High Guard: Deployment Shuttle

[AnotherDilbert]

The Deployment Shuttle carries a laser and a sandcaster in fixed mounts, but both lasers and sandcasters must be mounted in turrets to be able to intercept attack (Core, p160).

 

[AnotherDilbert]

Stealing ideas from Daniel and phavoc, here's my attempt at a more versatile version:

TL 13               Hull  20                                       42,5    
                             Desired    ∆TL    Rat    #    dTon    Cost    Power
Hull                             50                       50,00            10,00
Config           Streamlined      2             2                  3,00    
Hull strength    Standard         2             2                
Armour           Crystaliron     13            13          8,13    1,95    
Rad Shielding                     1             1                  1,25    

ManœuvreD        Standard         9             9     1    4,50    9,00    45,00
PowerP   (TL12)  Advanced                1            1    3,60    3,96    60,00
    Emergency Power               1                   1    0,36    0,40    
                                
Fuel, Power                       4           4 w     1    1,00        
                                
Bridge                            1                   1    3,00    0,50    
    Holographic                   1                   1            0,13    
Comp             m/15             3            15     1            2,00    
Backup Comp      m/10             2            10     1            0,16    
Evade/2          BW:15            2             2     1            2
Fire Control/3   BW:15            3             3     1            6                                

Sensors          Military         2             2     1    2,00    4,10     2,00
                                
Armoury                                               8    8,00    2,00    
Cargo                                                     11,00        
Collapsible Tanks                11                  11    0,11    0,00    
Acceleration Bench, Foldable     10                  11            0,55    

Breaching Tube                    1                   1    3,00    3,00    
Forced Linkage                    1                   1    2,00    0,10    

Turret                                
Sandcaster       High Technology  1      0    TL9     1    1,00    0,45     1,00
Pulse Laser      High Technology  1      3   TL12     1    1,00    1,70     4,00     Accurate, HiYield
Small Weapons                     1                   1    1,00    0,21    
                                
Magazine                         18                  18            0,30

I have added Rad Shielding, Emergency Power Backup, and a backup computer. We should be able to take a few hits...

I moved the weapons into turrets to make them effective defensive systems. I changed the Beam Laser to a Pulse Laser to get a bit more oompf against ground targets and Close Range in space. The sandcaster works reasonably as a giant shotgun to clear a landing area. Unfortunately this adds two gunners to the crew requirements.
I replaced two of the PGMPs with an Anti-Missile System (CSC, p36) and a Mortar (CSC, p127) to throw smoke, flares, flashbangs, etc; two PGMPs remain.

I added a Forced Linkage Apparatus to aid in boarding. It should also be useful in post-battle S&R, which I guess is a job for marines.

I had to reduce the Armoury to 8 dT (enough for 40 troopers).
The passenger space is a 11 dT cargo hold with foldable Acceleration benches for 44 people. Large hatches to the sides allows rapid egress and ingress. This also allows us to carry small vehicles, supplies, or even fuel in the included fuel bladders. Normal load would be 40 troopers and 1 dT cargo.

 

[alex_greene]

Okay, rescue shuttle, bright green, big prominent 2 on the dorsal bow ... that looks familiar.

 

[-Daniel-]

Okay, rescue shuttle, bright green, big prominent 2 on the dorsal bow ... that looks familiar.

LOL took me a moment as my brain realized what you were on about. Well done.

 

[The Dark Avenger]

I have always assumed that there was some lag between a change in thrust and the compensation of the internal gravity field. Short, but noticable.

Also, internal gravity creates, well, gravitational attraction towards the floor (or ceiling), it does not cancel inertia any more than real gravity does. So a hard turn will produce g-forces, in my opinion. Advanced internal gravity systems might be able to mitigate that a bit, but I imagine hard manoeuvring producing signifcant forces inside a craft.

As to the gun ports, they were in the description I received so I included them in the expanded one. The ability to act as a bunker on the ground might be useful.

 

[alex_greene]

Okay, rescue shuttle, bright green, big prominent 2 on the dorsal bow ... that looks familiar.

LOL took me a moment as my brain realized what you were on about. Well done.

One and Three below carried on with the theme. Looks like Mongoose's artists are not above humorous pop culture references. I daresay Four would have been bright canary yellow and boast underwater capabilities.

 

[mancerbear]

Jesus, some people really get off on complaining, don't they?

 

[alex_greene]

Also, internal gravity creates, well, gravitational attraction towards the floor (or ceiling), it does not cancel inertia any more than real gravity does. So a hard turn will produce g-forces, in my opinion. Advanced internal gravity systems might be able to mitigate that a bit, but I imagine hard manoeuvring producing signifcant forces inside a craft.

