Alternate/modified ship tech

[JAFARR]

What tech mods do you use for ship construction?
Here are my personal favorite additions to the MT rules:
Popup turrets taken from an old article titled "Q-Ships" in one of the canon publications. I never saw it used anywhere else.
Adds 1 ton or 13.5 kl, requires 1 power and costs .1 MCr for the additional mechanical parts. Multiply turret weight by 1.5 to get weight.
Magazines with autoloaders Modern naval vessels use them - Why not starcraft. I applied data from one of the older anternate combat system vehicle rules years ago so I don't remember which it was. Basicly reduce the magazine capacity to 100 missles and/or sand canisters per ton vs. MT's 135 per ton to allow for the autoloader mechanisms. I also figured a minium size of .5 tons as a magazine. It may be possible to have multiple weapons using the same magazine depending on turret location. Each autoloader costs .01 MCr, adds .1 ton weight and consumes .1 power. (I even add this to HG ships even though magazines were not required by HG.)
Re-configurable batteries On larger ships, when using laser turrets in the anti-missle mode (or even in anti-fighter mode) you can selectivly assign which turrets are in which battery. In smaller ships, more batteries allow multiple targets, but larger batteries do more damage to a single apponent. The ability to re-configure batteries to the situation makes for a more capable ship. For MT, just double the required number of control points. Also I use TL 13 as the minium for this rule.
Built in robots This is mentioned in LBB#8, but I have never actually seen it done.

 

[RainOfSteel]

I allow various alternate rules for HG2 (like my own "Hardening", the anti-meson gun defense; double the weight and cost of standard armor); though I've begun using T20, and haven't created anything in it yet incorporating any of my alternate rules.

I allow vessels of up to 120 dTons to be designed under the Small Ship rules (a ship is designated small or large at design time).

I allow jump tanks, but not dropping them them right before jump to gain full advantage of a fuel load that isn't there anymore (i.e. I don't have the whole fuel load being used prior to jump). IMTU, the fuel is used up during the period of the jump, and dropping the tanks before the jump would prevent that.

I have a variety of differing accomodations beyond simple staterooms.

I provide that 10% of the HG2/T20 Bridge Allocation is the default Ship's Locker. In large ships this may be distributed in several locations. I have an Imperial regulation that states that cargo cannot be carried in it (safety issues). Customs inspectors can, if they chose, levy fines for finding anything they deem as cargo in the Ship's Locker, with fees of Cr250, Cr500, Cr1000, and finally Cr5000 per subsequent offense. Most starship captains don't bother to use it for anything other than stowage of gear (survival/tool/suit etc.). [Note: Yes, I've recently been made award of T20 p.262, but under this, 10% of a Bridge's allocated volume must be Ship's Locker.]

 

[Golan2072]

I use the Book 2 design system with grafts from HG, especially Sigg Oddra's modified rules. And I've changed Nuclear Dampners to be a mid-TL13 tech; IMTU they exist only as an R&D prototype. So nukes DO work as a ship-killing weapon; uranium is an important commodity.

Now, on to the non-standard technologies:

Direct Neural Interface Piloting
Matriarchate tech, seen as outright weird and somewhat frightening by all other polities, even by the (relativelt tolerant) Alliance. Inspired by Shadowrun rigging, the DNI-P involves an extensive cybermodification of the pilot's brain, allowing her to link to the ship on a neural level. It also required a specialized ship control system. I'm not sure yet what bonuses (and penalties - this is the most extensive neuromod IMTU) I'll give to this system.

Hydroponics
An alternate life support system, common in the Matriarchate and the Alliance, especially on large ships/stations. Again, I'm not sure about what stats to give to it.

EMP Bombs
An anti-computer/anti-robot bomb, causing only the computer/avionics effects of nukes without their blast damage. Used as a ship-disabling weapon.

 

[robject]

Originally posted by Employee 2-4601:

Now, on to the non-standard technologies:

Hydroponics
An alternate life support system, common in the Matriarchate and the Alliance, especially on large ships/stations. Again, I'm not sure about what stats to give to it.

Yeah, this is worth thinking about. How much air can be filtered, and how much 'food yeast' or whatnot can be produced per ton of high-TL hydroponica?

Caution. Wild assumptions begin.

Assume:
Imperial Hydroponic Life Support includes food, air filtration, waste processing, etc.

Further Assume:
About 1 ton of hydroponics per person per week of life support. So two tons per person are probably sufficient for typical traders (one jump plus in-system time).

So then Assume:
50 tons per person are required for "permanent" life support for one person.

 

[Andrew Boulton]

FF&S2 has stats for long-term life-support (hydroponics etc).

