V3-Ship Design

[captainjack23]

Yes, you are absolutely correct with regard to the big ships....although I admit that I never designed TNE ships, so the radiator issue escaped me. Still, it results in the proportional difference between the ends being much less - creating an "eggshells with sledgehammers" design bias towards smaller overarmed ships.

In any case, try calculating turret installation with surface area unimpeded by radiators. It starts bad, and stays bad as ship sizes increases. Yes the high end has proportionally less turrets than the low end, but it's still an absurd amount. And in any case, I'd still suggest that being able to mount seven or eight triple turrets on a scout is excessive.....

I think we're basically on the same page here, if looking at different paragraphs..

Cap

 

[atpollard]

A small thought on CT and computer/software transparency.

At TL 12, a small cheap hand comp "equal to a model 1" becomes available which would allow virtually every component to have its very own dedicated computer pre-loaded with all the right software. So why bother specifying Computers and Software in painful detail?

Technically, a scout ship could be run by plugging the handcomp in your pocket into a jack on the pilot's panel, and if it gets damaged in battle, the gunner could loan the Pilot his handcomp.

 

[jlcatch]

Actually, if I read the personal computer rules correctly, there wouldn't need to be a pilot or a gunner. For 13KCr at TL12, you can have a personal computer running Intellect/1 and Expert/2. The skills you need are:- pilot, astronavigator, comms, sensors, mechanic, engineer(might as well have all five) and gunner(say one per hardpoint). Get one module for each and have them built into the relevant controls/components and networked up to the main computer systems. This costs you 130KCr without the gunnery units (i.e. peanuts compared to the ship), plus the fitting cost. Every operation of the ship can now be run by giving the relevant unit orders. Add another unit whose job it is to coordinate this (running steward ?) and the "crew" don't even need to know how things happen. Add a few repair robots and one crewmember is needed. They can recline in comfort on the bridge with their favourite beverage and give orders.

'Ship, have the dock robots finished loading the cargo yet?'

'Not quite, they will be finished in 43 minutes'

'OK, when they're done, contact the starport for permission to leave, plot a course for the next stop and set off. I'm going to have a snooze now. Wake me up when it's time for tea.'

Add a servitor and they don't even need to get up to feed themelves! ;-)

Military ships could afford to push the boat out the extra 95KCr per module to get skill/2 on everything - or maybe higher, you never know what they have access to that civilians can't buy!

Characters with higher skills could take over - if the computers agreed!

'I'm sorry, Dave I can't let you do that. You aren't certified fly this ship manually.'

 

[pasuuli]

But software selection was fun, yes some of the programs are a bit pointless but the playing around with what can be run at once made things quite interesting.

You are being pusued by a pair of type T's who are after the old man and kid on board, you can't outrun them but in order to make the jump to Rhlylanor you need to drop the Evade or Auto-Repair programs. :shock: It was part of the joy of the small ship paradigm.

Actually this is two issues, not one.

The first issue is that your jump-4 drive ought to have a jump-4 program hardcoded into it. Why would you buy a jump-3 program in an "off the shelf" design system? In a more fancified and detailed system, maybe, but this ain't that. But here? Subsume the cost of a little computer and that one program into each drive unit.

The second issue is that your computer should have room to buy stuff to make your ship perform certain functions better. I think this is gives you customization choices and "choose wisely" situations and I like it.

 

[AKAramis]

The first issue is that your jump-4 drive ought to have a jump-4 program hardcoded into it. Why would you buy a jump-3 program in an "off the shelf" design system? In a more fancified and detailed system, maybe, but this ain't that. But here? Subsume the cost of a little computer and that one program into each drive unit.

The issue is that your Type C which gets you J1 in a 400 tonner is the exact same drive as the type C which gets a 200 tonner J3... except for the computer.

 

[pasuuli]

The first issue is that your jump-4 drive ought to have a jump-4 program hardcoded into it. Why would you buy a jump-3 program in an "off the shelf" design system? In a more fancified and detailed system, maybe, but this ain't that. But here? Subsume the cost of a little computer and that one program into each drive unit.

The issue is that your Type C which gets you J1 in a 400 tonner is the exact same drive as the type C which gets a 200 tonner J3... except for the computer.

Yeah, I saw that after I'd posted.