I suspect that this could easily be a deliberate design feature; customers probably expect a bit of roughhouse shaking a la Aliens and Starship Troopers, Stackmeyer and Ferro sat in the cabin sounding all professional, some mutt going on about how they've got nukes and sharp sticks and someone giving a rebel yell all the way down until the Sarge asks him if he wants a pacifier.

And one old vet sitting in his harness, sound asleep. "Somebody wake up Hicks!"

 

[MongooseMatt]

I hope you see it as constructive criticism to make your products better.

Absolutely! We like talking about our games as much as we do creating them!

 

[AndrewW]

As to the gun ports, they were in the description I received so I included them in the expanded one. The ability to act as a bunker on the ground might be useful.

Yup, I included them.

 

[AnotherDilbert]

Also, internal gravity creates, well, gravitational attraction towards the floor (or ceiling), it does not cancel inertia any more than real gravity does.

Traditionally Traveller spacecraft have Inertial Compensators that remove reaction forces from acceleration. They are assumed in CT and an explicit system in MT and TNE. Without them we would have to build spacecraft as towers (decks perpendicular to the thrust).

They may very well be less than perfect, making high-G turns noticeable.

As to the gun ports, they were in the description I received so I included them in the expanded one. The ability to act as a bunker on the ground might be useful.

The big killer on mid-tech battlefields is artillery, being able to move and fight (however compromised) while protected from shrapnel is very valuable? I wouldn't call them unreasonable. A flying craft with inertial compensators would even be a fairly stable firing platform.

 

[GarethL]

A little disapointed that this didn't include detail of typical Imperial marines - loadouts, etc

 

[MongooseMatt]

A little disapointed that this didn't include detail of typical Imperial marines - loadouts, etc

Ah. now - we did look at doing that, and many other things besides The trouble is, if we had added everything we had thought of, it would be a full blown release and not really about Deployment Shuttles any more. However, we made lots of notes, and you can be sure we will return to marines and mercs in the future!

 

[-Daniel-]

Jesus, some people really get off on complaining, don't they?

You do see how ironic this post is, right? :lol:

A little disapointed that this didn't include detail of typical Imperial marines - loadouts, etc

Ah. now - we did look at doing that, and many other things besides The trouble is, if we had added everything we had thought of, it would be a full blown release and not really about Deployment Shuttles any more. However, we made lots of notes, and you can be sure we will return to marines and mercs in the future!

I could see how easy it would be to expand this into a much larger product focused on all aspects of drop ship warfare. I imagine it must be hard at times to stop and set cool ideas aside and let the product as originally planned go out. Silver lining? You clearly know there is interest in these subjects.


:mrgreen:

 

[Condottiere]

It's a big armory; combine it with ship's locker, and you could pull out anything.

 

[AndrewW]

It's a big armory; combine it with ship's locker, and you could pull out anything.

That allows the Deployment Shuttle to carry extra arms depending on the needs of the marines.

 

[-Daniel-]

It's a big armory; combine it with ship's locker, and you could pull out anything.

That allows the Deployment Shuttle to carry extra arms depending on the needs of the marines.

I could see that space being convertible though. Say you are doing a major drop, some could be converted to carry recon drones, others to be small med supports, some to carry combat robots etc. The core design has a lot of potential in my opinion.

 

[phavoc]

Jesus, some people really get off on complaining, don't they?

Probably not as much as people who complain about people though.

 

[phavoc]

I have always assumed that there was some lag between a change in thrust and the compensation of the internal gravity field. Short, but noticable.

Also, internal gravity creates, well, gravitational attraction towards the floor (or ceiling), it does not cancel inertia any more than real gravity does. So a hard turn will produce g-forces, in my opinion. Advanced internal gravity systems might be able to mitigate that a bit, but I imagine hard manoeuvring producing signifcant forces inside a craft.

As to the gun ports, they were in the description I received so I included them in the expanded one. The ability to act as a bunker on the ground might be useful.

This brings up an interesting point. If the artificial gravity field of a vessel does not cancel inertia I side, then the higher G maneuvers being proposed in the latest version can have detrimental effects on those inside a vessel. Even a slight amount of time between the internal field reacting would translate into high G effects.

To make the system work without requiring handwavium you habe to assume it doesn't work that way. Ships. Ot involved in combat you can kind of avoid the issue. However once evasion comes into play moving around the ship as you get tossed about as the grav field tries to compensate means you can't do delicate repairs, tools slide away, you feel the effect of your 6G drive field,etc. Makes for a much different environment. No more loaders trying to manhandle a missile into a launcher unless your pilot don't evade that turn.

It's much easier to sidestep the issue and have your internal grav field function in a way so that you don't have to deal with these sorts of things.

 

[Condottiere]

Depends if inertial compensation is tied to tech levels; in which case, by eleven ships compensate upto fifteen gees.