 

[JAFARR]

Originally posted by Employee 2-4601:

Hydroponics
An alternate life support system, common in the Matriarchate and the Alliance, especially on large ships/stations. Again, I'm not sure about what stats to give to it.

the Matriarchate and the Alliance? What areas of the Imperium do these refer to?

 

[Golan2072]

Originally posted by Andy Fralix:

the Matriarchate and the Alliance? What areas of the Imperium do these refer to?[/QUOTE]

NOT parts of the OTU by any terms. Only of MTU

check the "Difference between Universes" thread for details

 

[Maynard]

I've got some stats for galleys, food storage stuff, as well as for hydroponics systems in starships, by tech level, energy requirements, and types of raw materials needed for feeding, etc., if anyone is interested. I found them while reading some old mailing lists somewhere from the early 90's, or maybe the Rice Archives, I forget, on just this topic, if anybody is interested.
I'm not sure how copyrights rules work on posting info from other discussion boards and mailing lists, though, so I'm not sure I can even post them, and I also can't properly attribute some of it as the author's names are long gone or merely handles. Anybody know what the rules are on this?

 

[Golan2072]

Originally posted by Maynard:
I'm not sure how copyrights rules work on posting info from other discussion boards and mailing lists, though, so I'm not sure I can even post them, and I also can't properly attribute some of it as the author's names are long gone or merely handles. Anybody know what the rules are on this?

Since we're talking about quoting internet users and not messing with corporate "intellectual property", it's far less a matter of copyright laws and far more a matter of Netiquette (sp?); and I think that giving the nickname and the origion/date should be enough; and i'm not sue that this data is even officially "copyrighted" (which means, IIRC, getting it listed in some beraeucratic office) - it's a metter of decency, so don't attribute it to yourself and give credit to the authors - nicknames would suffice IMHO.

 

[The Oz]

I allow partial armoring of ships (only protecting the parts you think need to be protected), mixing tech levels (at a cost in maintenance), and I have my own systems (foam shields against laser/energy fire, anti-missile lasers, anti-missile missiles, etc). I also have some changes to the computers/sensors.

 

[Fritz_Brown]

Actually, all intellectual property is copyrighted. There is no registration required - merely the assertion of those rights at the appropriate time. With attribution (as much as you have), though, it becomes moot. If there is no published work (article, book, etc.), I don't think you are as restricted in how much you quote.

After all, 2-4601, I wouldn't ever use YTU without attribution. (At least along the lines of, "I don't know who this guy is, but he writes a wicked TU!)

 

[Maynard]

Originally posted by Fritz88:
Actually, all intellectual property is copyrighted. There is no registration required - merely the assertion of those rights at the appropriate time. With attribution (as much as you have), though, it becomes moot. If there is no published work (article, book, etc.), I don't think you are as restricted in how much you quote.

After all, 2-4601, I wouldn't ever use YTU without attribution. (At least along the lines of, "I don't know who this guy is, but he writes a wicked TU!)

Yes, I'm thinking this is right. In any case, I'm trying to find the original sites, and found one, on galleys and such, but have had no luck finding the source for the hydroponics yet. The page I saved has no attributions, so it is apparently from somebody's website, so I'm stuck there. I have no idea if it was published somewhere or not.

Here's a link I found for part of it:

Galleys

I'm going to try to find the other the next couple of days, as the page's path is a saved page on my drive, so I only have part of the url.

Wait, Google found it with a partial:

Hydroponics

I'd cut and pasted this stuff to an Open Office text document and edited it, so I had no idea where I got It. Luckily I had saved the original web page to a CD.LOL

 

[Golan2072]

Originally posted by Fritz88:
After all, 2-4601, I wouldn't ever use YTU without attribution. (At least along the lines of, "I don't know who this guy is, but he writes a wicked TU!)

Thanks, and as I've already said, it's far more a matter of nettiquette and decency than of "intellectual property" and lawyers.

 

[Golan2072]

Originally posted by blackirish56:
I hope I don't really upset the hardcore Traveller gearheads out there, but...

Hey, it's your TU after all - as long as it's O.K. with you and with your players, I see no problem with that.

 

[JAFARR]

Originally posted by blackirish56:
I hope I don't really upset the hardcore Traveller
gearheads out there, but...I took the entire jump drive
concept and stood it on its head.

IMTU, the entire progression of jump sizes and fuel
consumption is reversed. My G-space drives, named after
the accidental inventor of the initial principles, Dr.
Emerson Greene, starts out with jump-1 performance but
uses jump-6 sizes and fuel consumption. That is, the
original tech-9 jump drive needs 60% of mass as fuel to
perform a 1-parsec transit.

I can hear the gearheads screaming already...but don't
worry, things get lots better. As you can infer by
observation, at higher tech levels, these drive get VERY
efficient. An adventure I wrote for a group of
characters has them on a tech 13.5 ship, which makes a
4.5 parsec transit in one week with only 25% fuel
consumption. Good thing, since their target system was
about 30 parsecs away...

