Hardened Bridge?

[Jak Nazryth]

Can you harden a bridge anymore in MgT2?
I can't seem to find it anywhere. It seems the only thing I've found so far is that you can harden a computer.
Thanks

 

[Spartan159]

Page 13 under radiation shielding, treats the bridge as if it's hardened.

 

[Jak Nazryth]

I saw that but but there is a slight variation between MgT1 and MgT2 HG.
On page 44 of MgT1 High Guard, a Hardened bridge raises the price by 25% but protects only the bridge. It includes the following line..."The ships computer is also immune to EMP..." along with how many rads are reduced for crew members inside the bridge. Radiation shielding only covers solar flares and radiation weapons, but notably it leaves out "EMP". So does this mean the bridge is not protected from Ion weapons?

And the biggest question. Why the hell do I have to provide radiation shielding over my entire ship just to harder the bridge?
Why did Mongoose drop "Hardened Bridge" as an option?

 

[bluekieran]

High Guard p46, "Hardened Systems":

Any system that draws power from the power plant can
be Hardened to render it immune to Ion weapons. A
Hardened system has its cost increased by +50%.

 

[Spartan159]

High Guard p46, "Hardened Systems":

Any system that draws power from the power plant can
be Hardened to render it immune to Ion weapons. A
Hardened system has its cost increased by +50%.

How much power does the bridge and/or computer draw?

 

[bluekieran]

How much power does the bridge and/or computer draw?

Yeah, I see what you mean... I could argue that they draw some but a negligible amount, but as they don't have a listed power requirement I wonder if Ion weapons would even have an effect on them? If not, they don't need to be hardened... though that just raises the question of why the rad shielding hardens the bridge and /fib is an option.

 

[Jak Nazryth]

So under this loose definition, would the bridge be considered a "system"?
It used to be a 25% cost increase for the bridge.
Basically I'm looking to protect the bridge crew and the computer without having the pay for an entire ship.
As far as power, I would think the bridge is a portion of the general power requirements based on 20% of the hull size.
But if your bridge and computer goes out, good luck controlling the ship.
At this point the MgT2 game mechanics haven't considered it, or simply leave it up to the GM's to figure it out on their own.
"EMP" also effectively knocked out and sometimes destroyed electronics depending on the difference of tech levels between EMP device and target.

I've only had the new rules for a few weeks... do they still have EMP weapons, or did that switch to Ion?

 

[MongooseMatt]

I would be happy with a Bridge being Hardened (in fact, I have a feeling we have done just that ourselves on some recent ships we have been working from...).

 

[Jak Nazryth]

I would be happy with a Bridge being Hardened (in fact, I have a feeling we have done just that ourselves on some recent ships we have been working from...).

Is it 25% additional cost of the Bridge per MgT1 or a 50% increase under the new "hardened systems"?
Because under the original mongoose, a computer was 50% to harden, quite a bit different than the "hardened bridge"
Thanks

 

[MongooseMatt]

Use the Hardened rules in the new High Guard - and remember, a Computer is no longer on the Bridge (it is distributed throughout the ship).

 

[Jak Nazryth]

Ok thanks. But the controls to the ship are on the bridge. Might be bad if they are knocked off line...
I'll have to check later, but providing radiation shielding for the whole ship might be worth it if "hardened" bridge is included in the cost.
Will radiation shielding help against Ion or EMP weapons?
Sorry, I'm at work... cant consult the books...

 

[bluekieran]

No... and Ion weapons don't effect the bridge. Haven't seen anything about how EMP works, if different.

 

[Jak Nazryth]

So basically, "not getting hit" is the only defense against Ion weapons?

 

[bluekieran]

So basically, "not getting hit" is the only defense against Ion weapons?

You can still harden any system that draws power - i.e. has a power "score". The M-drive would be a logical place to start, as you don't want that going offline, and/or perhaps the J-drive.

 

[AnotherDilbert]

So basically, "not getting hit" is the only defense against Ion weapons?

Hardening helps against Ion ( = EMP ) weapons. Most systems require power, but less that 1 Power, so it is considered part of basic ships systems power. See "Not Enough Power, Cap'n!" HG, p16.

On the other hand Computers do not require Power, but can specifically be hardened against Ion hits [HG, p15]. Radiation Shielding specifically hardens the Bridge [HG, p10], that do not require Power either.

They still require power, it just comes out of the basic ship systems.

 

[Jak Nazryth]

I only glanced at the rules for Ion weapons, and how to resolve damage/effect on power systems.
I'll have to re-read it carefully later tonight and do some test combats just to get a full understanding.
But as I pointed out in an earlier post, and that AnotherDilbert reinforced, the bridge MUST draw power as part of the over-all ship requirements.
How much as a percent?
Your guess is as good as mine.
Will an Ion weapon affect the bridge?
I'm guessing that it should.
At this point it is fruitless for me to comment further until I re-read the Ion weapon section.
That... or keep pestering you fine people with questions...

But my original question has been answered by Matt... We CAN still purchased "Hardened Bridge" separately, for 50% the cost of the bridge.

 

[Condottiere]

I'd try and short circuit the fusion reactor.

I would think that most of the power earmarked for basics would be used to create an artificial gravity field, and probably more to compensate for inertia.

 

[Spartan159]

I personally decided to go ahead and harden the bridge and included the computer with it as well on the grounds that the bridge tonnage/cost also represents distributed control systems. So in total, I have Radiation shielding, paid for a .fib computer, and increased the cost of the bridge to provide EMP/Ion protection to the Bridge and Computer. This is a lot of credits burning. Not sure I understand the wording of the radiation shielding when it comes to the bridge, does it mean the bridge has extra radiation shielding? Or just that it is isolated from the rest of the ship with radiation shielding?

 

[snrdg121408]

Hello Spartan159,

I personally decided to go ahead and harden the bridge and included the computer with it as well on the grounds that the bridge tonnage/cost also represents distributed control systems. So in total, I have Radiation shielding, paid for a .fib computer, and increased the cost of the bridge to provide EMP/Ion protection to the Bridge and Computer. This is a lot of credits burning. Not sure I understand the wording of the radiation shielding when it comes to the bridge, does it mean the bridge has extra radiation shielding? Or just that it is isolated from the rest of the ship with radiation shielding?

Adding radiation shielding to the hull covers all the internal components increasing protection from 500 to 1,000 rads. The hull's radiation shielding around the bridge also provides the benefits of the hardened systems option on MgT HG 2 PDF 09/01/16 p. 46 without the cost requirement. I am not sure why the hardening benefit by using radiation shielding is only given to the bridge and not the other components required by the hardened systems instructions.

From responses to a number of bridge questions relating to radiation shielding, armored bulkheads, and hardened systems asked previously posted to the forums or the time since HG 2e has been released my fuzzy conclusion is that:

Radiation shielding is normally applied to the enter hull resulting in hardening the bridge. However designers and referees can apply radiation shielding to individual components per the instructions listed on MgT HG 2 PDF 09/01/16 p. 13. I'm not sure why applying radiation shielding would not harden the other components installed in a hull.

Armored bulkheads can be added to individual components per the instructions listed on MgT HG 2 PDF 09/01/16 p. 35.

There were three recommendations how to harden a bridge: (1) Follow the instructions from MgT Core Rule Book 1e p. 44 of increasing the cost by 25% or (2) use the instructions listed on MgT HG 2 PDF 09/01/16 p. 46, or follow the instructions for applying radiation shielding per the instructions listed on MgT HG 2 PDF 09/01/16 p. 13.