High-Yield Fuel Scoops

Terry Mixon

Emperor Mongoose
This bit of High Guard equipment just dropped in the Singularity Kickstarter rewards.

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My question is this, now that I’m awake enough to think. What can it be scooping from an 8+ atmosphere that is usable for jump? I doubt it’s finding much hydrogen.
 
Dense/Very Dense could concentrate water vapor/methane/hydrocarbons sufficiently to mimic upper levels of a gas giant.
Corrosive atmospheres will be full of H or OH when breaking down the acid/base.
Good luck on that Atmosphere E, though.
 
Yep, that should be clarified, @paltrysum. Also, if hydrographics is low, they shouldn’t be able to get water vapor or it takes longer. Also, deep scooping on lower atmospheres should be possible. A standard atmosphere at sea level should get results.
This has me starting to wonder how this would change Charted Space. I would think that it makes gas giants a lot less valuable.

If you can scoop in normal time on Atmo 8+, then you should be able to scoop in twice the time in regular pressure atmospheres and longer on lesser atmospheres. Perhaps this is something that should be retconned out of the game due to unforeseen consequences.
 
This has me starting to wonder how this would change Charted Space. I would think that it makes gas giants a lot less valuable.

If you can scoop in normal time on Atmo 8+, then you should be able to scoop in twice the time in regular pressure atmospheres and longer on lesser atmospheres. Perhaps this is something that should be retconned out of the game due to unforeseen consequences.
Hello Unintended Consequences my old friend. it’s good to see you again. ;)

Like you said, it’s gonna change a lot in the setting. No more needing to run out to the gas giant and refill the fuel tanks. At least four ships that have these and companies that are willing to outfit their harvesting equipment with them. How long before all occupied worlds outlaw of practice? in the adventure, one of the worlds that this ship gets to has outlawed the practice. Maybe that will mitigate some of the effects.
 
The rule states that it is in Atmospheres of 8+. So yes.
E is low pressure, so there is already nuance. Raising other nuanced scenarios shouldn’t be off the table. Atmosphere 6 and 7 at lower altitudes would work as well. Would lower hydrographics mean longer refuel times or mean it’s impossible? Perhaps.

They should just spell it out a bit more to allow for actual situations that make sense. Would that be more dangerous or illegal? Roleplaying moment!
 
I'm not even sure why Traveller bothers with fuel at this point. They've already made unrefined fuel irrelevant between removing several of the consequences of using it (lasting engine damage to the M-Drive, P-Plant, or J-Drive, for example) and made it so any ship ever should have an onboard refinery.

And they keep adding new ways to get the pre-refined fuel. Just say "hey, if you are in real space for a day, you magically get refueled" and go with that. :sneaky:
 
I'm not even sure why Traveller bothers with fuel at this point. They've already made unrefined fuel irrelevant between removing several of the consequences of using it (lasting engine damage to the M-Drive, P-Plant, or J-Drive, for example) and made it so any ship ever should have an onboard refinery.

And they keep adding new ways to get the pre-refined fuel. Just say "hey, if you are in real space for a day, you magically get refueled" and go with that. :sneaky:
Collectors, baby! Only they work under thrust. Win!
 
Yeah, but they have deep space scoops, gas giant scoops, water scoops, ice scoops, rando atmosphere scoops. It's getting to the point that the only thing fuel does is occupy space on your ships.

And it's not even clear why it does that with collapsible fuel tanks, drop tanks, UNREP, and other ways of feeding fuel to the ship without permanent volume assigned to it.
 
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