Excel Ship Designer v2025.05.09

Geir said:
Okay, here's a totally-not-official-maybe-I can-sneak-it-in-a-future-JTAS-run sort of deal I pulled from, um, an orifice, in a side conversation:

In addition to the Haptics option:
  • Dedicate 5 bandwidth of robot processing power to the "Ship's Computer Emulator" TL12, Cr100000, requires Very Advanced Brain.
  • Add big giant fibre high-bandwidth cable of choice (Cr100 at the hardware store per metre - but you should need more than 2-3 metres, just don't make the robot have locomotion - ignore unless you're retrofitting or you really want to have a robot dragging a cable around on your ship)
  • Run the following program on you ships computer: "Robot Input Interface" TL12, Cr100000, Bandwidth 5.

Sit back and make drinks (or have the robot do it).
Click to expand...
Not the BBS option! LOL! That's hilarious, and it works.

You could slip it into the Vehicle Handbook 2025 Update. It might be useful there too, though to a lesser degree.
 
Geir said:
Okay, here's a totally-not-official-maybe-I can-sneak-it-in-a-future-JTAS-run sort of deal I pulled from, um, an orifice, in a side conversation:

In addition to the Haptics option:
  • Dedicate 5 bandwidth of robot processing power to the "Ship's Computer Emulator" TL12, Cr100000, requires Very Advanced Brain.
  • Add big giant fibre high-bandwidth cable of choice (Cr100 at the hardware store per metre - but you should need more than 2-3 metres, just don't make the robot have locomotion - ignore unless you're retrofitting or you really want to have a robot dragging a cable around on your ship)
  • Run the following program on you ships computer: "Robot Input Interface" TL12, Cr100000, Bandwidth 5.
The point of it (which I needed to include in an edit (see below?) is that it will let the robot use the ship's computer to run all the ship's programs. They run on ShipOS12 and the robot runs on Postitronic7.

Sit back and make drinks (or have the robot do it).
Click to expand...
1730942813888.png
 
Hey I wanted to thank the author for creating this! It is great!

I did notice an error - the reaction drive tech level is not changing with increased rating - staying stuck at 7.
 
tytalan said:
Traders and gunboats add a bunch of new weapons and bays.

(except Zhodani military ship have a Counselor)
Click to expand...
Those weapons are already implemented in the currently available version.

The crew tab has a miscellaneous slot that you can fill in the title for.

Terry Mixon made a fabricator section for the next update. You will need a lab, studio or workshop to install them, otherwise it throws an error.

Oh, there is also a construction deck for thing that won't fit in a fabricator
 
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Arkathan said:
Those weapons are already implemented in the currently available version.

The crew tab has a miscellaneous slot that you can fill in the title for.

Terry Mixon made a fabricator section for the next update. You will need a lab, studio or workshop to install them, otherwise it throws an error.

Oh, there is also a construction deck for thing that won't fit in a fabricator
Click to expand...
Also, Construction Decks have one very important advantage over Fabricators: They can build items of their own TL, or even higher as prototypes or early prototypes. What is unclear is the rate of construction; I suppose 1 MCr-worth-per-day.
 
So, let me toss this in here as a feedback hand grenade. It's a construction cost timing algorithm that even though it says vehicles. The basic version doesn't refer Spaces or anything but Credits (and yes, it seems fast, but read to the end - it's production line speed not custom or bay/deck build speed):

A simple rule of thumb can determine the time to construct a vehicle, without constraints to materials, manufacturing equipment, or labour. Without these constraints, a basic rule for construction in a mass production setting is based on the Cost of the vehicle and factors of ten:

  • For vehicles costing less than Cr100000 assume one day per Cr10000 or fraction.
  • For vehicles costing between Cr100000 and MCr1 assume 10 days plus 1 day per Cr100000 or fraction.
  • For vehicles costing between MCr1 and MCr10 assume 20 days plus 1 day per MCr1 or fraction
  • For vehicles costing between MCr10 and MCr100, assume 30 days plus 1 day per MCr10 or fraction
  • For vehicles costing between MCr100 and MCr1000 assume 40 days plus 1 day per MCr100 or fraction
  • For vehicles costing above MCr1000 assume 40 days plus 10 days per MCr1000
  • At TL12 and above subtract 10% from the total duration for each TL above 11.
  • At TL 21+ all vehicles require at most one day

This rule assumes mass production and production lines dedicated to vehicle construction. Building a one-off vehicle or the first vehicle of a new design will require 2D times the indicated duration. This is enough detail for most situations, but if concerned with local capacity, the standard rules below also apply.

