Minimum ship size for Bay weapons?

[PsiTraveller]

Is there a minimum ship size for installing a bay weapon? If you built a 200 ton hull could you put in a small or medium bay weapon? I was thinking of a small ship with a lot of missile capacity, or something small that can hit a larger ship with a surprising punch as a 'gotcha' moment.

 

[DickTurpin]

There is no set minimum size for bay weapons, just a limit on what you can fit into the hull. You could put a small bay into a 100 ton ship but it would be hard to squeeze a jump drive and fuel in as well. I think it is fair to require an actual hardpoint rather than using a firmpoint, so sticking a bay into a small craft shouldn't be allowed.

 

[Condottiere]

It's one hardpoint per hundred tonnes of bay, or part thereof.

So basically, hundred tonnes would be the minimum for a small bay; arguably for a shrunken medium sized one.

 

[AndrewW]

Feel free to to squeeze it in where you can as long as you have the hardpoint(s) and space for it. Might want leave some room for the crew, power and so forth required as well.

 

[Galadrion]

I rather like the idea of allowing pretty much anything that the hull size will allow along these lines, because that opens up some interesting options for things like defensive installations. A minimum size hull with an outsized weapon, power plant to run it and the necessary electronics/computers, armor, space for ammunition bunkerage, maybe accommodation for crew (or it could be an automated installation)... put this in a buffered planetoid hull, and you've got a vicious defensive SDB-type installation. Note that I didn't actually mention a maneuver drive in there? This could easily be an emplacement, rather than an actual boat. Or you could put some form of drive in there, but I don't visualize this thing really moving around much when it's on station; this is a sentry rather than a patroller.

 

[AnotherDilbert]

Note that I didn't actually mention a maneuver drive in there? This could easily be an emplacement, rather than an actual boat.

Risky, since you can easily kill it from stand-off range, just by throwing rocks at it.

 

[PsiTraveller]

I was thinking along two line myself. The first is the SDB so no jump drive or large fuel tanks needed. As Galadrion pointed out this opens up some interesting options. A small ship could be wielding a sledgehammer and punching way above its weight class.

The second idea I've been playing around with is breakaway hulls and having some nasty additions being able to be connected to a ship. A ship could add a breakaway unit of whatever type it thought it needed for the situation it was going into. One hull add on might be a missile hull, another might have a Fusion Gun Bay, for example.

 

[Reynard]

I built a take on an old style Romulan Warbird. 100 tons, Superior stealth, Jump 0, Maneuver 7, Armor 4, Fire Control 2, 4 weeks operation, Improved sensors, lots of armored bulkhead and a small bay fusion gun (plasma torpedo). Carried by tenders or stationed at bases.

 

[Galadrion]

Note that I didn't actually mention a maneuver drive in there? This could easily be an emplacement, rather than an actual boat.

Risky, since you can easily kill it from stand-off range, just by throwing rocks at it.

Well, that might be influenced by the weapon choice. Particle accelerator bays are long-ranged, rather nasty to deal with, and don't have those pesky ammunition requirements.

Besides, I probably would include some maneuver capability if it was my design choice, simply to make placement and such simpler - no need for a tug/carrier. It just wouldn't need to be something in the same acceleration range as a fighter. One or two gravities would be plenty.

I'm visualizing a few complementary designs for defensive work. Something like this for the offensive punch, a similar design but focused on sandcasters and PD for fending off clearing efforts, and something along the lines of a monitor to anchor the center of the formation(s) and act as fire control/EW. This could act as a very effective defense for (as an example) an asteroid belt mining operation, with the bulk of the firing platforms lying doggo until (and unless) needed, making for a very nasty ambush scenario for any overconfident raiders.

 

[AnotherDilbert]

The second idea I've been playing around with is breakaway hulls and having some nasty additions being able to be connected to a ship. A ship could add a breakaway unit of whatever type it thought it needed for the situation it was going into.

Weapons can be modular (or even podular?), no need to go to the expense of breakaway hulls.

The USP of breakaway hulls are combining drive performance and quick attach/detach times.

 

[AnotherDilbert]

Risky, since you can easily kill it from stand-off range, just by throwing rocks at it.

Well, that might be influenced by the weapon choice. Particle accelerator bays are long-ranged, rather nasty to deal with, and don't have those pesky ammunition requirements.

Attack it from outside Distant range by throwing a big rock at it: It either has mobility or it will be destroyed.

A sitting duck will not live long in space combat.

Besides, I probably would include some maneuver capability if it was my design choice, simply to make placement and such simpler - no need for a tug/carrier. It just wouldn't need to be something in the same acceleration range as a fighter. One or two gravities would be plenty.

Agreed, a little acceleration goes a long way.

I came up with this concept:
http://forum.mongoosepublishing.com/viewtopic.php?p=910520#p910520

 

[PsiTraveller]

Can weapons be podular or modular? A ship gets a hardpoint for 100 tons. Smaller hulls get firmpoints. A Breakaway hull of 100 tons or more would get a hardpoint, which can be used for Bays. Could you put a weapon/hardpoint in a module?

 

[AnotherDilbert]

Could you put a weapon/hardpoint in a module?

Yes, anything but hull, bridge, and drives:

Up to 75% of a ship’s internal tonnage may be designated as modular. This tonnage may not include the bridge, power plant, drives or any structure or armour options.

 

[PsiTraveller]

Good point there AnotherDilbert, and the example listed includes a missile carrying module on pg 35

Modular Hull
A portion of a ship’s hull may be designated as modular,
allowing it to be swapped out easily for another module.
This allows a ship to be configured for specific missions
and roles. For example, a modular ship may have a
choice of a module containing a lot of missile bays
(making it a missile carrier), laboratories (to act as a
research vessel) or hangar space (allowing it to transport
smaller ships). This practice of using modules is more
common among small craft, but there is no theoretical
maximum size to the ship that can use them.

Hmmm, I may have to go redesign my ship.

 

[PsiTraveller]

Price error in Modular Hull Cost AnotherDIlbert? I made a new thread about it.

 

[Condottiere]

The advantage in placing weapon systems in sub hulls would be damage control, as unlike drop tanks, you can't damage them by just eliminating hull points on the primary.

A lot of the loopholes, and/or shortcomings, of modularization has been addressed by podularization.