Descriptive details for boarding a vessel during combat

[Blefuscu]

Here is the situation: A Free Trader has lured a Far Trader in close through a false SOS beacon ("Mayday, Mayday..."). The Free Trader is a pirate controlled vessel, attacks the Far Trader and cripples it.

What exactly happens at that point? How does the Free Trader attach itself to the Far Trader? Where? What would be the most logical point of entry?

And, I am assuming that the Far Trader's engine's need to be crippled before any attempt is made to board it. But , maybe not...

I ask this because I am preparing a scenario that will begin in medias res. The PCs will be awakened from Low Berth slumber to find the ship they are on in the process of being boarded.

Thanks all in advance for your responses.

 

[mhensley]

Check out Boarding on page 137.

 

[Blefuscu]

That doesn't describe what exactly happens.

Okay, so a party of attackers crosses over in Vacc Suits and cuts a hole in the hull. Where do they cut in?

The ship pulls up alongside the crippled one and 'attaches' itself to it somehow. How? With what? Is the ship equipped with grapples of some kind? An umbilical? A retractable airlock?

What I am really looking for are details that folks might suggest. Not systems or anything like that.

Looking at the deckplan for a Far Trader, I am trying to figure out, structurally, where an attacking ship's crew would choose to attempt breaching the hull and boarding.

 

[Woas]

How deep into the trap until it is sprung? Based on that the boarding details would follow.

The hijackers send out a false SOS... do they:

-Wait until the ship is under 1 km and jump out of their own ship in Vacc suits or smaller vessels and try to 'grab' the victim from far away? Perhaps very powerful electromagnets, powered off of the ship's fusion power planet to hook and hold the other ship. Then maybe electronic warfare (and/or computer warfare) to jam the victim ship from trying to Jump or maneuver away.

-Keep the act up until both ships are connected by air lock and cut a breach through the front door?
In this case the ships dock with each other however ships down IYTU. I would picture a situation like this sort of like the opening scene of Start Wars Episode 4 where the door to that startship is getting cut open and then storm troopers pile in... but in this case its space pirates.

-Keep the act up even after the ships are connected, invite some of the other crew onto their ship to explain the situation and then ambush them? Again, in this situation the ships would be docked however ships dock IYTU and would be a matter of pulling some guns on unsuspecting good samaritans and holding them hostage.


So I think it all really depends what sort of ambush the hijackers are planning.

Page 137 says that "Many airlock designs across charted space are compatible; for incompatible airlocks, ships extend flexible plastic docking tubes that adapt to the target airlock."

 

[Blefuscu]

Thanks Woas, good stuff. I hadn't noticed that about the different airlocks in the rules (don't have it with me here at the office).

I think that the sudden attack on the good samaritans lured abord the other vessel is the way that I will go with this.

Of course, the PCs are waking up to find all of this already going down, so filling in details about how it went down won't come up until later. Thanks again.

 

[Dave Chase]

One of my favorite was is have a derelict or an abandon ship with a weak SOS beacon repeating.

When the target ship finally attaches the pirates attack. Another ship from in the distance starts moving toward the two ships.

The last time I did this it was near an asteroid field and was an obvious that the ship had been hit by an asteriod and severally damaged. The ship is attached to an other asteroid.

What the players did not realize was that one of the asteriods in the field is a ship.

Just some other ways to lure the unexpecting into a trap where they just can not fire up and out run the pirates.

Dave Chase

 

[Patron Zero]

Something I've added IMTU is that starships, generally commercial vessels rather than military, have a dedicated docking hard point.

Best explained as the fitting is of a design 'common and accepted' by naval architects and ship builders alike, to allow for ship-to-ship or ship-to-starport (orbital) docking of a structural strength rated connection.

Said fitting is also referred to as a 'rescue' port as it's internal-inhull construction and features are more than just a simple airlock or EVA access point's 'generic' design.

The above stated, I see pirates gaining entry by either way of a vessel's cargo doors or other 'softer' venues than a docking port if said action is done by other than covert means.

 

[StephenT]

If the target ship is crippled - by which I assume its drives have been disabled - then there's no need for the pirate ship to physically attach itself. It can just match course and speed; the target isn't going anywhere else.

The other technique would be to point huge weapons at the target and tells its crew to turn off the drives and open their airlocks or they'll be blown out of space.

A specialist pirate ship (or a converted x-boat tender) might have actual grapples for clamping onto a smaller target.

As for physical entry: the pirates are going to be in vacc suits simply because otherwise they'd be vulnerable to the target opening their corridors to vacuum; but I imagine they'd want as short as possible a journey to the other ship. There's no cover in space if the target turns out to have working weapons.

I'd expect normal pirates to come in through the airlocks (including cargo locks), either overriding the locks or using force. Burning a hole in the actual hull of the ship takes much longer and requires more power.

If your ship is being boarded by Imperial Marines, on the other hand, of course they'll come through the hull. Less chance of a nasty surprise waiting for them on the inside of the airlock.

 

[Shane_Mclean]

Lets think about some of the more visceral personal-level details, too...

Do you risk taking the time to properly secure your ship to theirs? Have they got workign guns? Or do you try to jump across? Even if you have a safety line, if you miss you are either a sitting duck or no use to the fight. When you hit and secure yourself an entry point to the target ship you still have to spend the few seconds unclipping from your line - and every second counts.

How do you get in? Override? Best hurry. Stationary targets are a bad idea. And if you are on the outside of an airlock, or nearby it, and the target crew emergency-open the outer airlock doors without depressurising the outblast of air might knock you off the ship. It won't hurt, but if you aren't tethered on you had better hope your guys like you enough to come get you. Gonna get in by blowing the wall or airlock? Don't screw up - your vacc suit is awfully fragile.

As soon as you go in, by any entrance, any movement could be hostile, any shadowed corner could hold a booby trap. If the crew of the target are in defensive positions they know that anything they see they can shoot - you probably have to check your targets first if you have other teams sweeping the ship. Any delay can be fatal.

You are in your vacc suit or combat armour. The helmet, even if its all transparent, robs you of a lot of your feeling of perception. Your own breath, and you will be breathing fast and hard as adrenaline kicks in, will be all you can hear clearly. Every muffled noise will leave you looking for a threat to come. Claustrophobia inside your suit can kick in as a natural amplification of the fight or flight reflex adrenaline brings - especially for the jumpy rookie on your entry team.

If the target is smart they have opened the corridors to vacumn, 'cause all they have to do then is put a hole or three in your vacc suit and you have more important things on your mind than attacking them even if your armour vest stopped the rounds form entering your body.

If you want the ship you have to worry about where your rounds go. Even if you don't want the ship, firing indiscriminately in some parts of the ship can break coolant pipes, reactor seals, and a whole ton of unpleasant things. using lasers to avoid damaging the ship? Better hope the target crew aren't behind big solid objects.

Speed is of the essence, because the longer you give the target crew, the better prepared they are. And their preparation makes you bleed.



Its nasty stuff going room to room, and entering hostile areas.

Hope these are useful.

Regards,

Shane

 

[Patron Zero]

I've had a few players respond to such 'intrusions' in very creative ways, one stays in mind to this very day.

Facing an impending hostile boarding action, the defenders 'armed' themselves with improvised high pressure fire hoses at the likely points of entry. The ship's engineer at ready to blow atmosphere, making the invaders fight their way through a vicious and unexpected blizzard of vented air and hailstones.

Mind it ended up more a delaying tactic than intended counter-measure; said action bought enough time for a lone character to go EVA and place a jury-rigged torpedo warhead to the attacking ship's hull.