Solomani Confederation (Military)

[Condottiere]

Confederation Authorized Volunteer Armed Long Range Yeomanry: Some Issues

Omnis pugnat, quis renuntiare potest.


1. We can use technological level fourteen engines.

2. Default would be manoeuvre drive factor eight, at two fifths of a tonne, eight hundred kilostarbux, and four power points.

3. An efficient variant would be a quarter of a tonne, factor five, and three quarters of a megastarbux.

4. Though, technically, the highly technologized factor five manoeuvre drive is technological level eight, and might actually be two fifths of a tonne, not a quarter.

5. That would change energy input, cost, and volume.

6. On the other hand, it could be a technological level eleven factor five engine, that's been drastically improved, without altering volume.

7. The other option is to budgetize the technological level fourteen, factor eight engine.

8. Price drops to three fifths of a megastarbux.

9. But, you either increase volume to a tonne, or increase energy requirement to five and one fifth power points.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Authorized Volunteer Armed Long Range Yeomanry: Some Issues

Omnis pugnat, quis renuntiare potest.


A. It probably is best to have maximum acceleration potential for a fighter.

B. Quick reaction would mean interception as far out as possible.

C. Also, slower fighters would get caught up in a dogfight, which might in preference be avoided as long as possible.

D. I consider mini modularization of the manoeuvre drive, possibly one eighth of a tonne each.

E. However, maintenance by semi skilled crew might be easier to just pop out the entire engine and replacing it, than trying to synchronize individual sub modules.

F. Also, you wouldn't need to much around with the innards of the manoeuvre drive.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Authorized Volunteer Armed Long Range Yeomanry: Some Issues

Omnis pugnat, quis renuntiare potest.


G. Oops, it's half a tonne factor eight manoeuvre drive, at three fifths megastarbux, and requiring four power points.

H. Five tonne gravitated hull is one power point basic systems, minimum half a power point.

I. Non gravitated hull would be half a power point, minimum quarter of a power point.

J. Default early fusion reactor required would require nine twentieths of a tonne, at nine fortieths of a megastarbux.

K. Budgetized enlarged variant would be 0.5625 tonnes, at 168'750.00 starbux.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Authorized Volunteer Armed Long Range Yeomanry: Some Issues

Omnis pugnat, quis renuntiare potest.


L. Basic sensors become available at technological level eight.

M. Pretty much a freebie.

N. I suppose below basic would be periscopes and radar.

O. Probably not much point in having more advanced sensors.

P. At best, military at two tonnes, requires two power points, and costs four and one tenth megastarbux, which doesn't leave much space for anything else

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Authorized Volunteer Armed Long Range Yeomanry: Some Issues

Omnis pugnat, quis renuntiare potest.


Q. you need technological level eight to have access to manoeuvre/zero programme.

R. Evade/one requires a megastarbux, plus computer/ten, at technological level nine.

S. Fire control/one is two megastarbux, though you could use a computer/five, at technological level nine.

T. I guess piloting a spacecraft below technological level eight is basically seat of your pants.

U. Fixed mount bypasses the need for a gunner, and/or fire control programme.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Authorized Volunteer Armed Long Range Yeomanry: Some Issues

Omnis pugnat, quis renuntiare potest.


V. At this point, you have a one and a half tonne single cockpit, hooked up to a half tonne manoeuvre drive, with basic sensors, and nominally, a virtual factor five computer.

W. Energy source could be from solar power coating, batteries, and/or a power plant.

X. At full gallop, neither the batteries will last long, nor will the solar panelling keep up with power output.

Y. And we don't actually have cruise mode, unless we add a separate, energy efficient manoeuvre drive.

Z. Optionally, afterburners with either the default drive, or the energy efficient one.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Authorized Volunteer Armed Long Range Yeomanry: Some Issues

Omnis pugnat, quis renuntiare potest.


1. A cockpit has twenty four hours of life support, per crew member.

2. This may be considerably less for a non resealable hull, if perforated.

3. Or, life support could be channelled directly to the crewmember, via the vacuum suit.

4. It's likely most missions would be capped at eight hours, with or without diapers.

5. Sixteen hours at extremis, and after that, you're probably looking at a stimulant push.

6. So we're probably looking at three periods, transit, loiter, and combat.

7. Normally, you can only fire one shot every six minutes.

8. A tonne of missiles, since my interpretation of current rules set is that you can't shrink them, the launcher itself is shrunk, is enough for one
hour, twelve minutes.

