Al Morai J4 Long Haul Trader (and random HG ship build poll)

[far-trader]

In another thread DFW mused...

Has anyone ever designed a J4+ freighter?

I would have answered there and sooner but didn't see a good reason or have the time then.

In short, the answer is yes, of course.

My first recollection at the time was the Al Morai World class Merchants from the CT Spinward Marches Campaign. I'm sure there are more of course through the years.

But then I wondered, did he mean in MgT? Has anyone done a MgT one yet? That I'm not sure of, but I'd be surprised if not. And maybe a little disappointed.

In any case this thread can help fill that role. I'll kick it off with my MgT adapted version of that Al Morai World class Merchant. Join in here if you like, or start your own thread for similar ships

...first though, a caveat:

I haven't run the numbers to see how it works financially, and don‘t intend to try. In my opinion that was never an issue with any ships higher than J1 in CT because they operated under different principles. Would this design make it on CT rates? I doubt it. Will it make it on MgT rates? Possibly. More to the point though it operates with cargo factors at each port. It’s “freight” will mostly be company speculative cargo. It will also be able to easily make 35 (full or nearly so) trips a year unlike a Free-Trader that has to spend a week in each port doing business to try to fill the ship. This ship only needs 3 days in system. 1 day to approach and unload. 1 day for crew leave rotations. 1 day to load and depart. In the rare instances where jump takes 8 days instead of 7 shore leave is canceled to stay on schedule, and will be made up for with the equally rare times when jump takes just 6 days instead of 7.

Some background and design notes from my original fixing. The ship is described as 3000tons, unstreamlined, with J4 and M1. It has 1200tons of cargo and 30 staterooms for passengers. It carries three 40ton shuttles for ground interface. If I recall correctly Al Morai maintains the equivalent of Class B starports in a couple systems with Class C starports to provide refined fuel so no onboard fuel processors (that was one of the big reasons I went with a CT Book 2 build over a Book 5 build). Not surprisingly the build didn't want to add up (do they ever?). I don't recall it working in Book 5 either. But I got close (in both). For the CT B2 version (my fav) I only had to fudge the staterooms to 30 total (15 crew and 15 passengers) and it could technically carry 30 passengers in double occupancy.

Now, on to the MgT translation of my old CT B2 version...

This is my first MgT HG build (not counting slapping a few HG items on Core stuff). Please tear it to pieces (with kindness ) and let me know if there are any screw-ups beyond my own stated fudges and compromises. I’m still feeling out the rules. Questions and comments welcome as well.

Some design notes to begin with:

MgT Core only doing 2000ton hulls is annoying in this case as I wanted to make it a standard core design. Being a distributed hull and bulk transport I decided to break it into parts to do it. A 2000ton main hull and a 1000ton cargo hull. And when that didn’t work I was forced to look at High Guard. I was a little surprised that CT Book 2 beat MgT Core hands down on this design, on both volume and cost. I was more surprised though at just how hard I had to beat MgT High Guard to come close to a simple CT Book 2 design. But I got there (or near enough).

First bit of hammering I had to do, after a quick basic build left me well over tonnage, was on the jump drives. Fortunately this ship is easily a TL15 build so I can live with that.

• 
  
  Sidebar: Quick question. Pretty sure I’ve got this right but, when calculating the cost of an advanced drive component (HG pg 53), do you first calculate the size AND cost for the standard component, then adjust the size AND cost by the values in the table? Or do you first calculate the size of the standard component THEN calculate the smaller size THEN calculate the cost based on the smaller size THEN adjust that by the table? For example:
  
  Jump Drive 4 for the 3000ton ship is normally 150tons and MCr300.
  Building it at TL15 and using the advanced tech advantage (+2) is 90% tonnage and 125% cost.
  So is the “better” Jump Drive:
  
  A: 135tons (150tons x 0.9) and MCr375 (MCr350 x 1.25)
  B: 135tons (150tons x 0.9) and Mcr337.5 (135tons x MCr2 x 1.25)
  

I’ve dropped the left over tonnage into the Engineering section to make each section equal in tonnage, because it worked out kind of nice that way. Make of it what you will, anything but a fuel processor. Maybe some repair drones, emergency power, escape pods for the Engineers, and/or a solar panel. Or just what it is, wasted space (odd corners and such, perfect for a still or a bit of small parcel trade maybe… ).

