How long does it take to build a ship?

[MonkeyX]

Title says it all. Is there a formula to determine how long it takes eg tons x weeks? My player are having the ships Tech Worlds requires built for them and I wondered how long it would take.

[dsmith14469]

i believe it is one day per 1Mcr.

[phavoc]

HG v2 (p9)

CONSTRUCTION TIMES
Construction times vary wildly, depending on the size and complexity of the spacecraft and the capabilities of the shipyard.

On average, assume that it takes one day per million credits to build a spacecraft at an average commercial shipyard. At the referee's discretion very large ships can be built in a modular fashion allowing simultaneous construction. This will mean the total construction time can be reduced by up to 90%. This is typically done only on ships exceeding 50,000 tons.

[AnotherDilbert]

It is possible to speed up construction in several ways:

If an amount of yard space equal to twice the ship’s tonnage is allocated to the vessel’s construction then construction occurs in 75% of the time.
Paying extra for additional material and workers can speed up the construction. For every additional 10% of the cost paid per week, decrease construction time by 10%.
As shown on the construction time table in Book 2: High Guard, any ship constructed after the first of the class has a reduced construction time.

It is possible to build a ship at a maximum of twice the speed given in Book 2: High Guard.

[Condottiere]

Components can be built concurrently, or as used to be the case with the alphabet drives, off the shelf.

Bridges are practically standardized, the difference in cost is probably wiring up the rest of the hull.

[Old School]

More common hull designs are likely partially built on spec, just waiting to be customized for the buyer. Something as simple as your standard far trader is probably on the lot ready to go today, and with 3.98% 40-year financing (for qualified buyers) to boot!

[MonkeyX]

Thanks. I look at High Guard almost every game session and I never noticed this. Thanks.

[Linwood]

More common hull designs are likely partially built on spec, just waiting to be customized for the buyer. Something as simple as your standard far trader is probably on the lot ready to go today, and with 3.98% 40-year financing (for qualified buyers) to boot!

That's more or less how the current RV industry works. Buy standard chassis from an OEM and add on the features that your company - or your customer - wants.

Is it me or is it now a lot faster to build a ship?? I'm remembering weeks/months of build time (4 weeks for the plans alone) under older rule sets.

[Old School]

Yeah, realistically the plans and build time for a truly custom ship, if today is any guide (and maybe it isn’t) would be much longer. Large yachts are typically 2+ years for something $25 million or more. But we’re playing a game, and 2 years game time to get your ship wouldn’t be any fun.

[phavoc]

That's a good point old school - luxury yachts aren't assembly line turnouts, each one is basically a work of art. Very few appear to be built on spec.

Maybe some sort of modifier for luxury gear vs. Something assembly lined like a warship or freighter. Freighters should be the easiest and quickest to build, followed by warships and then luxury yachts.

While the type Y is listed as a yacht, it's kind of small compared to some of the bigger yachts the ultra-rich buy.

Prolly best left to referee I guess.

[PsiTraveller]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SS_Robert_E._Peary

Liberty ship cookie cutter assembly. Ship built in 4 days.

I have no clue as to how many times you would have to roll on the quirks table.

Average length of time for construction of Liberty ships was 50 days.

[Old School]

Assembled out of preconstructed pieces in four days as a stunt. Not exactly relevant to a custom design.

Phavoc - no one builds big yachts on spec because there is a large supply of gently used ones. Anyone willing to forgo the ego boost of having a ship built can save a large fortune by buying a ahip that is a couple of years old.

Again, within a fairly reasonable selection of standard designs, I think a brand new ship can be obtained rather quickly. Somewhere there were rules for what kond of hulls would be in stock at a given shipyard. Don’t wuote me on it, but it sounds like something Gurps would have done.

Your own custom 2,000 ton huscarle cruiser? That’s gonna take a while.

[Condottiere]

Would think that engineering would be off the shelf for yachts, customization more to do with aesthetics, accommodations and facilities.

[Reynard]

I would assume ships designated as getting a discount that construction materials are common enough to fabricate quickly compared to scratch built new designs.

[Old School]

Would think that engineering would be off the shelf for yachts, customization more to do with aesthetics, accommodations and facilities.

That’s true of smaller boats (but still big enough to be a yacht to the average person). But at 50m, no. People who spend that kind of miney are paying for the cache of a one of a kind, fully custom craft. Practicality is not part of the equation.

[Linwood]

Given how construction techniques would likely advance at higher TLs I’m fine with how the MGT2 construction timing works for standard designs. But something nonstandard probably should take longer.

To me, how much longer would depend on the degree of customization. Adding features that are pretty standard on other vessels - an upgraded sensor suite for example - could handled fine under the MGT2 rules as is. Or maybe take the standard time based on price for the feature and double it?

But truly unique features - say, adding a 50-dton working copy of an ancient Roman bath - should take considerably more time.

[Condottiere]

Especially if they have to quarry actual marble, rather than have three dee printing.

In terms of luxury, part of the expense and enjoyment of them is that the materials are difficult to obtain and painstaking to assemble.

[Old School]

I’d be happy with a standard far trader, even if it one one of last year’s models on the lot at a slight discount.

[Linwood]

Low hours? Only one owner? Only docked at Class A starports?

[Condottiere]

If the owner retired at seventy, and had enough shares to practically pay it off.