Battery powered Starship weapons?

[Arkathan]

It occurs to me whether you can turn a skinny dispersed configuration, into a slim streamlined hull, with adjustable hull.

I seriously doubt that you can turn the International Space Station (dispersed structure) into a J-type 327 Nubian starship (streamlined)

 

[Condottiere]

Large sections of the hull consist of bands and strips that change the hull’s overall shape, making the ship have the same outline as any other ship of the same tonnage, hull configuration, hull options and external systems, including mimicry of attached modules, although these are non-functional.

 

[Vormaerin]

Yeah, so you can turn a ship with a dispersed hull into a different ship with a dispersed hull (same hull configuration). That's already stretching the bounds of believability given how divergent dispersed hulls can be.

But the original comment was about shifting a ship from dispersed to streamlined, which the rule clearly prohibits because they are not the same hull configuration.

 

[phavoc]

I would say that theoretically you should indeed be able to have capacitors that can power the weapon. The tech already exists in Traveller (and has since classic) for powerful batteries. Specific EP for a weapon can be provided from any source. And capacitors have been used for a long time. Today we have cars and planes and helicopters that are capable of flying via battery power. And lets not forget laser rifles and other weapons already use batteries and are within the rules.

The question is going to be what kind of displacement is required for power for such a large weapon? Is .25 Dtons for a capacitor to power the barbette reasonable? Should it be .5 Dtons? Or would you want to say you can store XX EP in .1Dton of a capacitor that is capable of power a weapon? I haven't tried to figure those out, but I see it as completely reasonable and entirely possible.

 

[Condottiere]

Probably would be like jump drives.

However, it may also effect cost of the weapon system, if you have to account for capacitors.

Though you could have a variety of capacitors, certified for different loads.

 

[Arkathan]

The question is going to be what kind of displacement is required for power for such a large weapon? Is .25 Dtons for a capacitor to power the barbette reasonable? Should it be .5 Dtons? Or would you want to say you can store XX EP in .1Dton of a capacitor that is capable of power a weapon? I haven't tried to figure those out, but I see it as completely reasonable and entirely possible.

At TL 12, a .25 ton High Efficiency Battery will provide a PA Barbette with enough power for a single shot at 50,000 Cr per rechargeable shot.
From TL 10-11, you will need .375 tons of HEB to power that same single shot at 37,500CR per rechargeable shot.
For a Fusion Barbette, you need 1/3 of a ton of TL12 HEB. The barbette is TL 12, so there is no reason to use a TL 10 battery there. (But it would need .5 Dton)

 

[Sigtrygg]

Very nice.

 

[Arkathan]

But Bruce is a liner so no one expects her to take much cargo (if at all).

Remember that a ticket for a passenger includes cargo space for them.
1 ton for 10 middle passengers and 1 ton for each High Passenger.