one of the most interesting yet least understood aspects of T2K. Sure, you have the MRE's but what of the human comforts of June 2000 Poland. Is it rotgut potato vodka or 1.5 bottle of Johnny Walker Red Is it homebrewed crap or the latest incarnation of Warsteiner My oldest son insisted that his PC rolled for a mountain bike, even though he rolled a "26" for a bicycle ( I made him spend 1000 xp for said bike, even though that could have bought him a generator with diesel). As much as we dispute the greater aspects of 20th/21st century Western War, the root of the game is surviving what happens after that, and that's why we love it!

Plus MRE's are not survival rations, they're combat rations. That reminds me to look at the Mtn House weights. At Yokota AB, a case of Bud helped when dealing with the JN's more than correct paper work.

[ArmySGT.]

Plus MRE's are not survival rations, they're combat rations. That reminds me to look at the Mtn House weights. At Yokota AB, a case of Bud helped when dealing with the JN's more than correct paper work.

LOL, I cleared CIF at Taegu, ROK with two cartons of Marlboro Reds......

Missing items, dirt, unserviceable... all together unsat.

Korean Civilian takes one look, no, no, no. Lifts the waterproof bag. Two carton, stops. Hand carries my paperwork to the other end. Korean there stamps it and signs off..... out the door I went.

[pmulcahy11b]

At Ft Bragg, they unsatted my rucksack. My sergeant said, "Don't clean it, don't wash it, just throw it in your locker and forget about." Two days later, I turned it in and it passed.

[WallShadow]

LOL, I cleared CIF at Taegu, ROK with two cartons of Marlboro Reds......

Missing items, dirt, unserviceable... all together unsat.

Korean Civilian takes one look, no, no, no. Lifts the waterproof bag. Two carton, stops. Hand carries my paperwork to the other end. Korean there stamps it and signs off..... out the door I went.

Back in the 70s as my wife tells it, Salems or other menthol cigarettes got you through customs in Egypt pretty easily.
<Customs Agent> Miss, you are only allowed to bring in one carton of cigarettes.
<Wife, in her young innocent college age woman mode> Oh, dear, I _really_ didn't know. I wasn't trying to break the rules. Here: you'll take care of the overage, won't you ("wide-eyed face of a cherub" engaged).
<Agent> Of course, miss. (goes no further with examination of luggage, puts on appropriate tags and stickers). You may go on.

[pmulcahy11b]

[QUOTE=WallShadow;64790]Back in the 70s as my wife tells it, Salems or other menthol cigarettes got you through customs in Egypt pretty easily.
In Korea, if you went to the PX at Camp Casey and got a bottle of Johnnie Walker Black Label, you could get just about anything out of the Koreans -- from a special wash job on your TA-50 that would pass any inspection (including CIF) to deep discounts on brand-name electronics (including having them brought to your hooch so you didn't have to use your ration card). We used to bring a few bottles to the field and got all kinds of stuff on the local economy.

The locals could resell them for a fortune. I brought two bottles to a certain shop downrange and got a complete set of TA-50 plus other kit, and from that point on, I just put the stuff CIF issued me in a duffel bag and never used it.

[StainlessSteelCynic]

You know, it would probably be worthwhile compiling a list of typical packaged food weights from the various countries involved.
I'm thinking of this for the benefits of comparison as much as for the game mechanics so for example, what would be the typical size/weight of a tin of soup from the Canada, Germany, Poland, the UK, the USA, the USSR/Russia
If they're exactly the same then great but if there is any difference in sizes, we can use that as another (no pun intended) flavour element for the game.

But I'm also thinking of the extra details like this, as far as I am aware, while you can buy cartons of beer in cans in Poland, in Germany they typically sell it in bottle in crates of 20.
The only problem I can see for this idea is whether the sizes/weights have remained constant from the 1990s to now or if there were different "typically" sizes/weights.



And for what it's worth, according to a friend who spent some time in Poland teaching English, the tobacco in Polish brand cigarettes (like many other Eastern European brands apparently) is rough at best and downright harsh at worst!

[Ancestor]

Gents these stories are awesome! Please keep them coming as details like these are what separates an average game from an unforgettable game!

[ArmySGT.]

Back in the 70s as my wife tells it, Salems or other menthol cigarettes got you through customs in Egypt pretty easily.

In Korea, if you went to the PX at Camp Casey and got a bottle of Johnnie Walker Black Label, you could get just about anything out of the Koreans -- from a special wash job on your TA-50 that would pass any inspection (including CIF) to deep discounts on brand-name electronics (including having them brought to your hooch so you didn't have to use your ration card). We used to bring a few bottles to the field and got all kinds of stuff on the local economy.

The locals could resell them for a fortune. I brought two bottles to a certain shop downrange and got a complete set of TA-50 plus other kit, and from that point on, I just put the stuff CIF issued me in a duffel bag and never used it.

I bought a taxi ride from Camp Carrol (Waegwan) to Camp Henry (Taegu) with the magnum bottle of Jack Daniels. I missed the train getting some round eye and had to get back before curfew.... $300.00 taxi ride for less than twenty.