Contest - Traveller Ship Design in 3 Steps

[robject]

Wil's preview of MWP's Firefly RPG got me thinking: what do you think a Traveller "Three Step" ship design system might look like?

Rule: Design a starship in Traveller based on three choices:

1. Hull Type
2. Distinction #2
3. Distinction #3

You can define what is included with each decision step. It can be as simple or as complicated as you like. It can include or ignore as many ship design elements as you want. It can represent as many or as few ship 'classes' and sizes in Traveller as you think reasonable. The sole criteria is that the process only takes the 3 steps sketched above.

Post your idea before reading mine, which is in the next post.

 

[robject]

Okay, here's my 3-step ship design system. It's rough around the edges, but it appears to be taking shape. I note, with dismay, that Step 1 pretty much defines the entire ship, while the other 2 steps simply change things around a bit. I'm not sure I like that. An alternate method would be to define the hull type more generically ({small, medium, or large} x {basic, protected, or strong}, for example), then to let the next step define the mission more clearly (Military, Corporate, Private).

Step 1: Hull Types

Military: 800 tons. AV12. 32 crew. Streamlied, J3M3, crew works in 3 shifts.
Liner: 600 tons. AV12. Streamlined, J3M1, 10 crew, 30 passengers, 120t cargo, pinnace.
Freighter: 3,000 tons. AV13. Braced, J4M1, 10 crew, 35 passengers, 1,000t cargo, pinnace.
Merchant: 400 tons. AV10. Streamlined, J1M1, 5 crew, 15 passengers, 100t cargo.
Courier: 100 tons. AV10. Streamlined, J2M1, 4 crew, 3 tons cargo, Air/Raft.
Charter/Research: 400 tons. AV15. Cluster, J3M1, 12 crew, 50 tons cargo, Pinnace.

Step 2: Equipment

Select one.

Gunned. Improve all weapons for military; add weapons package to all other designs. Double armor rating. -10% to passengers and cargo.
Survey. Equipped to conduct surveys. (cost?)
Wilderness. Equipped to work (for a year at a time) away from starports, tarmacs, refined fuel, etc.
Hazard. Protected against unusual space hazards (flares, positive pressure, radiation, etc).


Step 3: Performance

Select one.

Express: Add 2 to jump, -20% to passengers and cargo.
Long: Add 1 to Jump, -10% to passengers and cargo.
Short: Reduce Jump by 1. Add 10% to passengers and cargo.
Large: Double all volumes.
Small: Halve all volumes.

 

[atpollard]

Rule: Design a starship in Traveller based on three choices:
1. Hull Type
2. Distinction #2
3. Distinction #3

I was always a fan of the CT LBB2 ship design (or rather the version printed in the The Traveller Book) and I always wanted to reverse engineer LBB5 to make an updated 'Quick and Dirty' Starship Design. Along those lines (with d6 for fast random ship generation):

STEP 1:
Select a Standard Hull:

D6	dTons	MCr	Notes:
1	6	11	100 dT hull, bridge & 1 crew stateroom
2	12	22	200 dT hull, bridge & 2 crew staterooms
3	24	44	400 dT hull, bridge & 4 crew staterooms
4	48	88	800 dT hull, bridge & 8 crew staterooms
5	96	176	1600 dT hull, bridge & 16 crew staterooms
6	192	352	3200 dT hull, bridge & 32 crew staterooms

STEP 2:
Select a Standard Performance for Jump/Maneuver/Power.

		Per 100 dT Hull	Per 100 dT Hull	Per 100 dT Hull
D6	Description	dTons	MCr*	Fuel*
1	(J1-M1-P1)	5	12	10.5 dT
2	(J2-M2-P2)	10	20.5	21 dT
3	(J3-M3-P3)	15	29	31.5 dT
4	(J4-M4-P4)	20	37.5	42 dT
5	(J5-M5-P5)	25	46	52.5 dT
6	(J6-M6-P6)	30	54.5	63 dT

[TR] [/TR]

* Fuel for 1 jump and 2 weeks normal operation.
High Density Storage is available for the fuel and will reduce the fuel volume in half and double the cost of the drives.

STEP 3:
Select bonus features to fill unused space.

dTons	MCr	Description
36	4.5	1 Steward, 8 High Passengers & 9 Staterooms
1	1	Single Beam Laser Turret
1	2	Dual Beam Laser Turret
1	3	Triple Beam Laser Turret

Obviously, there would be lots and lots of additional features that could be added. The point is to keep it simple and modular.

 

[robject]

I like it, AT.