I originally had a Core bridge and figured it would be a problem getting in at 3000tons even with a compact version. Then I found the Command/Bridge idea. Wow, that is a huge saver in tonnage and really in cost. Is that right? Ah, no it is not. Errata Alert: Checking the example build, the text (HG pg 65) is a typo. It is not “MCr .1” (note the decimal) but “MCr 1” (no decimal). Still a big space saver!

I went with advanced electronics to better match the CT feel I had going for it. Not sure the weapons will be as effective in HG combat as they were in CT but it’s not a combat vessel. And they do have escorts when needed.

I added 3tons of Luxuries (as much as I loathe the idea ;-) ) to make up the required Steward levels. The ship could operate with a full 15 middle passengers without any actual Stewards. To allow for potentially 15 high passengers though a Chief Steward (Skill 3) and Steward (Skill 2) are carried. Passengers are typically collected and delivered planetside by the Passenger Shuttles, and their baggage is stored aboard the ship while travelling.

I have also “rebuilt” the Shuttles with MgT HG and they came out pretty darn cool imo. Kept the spirit of the originals quite nicely. I went with simple docking clamps for the flavour as much as the cost and space savings.

The primary cargo is split into two holds. One of 1000tons for major and minor freight, which is taken on and delivered in orbit. The other is 200tons for minor and incidental freight taken on and delivered planetside by the Cargo Shuttle. It takes a full day to unload and deliver, and another day to collect and load 200tons at 25tons per trip. In addition there is a secure mail hold and passenger baggage hold.

I managed to keep the crew the same size and general spirit as the CT version, though slightly different specifics, by using Core rules. The HG rules didn’t look like they make sense for a commercial ship.

Al Morai World class Bulk Transport

+2,880.0tons   Hull - Dispersed                             MCr144.000

 Section 1   -   Engineering

   -15.0tons   Command Module - Engineering                  MCr15.000
  -135.0tons   Jump Drive 4P (Advanced +2)                  MCr375.000
   -30.0tons   Maneuver Drive 1G                             MCr15.000
   -67.5tons   Power Plant 4E (TL15)                        MCr450.000

   -45.0tons   Fuel x2 weeks
-1,200.0tons   Fuel x4 parsecs

    -7.5tons   Unused/Wasted

 Section 2   -   Main

   -15.0tons   Command Module - Bridge                       MCr15.000
                  Computer Core/6 (TL Discount)              MCr42.500
    -3.0tons      Advanced Electronics                        MCr2.000
               Hardpoints x3
    -1.0tons      Single (Sandcaster Option)                  MCr0.200
    -1.0tons         Magazine
    -1.0tons      Triple (Beam Laser Option)                  MCr1.000
    -1.0tons      Triple  Beam Laser Fitted                   MCr4.000

  -120.0tons   Staterooms x30                                MCr15.000
                  Crew x15
                  Pass x15
    -3.0tons   Luxuries x3                                    MCr0.300
    
   -15.0tons   Docking Clamps x3 (40tons each)                MCr3.000
  +120.0tons      Shuttles x3 (see below)                    MCr50.000

-1,000.0tons   Main Cargo Hold (bulk freight)

  -200.0tons   Auxiliary Cargo Hold (small freight)

   -15.0tons   Baggage Hold (high passenger baggage)

    -5.0tons   Secure Hold (mail)

 3,000.0tons   Total                                      MCr1,132.000

• 
  
  Sidebar: Which raises another question. Standard design discount of 10% or not? What does everyone think? I feel not because that is for the modular lowest sourced bidder designs of the Core rules. While HG, especially with the TL tweaks, is more of a customized build each and every time. Comments? And see the poll above if you missed it
  

Crew: Pilots x3, Navigators x1, Engineers x5, Medic x1, Gunner x3, Steward x2 (Skill 3, Skill 2 and 3tons of luxuries).

Note: The Luxuries will permit full middle passage booking without the Stewards. With the Stewards full high passage booking is possible.

Note: Normally only 1 turret is armed and only 1 Gunner is required (as a requirement for the mail contract), staterooms are provided for the other 2 but normally run empty.

Note: The Senior Pilot is also the Ship’s Officer (Captain) and all 3 Pilots also serve as shuttle pilots as needed.

Note: This crew roster permits the ship to operate at average performance.