9. So I would guess, with such a load out, interception would be when the enemy is six hours out, with the confirmation given at the seven hour mark.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Authorized Volunteer Armed Long Range Yeomanry: Some Issues

Omnis pugnat, quis renuntiare potest.


A. So it's basically the pilot, his cockpit, the drive, the reactor, the virtual missile launcher, the virtual computer, the virtual sensors, the fuel tank, and a bunch of missiles.

B. We could shrink the reactor by about half, but that would give you maybe three more missile, and more of a maintenance headache.

C. Now that we have prefusion instead of fission reactors, any space engineer will now be able to run and maintain them, at technological level six, without worrying whether his testicles will get fried.

D. That's probably the only advantage a chemical power plant has, it can be run and maintained by mechanics, instead of needing a bachelors in engineering.

E. Though, the same concept as with the manoeuvre drive can be utilized, you pop out the engine and replace it, if it needs maintenance and/or repair.

F. You can't squeeze out enough juice out of the solar coating to have a viable TIE fighter, though assuming the TIE bomber is much slower, maybe that.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Authorized Volunteer Armed Long Range Yeomanry: Some Issues

Omnis pugnat, quis renuntiare potest.


G. Minimum power consumption at full gallop being four and a quarter power points.

H. Standard fusion reactor technological level twelve, three tenths of a tonne, three tenths of a megastarbux, thirty kilogrammes of fuel for twenty eightish days, maybe one kilogramme fuel tank for about twenty four hours.

I. Early fusion reactor technological level eight, nine twentieths of a tonne, nine fortieths of a megastarbux, forty five kilogrammes of fuel for twenty eightish days, maybe one and a half kilogramme fuel tank for about twenty four hours.

J. Prefusion reactor technological level six, 0.5625 tonnes, nine fortieths of a megastarbux, fifty six and a quarter kilogrammes of fuel for twenty eightish days, maybe one and seven eighth kilogramme fuel tank for about twenty four hours.

K. Chemical power plant technological level seven, nine tenths of a tonne, nine fortieths of a megastarbux, eighteenish tonnes of fuel for twenty eightish days, maybe three fifths of a tonne fuel tank for about twenty four hours.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Authorized Volunteer Armed Long Range Yeomanry: Some Issues

Omnis pugnat, quis renuntiare potest.


L. If you increase the respective power plants by seventy five percent, you can squeeze out another three power points.

M. That's enough for a smallcraft laser, though the downside would be you suddenly need gunnery skill and get really snuggily with the opponent.

N. If you're willing to do a bear hug, at technological level fourteen there's a fusion gun at nine power points, basically an additional two hundred and twelve percent to the power plant.

O. The problem is you're now committed to getting into dogfight range, and without armour, that could become existential.

P. You might just need only batteries, since statistically against a near peer opponent, you're not likely to last that long.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Authorized Volunteer Armed Long Range Yeomanry: Some Issues

Omnis pugnat, quis renuntiare potest.


Q. Another aspect to consider, is that power plants only regenerate their energy pool over a six minute period.

R. To put it simply, you only get to use that energy once every six minutes.

S. If you want to shoot more than once every six minutes, like once every six seconds, you're going to need sixty times more power to draw from, whether batteries, or a six thousand percent larger power plant.

T. The other aspect to consider that pumping that much energy in six minutes through that laser or fusion gun, is likely to melt down that weapon system, and likely the rest of the spacecraft.

U. Not a problem if you ripple off missiles every six seconds.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Authorized Volunteer Armed Long Range Yeomanry: Some Issues

Omnis pugnat, quis renuntiare potest.


V. You could also externalize the armament.

W. Torpedo grapples and missile pods (and contents) have a virtual existence, and take up no space.

X. At this point, you're probably regretting that spacecraft hulls have a minimum volume of five tonnes, and you probably could have a microfighter at two tonnes.

Y. Life is full of regrets and impedimentary rules.

Z. On the other hand, you can now install afterburners, and the necessary fuel tank.