I know, I'm upsetting gearheads and canon devotees
alike. Hey, it gets worse...I also use jump torpedoes,
military use only, which at the time of the adventure
are approaching jump-30 or so, if I remember correctly.
Wait a moment while I insert earplugs to dampen the
screams...

Now, don't think I am some transplant that doesn't know
any better. I have been a Traveller fan ever since the
3-book boxed set came out, and was hardcore right
through the start of Megatraveller. I never could get
those new ship design rules down, though. The only thing
that upset me was the relatively puny range of
supposedly high technology starships. I mean, look at
Star Trek. Now there are some ships that get around! I
wanted more of that sort of flavor IMTU, so I thought
long and hard about what would do that without upsetting
the gritty 'free trader' flavor some people love so
much.

Everything else is the same--100 diameter limit, no
commo in jump...err, G-space, nothing out of the
ordinary. Of course, the discovery of the tuned
wormholes might upset more people...but that's a subject
for another post.

While I think I follow your logic, I think I will respectfully decline to use your system. However, I only do this because it is fun. Fun to you and your players may be this system.
I ventured into "Space Opera" a few times and what I did like about it was increasing the equalivalent of TL generally decreased size and cost.

BTW, the only thing Star Trek ships do better than Traveller ships is warp drive. Their weapons are puny compared to Traveller's overall. (There may be a few individual exceptions.)

 

[JAFARR]

My last post reminded of something from the first rules for Traveller 2300. IIRC, you could use your engineering skill to tweek or fine tune your drives and improve their preformance just like real life auto mechanics do to their car engines. How could that be implimented in Traveller?

 

[far-trader]

Originally posted by Andy Fralix:
My last post reminded of something from the first rules for Traveller 2300. IIRC, you could use your engineering skill to tweek or fine tune your drives and improve their preformance just like real life auto mechanics do to their car engines. How could that be implimented in Traveller?

YEEEE-HAWWWW...

We got us another modder!

Check out the posts here for some discussion by a few good ol boys and back-system engineers


Tune up!

Have fun!

 

[Klaus]

Using T20, I add auxiliary reactors and batteries to add excess power to charge weapons.

a TL9 Aux reactor is 5dtons and an EP 2 / 2 tons fuel
a TL13 Aux reactor is 4dtons for the same performance.
a TL15 is 1dton for the same performance.

Batteries are derived from the jump capacitor idea detailed in the Black Globe section of the THB. These can hold 36EP, but as they're designed for use by the jumpdrive I've surmised they are high capacity, quick discharge, but cannot keep the charge for long periods (more than hours).

TL10 Batteries hold 10EP, max discharge 1EP/round, recharge 0.25EP/hour. (40hrs to recharge)
TL12 Batteries hold 20EP, max discharge 2EP/round, recharge 0.5EP/hour. (40hrs to recharge)
TL14 Batteries hold 30EP, max discharge 4EP/round, recharge 1EP/hour. (30hrs to recharge)

 

[Golan2072]

Reading several threads about hydroponics, I've come to approximate conclusions (not 100% realistic, but I think it's workable for game use) about hydroponics in CT, and conscructed the following modules:

Hydroponic Garden (TL8): A hydroponical (that is, raising plants in water rather than in soil) garden intended for recreational and decorative use, as well as for limited life support and recycling applications. Comes in 8-dton modules, costing MCr1 each, and includes various plants (ranging from grass to tree-like shrubs), as well as a small fish tank (fish are both decorative and edible) and some recycling equipment. Requires 20kg (Cr5,000) in additional nutrients per year and must be connected to an existing life support system. Though the Garden is not a fully contained life support system, it could still help in waste, water and air recycling and produce some food; therefore, each module reduces the life support costs of 8 persons by 20% (so the life support will cost Cr1,600 rather than Cr2,000 per person per week for these people).

Full Hydroponics (TL8): A full, self-contained ecosystem containing hydroponics, yeast/algae/fish tanks as well as heavy recycling equipment, the Full Hydroponics are, theoretically self sufficient, though nutrient (and other resources) loss requires the addition of 5kg (Cr1,000) of replacements per year of use. Each Full Hydroponics displaces 4 tons, costs MCr2 and could provide complete life support (except for heating and radiation protection provided by power-plant powered systems and the ship's hull, respectively) for two persons for a practically infinite time (as long as nutrients are supplied and the power plant operates).

Note that for both systems, a single dton of cargo space could store 5,000kg of replacement nutrients/materials.

 

[Rossoneill]

T4 FF&S has what i consider excellent rules for different Life ,support all the way up to large animals cows etc as part of the system