This idea was helped by discussion with some members on here over a year ago, but now its functional enough to show.
The concept is simple enough: one inch ruler segments that snap together, with differing degrees of 'turn' in each joint depending on the ruler level. This was designed for my naval miniatures Kickstarter project, Clockwork Armada, the idea being that more nimble ships could access the higher Course levels, while larger capital ships were stuck with ponderous level 1 or 2 turns.
Believe it or not, this simple concept has been through about twelve revisions over the past few years, but I'm excited about it. I was never happy with any 'move turn move' mechanics in a game, especially if fire arcs were involved. This method makes early positioning much more important, I wanted a game where a more agile ship could actually hold its own against a ponderous vessel loaded with weapons by darting into one of its blind spots.
The benefit over a standard semi circle template is that it doesn't put you 'on rails'; it allows for some finesse in where you want your ship to go. It is going through one more revision, both to comply with the specifics of the plastic injection molding process in preparation for full production, and to make it fit tighter together. The current resin prototype pieces are still a bit too loose and finicky to be intuitive.
This was designed for ship games, but I imagine it could have other applications. Just wanted to show my work.
I'm trying to visualize your description. Can your pieces move? I liked the idea of being able to bend into just the position I wanted, in a game where facing is very important.