Production Lines​

Each factory line costs at least 100 times the Cost of a vehicle, sometimes considerably more, and requires a structure with 100 times the Spaces of the finished vehicle. Multiple vehicles can be built simultaneously at multiple mass production factory lines. Retooling a production line to produce a different vehicle of the same Space size Costs D3×10% of its original line Cost and modifying a line to produce a vehicle of a different Space size requires additions or subtractions to the line (at 100x the Cost of any additional vehicle Spaces) and double retooling cost for the existing line.

Standard Rules​

These rules build on the basic rules but provide guidance for the input of manufacturing capacity as a constraint.

Shipyard Bay​

For very expensive vehicles and smaller production runs, a shipyard bay is a cheaper alternative. A shipyard bay costs Cr200000 per Space of the vehicle it will construct. Build durations are 100% longer in a shipyard bay than in a production line. The shipyard bay consumes twice as many Spaces as the completed vehicle.

Fabricators​

The introduction of fabricators changes these equations greatly. See the Fabricators section below to determine the amount of fabricator capacity necessary to build a vehicle. For fabricator chamber construction, if the fabricator capacity is too small to build the entire vehicle internally, it will still require assembly, at a rate of one hour per unit, or a number of hours equal to one divided by the fractional size of each segment. For instance, if the fabricator chamber was 25%, or one quarter, the size of the finished vehicle, it would require 1 ÷ 0.25 = 4 additional hours to complete assembly of the fabricated parts. If final assembly is completed inside a facility, the facility requires a shipyard bay large enough to hold the completed vehicle.

More effective is an external fabricator, which requires twice the time to complete work on a Space but can move around the vehicle. This still requires a location with twice the Space size as the vehicle. It can be a simple structure enclosure or even an outside pad for Basic fabricator work, but this doubles the time requirement again. It requires a Clean Room (see page XX) assembly area to avoid doubling the construction time or for any Improved or more complicated fabricator work.
 
For a spacecraft, it's more likely system integration, since in most cases, you could assume the components were prefabricated.

Unless you plan to build a Yamato.
 
Geir said:
So, let me toss this in here as a feedback hand grenade. It's a construction cost timing algorithm that even though it says vehicles. The basic version doesn't refer Spaces or anything but Credits (and yes, it seems fast, but read to the end - it's production line speed not custom or bay/deck build speed):

A simple rule of thumb can determine the time to construct a vehicle, without constraints to materials, manufacturing equipment, or labour. Without these constraints, a basic rule for construction in a mass production setting is based on the Cost of the vehicle and factors of ten:

  • For vehicles costing less than Cr100000 assume one day per Cr10000 or fraction.
  • For vehicles costing between Cr100000 and MCr1 assume 10 days plus 1 day per Cr100000 or fraction.
  • For vehicles costing between MCr1 and MCr10 assume 20 days plus 1 day per MCr1 or fraction
  • For vehicles costing between MCr10 and MCr100, assume 30 days plus 1 day per MCr10 or fraction
  • For vehicles costing between MCr100 and MCr1000 assume 40 days plus 1 day per MCr100 or fraction
  • For vehicles costing above MCr1000 assume 40 days plus 10 days per MCr1000
  • At TL12 and above subtract 10% from the total duration for each TL above 11.
  • At TL 21+ all vehicles require at most one day

This rule assumes mass production and production lines dedicated to vehicle construction. Building a one-off vehicle or the first vehicle of a new design will require 2D times the indicated duration. This is enough detail for most situations, but if concerned with local capacity, the standard rules below also apply.

