Ship Design Philosophy

[Condottiere]

Spacecraft: Armaments and Point Defence Batteries

G. The gunner must succeed at a Gunner (turret) check against any missile salvo that is about to make its attack roll against their spacecraft.

H. The Effect of the check will remove that many missiles from the salvo.

I. A turret equipped with two lasers provides DM+1 to this check, while a turret equipped with three lasers will provide DM+2

J. Two to twelve, plus gunner/skill, plus dexterity, plus beam.pulse.burst laser/four, plus extra barrels, minus eight.

K. Zeroed - minus two.four.six to plus eight.six.four; average three.one.(minus one).

 

[Condottiere]

Spacecraft: Armaments and Point Defence Batteries

L. Dedicated point defence is pretty clear as to how many missiles are eliminated.

M. One assumes that for torpedoes, you half that.

N. Each weapon system earmarked for point defence, only targets one salvo.

O. Since you don't mix torpedoes with missiles, you don't have to figure out how to ratio that.

P. So, unless the beam laser fork four missiles at the same time with one shot, the lasers fire off multiple times every six minutes, or, point defence algorithm has to be revised.

 

[Condottiere]

Startrucks: Cheapest Free Trader

1. You have to figure out what performance parameters would be most suitable.

2. That would depend on the economics of the situation.

3. And no one understands Travellernomics.

4. And if they did, it wouldn't make sense.

5. So, we star, as always, with engineering.

6. The question would be if it's worth tinkering around with the default type Aye jump drive.

7. Or scale up, and with that parsec tonnes.

8. Which means, you have to scale up commercial freighter, in order to justify the increased performance.

9. And expense.

 

[Condottiere]

Startrucks: Cheapest Free Trader

A. From the Confederation perspective, it would be based on a thirty five tonne jump drive.

B. Inflation is basically a one trick pony.

C. So for budgetary considerations, you can choose between a late jump, or energy leaks.

D. I'd go for energy leaks, since there are a lot of unforeseen gravity wells speed bumps.

E. That's twelve hundred parsec tonnes at three hundred ninety three and three fourths megastarbux.

F. Potentially, energy requirement would be fifteen hundred and sixty power points.

 

[Condottiere]

Startrucks: Cheapest Free Trader

G. I guess you have to define Free Trader.

H. The size of the default bridge doesn't matter, since you're paying a semimegastarbux per hundred tonnes.

I. Two hundred tonne hull seems to be the default size.

J. Range appears to be one parsec.

K. Which doesn't differ from the Venture Drive, except in eighty more parsec tonnes.

 

[Condottiere]

Spacecraft: Armaments and Point Defence Batteries

Q. If we specialize the beam laser as point defence, we could customize it to a highly technologized polish.

R. At technological level thirteen, you could upgrade the turret to a quadruple.

S. Two to twelve, plus gunner/skill, plus dexterity, plus four, plus three, minus eight.

T. Zeroed - one to eleven; average six.

U. Three quarter energy efficiency, six power points, five megastarbux, one tonne.

 

[Condottiere]

Flea Trader
. μονόξυλον class
. technological level
.. nine
.. self sealing
Hull
. one hundred twenty tonnes
. planetoid
.. twenty four tonnes
.. four hundred eighty kilostarbux
.. armour
... organic
... two
.. gravitated
.. unstreamlined
Bridge
. small
.. six tonnes
.. quarter megastarbux
. computer
.. five
.. thirty kilostarbux
. sensors
.. basic
... free
Engineering
. jump drive
.. Venture model
... ten tonnes
... budgetted
.... inflated
... one hundred twenty parsec tonnes
... twelve power points
... nine megastarbux
. manoeuvre drive
.. budgetted
... inflated
.. one and a half tonnes
.. one and four fifths megastarbux
. power plant
.. fusion
... early
... budgetted
.... inflated
.. nine modules
... half tonne
... four power points
... daily fuel consumption 1.7857142857143 kilogrammes
... one hundred eighty seven and a half kilostarbux
.. four and a half tonnes
.. thirty six power points
.. 1'687'500 starbux
. fuel tank
.. thirteen tonnes
Accommodations
. staterooms
.. one
.. four tonnes
.. half a megastarbux
Cargo
. fifty seven tonnes
Software
. manoeuvre
. library
. jump control
.. one
.. hundred kilostarbux

13,817'500.00 starbux

 

[Condottiere]

Spacecraft: Armaments and Point Defence Batteries

V. Just kike with the laser drill, you could firmpoint a monoturret with a beam laser.

W. If it's specifically intended for point defence, it doesn't matter if the range is only a thousand metres.

X. Seventy five percent energy efficiency, means that the power draw is three quarters of a power point.

Y. Assuming rate of fire allows it, you can fire four times in a given time window, than a default laser, drawing from the same power pool.

Z. As a fighter weapon, I guess Browning three oh three equivalent.

 

[Condottiere]

Startrucks: Cheapest Possible

1. To begin with, while this Benefit is listed as a ship’s boat, the Referee may allow you to choose something else.

2. Any smallcraft with a maximum value of MCr10 should be just fine.

3. How do you turn that jump capable?

4. Technically, a smallcraft is a spaecraft below a hundred tonnes.

5. And, since there is a definitive monetary value, you bake in the mass production discount of ten percent.

6. Default six tonne bridge becomes a small jump capable bridge.

7. You allocate six tonnes for the bridge, but define it already as a small bridge, costing a quarter of a megastarbux, instead of a semimegastarbux.

