Solomani Confederation (Military)

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Crewing Around

1. It's time to crew the frigate Liberty, and I tried to figure out how that's going to look like.

2. I had already decided to split up Gunnery, and let them specialize.

3. Ortillery can be offshored to a computer programme, since basically, they're sitting ducks, and you can have a human specialist as part of the Admiral's staff, not necessarily on each starwarship.

4. The Capitalists can concentrate on bay and spinal mounted systems.

5. Screen technicians would be closer to sensor operations.

6. Which leaves us with turrets, which essentially, are more of a defensive nature, though they can be offensive.

7. I thought I might just pass that to the Logistics branch, since they're not going have that much to do during combat, except reload the missiles and torpedoes.

8. And, since they're already doing that, might as well be in charge of manning those weapon stations.

9. And damage control.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Crewing Around

A. I missed my train, and since I only found a small, light carpet at the flea market, I thought I might as well walk home.

B. That gave me time to think, especially about what I wanted in a starwarship crew.

C. Speaking of which, why do I need a crew department?

D. If all they do is maintenance work, I might as well pass that to Logistics, as well.

E. Basically, starwarships crews could be divided into the ones that fire the guns, and the ones that keep the vessel moving.

F. And the moving part has been passed on to Engineering, and Flight.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Crewing Around

G. It's an interesting question as to what the skill Profession actually brings to character capabilities.

H. I suspect it's meant to cover skills that the game designers don't want to deal with, or can't figure out how to use.

I. We have Seafarer, which allows you to operate watercraft.

J. In theory, we could have Spacefarer, which would allow you to operate spacecraft,. and you get to specialize why particular type.

K. But, I rather suspect the the technologies involved with watercraft and spacecraft vary widely, so a non goer to add to the skill list.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Crewing Around

L. We do need a sort of jack of all trades to deal with the less specialized aspects of spacefaring.

M. This generalist would have to deal with ship security, inventory, and damage control.

N. We don't need him to be able to pilot, deal with sensors, nor look after the engines.

O. In theory, in a future technologically based civilization, you'd think that everyone would have the skill electronics.

P. But, in order to be consistent with character creation, the Confederation Navy Logistics Branch has the following service skills: Electronics, Vacuum Suit, Athletics, Gunner, Mechanic, and Gun Combat.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Crewing Around

Q. Athletics and Vacuum Suit would be mandatory in a space navy.

R. Or, only Athletics, if you don't care if the sailor can swim.

S. Mechanics would be taking care of the equipment, if it isn't working as it's supposed to.

T. Like combat damage.

U. At this point in time, cleaning would be more supervising a detail of Roombas.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Crewing Around

V. Vacuum Suit and Athletics are almost mandatory for space based (para)military recruits.

W. Gun Combat, I would guess, needs to be included.

X. Electronics, is more about how I think it's required in any advanced civilization.

Y. Mechanics and Engineering make up the final two.

Z. And that would be the service skills for the (spacecraft) Engineering Branch.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Crewing Around

V. Assuming I wanted the Gunnery Branch to fix their own weapon systems, I'd add Mechanic to Gunnery for the last two open slots.

W. In which case, you couldn't distinguish between them and Logistics: Electronics, Vacuum Suit, Athletics, Gunner, Mechanic, and Gun Combat.

X. It would have to be in terms of skill specialization.

Y. Gunnery would specialize in Gunner/Capital, and Electronics/Sensors.

Z. And if Logistics specialize, it would be Gunner/Turret, and Electronics/Remote Operations.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Crewing Around

1. Of course, we have the Science branch.

2. Representative of this, would be the medical practitioners onboard.

3. Given ratio for this, is one per hundred twenty personnel.

4. Cruiser size, you definitely want at least one doctor/surgeon, a bunch of nurses, and some medical orderlies.

4. But, at frigate and destroyer size, you might getaway with medical/one nurse.

5. Which, in combat, is not going to be enough.

6. Probably would go with one Corpsman per Marine squad.

7. The frigate would be mostly on patrol, but when the bovine ordure intercepts the axial ventilator, there would likely to be a lot of casualties.

8. We could have three medical/zero assistants, who would also be responsible for adjacent health stuff, like nutrition, and one getting assigned to the Marine squad, when deployed off ship.