Production Lines​

Each factory line costs at least 100 times the Cost of a vehicle, sometimes considerably more, and requires a structure with 100 times the Spaces of the finished vehicle. Multiple vehicles can be built simultaneously at multiple mass production factory lines. Retooling a production line to produce a different vehicle of the same Space size Costs D3×10% of its original line Cost and modifying a line to produce a vehicle of a different Space size requires additions or subtractions to the line (at 100x the Cost of any additional vehicle Spaces) and double retooling cost for the existing line.

Standard Rules​

These rules build on the basic rules but provide guidance for the input of manufacturing capacity as a constraint.

Shipyard Bay​

For very expensive vehicles and smaller production runs, a shipyard bay is a cheaper alternative. A shipyard bay costs Cr200000 per Space of the vehicle it will construct. Build durations are 100% longer in a shipyard bay than in a production line. The shipyard bay consumes twice as many Spaces as the completed vehicle.

Fabricators​

The introduction of fabricators changes these equations greatly. See the Fabricators section below to determine the amount of fabricator capacity necessary to build a vehicle. For fabricator chamber construction, if the fabricator capacity is too small to build the entire vehicle internally, it will still require assembly, at a rate of one hour per unit, or a number of hours equal to one divided by the fractional size of each segment. For instance, if the fabricator chamber was 25%, or one quarter, the size of the finished vehicle, it would require 1 ÷ 0.25 = 4 additional hours to complete assembly of the fabricated parts. If final assembly is completed inside a facility, the facility requires a shipyard bay large enough to hold the completed vehicle.

More effective is an external fabricator, which requires twice the time to complete work on a Space but can move around the vehicle. This still requires a location with twice the Space size as the vehicle. It can be a simple structure enclosure or even an outside pad for Basic fabricator work, but this doubles the time requirement again. It requires a Clean Room (see page XX) assembly area to avoid doubling the construction time or for any Improved or more complicated fabricator work.
Click to expand...
Okay. So, we know the cost, power usage, size, and crew requirements for Manufacturing Plants and Fabricators. Where are the details on these other things?
 
MasterGwydion said:
Okay. So, we know the cost, power usage, size, and crew requirements for Manufacturing Plants and Fabricators. Where are the details on these other things?
Click to expand...
Construction Deck/Building bays and Production line costs and sizes are in there...
 
Condottiere said:
For a spacecraft, it's more likely system integration, since in most cases, you could assume the components were prefabricated.

Unless you plan to build a Yamato.
Click to expand...
Yeah I don't even think Liberty ships were built on a production line, though they got spit out of the yards quickly. A battleship production line would be a thing to see...
 
Geir said:
Yeah I don't even think Liberty ships were built on a production line, though they got spit out of the yards quickly. A battleship production line would be a thing to see...
Click to expand...
Wikipedia says they were assembled in an assembly line fashion from pre-fab sections. But each was assembled in its own slip until enough hull was present to allow it to float, then the rest of the construction occurred at a mooring.
 
Geir said:
So, let me toss this in here as a feedback hand grenade. It's a construction cost timing algorithm that even though it says vehicles. The basic version doesn't refer Spaces or anything but Credits (and yes, it seems fast, but read to the end - it's production line speed not custom or bay/deck build speed):

A simple rule of thumb can determine the time to construct a vehicle, without constraints to materials, manufacturing equipment, or labour. Without these constraints, a basic rule for construction in a mass production setting is based on the Cost of the vehicle and factors of ten:

  • For vehicles costing less than Cr100000 assume one day per Cr10000 or fraction.
  • For vehicles costing between Cr100000 and MCr1 assume 10 days plus 1 day per Cr100000 or fraction.
  • For vehicles costing between MCr1 and MCr10 assume 20 days plus 1 day per MCr1 or fraction
  • For vehicles costing between MCr10 and MCr100, assume 30 days plus 1 day per MCr10 or fraction
  • For vehicles costing between MCr100 and MCr1000 assume 40 days plus 1 day per MCr100 or fraction
  • For vehicles costing above MCr1000 assume 40 days plus 10 days per MCr1000
  • At TL12 and above subtract 10% from the total duration for each TL above 11.
  • At TL 21+ all vehicles require at most one day

This rule assumes mass production and production lines dedicated to vehicle construction. Building a one-off vehicle or the first vehicle of a new design will require 2D times the indicated duration. This is enough detail for most situations, but if concerned with local capacity, the standard rules below also apply.