Al Morai Satellite class Shuttles

More properly Slow Pinnaces these small craft serve as interface to the surface for passengers and small cargoes. As well they serve a secondary role as Life Boats if the ship must be abandoned.

Basic performance is 2G with enhanced aerodynamic performance from delta-wings. The power plant has 3.5tons of fuel in metal hydride tanks for safety, providing for 3.5 weeks of continuous operation. In addition there is an emergency power plant and fixed solar panels on the wings should they be needed. The additional safety of a self-sealing hull shows Al Morai cares.

The cockpit includes seats for 2 crew and holographic controls, a Model/3 computer with backup, and standard electronics. Software includes Maneuver, Library, Intellect, Security, and Pilot allowing anyone to operate the ship by voice command alone in an emergency. A single repair robot is carried for minor damage control.

There are 25tons of customizable space left in this design. Price is MCr16.000 each before the standard design discount of 10% and additional features.

These versions have been customized to two roles; passenger transport for two of them, and cargo transport for the third

The passenger versions have 12 seats each, grouped in 4s with built in Emergency Low Berths. Passengers needs are met by automation (aka "Luxuries" ) and the ship’s Stewards as required. The remaining 15tons is given over to a cargo hold for baggage transfer and a compact 3ton enclosed grav-car for planetside transport. The additional cost is MCr1.0 before the standard design discount of 10% and not including the vehicle.

The cargo version is unchanged and primarily used as a cargo transport for the small freight, capable of transferring 25tons at a time. It may also be utilized as an emergency fuel shuttle scooping 25tons each trip.

Al Morai Satellite class Shuttles

   +40.0tons   Hull - Streamlined                             MCr1.540
                  Self-Sealing                                MCr0.400
    -4.0tons      Aerofins                                    MCr0.400
    -0.2tons         Fixed Solar Panels                       MCr0.020

    -2.0tons   Maneuver sD - Thrust 2G                        MCr3.500
    -2.1tons   Fusion Power Plant sD - Rating 2E              MCr4.500
    -0.2tons      Emergency Power Plant                       MCr0.450

               Metal Hydride Fuel Tank                        MCr0.700
    -3.5tons      Fuel x3.5 weeks

    -3.0tons   Control Cockpit - 2 crew                       MCr0.200
                  Holographic Controls                        MCr0.050
                  Computer Model/3 x2 - Rating 15             MCr3.200
                     Maneuver R0, Library R0, Intellect R10,  MCr1.000
                     Expert R2(Pilot 2), Security R3          MCr0.030
                  Standard Electronics
                  Repair Robot                                MCr0.010

   -25.0tons   Custom Space

    40.0tons   Total                                         MCr16.000

That's it in a nutshell and nearly done. Time to drop it on the forum and let it play for a bit.

I'm tempted and inspired to tackle the deckplan again. And I've already roughed out the Shuttle deckplans.

...might be having to pick a brain (I'm looking at yours Ian 8) ) for tips to make the sketch-up models look cooler.

EDIT: Updated the Shuttle description and added build notes.

EDIT: Corrected Shuttle cost error and updated costs in both build notes.

EDIT: Minor text fixing in post, nothing to designs.

 

[steelbrok]

IIRC Al Morai had 30+ of these so I think the 10% discount for ships after the first seems reasonable

 

[atpollard]

The topic title and survey seem disconnected. I voted on the survey, but to answer the title:

J4+ merchant ships sould be possible but economically impractical - like a Concorde air freight service.

J4 is adequate to keep up with the fleet, so the Navy might have a strategic interest in subsidizing a J4 merchant marine fleet subject to a call to active duty in time of war. In general, however, a ship to transport freight 4 parsecs would do better to make 2 x J2 with a short refueling stop between and pass the savings on to the clients - (Does it really NEED to be there in one week, or will 15 days at half he cost per dTon be soon enough?)

J5 and J6 would require very specific local conditions (like TL 14+) to support and would fill a Supersonic Passenger Transport type of niche market for those willing to pay a lot more money to save a little time.

[Just FYI, using 2 jumps per month and a full cargo hold, I get operating costs for the Al Mora (posted above by FT) right around 4100 credits per dTon of freight ... or 5100 cr per dTon with cargo holds 80% full.]