9. Could also be responsible for monitoring life support.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Crewing Around

A. The Flight Branch fills most of the bridge seats, except gunnery and engineering.

B. I guess they do need to fulfill the basic four, Vacuum Suit, Athletics, Electronics and Gun Combat.

C. Pilot seems obvious, but I struggled with Astrogation.

D. You can't have enough pilots, but astrogator tends to be one per starship.

E. On the other hand, navigation tended to be a rather essential skill for maritime officers.

F. So, reluctantly, that stayed.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Crewing Around

G. Under current character generation, does Flight Branch have to be entirely officers?

H. Graduates of the Naval Academy.

I. It seems the one way to guarantee that they have the requisite skill set, for that military occupational specialty.

J. Electronics/communications, electronics/computer (which I would suppose is basically cybersecurity), electronics/sensors, electronics/remote operations.

K. Pilot specializing in different volumed spacecraft, which would determine their role, whether as the helmsman of a rather large starwarship, or a fighter(craft) jockey.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Crewing Around

L. In theory, upto age eighteen, in a technologically advanced civilization, you could pick electronics as a background skill, as well as mechanics, vacuum suit, and athletics.

M. Having these are somewhat redundant, as they duplicate the initial service skills, and they can't be improved by basic training.

N. Gaming the system, you pick skills that aren't service skills.

O. On the other hand, having already these skills, could mean that you actually get a bonus to qualification to that career.

P. After all, if you already know athletics, electronics, and vacuum suit, you'd be considered an ideal candidate for that career.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Gantry Crane

1. Built into the ceiling of a cargo hold, this overhead gantry crane is designed to shift cargo containers in and out of the ship.

2. The crane’s mechanism moves about the bay on a sliding jig and can extend beyond the cargo door on a gibbet to deposit freight directly onto a dockside or vehicle.

3. The crane is strong enough to lift fully loaded containers of up to 65 tons and can couple with most pallets and crates.

4. Sixty five tonnes isn't doing it for me.

5. I need seventy.

6. 2.5 + 0.5 per 150 tons (or part thereof) of cargo space

7. Seventy over sixty five equals 2.692307692307692 tonnes.

8. Plus 0.5384615384615385 tonnes per one hundred fifty tonnes of cargo space.

9. Simplified two and seven tenths tonnes for the crane.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Gantry Crane

A. And we'll simplify per one hundred fifty tonnes to 0.54 tonnes of gantry.

B. All at the original cost of a megastarbux per tonne.

C. Why?

D. Because, I now have standardized seventy tonne cargo loads.

E. I have to admit, I never quite figured out where the thirty two and sixty five tonne loads originated from.

F. And I think if you link one or more cranes together, you can increase the load.

 

[Fluffy Bunny Feet]

4. Sixty five tonnes isn't doing it for me.

5. I need seventy.

Lower the gravity in the cargo hold

 

[Condottiere]

I suppose that's feasible, but I kinda suspect that the apparatus as a whole is rated for a given capacity.

Why seventy tonnes?

I was recalculating spacecraft smallcraft hulls, and it turns out, this was ideal for certain purposes.

 

[Fluffy Bunny Feet]

Then use 2 of them in tandem.

 

[Condottiere]

I considered it, but seventy tonnes is just right.

It took me a while to realize it, that I was copying Sword World practice, but at one eighth less tonnes.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Standardized Tonnages

1. Five tonnes - Dinghy class ultralite utility transporter, Dingbat class gunboat, Dingo class ultralite fighter, Dingle class lift transporter, fortyish foot cargo container

2. Ten tonnes - cargo container

3. Seventeen and a half tonnes - light fighter, light cargo container

4. Thirty five tonnes - medium fighter, medium cargo container

5. Seventy tonnes - Swordfish class torpedo bomber, large cargo container

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Swordfish Class Torpedo Bomber

1. The Fairey Swordfish has always fascinated me.

2. Yet the question as to how to translate it into a Traveller format has always seemed elusive.

3. I considered installing a Venture Drive, which would turn it into a monoparsec starwarship, with a torpedo payload.

4. At the other end of the scale, an ultralite fighter bomber with a torpedo grapple, that would hold two torpedoes, and/or six missiles.

5. Then, the aesthetic of a canvas covered airframe.

6. However, I suspect that's not structurally strong enough to support either firm or hard points.

7. Also, the questions of cost and utility.

8. Then I recalled that planetoids base bridge infrastructure on actual usable volume.

9. Which for seventy tonnes at sixty five percent, is forty five and a half tonnes.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Swordfish Class Torpedo Bomber

A. Ironically, that moves fabric covered hull to ironclad.

B. Yet, both could be categorized as a rather primitive construction method, compared to contemporary ones.

C. If we used actual primitive planetoids, we'd be limited to acceleration three.

D. Which would fit with the the Swordfish's characteristic slow speed.

E. Problem is, no manoeuvre drive.

F. Reactionary rockets with their fuel consumption, rather restricts its range and endurance.