8. Installing a jump drive onboard would be considered a major refit.

9. Welding on a hull section with an existing (and functioning) jump drive, seems closer to scrap value.

 

[Condottiere]

Startrucks: Cheapest Possible

A. You would probably need to develop a deliberately designed spacecraft that can add on components at minimal cost., without actually refitting.

B. Since all hull components become dispersed configuration, when junkered together, it should be a dispersed configuration smallcraft.

C. Since you'll want that available as a mustering out benefit, it would need to be in fairly widespread use by the branch of service you careered with.

D. The service itself, probably deliberately designed the dispersed configured hull for ease of modification.

E. Which, likely included the option for interstellarizing the smallcraft.

F. So, in theory, all parts actually manufactured, just haven't been correctly assembled together.

 

[Condottiere]

Startrucks: Cheapest Possible

G. The advantage of actually designing the completed spacecraft, is that it's easier to deconstruct it.

H. Deconstruction would be the removal of optional parts to a more barebones structure.

I. But, like a modelling kit, you know where these optional parts would fit best.

J. Which should make the end result both easier, and more logical, to fit together.

K. Also, possibly, more aesthetic.

 

[Condottiere]

Startrucks: Cheapest Possible

L. Besides volume, likely differences between smallcraft and mini starships, would be larger fuel tanks, bridge, and jump drive.

M. Generally speaking, welding on a bunch of extra tanks should be fairly easy.

N. Which could have been a combo deal with a/the jump drive.

O. The bridge is a more complex issue.

P. Mostly, because jump controls have never been canonically isolated.

 

[Condottiere]

Startrucks: Cheapest Possible

Q. There are lots of ways to achieve the same result.

R. But, we're looking for a way to minimize financial obligations by the mustered out beneficiary.

S. This avoids the continuing surveillance of the Scout Service.

T. Or, the monthly mortgage reimbursements.

U. Though, you could pledge the smallcraft to pay for the jump drive and other add ons.

 

[Condottiere]

Startrucks: Cheapest Possible

V. This isn't the cheapest option, but the concept might be a sort of equivalency with the Scout/Courier.

W. You construct the primary hull as a seventy tonne smallcraft, with six tonne bridge/small, and two tonnes of manoeuvre drive.

X. A secondary hull of thirty tonnes is also constructed, with twenty tonnes of fuel tanks, and a ten tonne jump drive.

Y. Both have electrical connections prepared, that allow the power plant on the primary hull to power the secondary hull.

Z. Seems a simple add on.

 

[Condottiere]

Inspiration: The Mark of Mankind - Space Warfare Sci-Fi Audiobook

youtube.com/watch?v=eluhIyh31uA


Humans as space orks.

Goes through most of the tropes.

Not bad.

 

[Condottiere]

Startrucks: Hulls, Planetoided, and Modularization

G. I guess you could term a planetoid a dugout.

H. Though, that seems inappropriate once you move beyond smallcrafts.

I. Canoe and kayak for when you use cast nickel iron, left over from drilling into a planetoid.

J. Bark, possibly for larger variants.

K. Though, I always had that in mind for Vargr starships.

 

[Condottiere]

Startrucks: Hulls, Planetoided, and Modularization

L. Another option might be (nickel) ironclads.

M. I would say that you can vary thickness between twenty to thirty five percent.

N. Five tonnes overhead, and seven and a half percent per armour factor.

O. And, since we only know statistics of that range, it would be the safe option.

P. And, in theory, free gravity.

 

[Condottiere]

Startrucks: Hulls, Planetoided, and Modularization

Q. Although canoes were historically dugouts or made of bark on a wood frame,[5] construction materials later evolved to canvas on a wood frame, then to aluminum.

R. Nothing says you can't modularize a planetoids.

S. Junkering, or podularizing, one, seems a tad more difficult.

T. There don't appear to be any prohibitions, against that, either.

U. Though hull configuration does seem weird at dispersed planetoid.

 

[Condottiere]

Startrucks: Hulls, Planetoided, and Modularization

V. In theory, planetoid modules should have a basic cost half of that of scooping out the planetoid, and installing plumbing.

W. Which would mean, no inherent gravitational tiling on the module.

X. Assuming the module is made of nickel iron.

Y. And, presumably, wastage drops to five percent.

Z. Since modules don't have hull armour.

 

[Condottiere]

Startrucks: Cheapest Possible

1. All things being equal, at some point you start looking at the hull configuration as a way to cut costs.

2. Every hull configuration has it's own advantages and disadvantages.

3. Mostly, expressed as cost, aerodynamics, and wastage.

4. Wastage mostly about how much extra volume you have to give up, compared to other configurations.

5. Cheapest is a planetoid, with twenty percent wastage, but has organic armour and gravity.

6. Dispersed structure is half that of default, but is unstreamlined, and requires double volume for an armour factor.

7. There's a sort of implied fragility, which I suppose is reflected in a ten percent drop of hull points.

8. However, I feel that I can take my chances accelerating to twenty five gees.

9. Or, an atmospheric reentry with a manoeuvre drive.