armor / defence question
- Thread starter Jak Nazryth
- Start date
Jak Nazryth
Mongoose
Fun stuff!
Ok so anyway, what do I tell my players"
No, you cant fire through a ship window, no your puny little slug throwers wont do anything because they're damage is divided by 50 when attacking a ship sized object / component of the hull?
Most every single commercial ship I've seen in Traveller has at least some view ports... and especially the Far Trader! I agree with DFW that most Fighting ships, no need for windows, and if they do have them they are small with armored shutters when going into battle.
DFW pointed out something good though, the type of lasers Traveller uses... not sure how it works in "Game mechanics" although I believe you know what your talking about in "real world" science.
I simply know the kind of damage a laser rifle does in the book. I just want to know if they can fire it out of or into a ship's window.
Ok so anyway, what do I tell my players"
No, you cant fire through a ship window, no your puny little slug throwers wont do anything because they're damage is divided by 50 when attacking a ship sized object / component of the hull?
Most every single commercial ship I've seen in Traveller has at least some view ports... and especially the Far Trader! I agree with DFW that most Fighting ships, no need for windows, and if they do have them they are small with armored shutters when going into battle.
DFW pointed out something good though, the type of lasers Traveller uses... not sure how it works in "Game mechanics" although I believe you know what your talking about in "real world" science.
I simply know the kind of damage a laser rifle does in the book. I just want to know if they can fire it out of or into a ship's window.
Jak Nazryth
Mongoose
I can just invent something like...
The transparsteel matrix allow diffused light to pass through but "artificial" wavelengths like laser fire etc... are reflected or absorbed.... etc....
The damage done to ships view port by a man sized laser is divided by 50, so you might score it, but you'll run through your power pack and never do any real damage.... something like that....
When in doubt, wing it! Look up the rules later. Apologies if you kill your players and buy them a nice pint if your "winging" turns out wrong.
The transparsteel matrix allow diffused light to pass through but "artificial" wavelengths like laser fire etc... are reflected or absorbed.... etc....
The damage done to ships view port by a man sized laser is divided by 50, so you might score it, but you'll run through your power pack and never do any real damage.... something like that....
When in doubt, wing it! Look up the rules later. Apologies if you kill your players and buy them a nice pint if your "winging" turns out wrong.
High energy lasers can (and operationally do) pass through 'glass' - but only by careful design (accounting for thermal stresses leading to compression and sheer stresses,etc... er, barnest2's slag fits) with optimal placement, shape and thickness,etc.
For all practical purposes - 'No way' suffices
For all practical purposes - 'No way' suffices
Reminds me of something from an old manga from the creator of Hellsing called Coyote.
The villian promises not to kill someone, then shoots them in all non-vital organs, orders his flunkies to remove their skin and finger nails and keep them on drugs but in no way, is that character going to be killed.
Sweet dreams :wink:
The villian promises not to kill someone, then shoots them in all non-vital organs, orders his flunkies to remove their skin and finger nails and keep them on drugs but in no way, is that character going to be killed.
Sweet dreams :wink:
Jak Nazryth said:
It's even easier than that - ship windows must be shielded against a wide variety of non-visible radiation wavelengths to keep the passengers from being cooked by the local system primary. Weaponized lasers are not going to be visible spectrum, there's just not enough energy there.
So you could flash a laser pointer out the window, but if you tried to use a weapon, the energy would be absorbed (possibly causing damage if enough is absorbed).
Are you giving them the ship to start with?
If there's an existing ship that they're trying to fit some 'precautions' to, then there won't be much you can do about adding armour.
Reflec is zero volume, and laser/sand point defences go into an empty turret slot, but adding effective armour plate, reinforced hull or armoured bulkheads if the hull hasn't been designed around it is probably not possible.
If there's an existing ship that they're trying to fit some 'precautions' to, then there won't be much you can do about adding armour.
Reflec is zero volume, and laser/sand point defences go into an empty turret slot, but adding effective armour plate, reinforced hull or armoured bulkheads if the hull hasn't been designed around it is probably not possible.
My own ships when designed only have "windows" in the bridge, for piloting and astrogation reasons, and at the seperate computer/sensors room area for similar calculations.
Even then, in those areas there are red-bulbs like a darkroom for reasons I forgot (someone remind me - I read it on Atomic Rockets).
Also, some say there should be cameras outside the ship that feed the details into terminals that show whats outside, making windows obsolete. I like the idea, as a camera is a smaller target than a large viewport, but I worry about EMPs and all sorts of maintenance and tech issues that would bust the camera leaving a ship blind in static.
Comments?
Even then, in those areas there are red-bulbs like a darkroom for reasons I forgot (someone remind me - I read it on Atomic Rockets).
Also, some say there should be cameras outside the ship that feed the details into terminals that show whats outside, making windows obsolete. I like the idea, as a camera is a smaller target than a large viewport, but I worry about EMPs and all sorts of maintenance and tech issues that would bust the camera leaving a ship blind in static.
Comments?
zero said:
GURPS covers the pop-up turret sensors well. As far as EMP, beyond trivial to protect against IRL for these. If you took so much damage that your mutiple visual, armoured sensors were taken out, your larger windows would have long ceased to exist and you would have more than enough holes in your hull "to look out of". :lol:
