Ship Design Philosophy

[Condottiere]

Spacecraft: Ultralight Fighters

G. You have to wonder what's considered fast and slow.

H. Though, usually in context of the primary role, and the prevailing technological level.

I. If a lot of time will be spent in atmosphere, factor/three acceleration seems the maximum.

J. Likely closer to factor/two, acceleration minus local gravitational field.

K. Anything close to a whole factor would pretty much be hypersonic.

 

[Condottiere]

Spacecraft: Ultralight Fighters

L. Five tonnes defaults to two hull points.

M. Odds are, a successful hit destroys the ultralight hull.

N. Which sort of makes it irrelevant if you reinforce, or lighten, the hull.

O. So, you save twenty five percent, and lighten it to one and four fifths hull points.

P. Ironically, you might be better off with high factored hull armour and protection.

 

[Condottiere]

Spacecraft: Ultralight Fighters

Q. Quadrupling that, for titanium steel is ten to forty five percent.

R. Crystaliron, five to sixty five percent.

S. Bonded, three and one fifth to forty eight percent.

T. Then, it's modified by the spacecraft hull configuration.

U. At some point, you'll just send an armed drone, and won't worry if it's on a one way mission.

 

[Condottiere]

Spacecraft: Ultralight Fighters

V. If the planetoid hull configuration option is chosen, you have an organic two hull armour factors for twenty percent.

W. That's about the same as two factors of titanium steel, also at twenty percent.

X. Buffered planetoid at organic hull factor four is thirty five percent.

Y. Titanium steel factor four would be forty percent.

Z. Crystaliron factor four would be twenty percent.

 

[Condottiere]

Starwarships: Armaments and Big Deadly Laser Weapons of Every Frequency

Spacedock delves into all the frequency variations of beam weapons.

Beam me forward, Spotty.

 

[Condottiere]

Spacecraft: Ultralight Fighters

1. Speaking of crippling, any firmpointed, predominantly energy based weapon system has a maximum range of ten klix.

2. For the generous reduction of a quarter power input.

3. Still costs the same as the original hardpointed variant.

4. And takes up the same volume.

5. One firmpoint for a five tonne smallcraft means only one spacecraft weapon system can be installed.

6. Small weapons with a mass of more than 250 kilograms consume an amount of space equal to their mass, to a minimum of one ton.

7. These must be mounted in turrets (if they mass one ton or less) or fixed mounts and consume no Power.

8. Which, for a smallcraft with a single firmpoint, becomes an either/or situation.

9. The firmpoint has to be in a state where groundscale weapon systems can be installed/attached to.

 

[Condottiere]

Spacecraft: Ultralight Fighters

A. If turretted, it defaults to one tonne volume available, for either a turretted sized weapon system, plus, presumably, any smaller weapons.

B, Though, we could presume, that that single descriptor only caps the amount of spacecraft weapon systems, not, any other weapon system that could be installed.

C. In theory, that would be four times a quarter tonnes, which results in maximum four small weapons less than a quarter tonne each, minus whatever volume the spacecraft weapon system takes up.

D. Which, has never been stated.

E. And, then you have potentially another tonne each of missiles, canisters, and/or railgun slugs.

F. I know, isn't modern technology fascinating in it's ability to squeeze everything in?

 

[Condottiere]

Spacecraft: Ultralight Fighters

G. Investing in a single turret ensures that the smallcraft can't really be outmanoeuvred into a tactical blindspot.

H. The question might not be as to how many small weapon systems you can cram onboard, but rather how effectively you can use an optimal number.

I. How long do you expect the ultralight fighter to remain engaged?

J. There are limits to the fire output of spacecraft weapon systems, in both in terms of time and space.

K. Groundscale weapon systems, apparently, regenerate their energy pools every six seconds, compared to six minutes for spacecraft weapon systems.

 

[Condottiere]

Spacecraft: Ultralight Fighters

L. Groundscale weapon systems have one more major advantage over firmpointed spacecraft.

M. Besides energy pool regeneration.

N. Is that their ranges aren't crippled with a seventy five percent power input.

O. Add to that, what these ranges increase to in microgravity.

P. And/or vacuum.