Production Lines​

Each factory line costs at least 100 times the Cost of a vehicle, sometimes considerably more, and requires a structure with 100 times the Spaces of the finished vehicle. Multiple vehicles can be built simultaneously at multiple mass production factory lines. Retooling a production line to produce a different vehicle of the same Space size Costs D3×10% of its original line Cost and modifying a line to produce a vehicle of a different Space size requires additions or subtractions to the line (at 100x the Cost of any additional vehicle Spaces) and double retooling cost for the existing line.

Standard Rules​

These rules build on the basic rules but provide guidance for the input of manufacturing capacity as a constraint.

Shipyard Bay​

For very expensive vehicles and smaller production runs, a shipyard bay is a cheaper alternative. A shipyard bay costs Cr200000 per Space of the vehicle it will construct. Build durations are 100% longer in a shipyard bay than in a production line. The shipyard bay consumes twice as many Spaces as the completed vehicle.

Fabricators​

The introduction of fabricators changes these equations greatly. See the Fabricators section below to determine the amount of fabricator capacity necessary to build a vehicle. For fabricator chamber construction, if the fabricator capacity is too small to build the entire vehicle internally, it will still require assembly, at a rate of one hour per unit, or a number of hours equal to one divided by the fractional size of each segment. For instance, if the fabricator chamber was 25%, or one quarter, the size of the finished vehicle, it would require 1 ÷ 0.25 = 4 additional hours to complete assembly of the fabricated parts. If final assembly is completed inside a facility, the facility requires a shipyard bay large enough to hold the completed vehicle.

More effective is an external fabricator, which requires twice the time to complete work on a Space but can move around the vehicle. This still requires a location with twice the Space size as the vehicle. It can be a simple structure enclosure or even an outside pad for Basic fabricator work, but this doubles the time requirement again. It requires a Clean Room (see page XX) assembly area to avoid doubling the construction time or for any Improved or more complicated fabricator work.
Click to expand...
I'm looking at using these times to figure ship construction times. Would the negative for using a shipyard bay go away for ships or still be a factor since it isn't an assembly line?

With the x2 mod for no assembly line, the ship construction times look like this:

EDIT: Updated with correct Tigress Cost.

1731121354972.png1731121392919.png
 
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Terry Mixon said:
I'm looking at using these times to figure ship construction times. Would the negative for using a shipyard bay go away for ships or still be a factor since it isn't an assembly line?
Click to expand...
My thought would be to apply it to ships as well, part of the long term effort to make a unified building system.

That is the the point on matching time and cost and thinking of that as the universal algorithm for everything from a 10-speed bike to a dreadnaught, but I didn't want to get too carried away... unless you want to build a Tigress assembly line (it would be almost 6 years on a line, 12 in a bay, but take High Guard rules and even cut into 10 pieces, it would take more than 58 years - so I think my way scales nicely)
 
Geir said:
My thought would be to apply it to ships as well, part of the long term effort to make a unified building system.

That is the the point on matching time and cost and thinking of that as the universal algorithm for everything from a 10-speed bike to a dreadnaught, but I didn't want to get too carried away... unless you want to build a Tigress assembly line (it would be almost 6 years on a line, 12 in a bay, but take High Guard rules and even cut into 10 pieces, it would take more than 58 years - so I think my way scales nicely)
Click to expand...
13.17 years in a shipyard that could handle it is better than 58 years. ;) Thanks.
 
Terry Mixon said:
13.17 years in a shipyard that could handle it is better than 58 years. ;) Thanks.
Click to expand...
My math is different from your math... or I didn't explain the TL time gain right. It's supposed to match the one in High Guard, so it's 60% at TL15 which got me:

1731111883137.png
 
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