 

[zero]

I can try to create a J4 ship, now I finished my Darrian ship. I dont know how it'll end up, but I will report in if I manage to make a profitable one

 

[rust]

A merchant ship with a jump-4 range could be interesting for the trade routes
between the core worlds and the sparsely settled frontier regions. The further
the distance from the core to the frontier, the more economically viable such a
service would become, provided there are high value density goods which are
only produced at one end of the trade route and urgently needed at the other
end. At a distance of 16 parsec the jump-4 ship needs about 4 weeks, while a
jump-2 ship needs about 8 weeks, and to get the goods a month earlier can
make a real difference - especially if it means to get them a month earlier than
the competitors get their goods.

Another scenario would be a rim region with a trade route which has to bridge
at least one gap of 4 parsec between the settled worlds. While jumps into emp-
ty space between the systems may be possible, this would mean to make a
stop at a location where no fuel, no emergency services and no repair services
are available. A line might well decide to avoid that risk and instead to charge
a higher price for the long distance service across the gap.

 

[DFW]

The question of whether a J-4 freighter could be economically viable is totally dependent on supply & demand considerations.

Is there demand for products to be moved on enough routes that are 4 parsecs apart? If enough people on a destination world want those iPads, then it'll work, as time = money in business so they won't be sent via multiple hops if the price/ton for J4 is equal to or even slightly higher than that cost.

Example: 1000 iPads to the ton. Shipping 1 Parsec adds 1Cr to enduser price. If J4 costs 4KCr/ton, it only raises the price by Cr3 to the enduser over a J1 route. No big deal and if demand exists no problem to pay the freight.

As for the survey Q: The discount is there because the ship yard & personnel get more efficient at building an exact design. This even applies when building something like a Nimitz class carrier. The production of subsequent identical ships goes faster and less material waste.

 

[far-trader]

The topic title and survey seem disconnected.

Yeah, it was late, the survey was a last minute idea (and a side-topic to be sure), and I couldn't edit it out easily. C'est la vie Thanks for looking deep enough to suss out my confusing signage

EDIT: I changed the title a bit to try to make it more informative to the substance

J4+ merchant ships sould be possible but economically impractical - like a Concorde air freight service.

J4 is adequate to keep up with the fleet, so the Navy might have a strategic interest in subsidizing a J4 merchant marine fleet subject to a call to active duty in time of war.

True enough on both counts, though even J1 can be utilized by the Navy behind the lines to forward supplies and personnel.

In general, however, a ship to transport freight 4 parsecs would do better to make 2 x J2 with a short refueling stop between and pass the savings on to the clients...

Where it can If I recall (for whatever reason) the Al Morai route involves a few J3 and J4 links with no stopping over points in between. Tends to follow the X-Boat route too iirc. I'm not really sure 2 x J2 would be cheaper than 1 x J4. Seems that doubling the time (expense) and supplies (fuel, ls, etc. expense) would add to the cost. Even MgT's freight rates support this. Under that 2 x J2 would charge Cr2400/ton while 1 x J4 charges Cr1600/ton. So it's not really half the cost per dton, it's more expensive by half. And I think that extra week could be important in some cases (on demand production, short shelf life items, etc.)

[Just FYI, using 2 jumps per month and a full cargo hold, I get operating costs for the Al Mora (posted above by FT) right around 4100 credits per dTon of freight ... or 5100 cr per dTon with cargo holds 80% full.]

Thanks for the figuring atpollard!

I'll try to get to a quick comparison for 35 trips a year unless someone beats me to it. It doesn't look like it will pay at freight rates, but then I didn't think it would I'm wondering how tight that is for speculative shipping though...

 

[AndrewW]

Another possibility for J4 routes is a jump carrier. If you have mostly J2 route rather then taking up all that extra fuel/drive space and reducing carrying capacity it might be worthwhile to pay to hook up to another ship with excess J4 capacity and hitch a ride that way.

 

[DFW]

Another possibility for J4 routes is a jump carrier. If you have mostly J2 route rather then taking up all that extra fuel/drive space and reducing carrying capacity it might be worthwhile to pay to hook up to another ship with excess J4 capacity and hitch a ride that way.

That just shifts the cost around. It doesn't reduce it. Squeezing the toothpaste from one side of the tube to the other...

 

[AndrewW]

Another possibility for J4 routes is a jump carrier. If you have mostly J2 route rather then taking up all that extra fuel/drive space and reducing carrying capacity it might be worthwhile to pay to hook up to another ship with excess J4 capacity and hitch a ride that way.

That just shifts the cost around. It doesn't reduce it. Squeezing the toothpaste from one side of the tube to the other...

It allows for more cargo and/or passengers to be carried which could increase revenue.

 

[DFW]

Another possibility for J4 routes is a jump carrier. If you have mostly J2 route rather then taking up all that extra fuel/drive space and reducing carrying capacity it might be worthwhile to pay to hook up to another ship with excess J4 capacity and hitch a ride that way.

That just shifts the cost around. It doesn't reduce it. Squeezing the toothpaste from one side of the tube to the other...

It allows for more cargo and/or passengers to be carried which could increase revenue.

Maybe I misunderstand. Are you talking about putting a whole J2 ship inside a J-4 ship? Or, transferring cargo/passengers to a J4 ship?

 

[AndrewW]

That just shifts the cost around. It doesn't reduce it. Squeezing the toothpaste from one side of the tube to the other...

It allows for more cargo and/or passengers to be carried which could increase revenue.

Maybe I misunderstand. Are you talking about putting a whole J2 ship inside a J-4 ship? Or, transferring cargo/passengers to a J4 ship?

Neither actually. Just using another ship that is J4 capable for transporting an attached ship (ie: docking clamp). Yes there would be a cost for this but this could work out a lot better with the amount of space freed up by not needing J4 capability on the ship, allowing for more cargo and/or passengers to be carried. This would just be used where J4 was needed for those cases where most of the time the ship would not need to make use of J4.

Think of the Imperial Navy's battle rider / battle tender concept, same sort of thing, though of course not completely without a jump drive and the focus being on cargo and/or passenger capability rather then armament.

 

[DFW]

Neither actually. Just using another ship that is J4 capable for transporting an attached ship (ie: docking clamp). Yes there would be a cost for this but this could work out a lot better with the amount of space freed up by not needing J4 capability on the ship, allowing for more cargo and/or passengers to be carried. This would just be used where J4 was needed for those cases where most of the time the ship would not need to make use of J4.

Think of the Imperial Navy's battle rider / battle tender concept, same sort of thing, though of course not completely without a jump drive and the focus being on cargo and/or passenger capability rather then armament.

If you attach a ship to a jump capable ship you reduce the Jump capability (J-n) by the increased tonnage of the attached ship. So, you no longer can do a J-4...

 

[Jeraa]

Unless said ship your are docking with was designed for that purpose, so had larger drives than would be necessary for just itself. It is essentially a battlerider, but with merchant craft. And stationed/only used at those areas where the smaller J2 merchant craft can not cross itself. Its basically a ferry, transporting craft across an otherwise impassible area.

So you design a ship that can, if by itself, peform a Jump 5 or 6. That way, when attached to your merchant ship(s) it functions as a J4. You wouldn't necessarily even need more fuel if the ships are designed right, as the merchant ships that are attaching can just transfer their jump fuel to the tender after they arrive. They would of used that fuel anyway had they jumped by themselves.

Just using the core rulebook (I won't go through the whole process of design, just the needed drives and plant):

A 600 ton ship with size U drives and powerplant (195 tons total) would have a Jump rating of 6. Attaching a 1400 ton merchant ship (with an external docking mount) (or multiple ships with that total 1400 tons combined) brings the total tonnage up to 2000 tons. Jump drive U can manage a J4 with a 2000 ton (total) ship, and requires 800 tons of fuel. That would normally be a problem, as the tender is only 600 tons, but the merchant ship carries 280 tons of fuel for its J2 drives, meaning the smaller 600 ton tender only needs to supply 320 tons of fuel for the jump.

The small 600 ton tender would basically be a flying fuel tank (320 tons) attached to drives (195 tons), because that will only leave 85 tons for the rest of the ships components. But it can be done. Weather or not this is economically worth it depends on how much the merchant ships cargo is worth.

 

[far-trader]

Just gotta say I'm with DFW on this. You won't save anything. It'll cost more if anything since you have to provide the additional larger ship for limited usage and it has to carry a lot of extra redundant material in your smaller ship's hull, fuel, drives, etc.

Sure your smaller ship comes out looking good. "We can serve a route with J4 links but so much more efficiently because we only need a J2 ship!"

But the bean counters are going to look at you funny

Sorta like "Our trucking company now offers trans-oceanic shipping. We just drive our trucks onto a big boat to get there. Look at all the money we save you by only buying trucks!"

And your shipper decides it's much cheaper to just have the ship load his containers dockside and not have to pay to ship your truck and driver as well

I think in the case of a largely J2 route with J4 breaks what will happen is you'll have multiple J2 routes with J4 links. Not J2 ships hitching rides across the J4 breaks.

 

[Jeraa]

As I pointed out before, the actual tender can be smaller then the ship its jumping with. Granted I didn't use High Guard, just what is in the core book, but the theory still stands. You don't need another ship, you basically need detachable jump drives with a fuel tank, which is what the tenders will be.

Any extra cost incurred by the J4 link could be covered by the extra revenue generated by carrying the additional cargo between the J2 worlds, since you (more numerous) merchant ships don't have to mount the bigger jump drives needed. Just by switching from J4 merchant ships to J2, you get an extra 450 tons of additional cargo space (from the smaller drive sizes and less fuel needed), and a cost savings of MCr 132 per ship.

It depends on just how many worlds your serving, and what goods your transporting, and how many of those J4 links you need to cross.

Hmm... just realized I've been using the same rating for both the jump and maneuver drives. Dropping them to 1G maneuver drives, but keeping the 4 or 6 rating jump drives, the space saved doesn't change, but the cost savings is reduced to 108 MCr.

(Assuming the ships carry normal freight, 2 parsecs every time, each ton of freight is worth Cr 1200. That extra 450 tons of space saved therefore generates Cr 540,000 in additional revenue. If you have say. 10 worlds between J4 links, that is an additional 5.4 million credits. Per merchant ship. Which would be more than enough to cover upkeep of your tenders, and help to cover the cost of buying the tenders as well.)

 

[AndrewW]

Yes a ship with higher jump capability would be needed, but you don't have to provide this yourself thus needing two ships with their associated costs.

I'm not talking about doing this for an entire route, just to serve what may amount to just a couple of J4 links with the rest of the route being say J2 links.

The J4+ ship could be someone else providing this service, or some lines with multiple ships may find it feasible to provide their own ship in the needed areas that can server multiple ships plying those routes, and perhaps make a profit on that ship as well being able to provide the service to others that may be in need of it.

 

[Jeraa]

The key to this is size. The bigger the company, and the more worlds served, the better this become. If your just a small time merchant with 1 or 2 ships, its not for you.

 

[rust]

It is essentially a battlerider, but with merchant craft. And stationed/only used at those areas where the smaller J2 merchant craft can not cross itself. Its basically a ferry, transporting craft across an otherwise impassible area.

I have a problem to understand the need to transport the J2 merchant ship
across the J4 gap. It would seem easier to me to use only a J4 ship to cross
the gap and to have a J2 ship waiting at the other end to carry on from there.
This way the J4 ship can transport profitable cargo instead of the mainly eco-
nomically dead volume of a J2 ship, and there would be no need to pay for the
crew, life support and maintenance of the J2 ship while that ship is itself only
a cargo of the J4 ship. As has been mentioned, if you want to transport cargo
over a long distance by plane, you use a truck to deliver the cargo to the pla-
ne and another truck to distribute the cargo once the plane has landed, but
it would be a somewhat bizarre idea to transport the truck on the plane, too.

 

[Jeraa]

Because then you would need 3 separate ships - the first merchant to deliver to the J4 ship, the J4 ship itself, and another merchant to get it to its destination (Assuming that the destination isn't the place the J4 ship arrives.)
Plus, the J4 ship would need to be bigger in this model, as it would need the space inside for the cargo.

If the merchants attached themselves to a tender, you only need 2 ships: the merchant, and the tender. And the J4 tender itself can actually be smaller than the merchant ship, because all it needs is fuel and drives, not cargo space. They don't actually have to be full ships. They could even use the crews of the merchant ships as actual crew for the tenders. So not only does the tender idea require fewer ships, but those ships could mass fewer displacement tons as well.

And using a J4 ship to ferry the cargo also takes longer, as you would need to transfer the cargo from the first merchant to the J4, then from the J4 to the second merchant.So using a J4 ship to move the goods actually means you need more ships, larger ships, more crew, and more time.